PRAYER RESOURCES

 PRAYER FOR THOSE WHO MOURN
Bless those who mourn, eternal God,
with the comfort of your love
that they may face each new day with hope
and the certainty that nothing can destroy
the good that has been given.
May their memories become joyful,
their days enriched with friendship,
and their lives encircled by your love.
Amen.

GOD IS OUR HOPE
(Psalm 46: 1-4)
God is our hope and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore will we not fear, though the earth be moved,
and though the hills be carried into the midst of the sea;
Though the waters thereof rage and swell,
and though the mountains shake at the tempest of the same.
There is a river, the streams whereof make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High.

PRAYER FOR BEREAVED PARENTS
God, you sacrificed your son so that we and our children would transcend physical death.
We know that you grieved when he was crucified and that you grieve over all the atrocities done by men -- especially in your name.
You know and understand grief as you know and understand all.
You know best how to comfort these parents. Lift their hearts up to you and fill them with your peace.
Your understanding is beyond our human comprehension, but give them the knowledge and faith to endure even that which they can't understand.
Let them be aware of you always God, and help them to remember that your
Love is Life that can never really be taken away.

PSALM 91:1-16
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
abides under the shadow of the Almighty.
He shall say to the Lord,
"You are my refuge and my stronghold,
my God in whom I put my trust."
He shall deliver you from the snare of the hunter
and from the deadly pestilence.
He shall cover you with his pinions,
and you shall find refuge under his wings;
his faithfulness shall be a shield and buckler.
You shall not be afraid of any terror by night,
nor of the arrow that flies by day;
Of the plague that stalks in the darkness,
nor of the sickness that lays waste at mid-day.
A thousand shall fall at your side
and ten thousand at your right hand,
but it shall not come near you.
Your eyes only have to behold
to see the reward of the wicked.
Because you have made the Lord your refuge,
and the Most High your habitation,
There shall no evil happen to you,
neither shall any plague come near your dwelling.
For he shall give his angels charge over you,
to keep you in all your ways.
They shall bear you in their hands,
lest you dash your foot against a stone.
You shall tread upon the lion and the adder;
you shall trample the young lion and the serpent
under your feet.
Because he is bound to me in love,
therefore will I deliver him;
I will protect him, because he knows my Name.
He shall call upon me, and I will answer him;
I am with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and bring him to honor.
With long life will I satisfy him,
and show him my salvation.

FOR ALL WHO SUFFER
That it may please thee to visit the lonely;
to strengthen all who suffer in mind, body, and spirit;
and to comfort with thy presence those who are failing and infirm,

We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to support, help, and comfort all who are in danger, necessity, and tribulation,

We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
[Source: Book of Common Prayer 1979]

PSALM OF PROTECTION
(Psalms 27: 1-3)
The Lord is my light and my salvation-whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life-of whom shall I be afraid?
When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh,
when my enemies and my foes attack me,
they will stumble and fall.
Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me, even then will I be confident.

DO NOT LOSE HEART
(2 Corinthians 4:16-18)
Therefore we do not lose heart.
Though outwardly we are wasting away,
yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
For our light and momentary troubles
are achieving for us an eternal glory
that far outweighs them all.
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen,
but on what is unseen.
For what is seen is temporary,
but what is unseen is eternal.

PRAYER FOR THOSE WHO MOURN
Almighty God, Father of all mercies and giver of all comfort: Deal graciously, we pray thee, with those who mourn, that casting every care on thee, they may know the consolation of thy love, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
[Source: Book of Common Prayer 1979]

LOVE IS STRONGER THAN DEATH
Love is stronger than death.
So I must be content to know that
love is not affected by death--
it doesn't end, it doesn't diminish,
it doesn't change.
Instead, love is immortalized
and eternalized through death.
And the possibility of that love ever
being damaged or broken
is eliminated forever.
I'll put my trust in love.

Mary Hollingsworth Source: from "Little Taps on the Shoulder From God" © 2002 Mary Hollingsworth