Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church

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Prayer Ventures

May 2007

Prayer petitions for Sundays follow the World Council of Churches Ecumenical Prayer Cycle and can be incorporated into the prayers at weekly worship. Weekday entries are offered as guides to prayer for the global, social, and outreach ministries of the church. This year marks the 20^th anniversary of the founding of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Thanks be to God! Thank you for your continued prayers for the life and mission of this church.

1 Pray for Bridge of Peace Community Church in Camden, N.J., and its pastor, the Rev. Giselle Coutinho. Give thanks for the baptisms of more than 80 adults and children over the past six years and the 120-plus adults who have been received by Affirmation of Baptism in this multiracial, multicultural community.

2 Pray for ELCA synods that gather in assembly this weekend: Pacifica, South-Central Synod of Wisconsin, Florida-Bahamas, Northeastern Minnesota, and Southeastern Pennsylvania. Pray that they find a “way together” as they discern God’s call for their shared ministry.

3 Praise God for the witness and ministry of Pastor Judith VanOsdol-Hansen, who serves with the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Argentina, works with gender issues within the church, and serves as regional coordinator for women and gender issues for the Latin American Council of Churches.

4 Pray for Meredith Johnson, Stacey Siebrasse, and Carrie Smart, participants in the Young Adults in Global Mission program in Argentina. Pray, too, for United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Argentina (IELU), for its willingness to receive young adults from the ELCA.

5 Give thanks for relief and development workers who act on our behalf in faraway places, perhaps at risk to their own well-being.

6 Easter 5

Come, Lord Jesus, into the life of Christian churches in Bolivia, Chile, and Peru. Help them be signs of your mercy as they work with the poor, the indigenous, and the marginalized, and give them courage and faithfulness to walk in your steps.

7 Give thanks for the ministry of Barbara Bunnell, who is assisting the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chile in organizing local youth groups into a strong national youth program.

8 Praise God for the companion synod relationship between the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Thuringia and ELCA Northwestern Pennsylvania Synod, one which brings an appreciation for the German roots of American Lutheranism.

9 Give thanks for the companion synod relationship between the Bolivian Evangelical Lutheran Church and the ELCA Montana Synod, and the relationship between the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chile and the Indiana/Kentucky Synod.

10 Pray for the Southeast Michigan Synod as it gathers in assembly this weekend. Pray that its members find a “way together” as they discern God’s call for their shared ministry.

11 Pray for Denise and Pastor Robert Schmalzle, missionaries in Nairobi, Kenya. Bob is the pastor of the English-language Ngong Road International Lutheran Congregation, a ministry of the Kenya Evangelical Lutheran Church, and serves the KELC in the area of Christian education. Denise serves in health education and outreach.

12 Thank God for Pastor Richard Young's ministry in the Lutheran Church in Guyana, where he serves in a new parish of four congregations in Georgetown. Also a medical doctor, he continues to coordinate and develop health programs for the ELCG.

13 Easter 6

We thank you, O God, for the churches in the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia; for the Christian education of children and young people; for increased practice of Bible reading and prayer in homes, and for perseverance in confessing the faith in a changing environment.

14 Give thanks for Epiphany Lutheran and Episcopal Church of Marina, Calif., which has reached out in mission to its community through a food pantry serving low-income residents, an AIDS ministry, and a community action organization with 35 other area congregations. The congregation also supports the Sierra Pacific Synod’s sister church, the Lutheran Church of Rwanda, through a scholarship fund for pastors and evangelists.

15 Give thanks to God for those who give generously to the ELCA World Hunger and Disaster Appeal.

16 Pray for the Rev. Elizabeth Huwiler, who serves as pastor of Warsaw International Church in Warsaw, Poland. Give thanks to God for the deepening relationship between the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Poland (ECACP) and the ELCA Oregon Synod.

17 Pray for ELCA synods that gather in assembly this weekend: Southwestern Washington, Rocky Mountain, Oregon, Northern Great Lakes, Northwestern Ohio, Metropolitan New York, Southwestern Texas, and North/West Lower Michigan. Pray that they find a “way together” as they discern God’s call for their shared ministry.

18 Among the many companion relationships between dioceses of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania and ELCA synods, give thanks for the vitality of those between the South Western Diocese and the ELCA South Carolina Synod, and the Ulanga Kilombero Diocese and ELCA Eastern Washington-Idaho Synod.

19 Pray for Nancy Stevenson, an English teacher at Makumira University College of Tumaini University, the senior seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania, and for the ELCT’s educational ministry.

20 Easter 7

Gracious God, look with favor upon the people of Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Slovenia, and Serbia and Montenegro, that, in the midst of great change, they may find hope and peace.

21 Pray that God may guide and lead Daniel Steinhelper as he nears the end of his internship at the American Church in Berlin and returns to seminary at the University of Chicago. Thank God for the way God’s Church is enriched by all global exchange.

22 Remember in prayer all those lost at sea and honor all who go to sea. Give thanks for the men and women who go to sea to bring us so many of the products we need every day. Ask for safe return for all fishers who brave terrible weather to bring nutritious seafood to our tables.

23 Give thanks for those whose examples of simple living inspire the people of God to discard attitudes and behaviors that entrap them in silent selfishness and impair their ability to give away their lives for God’s purposes.

24 Pray for Fontenelle Community Church in Omaha, Neb., and Pastor Helen King as they make plans to start a community preschool and day care program. Fontenelle’s mission for the past seven years has been to reach people who have little or no church background under the motto, “Putting the neighbor back in the ’hood.”

25 We thank God for water specialist Paul Sharp, whose skills are helping the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Central African Republic (EELRCA) develop and expand a community-based program that provides clean drinking water for people in rural areas.

26 Pray for a smooth transition to new ministry for Jason and Julia (Kurtjakova) Corbett, who are concluding service with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ingria in Russia, where they led Bible studies and youth retreats. Julia is a former ELCA international scholarship recipient.

27 Day of Pentecost

We pray, gracious God, that the churches of Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania may be your instruments of reconciliation, both locally and in the wider world.

28 Ask God for courage to confront injustices and hunger that are close at hand, especially among family members, neighbors and coworkers.

29 Thank God for volunteer teachers Joshua Auchenbach, Erika Parker, Larry Paxton, and Amy Wicks, all serving at the Evanjelicke Lyceum in Bratislava, Slovakia. The school is part of the educational ministry of the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in the Slovak Republic.

30 Remember Nicholas Lundholm, whose service with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Romania will help this church preserve its centuries-old cultural and historical heritage while it develops new ministries for the future.

31 Thank God for the gifts and commitment of the many global mission volunteers who serve two to six months as doctors, English teachers, theology professors, and auditors. Today we lift up Jerry Schmalenberger, Jim and Lorrie Bergquist, and Phil Baker, who volunteer frequently for short-term assignments.

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, 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.

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