These prompts are provided for worship leaders as they prepare the prayers of intercession for weekly worship. The prompts are prepared by several leaders in the ELCA and reflect current world and national events. You are encouraged to adapt and add other concerns for your local context, including staying informed of events and concerns in your synod.
Intercession prompts:
For those celebrating Christmas, Yule, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and all other winter holidays…
For the nativity of our Lord and for all expectant families…
For those who have difficult relationships with family…
For migrants and refugees around the world and at the southern border…
For all experiencing extreme weather conditions, especially dangerously cold temperatures…
For those injured by turbulence during last week’s Hawaii flight…
For victims of gun violence, especially the apartment shooting in Ontario, Canada…
For the families of those killed in the fuel tanker fire in Afghanistan…
For those protesting in Peru…
For rescue and recovery efforts following a landslide in Brazil and earthquake in California…
For peace in Ukraine and all countries torn apart by war…
Other notable events and observances:
Hanukkah (December 18-26)
Yule (December 21-January 1)
Nativity of Our Lord II (December 25)
Stephen, deacon and martyr (December 26)
Kwanzaa (December 26-January 1)
John, apostle and evangelist (December 27)
The Holy Innocents, martyrs (December 28)
New Year’s Eve & Day (December 31 & January 1)
Suggested hymns & prayers:
Prayer for New Year’s Eve (ELW p. 63)
Eternal God, you have placed us in a world of space and time, and through the events of our lives you bless us with your love. Grant that in the new year we may know your presence, see your love at work, and live in the light of the event that gives joy forever—the coming of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Hymns for the heart of winter
’Twas in the Moon of Wintertime (ELW 243)
Christ, Be Our Light (ELW 715)
ELW = Evangelical Lutheran Worship
ACS = All Creation Sings: Evangelical Lutheran Worship Supplement
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Additional topical prayers are found in Evangelical Lutheran Worship (pp. 72–87) and All Creation Sings (pp. 46–55), as well as in other resources provided in print and online at sundaysandseasons.com.
Follow this link to access resources to assist worshiping communities as they respond to the crisis in Eastern Europe. Several prayers are provided that could be used during the prayers of intercession or at other times, in public worship or for devotional use at home or in other settings.
Further assistance for composing prayers of intercession can be found here: Resources for Crafting Prayers of Intercession
Crafted intercessions for every Sunday and festival are provided in the Sundays and Seasons worship planning guide published in-print and online by Augsburg Fortress.
Prayer Ventures, a daily prayer resource, is a guide to prayer for the global, social and outreach ministries of the ELCA, as well as for the needs and circumstances of our neighbors, communities and world.
