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Prayer of Thanksgiving
Lord, You have blessed us as a church over the past year.
Through good times and difficult timeswe have felt Your hand of grace, forgiveness and healing.
Today, as a congregation,we want to publicly express our gratitude to You.
We thank You for the leaders among us.
For the many in our church who offer their time,
energy and abilities to lead us—both paid staff and volunteers, seen and unseen.
For these blessings, Lord, we give You thanks.
We thank You for the children of our congregation.
Each time a baby cries or shouts,
we are reminded of how much You love them.
We also thank You for the young people among us,
for the energy and passion they bring to us.
For these blessings, Lord, we give You thanks.
We thank You for many opportunities we have had to serve You, to demonstrate our love for You to our co-workers,our neighbors, our families and friends.
We thank You for the many among us who make possible
the ministries of Community of ChristChurch.
We also thank You for the many who reach out to others
in informal ways each week.
For these blessings, Lord, we give You thanks.
We thank You that even when sickness and accidents
make our future uncertain, You are with us,
strengthening, healing and encouraging.
We thank You that we can be part of the healing process
as we help care for one another.
For these blessings, Lord, we give You thanks.
We thank You for friendship.
We thank You for the many times we have enjoyed each other’s company over meals, in times of recreation and service, and in smaller groups.
For these blessings, Lord, we give You thanks.
Indeed, Lord, You have blessed us.
We have been blessed materially, physically,
emotionally and spiritually.
As we look back over this past year,
we realize that we have much to be grateful for.
We humbly receive the gifts You have given us,
knowing that You are the giver of all good things.
And so together we say:
For these blessings, Lord,
we give You thanks. Amen.
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