At Minneapolis’ Westminster Presbyterian Church on All Saints’ Day, November 1, 2015, Executive Associate Pastor Meghan Gage-Finn gave this moving Great Prayer of Thanksgiving before communion was served. ===============================
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Wondrous God of glory, you shrouded chaos with your imagination. All that is in creation is yours, all that lives in it is your gift. You shaped us in your image, gathering us in your joy.
But we turned our backs on you, seeking the seductive face of our own ways. You would show us the way, filling us with hope’s promise, through the words of the prophets, but we were deaf to what they had to say. So, deeply moved by our helplessness, you sent Jesus into our presence, the One we waited for that we might be saved.
Gracious are you, Creator of all. Blessed is Jesus Christ, model for our lives. With clean hands and a pure heart He descended from your holy side, coming to wipe away our tears, to remove the disgrace of our sin, to walk with those who seek your face, to stand with us at grief’s doorstep.
As we wait to come to this gracious feast, as we remember the spirit in which Jesus lived, served, died, and was raised, we speak of that mystery of faith, even as we offer our doubts and our very selves.
Pour out your Spirit upon these gifts of the Table and on your children in this sacred space. With a simple cup filled with hope, with bread broken in love, you make a feast for all those who put their trust in you.
As we open our hands to receive grace’s brokenness, may we go forth in service to all around us. As we take in the well-aged hope of your Spirit, may we discover our hearts to be as broken as yours, by the injustices of our world.
We remember in our prayers those in shock and grief following the Afghan earthquake and Russian plane crash. And we pray this day for those in our community who need to know of your love and comfort.
As we pray for your beloved members of the Body of Christ, send us out to be your hands and feet to a world in need.
And when all things become new, when we are gathered with our sisters and brothers of every age, we will join our voices together, singing before your throne of grace, God in Community, Holy in One, even as we pray together the prayer Jesus taught us, saying,
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day, our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
Lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,
Forever.
Amen
