Gracious God, as we come to You in prayer, we thank You for our pets, all creatures great and small. We thank You for everything they teach us about unconditional love and loyalty and friendship. We thank You that they accept us and love us for simply being who we are. Lord God, as the health crisis continues, we are aware of the impact the virus is having upon the care of our animals: medical attention that is not given as people are anxious about paying vets bills, cruelty that goes unnoticed whilst people stay inside. So too, we think of the plight of zoos and wildlife parks as they face the issues of reduced financial income. God of creation, we celebrate  the joy of animals and ask that You help us to be good stewards, to care for them and to provide for them, now and everyday, Amen.

Gracious God, we thank You that You are always with us. This week there will have been highs, lows, joys and sorrows in our lives, but when we look back, we reflect that You have taken every step with us, even in the times when we may not have been conscious of Your presence. You have been there to guide us and encourage us, and given us the strength to begin each new day. Through all the changing circumstances of our lives, we turn to You for stability and assurance because Your steadfast love never changes. May the knowledge of Your grace give us the confidence to have hope for the future, hope that is the assurance of Your continuing love for us. Amen.

Gracious God, we lift before You the children and young people who will be returning to school again today. We think especially of the Reception class children in Croston who will be meeting in Croston Methodist Church, beautifully and temporarily named ‘Rainbow House’. We thank for the opportunity to reach out and offer welcome to the families in this way. Lord God, please continue to be with all staff and children, those in school and those still educating at home. We ask for your blessing upon them as they seek to continue to engage in the joy of learning together. Amen.

A prayer from ‘All we Can’ at the start of Refugee week.

God, Creator of all, For people who are displaced;  may they find a safe refuge.
For people who have lost control of their lives; may they know a sure foundation.
For people who live in fear; may they be given a strong fortress.
For people who are disillusioned; may they have hope in a future.
Loving Father, in times of crisis, sorrow and uncertainty; we ask that you draw near. Amen.

Photo – Syrian refugee children participate in an art mural drawing workshop  in northern Iraq. This project is implemented by AptArt through ACTED, funded by ECHO and UNICEF. Photo credit: AptArt/Samantha Robinson. 2014

Gracious God, we thank you for creating a world of ethnic diversity and yet too often we do not honour that diversity. We thank you for sending Your Son Jesus to preach a message of justice and equality for all people, and yet too often we fail to heed that message. Loving and forgiving God, we ask for forgiveness for the times when we have not allowed the voices of our brothers and sisters to be heard, for the times when we have failed to speak out and allowed prejudice to hurt and destroy the lives of others. God of Grace, we pray for all those whose lives are disadvantaged simply because of the colour of their skin. We come before you in the name of Jesus Christ who taught us to love, honour and respect all people equally, regardless of ethnicity, gender or social status.  May we as a Church, seek to bring restoration, justice, equality and healing into our communities, and may we commit to a vision of a world where ‘your kingdom come’, the coming of a Kingdom where the voices of all your people are heard. Amen.

Gracious God, as we begin to re-emerge from our homes, we remember the millions of people, here and across the world, who do not have a safe place to call home; people displaced from their homes due to war and conflict, or natural disasters, people who have lost their homes due to financial issues, people who have experienced breakdowns, conflict or abuse within the family home. Lord God, as the difficulties these people face are compounded by the current health situation, we pray that the voices of these people will be heard. We pray that all those in positions of authority will remember and respond to their plight, that charitable organisations will receive the support and funding they need to respond and that, as a Church community, we will do what we can to reach out to show Your love to our neighbours. God of compassion,  be with all those in need of Your love and assurance this day. Amen.

Gracious God, as we wake up to the falling of rain, for the first time in many days, we are reminded of Your living water that refreshes and renews our souls. And so today Lord, we pray for your sustained energy and resolve to continue to place our trust in You, to hold true to the teachings of Jesus Christ. As the deer pants for the water, our souls long to be close to You. May Your Holy Spirit fill us and sustain us in the day ahead. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Gracious God, as lockdown eases we acknowledge the anxiety and insecurity felt by many people this morning, particularly those who have been shielding, and for whom the opportunity to leave their homes is a very daunting prospect. May we as a community seek to support them through this time of transition. So too, we remember those young children, who will return to school for the first time this morning and walk into a school environment that is somewhat unfamiliar to them. We remember their teachers, endeavouring to reassure them and keep them safe and their parents making the decision whether or not to let their children return. We remember too the education authority and teachers in our local community,  still trying to discern when they feel will be the right time for their schools to reopen. And we acknowledge those who are continuing to nurture and educate the children of front line workers. God of love, we need Your assurance and Your strength to navigate through the days and weeks ahead. And we ask for wisdom for those in power as they steer us forward. As we celebrated the gift of Your Holy Spirit yesterday, on the day of Pentecost, we ask for the outpouring of Your Holy Spirit across our nation, to guide and to comfort and to assure us of Your presence, in every home, every school, every workplace. Lord God, in You we place our trust. Amen

Reading: Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 1 John 4.7
Reflection: What would the world be like if everybody loved each other? Imagine that! Of course love is difficult because our human nature, although capable of great love, is imperfect. Our selfishness keeps getting in the way.
I think that the evidence that we actually know God is the fact that we have the ability to love everyone unconditionally. All the commandments are fulfilled in this, that we would love one another. That’s it. God is asking us to love one another in our words and in our deeds. It’s not necessarily easy, let’s be honest! It is only possible with the Father’s love, Christ’s example and the Spirit’s power. And God teaches us to love as we pray. To pray is to love.
Prayer: Loving God, help me to know you more. Through knowing you, may I show you more and love as you love. Please show your love to my  friends – through me and others who love you.

Love is lived out. Love is not just a declaration. It is commitment in action. That God feels love for us is absolutely amazing. It is humbling. God is always patient and kind with us, seeking to shape our lives by love.
One thing that God can really challenge us on is whether our Christian lives show something different, which is worth living for. If there’s nothing that looks particularly necessary or attractive about being a Christian, then what’s the point? What if we went out of our way to try to demonstrate God to as many people as we could, not just in our prayers but in our actions and in our praise? What if we were loving people, full of God’s goodness, joy and grace? People would notice: they might not call it ‘God’ at the time, but there would be something special about us – our relationship with God. The fruit of that relationship is a loving nature.
Prayer: Loving God, thank you for the way you love us. Please help me by the power of your Holy Spirit to love as you love, so that  people may come to know you.