St. John’s & St. Paul’s
Lenten Prayer Guide
Week 5: March 27th-April 2nd
Throughout the week, use this as a guide to support your daily prayers and to connect you to friends and strangers for whom your prayers are requested. Keep a copy of this at your meal table or by your bed to help you to pray each day before you eat or before you sleep. We recommend speaking the prayers aloud.
Pray for Our Congregations
We pray for St. John’s & St. Paul’s, our mission and ministry:
Sun. 3/27: For the children of our congregations, especially those present in worship this morning as they grow in faith and learn to pray and praise God.
Mon. 3/28: For all members of the congregations struggling with challenges in their vocation or a lack of sufficient employment.
Tues. 3/29: For all members of our congregations who have felt disconnected from these communities of faith over the past two years.
Wed. 3/30: For all those who plan and organize our Lenten mid-week suppers, and for our guest preachers, worship leaders, and musicians.
Thurs. 3/31: For all of us to be bold in sharing the Good News and inviting our neighbors to know the Love of God in Christ.
Fri. 4/1: For members of the congregation and their friends and neighbors who raise livestock, that they would be sustained through long hours and difficult labor during this season of new life.
Sat. 4/2: For Pastor Will, that his ministry among us is guided and strengthened by Your Holy Spirit.
Pray for All Fellow Church Members by Family:
O Lord, I pray that you would bless these fellow members of my church community, and help them in whatever situations they might face this week:
Sun. 3/27: Miller, Rod and Sherry. Oberman, Amanda. Pendarvis, Jodi. Peterson, Chuck.
Mon. 3/28: Post, Peggy and Steve. Priebe, Duane. Reeg, Dale and Mary.
Tues. 3/29: Reeg, Robert A. and Jeanne. Sainci, Kate and Mark, Aveah. Sanders, Lynn and Julie, Austin, Emma, Anna. Schiffman, Anthony.
Wed. 3/30: Schmidt, Megan. Schoop, Loreen. Schoop, Randall and Barbara, Corey, Jacob. Schroeder, Dale.
Thurs. 3/31: Schroeder, David and Betty. Schroeder, Jon and Joan. Schroeder, Scott and Heather, Claire. Schroeder, Shirley.
Fri. 4/1: Schumacher, Sabrina, Bobbie, Brooke, Katie, Samantha. Shaw, Jennifer and Brett, Evie, Isaac, Abram. Simon, Barb and David.
Sat. 4/2: Soliday, Charles and Shirley, Ethen, Kayla, Katherine, Sarah. Steines, Katie and Casey, Aleeyah, Claire. Stroup, Jane and Andrew. Stuart, Ray.
Pray for the Concerns lifted up in the ELCA’s Prayer Ventures:
Sun. 3/27: Recall recent experiences — personal or witnessed — when God’s grace far exceeded your expectations and comprehension. Lift up prayers of acknowledgment and gratitude to God.
Mon. 3/28: Ask God to build up our resiliency, optimism, hope and confidence in God’s presence when we feel anxious, overwhelmed or powerless in today’s world.
Tues. 3/29: Rejoice and give thanks to God for surrounding us with steadfast love and forgiveness that cannot be taken away or diminished by anyone or anything.
Wed. 3/30: Remember in prayer poets who free us to see and contemplate in new ways the beauty and complexity of creation, diverse human experiences, challenging social conditions and our faith.
Thurs. 3/31: Pray for the leaders from across our church who serve on the ELCA Church Council. Ask the Spirit to guide them as they support, review, advise and enable God’s work in the world with thoughtfulness, integrity, respect and partnerships sharing a common vision.
Fri. 4/1: Arab American Heritage Month Remember in prayer the diverse gifts, cultures, heritages and stories of our Arab and Middle Eastern neighbors and siblings in Christ, who remind us of the rich history and tradition of Christ’s church in the world. Ask God to bless and advance the advocacy, witness, leadership development and support for ministries provided by ELCA Arab and Middle Eastern Ministries and the Association of Lutherans of Arab and Middle Eastern Heritage.
Sat. 4/2: Give thanks for those who help care for our infants and children — grandparents and relatives, nursery attendants, day care workers, preschool teachers and babysitters.
Pray for The Wider Church Around us
Sun. 3/27: For an end to the Russian government’s attacks on Ukraine, for the security of Kyiv, for the protection of civilians, for solidarity among those who stand for peace, and for our sisters and brothers in Christ throughout Eastern Europe.
Mon. 3/28: For all area congregations that support ministries to feed the hungry.
Tues. 3/29: For the related ministries of the ELCA, and those who staff and lead them: Book of Faith, Campus Ministry, Christian Education Network of the ELCA, Disability Ministry, Life of Faith, Mission Builders, Outdoor Ministry, Schools, colleges and universities, and Seminaries.
Wed. 3/30: For a greater sense of unity in the Body of Christ, and especially for ecumenical neighbors nearest to our congregations: St. Donatus and St. Catherine Catholic churches, St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, St. Lawrence Catholic Church, First Presbyterian Church in Bellevue, Iglesia ni Cristo, Springbrook Amish Mennonite Church, Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church, and other nearby churches.
Thurs. 3/31: For the Southeastern Iowa Synod, our Bishop, Amy Current, and synod staff, and our companion synod, the Pare Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania.
Fri. 4/1: For seminary faculty, teaching theologians, and all who are called to work for the clarity and faithfulness of the church’s teachings.
Sat. 4/2: For all ministers throughout the church as they prepare to proclaim God’s Word.
Healing and sustaining God, we pray for those experiencing need at this time, those who ask for our prayers in the face of illness, injury, or other hardship: Carol Althoff, Marilyn Bradley, Travis Bullock, Carlton Busch, Kyden Decker, Max Elliott, Phil Elliott, Tom Harmon, Marjean Hughes, Jeff Kueter, Rod Miller, Rev. Duane Priebe, Jordan Rumsey, Dale Schroeder, David Schroeder, Liam Schroeder, Lynn Scott, Diane Wallace, Duane Westphal, Rita Wiegert.
O Lord, your Holy Spirit calls us to faith.
Keep us firm in the faith of the church:
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended into hell.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
Lord, remember us in your kingdom, and teach us to pray:
Our Father, who art in heaven . . .
A passage from this week’s readings:
16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. 17 So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!
2 Corinthians 5:16-17
