Does everyone appreciate this holy day more as they age? I know I do. Today (or the Sunday closest) is a day set aside to remember that this generation of faith is not the first and will not be the last. We have learned from those who have gone before and we are to pass along what we know to be true.
On this All Saints’ Day, I invite you to join me in this prayer that combines some words from the hymns I Sing a Song of the Saints of God and For All the Saints. Pray with me as together we remember and give thanks!
For all the Saints who from their labors rest, we give thanks to you, Loving God, for each and every saint who has gone to be with you. We are thankful for those we knew and loved. We are thankful for those whose stories we heard even though we never met. We are thankful for those whose stories now only live in your memory.
We remember that one was a doctor and one was a queen and one was a prophet and one was a priest and one was slain by a fierce wild beast. And each of them was beloved by you, Faithful God. And the list of who they were to those who loved them is full of descriptions that made each one unique and is a reminder of how You created each one of us with gifts, hopes, and dreams.
Ringed by this cloud of witnesses divine, we feebly struggle, they in glory shine, yet in your love our faithful lives entwine. This is your hope for us, God, that we may feel connected to your children throughout the ages. When we sing this songs, we remember. When we speak their names, we remember. And when we remember, God, we are asking you to help us to be saints too. Amen.
https://hymnary.org/text/for_all_the_saints_who_from_their_labors
https://hymnary.org/text/i_sing_a_song_of_the_saints_of_god
Perfect and perfected. Thanks Susannah for leading us in worship today.