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Irish Prayer of Gratitude
Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding and
my entire will – all that I have and call my own.
You have given it all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it.
Everything is yours; do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace. That is enough for me.
Amen
You’ve blessed me with friends, and laughter, and fun.
With rain that’s as soft as the light of the sun.
You’ve blessed me with stars to brighten each night.
You’ve given me help to know wrong from right.
You’ve given me so much. Please, Lord, give me too,
a heart that is always grateful to you.
Amen
We pray:
That we may set aside material wants to follow Jesus more faithfully.
That we learn to more deeply trust God to provide us with all that we
need.
That we may strive to be more like the Good Samaritan, sharing our time,
talent and treasure where it is needed.
That we may find time this week to be with Jesus in prayer.
That we may learn to differentiate between the simple things we need and
the many things we want.
That we may remember that the many possessions we strive to acquire are
worthless in the eyes of the Lord.
That we may invest more time and talent in building up a treasure in
heaven.
That, as families, we may recognize the importance of giving and strive
to find more ways that we can share our blessings with others.
That we may learn to value all people for the unique gifts and qualities
that God has bestowed upon them, rather than for their material
possessions and accomplishments.
That we may learn to give generously, expecting nothing in return.
That by living as Christian stewards we may overcome excessive
materialism and find more joy in giving and sharing than in having and
acquiring.
That we recognize everything we have is a gift from God and offer back a
fair share of our time, talent and treasure in gratitude for God’s
abundant blessings to us.
That we may find joy in following God’s plan for us and using our
special gifts and talents to make a contribution to God’s work here on
earth.
For all those around the world who have so little while we enjoy so
much.
Amen
A LITANY OF GENEROSITY
Dear Lord,
We come before you today to ask you to help us be more generous.
We pray:
ALL: Gracious God,
give us generous hearts…
Leader: ...so we may fully appreciate all your many gifts to us.
ALL: Gracious God,
give us generous hearts…
Leader: ...so we may give without counting the cost.
ALL: Gracious God,
give us generous hearts…
Leader: ...so we may share without expecting something in return.
ALL: Gracious God,
give us generous hearts…
Leader: ...so we may know the joy that comes from helping others.
ALL: Gracious God,
give us generous hearts…
Leader: ...so we may share all that you have given us.
ALL: Gracious God,
give us generous hearts…
Leader: ...so we may hold all our treasures in an open hand.
ALL: Gracious God,
give us generous hearts…
Leader: ...so we may recognize the many blessings in each new day.
ALL: Gracious God,
give us generous hearts…
Leader: ...so we may learn the difference between what we need and what
we want.
ALL: Gracious God,
give us generous hearts…
Leader: ...so we may ever thank you and serve you.
Leader: Lord, we ask all of this, knowing that you will always give us
all that we need. Please bless the work we do for you today and always.
ALL: Amen
Lord of Life,
We thank you for the gift of life.
We thank you for all our blessings and talents.
We thank you for all good gifts.
Amen
Lord, God, we thank you for the abundance of time, talent and treasure
you have bestowed on the people of God of the church.
We ask you to help us "Be Responsible Stewards of Your Gifts to Us."
We ask you to bless us with the courage, generosity and selflessness to
help us multiply these gifts among us for the glory of your name.
Let us be not afraid, let us not bury our gifts.
Let us recognize and name these gifts in ourselves and in one another.
Lord Jesus, you have challenged us with your holy words in Sacred
Scripture:
* That the one who "seeks to save his life will lose it;"
* That the one who "loses his life for your sake will save it for
all eternity;"
* That the "greatest among us is the one who serves the rest;"
* That it is "harder for a rich man to enter heaven than for a camel
to pass through the eye of a needle;"
* That our "true treasure is in heaven."
Lord, give us the strength and the faith to respond to your challenging
words.
Lord, you have given us also generous promises:
* That you treasure greatly the sacrificial spirit of the widow’s
mite;
* That you will reward with hundredfold harvest those who sow in the
rich soil of faith;
* That you will not be outdone in generosity;
* That you will not give us burdens that we cannot bear.
We thank you, above all, for the joy-filled gift of faith and the
inspirational witness of generous church members of ages past.
This we pray through Christ, our Lord. Amen
Heavenly Father, eternally kind and gracious,
We thank You for all we are and all we possess.
This is all fruit of Your unlimited generosity and benevolence.
We thank You because we do not possess anything,
not even our lives, that has not been a gift from You.
Enlighten our minds so that we can use wisely
all the gifts that we receive from You daily.
Help us understand that it is better to give than to receive,
because giving helps our soul give up the material and temporal
in order to ally it with a spirit of altruism and charity.
Help us comprehend more each day that by means of giving,
we can adjust the inequalities of the human race.
This is the only way the strong and powerful can help the weak,
so that social peace can reign among us.
We place this in the name of Your beloved Son, Jesus,
who lives and reigns in unity with the Holy Spirit, forever and ever.
Amen
Loving God, I come to you in thanksgiving, knowing that all I am and all
that I have is gift from you. In faith and love, help me to do your
will. I am listening, Lord God. Speak your words into the depth of my
soul, that I may hear you clearly.
I offer to you this day all the facets of my life, whether it be at
home, at work, or at school – to be patient, to be merciful, to be
generous, to be holy. Give me the wisdom and insight to understand your
will for me and the fervor to carry out my good intentions. I offer my
gifts of time, talent and possessions to you as a true act of faith, to
reflect my love for you and my neighbor. Help me to reach out to others
as you my God have reached out to me.
Amen
O Lord, giver of life and source of freedom, I know that all I have
received is from your hand. Gracious and Loving Father, You call us to
be stewards of Your abundance, the caretakers of all You have entrusted
to us. Help us to always use Your gifts wisely and teach us to share
them generously. Send the Holy Spirit to work through us, bringing Your
message to those we serve. May our faithful stewardship bear witness to
the love of Jesus Christ in our lives.
We pray with grateful hearts, in Jesus’ name. Amen
Heavenly Father, You have blessed us with so many gifts in Jesus Christ
your Son, grant us your gracious Spirit that we may share these gifts
with others and so become a blessing in your wounded world, for your
love's sake.
Amen.
Father, at the first Eucharist your Son Jesus Christ gave himself to his
disciples under the forms of bread and wine. Enable us by the same token
to give ourselves to the work of your kingdom, that the hungry may be
fed, and the humble lifted high, and all come to know the love of God in
Jesus Christ, your Son our Lord.
Amen.
All generous God, you poured yourself out in creation; you gave your Son
to die for us on the cross; and you continue to give yourself to us
through the gift of your Holy Spirit. Give us generous hearts; that in
our response to your love our lives may overflow in thanksgiving and
generosity. Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
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