A church with heart in the heart of the city
From thetinyjoyproject:
Hey.
You made it to another morning.
Even with the messy thoughts.
Even with the ache you didn’t talk about.
Even with everything that still feels undone.
You’re still here.
Still showing up.
And that matters.
More than you know.
Peace Be With You. – Paul
From Dr. Heather Thompson-Day:
Joy, in a world of rage, is an act of resistance.
It is also a fruit of the spirit.
Pray for eyes to see and ears to hear.
Peace Be With You. – Paul
Until Peace Prevails- A Prayer for a Violent World – by Rev. Lisa Degrenia
God of mercy, God of hope,
You call us and all people to lay down our swords
and walk together in Your light.
Hear our prayer for nations at war,
for communities shattered by violence,
for homes filled with anger.
Turn hatred into love and respect.
Turn hostility into compassion and hope.
Hear our prayer for all who wield power-
for those who make laws and policies,
for those who interpret and enforce the law,
for all who shape commerce and the flow of information.
Open them to Your wisdom and grace.
Inspire them to seek the good of all people.
Hear our prayer for those who live in fear,
for the oppressed and the vulnerable – be their refuge
for the targeted and the poor – be their refuge
for the isolated, the stranger, the grieving, and the ill – be their refuge.
Strengthen all who help and comfort those who suffer.
Strengthen all who work for truth and justice.
Hear our prayer for those who are quick to anger
and for those who trust in violence.
End corruption, scheming, and bullying.
Turn hearts to collaboration and peacemaking.
Hear our prayers for ourselves –
for the places where we hold bitterness,
for the ways we judge, lash out, and fail to love.
Forgive us, heal us, and make us instruments of Your peace.
Continue with your own prayers for peace.
Prince of Peace, You have promised that a day will come
when nations will not take up swords,
when war will be no more,
when all will walk in Your light.
Until that day, strengthen our faith,
guide our steps,
and help us to live the prayer You taught us…
Conclude with The Lord’s Prayer
________________________________________________
This prayer was inspired by a sermon entitled Swords and Saviors based on Luke 22:39-54; Romans 12:9-21; and Isaiah 2:1-5. It was part of a Lenten sermon series entitled Peacemaking and the Passion of Christ. A Prayer for a Violent World © 2025 Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia
Peace Be With You. – Paul
From Morning Worship –
Mayfair Heights United Methodist Church
August 3, 2025
Prayers Of The People
May the presence of God be with all who are weary,
whose energy is non-existent,
who need strength, love, and support.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
May the presence of God be with all
who are trying to get life back on track,
who are bone-tired and brain-weary.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
May the presence of God be with all
who are surrounded by critical and unhelpful advice,
who don’t know where to turn,
because multiple voices clamor for their attention.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
May the presence of God be with all
who are tempted to surrender
to harmful behaviors and thoughts,
who find it difficult to find those they can trust.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
May the presence of God be with all
who seek to rest in your strength,
and in the strength of others who love them.
May they find hope, grace, care, love.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer. Amen.
Peace Be With You. – Paul
Caring for each other is not weakness.
It’s the most powerful thing we can do in a system built to keep us divided. – Neil DeGrasse Tyson
Peace Be With You. – Paul
From Rev. Beau Stringer:
In a world obsessed with revenge,
mercy is rebellion.
When you choose mercy,
you break the cycle.
Peace Be With You. – Paul
This past Sunday, we read a litany, lit a candle, commemorating the 35th Anniversary of the passge of the Americans With Disabilities Act.
Here is the liturgy:
For People Living with Disabilities on the 35th Anniversary of the Passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act
July 20, 2025
By Sarah Malaier, Member, Mount Vernon Place UMC, Washington DC
One of the authors of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Congressman Tony Coelho, aspired to become a priest but was denied this opportunity because of a 1600-year-old church law that proclaimed that people with epilepsy were possessed by demons. Outside the church, he was rejected by employers, health insurance providers, and even his own parents.
He struggled with his exclusion, resorting to alcohol and considering suicide. Yet, he had heard his call. One of his mentors would tell him that people can be in ministry not only in the church—but in entertainment, business, and everyday life. Tony Coelho soon discovered his unique call was to serve in politics.
