Prayers 23 August 2026

Prayers inspired by original prayers Psalm 138; Isaiah 51:1-6; Romans 12:1-8; Matthew 16:13-20 

[We gather] 

A preparation 

E te Atua aroha  
Awhinatia mai ki a mātou  
e noho ana kei roto i te pōuri. 

God of love 
Help us - 
those of us who mourn 

E whai mātou i te tika,  
e rapu na i a Koe 
Ka titiro ki te kohatu  
i haua mai ai mātou,  
ki te poka i te rua i keria mai ai mātou.  

We seek right relationship, 
we seek Your face.  
We look to the rock  
from which we were hewn, 
  and to the quarry from which we were dug. 

Bidding and Response: 
Make us a living sacrifice,  
holy and acceptable to You, O God. 

[We pray for the Church] 

E te Karaiti 

Peter was the rock you chose 
To build Your church upon. 
Here we are. 
You gave us  
the Grace of your gifts: 
to serve 
to teach,  
to inspire  
to prophesy, 
to contribute  
in ways that cannot be numbered. 

Grant us the grace  
To fulfil these gifts 
But most importantly 
To live our faith in love 
With each other  
and with those we do not know. 

Make us a living sacrifice,  
holy and acceptable to You, O God.  

[We pray for the world] 

We pray for our world  

We long for the time - 

When all the rulers of the earth shall give you thanks, O Lord, 
  for they have heard the words of your mouth, 
 and they shall sing of the ways of the Lord, 
  for great is the glory of the Lord. 

Help us to hold to that hope 
In these days (again) 
of war-hungry governments,  
of peoples without enough to eat, 
of girls who cannot got to school, 
of chaotic weather, 
of division and envy. 

Help them and us to break those chains, 
And to be bound in Your love instead.  

Make us a living sacrifice,  
holy and acceptable to You, O God. 

[We pray for our communities and for our own needs.] 

E te Wairua Tapu, Holy Spirit 
Be with us. 
Be in our communities 
Be in the homes and hearts of people we love 
And of people we dislike, or even hate. 
Be in our hospitals, 
Our jail cells, 
Our schools, our workplaces, 
And our own homes. 
We lift to you now our own needs, 
And those whom we love 
Help us, Holy Spirit.  

Make us a living sacrifice,  
holy and acceptable to You, O God.