Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church

1610 Carlisle Road, Camp Hill, Pennsylvania 17011

Phone: (717) 737-0439 / Fax: (717) 737-5421

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Prayer Ventures

October 2006

1 Pentecost 17

O God, in the midst of health, economic, political, and social challenges in the African nations of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger, we pray that your abounding grace may bring strength and hope to the people.

2 Give thanks for the sharing of the witness that is strengthened through the companion relationship between the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania Pare and Southern dioceses, and the ELCA Southeastern Iowa and Western Iowa synods, respectively.

3 Pray for All Saints Episcopal and Immanuel Lutheran in Meriden, Connecticut. Guide the members and leadership as these two congregations share a building and deepen their partnership.

4 Pray for Bette McCrandell, who serves with the Lutheran Church in Liberia, which continues to witness to God’s love and faithfulness. Bette provides leadership to the education ministries of the Lutheran church.

5 Give thanks for Carol and James Sack, serving with the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church. Pray for James as he teaches pastoral care and counseling at the Japan Lutheran Theological College and Seminary in Tokyo. Pray for Carol as she reaches out with a ministry of Music Thanatology within the church and the greater Tokyo community.

6 Pray for Pastor Ivan Maldonado and the lay leaders of Iglesia Luterana Cristo el Señor and the Cayey Mission in Puerto Rico as they gather today for a workshop on Bible studies. The Cayey Mission is initiating the process to become a congregation of the ELCA Caribbean Synod.

7 Pray for the companion relationship between the Indonesian Protestant Christian Batak Church (HKBP) Toba District and the ELCA Indiana-Kentucky Synod.

8 Pentecost 18

We pray, O God, together with the people of Cameroon, Central African Republic, and Equatorial Guinea: “grant that we might sleep in peace in this home; and that at the break of day we may find ourselves in safety.”

9 Pray for the new pastor developer and the people of New Life Lutheran Chapel in Dripping Springs, Texas. Give thanks for the support this mission outreach has received from the Lutheran Church of the Resurrection and Pastor James Bouzard in Wimberly, Texas.

10 Pray for strength and endurance for Pastor David Jones and The Revolution Church, a second-site outreach ministry of Holy Trinity, East Pittsburgh, that worships in a movie theater in North Huntington, Pennsylvania.

11 Pray for Dirk and Sarah Stadtlander and Ron and Karen McCallum, who have completed language study in Burkina Faso and are preparing to begin service in the ELCA mission in Senegal.

12 Thank God for the witness and vitality brought to the church through the companion relationship between the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Central African Republic and the ELCA Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod.

13 Pray for ELCA seminarians doing their internships in international settings. Pray especially for Miriam Schmidt, who will spend this year serving a congregation in Guyana, and her husband Jeremy Blyth.

14 Pray for those who are homeless and the Churches United for the Homeless in Moorhead, Minnesota, as they provide emergency shelter, clothing, and food.

15 Pentecost 19

Merciful God, we thank you for the power of the Bible that speaks to the people of Sao Tomé and Principe, the Republic of Congo, and Gabon. May they find strength and wisdom in you to witness amid the social challenges of today.

16 On World Food Day, give thanks for the witness of Anne and Willie Langdji, whose work in the rural area of Linguere, Senegal, assists farmers and migrating herders that are historically in conflict over land use. They assist these groups in finding ways to grow new, income-generating crops that can feed cattle, minimize migration, and help herders improve their stock, which will improve milk production. Processing and selling the milk produces income and offers nutrition during the dry season, when hunger is a problem.

17 Pray for Pastor Timothy Fong and the Lutheran Church of the Way as they reach out to Chinese immigrants in Richardson and Plano, Texas. Strengthen this ministry that recently relocated from Ascension Lutheran in Garland, Texas, to a site more central to its mission.

18 Give praise for the companion synod relationship between the Diocese in Arusha Region of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania and the ELCA Northern Illinois Synod.

19 Pray for the Joint-religious Organizing Network for Action & Hope (JONAH) in Battle Creek, Michigan, as they launch a three-year plan for growth, consolidation, action, and organizing for the Greater Battle Creek community.

20 Thank God for the Lutheran Church in Guam, and the dynamic ministry of Pastor Jeff and Mary Johnson. Pastor Jeff serves the Lutheran Church of Guam and Mary teaches at the Bible College.

21 Praise God for the commitment and ministry of ELCA volunteer missionaries. Give thanks for the gifts of the many English-speaking teachers serving at the Lutheran schools in Bratislava, Košice, Liptovsky Mikulas, and Tisovec, Slovakia.

22 Pentecost 20

We bless you, O God, for sending your Spirit into the hearts of the people of Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Rwanda. Even as challenges continue, including discord, we ask your grace to abound. And on this United Nations Day, we pray for all nations of the world, that peace and justice, even in the midst of diversity and differences, may prevail.

23 Pray for Pastor John Coleman and Abiding Hope Lutheran Church in Erie, Pennsylvania, which recently moved into a larger building to accommodate its growing congregation.

24 Pray for Immanuel Lutheran Church and its Safe Haven Project that reaches out to children in the community through latchkey programming in Vancouver, Washington.

25 Thank God for Mission Partners—congregations and individuals who support ELCA mission congregations by offering prayer, encouragement, volunteer help, and financial support. ELCA Mission Partners are vitally important to new congregations and those undergoing transformation or redevelopment.

26 Offer prayers of thanksgiving for the people of St. Luke in Richardson, Texas, as they provide worship and office space for a new ministry of the Oromo immigrant population in the Dallas area.

27 Pray for peace in our time on this “World Day of Prayer for Peace.” Give thanks for the ELCA social statement “For Peace in God’s World” on the anniversary of its adoption in 1995. Pray that all Christians grow in their commitment and skills in peacemaking.

28 Pray for peace and security in the Holy Land, that the witness of the church may lead to reconciliation and justice for all, and that peace with justice may flourish. We especially lift up the people and ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land.

29 Reformation Sunday

We give you thanks, O God, for signs of your presence and activity among the people of Germany. Continue to bring vitality, we pray, to the churches, that the awakening that happened with the Reformation may live on in ongoing renewal.

30 Pray for members of the transforming ministry teams of the New England and New Jersey Synods, who were recently trained at Bethesda Lutheran Church in Springfield, Massachusetts. Empower them as they renew their congregational life by focusing on mission.

31 Pray for The Branches, a new satellite ministry in Bulverde, Texas, supported by St. Andrew Lutheran Church in San Antonio, the San Antonio Conference and the Southwestern Texas Synod.

Prayer Ventures is a guide to daily prayer for the global, social, and outreach ministries of the church. The Sunday prayers, based on the New Ecumenical Prayer Cycle from the World Council of Churches, take us on a prayer journey through various parts of the world. In addition to their use for daily prayer, Prayer Ventures can be incorporated into the prayers at Sunday worship.

This resource may be copied and shared among members and friends of the congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Prayer Ventures is produced by ELCA Evangelical Outreach and Congregational Mission, Church in Society, and Global Mission program units, in cooperation with ELCA Communication Services. Contact the units for additional information: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, 8765 W. Higgins Road, Chicago, IL 60631. Tel. 1-800-638-3522.

Prayer Ventures is available electronically. Visit us at www.elca.org/prayerventures

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