In Congress, he used his power to turn his experiences into hope and justice for the one in six people who have a disability. He was joined by numerous advocates who also had been excluded and who were willing to put their bodies at risk to pass the ADA – people who chained themselves to buses that they could not ride, and wheelchair users who crawled up the steps of the Capitol building.
As we light this Candle of Peace, Hope, and Justice, we give thanks for the passage of this legislation 35 years ago this week and the trailblazers who put their lives on the line, transforming opportunities and enabling inclusion for people living with disabilities.
And we remember the work is not done. Many people are still excluded, institutionalized, or degraded. Even the gains we have made in building more accessible communities and in growing diversity are seen by some in power as wasteful rather than life-giving.
In 1 John, it is written: “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God, and that is what we are.”
Forgive us, God, for leaving people behind and diminishing their belovedness as children of God. Have mercy on us for making it harder to access healthcare and for weakening rules that enable everyone to have the opportunity to choose where and how, and with whom they will live.
Forgive us for fighting to have churches exempted from disability rights laws. Forgive us for locking people in nursing homes instead of allocating resources to let them live freely in the community. Forgive us for complaining that it is too expensive to make our workplaces, businesses, schools, and technology accessible to all your children.
Remind us that a disability or medical condition does not make us less beloved. Allow us to see the whole being of each person we meet and to acknowledge their hopes and dreams as our own.
And give those of us with a disability the courage to continue to speak up, and those of us without a disability the humility to listen as you inspire in all of us the creativity to reshape our communities in ways that fit all people, adapt and bend, and prioritize humanity over money.
One: The light shines in the darkness.
All: We stand in this light, unshaken,
knowing that the darkness has never overcome the light.
One: Let us recommit ourselves to walking in Jesus’ ways of justice.
All: Empower us, Jesus, to boldly use
the freedom and power given to us
to resist evil, injustice, and oppression
in whatever forms they present themselves
Peace Be With You. – Paul
Courtesy of Mosaic Community Church –
The Lord’s Prayer
From The New Zealand Prayer Book
Eternal Spirit,
Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver,
Source of all that is and that shall be,
Father and Mother of us all,
Loving God, in whom is Heaven:
The hallowing of your name echo through the universe!
The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world!
Your Heavenly will be done by all created beings!
Your commonwealth of peace and freedom sustain our hope and come on Earth.
With the bread we need for today, feed us.
In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.
In times of temptation and testing, strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure, spare us.
From the grip of all that is evil, free us.
For you reign in the glory of the power that is love, now and for ever.
Amen.
Peace Be With You. – Paul
Here are the Prayers Of The People
From Mayfair Heights United Methodist
July 27, 2025
Prayers Of The People
What a week, God!
Some we know and love have been injured in body, in soul, in their very being.
Some we know have sat by bedsides and said “Goodbye.”
Some we know have become more cautious in actions and movements,
Some we know have sought to be more like “the accepted ones.”
Some we know are trying to be present for all these.
And it is difficult.
So we seek your loving, soothing presence today,
For others, for ourselves.
God, in your love,
Hear our prayers.
Rest has not come easily for exhausted ones,
Energy is low at times,
Financial and emotional resources vanish quickly.
So people of faith step alongside,
Ignoring taunts of those in power
Ignoring the illusions of might and the bluster of hollow words.
They step in with little more than faith.
Walk with them, God.
God, in your love,
Hear our prayers.
In a world of violence and upheaval,
Let us rest in you for strength.
Guide us that we might be a holy space – A space where all are affirmed,
All are loved,
Where mistakes are forgiven,
Where promise is always present. God, in your love,
Hear our prayers.
Rest in the hearts of all in need,
Rest in the hearts of the confused,
Rest in the hearts of those seeking life,
Rest in the hearts of the sad and hurting,
Rest in the hearts of helpers,
God, in your love,
Hear our prayers. Amen.
Peace Be With You. – Paul
“Gratitude is the way the heart remembers––remembers kindnesses,
cherished interactions with others,
compassionate actions of strangers,
surprise gifts, and
everyday blessings.
By remembering, we honor and acknowledge the many ways in which who and what we are has been shaped by others, both living and dead.”
– Robert Lemmons From grateful.org
Peace Be With You. – Paul
