| Mosaic Gathering Prayer: March 31, 2019

God of Love, we come before you as your children.
We acknowledge you as Creator and Sustainer of our lives.

Some of us feel great faith and life at work inside of us,
Some of us are hopeful skeptics underneath a weight of burdens,

Some of us are filled with all kinds of questions, doubt, and despair,Some of us are bruised reeds and smoldering wicks.

Your love envelopes us all.Your mercy pursues us.Your grace carries us.

And so we choose love, in all of this we choose love.
We turn to you in prayer.

For those in our state of Nebraska still recovering and rebuilding from flood loss
Lord, have mercy

For neighbors and those in this room experiencing difficult times of addiction, sadness, loneliness and despair
Lord, have mercy

For families that are experiencing broken relationships
Christ, have mercy

For those suffering under unjust systems of power and selfish hands
Christ, have mercy

For those twisted by envy, violence and hatred
God of Justice, intercede

For those cultivating a new way of hope, belonging, sustainability, and love
God of Peace, intercede

For us here at Mosaic and all communities of faith striving to be a light in the darkness
Holy Spirit, empower us

May we love those far off and those near.
May we love those who are strangers and those who are friends.

May we love those with whom we disagree and pray to understand that we are bound by something deeper than our beliefs.

We confess we have failed to love our neighbors in all the ways you have called us
Lord, have mercy.

We confess we have often built walls between ourselves and others rather than dismantle those walls
Lord, have mercy.

As we walk roads of darkness and inhabit spaces of loss in order to bring restoration
Lord, have mercy.

As we look to you for the forgiveness of sin
Gracious Lord, we receive life and rescue you have made possible to us through Jesus.

We pray these things as your children you love
We pray these things by the grace of God 
With the love of the Son 
And in the power of the Holy Spirit! 
Amen.