Prayers: The Fourth Sunday before Lent
Jesus, our Lord and Saviour,
you were born in the strangest of ways:
in a bleak stable, because there was no room for you.
You were given costly gifts by wise ones of another tribe and tongue and faith,
who knew you by means of a star and travelled far to greet you.
You yourself were smuggled to Egypt for safety, an exile in a strange land.
Pardon us Lord, when we harden our hearts to strangers, when you yourself were that stranger.
We bring before you the plight of anyone who suffers hostility because they are perceived as somehow different,
especially remembering today, the need for racial justice.
Inspire us with your Holy Spirit to work for fairness, justice and compassion.
Help us to see that you were once that stranger,
and to respect their dignity as we honour your majesty.
All this we pray to the Glory of God, who made us all. Amen.
God in heaven,
Jesus declared your blessings upon those in need.
Help us to remove the woes and blocks from our lives,
so that we can be a blessing for our communities,
your kingdom here on earth.
We ask this in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Collect 31
O God,
you know us to be set
in the midst of so many and great dangers,
that by reason of the frailty of our nature
we cannot always stand upright:
grant to us such strength and protection
as may support us in all dangers
and carry us through all temptations;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you
and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.