Local
This week, as the world celebrates Love Your Book Shop Day we pray for all the places where we can access books. We pray for the book shops in Gungahlin, the last couple of years have been hard for small businesses and we pray for those who continue to sell books. We also hold our libraries in our prayers, for the librarians and those who help us all have access to stories of fantasy, science fiction, children’s literature, biography, adventure, science, history, literature.
We hold the world’s authors and illustrators in our prayers, for the stories they invite us into, the worlds they create, the dreams they inspire and the food they teach us to cook.
We pray for Maissa, Keith, Allan, Michael, Peter, Cameron.
We pray for the teachers and students of Gungahlin, of Canberra as they come to the completion of their first day of school for this final term of the year.
We pray for the Boys and Girls Brigades, in particular for their leaders as they continue to care for and lead the members of the brigades as they meet online, and prepare for possible face to face gatherings later in the year.
We pray for the Korean Salim Congregation and their ministry to the community of Gungahlin at this time.
Regional
This week we join with the Presbytery of Canberra Region as we pray for the Mt Dromedary Parish
- Thanks that we have all been kept safe and well during the unprecedented events of our recent past and the opportunity to find new ways to worship.
- Thanks that despite waning numbers our church folk remain resilient, supportive, and prayerful. God is very much with us.
- For support of the behind the scenes workers who keep our Parish functioning.
- For strength, wisdom and compassion as we deal with policies which will exclude unvaccinated people from our outreach programs.
- For progress in filling the Community Chaplaincy position in our Parish.
National
This week we pray with the National Assembly of the Uniting Church in Australia as we pray for
- The Uniting Church in its commitment to act on the climate crisis and shape a better future for our planet.
- The discernment of Uniting Church communities impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns that are beginning to consider ways they might gather in person again.
- Members of the Northern Synod who are meeting in Darwin this week.
World
This week we join with the World Council of Churches as we pray for the world, in particular for Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela
We are thankful for:
- the beauty in these countries, including in their people and cultural traditions
- persistent, patient, prophetic work of churches and ecumenical and other organizations, to establish peace with justice throughout the region, especially in Colombia
- resistance to past colonization, and to practices of today that prioritize economic ideologies over the needs of the people
- efforts by churches and people of goodwill for inclusive and respectful relations in society and government.
We pray for:
- the continued pursuit of peace in Colombia, the fulfilment of agreements reached, the reintegration of insurgents into society, broad and inclusive dialogue for justice, and fair compensation of those victimized by conflict
- the strengthening of democratically elected governments in the region, without pressure from outside interests
- greater respect for the human rights of all, especially vulnerable populations and those who work for the wellbeing of others and of the environment
- an end to the corruption in these societies, and to unsustainable exploitation of their resources.
Continue to pray with the WCC by praying the prayers in their Prayer Cycle