Local

We pray for all who are traveling, may the travel be safe, may it be a time of seeing you in action in new places and people and may it be one where they come back refreshed.

We pray for all who are going through treatment for Cancer, or other health issues, we pray for their doctors and specialists, their nurses and carers. In particular we pray for Michael, Cameron, Peter.

We pray for our health professionals, for those working in testing sites, for our hospitals, for all involved in looking after the vulnerable.

We pray for all who are experiencing COVID at this time, for all in isolation, for all experiencing fear and anxiety and for those caring for friends or family with COVID.

World

This week we join with the World Council of Churches as we pray for Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen.

We are thankful for:

• the ancient cultures and religions that have been sustained in this area for millennia
• those who continue to pursue peace in the midst of ethnic strife and terrorism
• the faithfulness of Muslims in expressing their faith and working with others 
• Christians who practice their faith even when they are a small, often discriminated minority.

We pray for:

• women and others in these countries who are deprived of basic freedoms and human dignity
• those who misuse or exploit religious identity for extremist political ends
• the wise use of the benefits of oil and other natural resources for the sake of all
• the emergence of stable democratic societies based on the rule of law, social justice, and respect for religious and other freedoms.

Continue praying with the WCC by engaging with their weekly prayer cycle here

Local

We pray for all experiencing treatment for Cancer, this week we think particularly of Michael and Cameron. We pray for your presence, peace, love, hope and joy. We pray for healing where possible and for your arms to embrace them this week.

We pray for all traveling, seeing family for the first time for a while, camping, travelling overseas or interstate, for those on bikes, in cars, on feet and in flight. We pray for their safety and that the time is blessed.

We pray for the community of Gungahlin over January, may the new year see neighbours loved, peace reigning, understanding shared and hope renewed.

We pray for our new Church Council, for Jenelle, Bronwyn, Elizabeth, Bruce, Sue, John and Lynne. We pray for the process to bring a new ministry agent to Gungahlin UCA, and for all involved. May your vision guide us and voice call us.

National

We join with the National Assembly of the Uniting Church in Australia as we pray for

• The Devonport community. We pray for the families and friends of the children who died, their classmates, emergency workers who responded and all those providing care for the community. 
• The people of the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Rai which killed more than 300 people. We pray for those mourning lives lost and families who have been displaced or left without food and water. 
• Uniting Church communities of faith and all Christians who will celebrate the birth of Jesus at Christmas. We pray we will be united in and transformed by God’s hope, peace, joy and love. 

World

This week we join with the World Council of Churches as we pray for Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan

We give thanks for:

• the distinctive temples, art and cultures in the region
• the education and economic developments that have improved the lives of many in Japan and South Korea
• how the council of churches in Japan has promoted reconciliation with the rest of Asia
• the prophetic witness of Christians in Japan and South Korea
• the persistent witness to justice for “comfort women” from the Second World War
• the great religious tolerance exhibited by the Taiwanese and their pioneering of contextual theological education
• the Ecumenical Forum for Peace, Reunification and Development Cooperation on the Korean Peninsula, which with others has sought to reunify Korea, to defend human rights, and to work for peace and justice.

We pray for:

• an end to repression of people and to threats of military confrontation, especially on the Korean peninsula
• the reunification of Korea, that peace and justice might prevail
• peaceful resolution of the many disputed claims to islands in the South China Sea by Taiwan and its neighbours and for greater understanding and cooperation between Taiwan and mainland China.
• women and other marginalized groups, and the inequalities they experience
• greater acceptance of immigrants that they might make a positive contribution
• new hope and meaning for the young, amid pressures of competition and consumerism.

We continue to pray with and for the world with the World Council of Churches here using their prayer cycle resources

Local

We give thanks for all the work our schools have put into teaching and supporting students over th last year. We pray that, as their teaching year comes to an end they find time to refresh before a new year begins with new challenges and new students.

We pray for all who are travelling over the Christmas season, for safe roads, safe airways, safe waterways, safe cycle tracks and safe hiking tracks. Be with all who are travelling.

We pray for the churches in Gungahlin, for their ministry agents and leaders.

Regional

We join with the Canberra Region Presbytery of the UCA as we pray for our Emergency Services and Disaster Recovery Chaplains

• We pray for all those workers who continue offer protection, healing, hope and service when disasters happen across country.
• We give thanks for the SES volunteers, firefighters, police officers, nurses, paramedics, rescue services, and others who regularly put their own wellbeing on the line for the sake of others.
• We pray for disaster recovery chaplains, hospital and military chaplains who care for the professionals and communities affected by all sorts of disasters and emergencies every day.
• We remember in our prayers those currently impacted by flood waters, still displaced by bushfire, still waiting for restoration after damaging hail, and all of us deeply impacted by the pandemic.
• We pray for healing and restoration, care and compassion, rest, and recovery after a particularly disaster-heavy few years.
• As we approach advent, we pray that the reality of God with Us in Jesus may continue to spread peace and goodwill – even (and especially) in times when these things seem far away.

National

We join with the National Assembly of the Uniting Church in Australia as we pray for

• Those impacted by the latest outbreaks of COVID-19 in the community, including those who are ill, health workers and others caring for them, and those who will need to isolate over the Christmas period.
• Vaccine equity across the world and for more ambitious investment in programs to deliver vaccines in low income countries.
• Our church partners across the Pacific, Africa and Asia who are working to break the cycle of poverty, create gender equity, enact climate justice and respond to disasters.

World

This week we join with the World Council of Churches as we pray for China, Hong Kong, Macau.

We give thanks for:

• the long and complex history of China, with its many artefacts, cultures and traditions that have developed over millennia
• those who established missions and churches in the past, and the determination of Chinese Christians to contextualize the church here and now
• those who boldly live out their faith, challenging injustices even when they fear persecution
• the economic growth and development that have lifted many out of poverty
• the steps China is taking to counter huge environmental challenges.

We pray for:

• those left behind and further marginalized by rising economic growth, especially women and peasants in rural areas
• the political and social tensions between the mainland of China and Hong Kong and the rest of the world
• a growth in prophetic witness of the Chinese church in society
• spiritual meaning and freedom from captivity to economic growth and consumerism.

We continue to pray with the WCC and the wider church by joining with their prayer cycle in praying the prayers on their website