Rev. Jan Buxton Wade*
Love divine, all loves excelling, Joy of Heav’n to earth come down;
Fix in us thy humble dwelling; all thy faithful mercies crown!
Jesus, Thou art all compassion; pure unbounded love Thou art;
Visit us with Thy salvation, enter every trembling heart.
Ah, Love Divine, our hearts indeed do tremble, for these are anxious days. Governments are at odds, the language of war and retaliation is prolific. Our own nation’s leaders seem to work at cross purposes, their bickering aired around the world. We have sullied our good earth and now in remorse we pay the price of our short sightedness: floods, fire, famine and drought are visited upon those most vulnerable. We have all but become comfortable with bloodshed and brutality in our streets and communities. We have abandoned our churches and have not lived up to our vows of faithful presence and witness. You have made us to be beacons, disciples of your unbounded love, O Lord, yet we have slipped far from your holy aim. Clear away our inner doubt and distrust, that there might be sufficient room to build your forever dwelling place. Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy.
Breathe, O breathe Thy loving Spirit into every troubled breast!
Let us all in Thee inherit; let us find that second rest.
Take away our bent to sinning; Alpha and Omega be;
End of faith, as its beginning, set our hearts at liberty.
Loving Spirit, breathe your awakening spirit into our troubled souls. Stir us from the lethargy that whispers everything is out of our hands, for scripture assures us that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Give us courage to plant our feet securely upon your pure and steady rock of grace, believing your own possibilities will unfold if we remain steadfast. Gird us with purpose, we pray, that we might walk unflinching, staring down those prevalent forces of evil, taking a stand for justice in our community and in our world. Alpha and Omega, we depend upon you to give us what we need to respond to the crises of our age, serving our neighbors as ourselves.
Come, Almighty to deliver, let us all Thy life receive;
Suddenly return, and never, nevermore Thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing, serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
Pray and praise Thee without ceasing, glory in Thy perfect love.
Almighty Deliverer, you offer us fulness of life and why we so often take this gift for granted remains an enigma, even to ourselves. Plant anew in our hearts that longing for community, the realization that we, as a body of believers, personally need one another. Knit us together again, we pray, that we might be known as the body of Christ, upholding one another for your work in our world. And even as you watch over us, we ask that your grace would be manifest in the lives of these who submit their most recent prayers and thanksgivings:
- Gratitude: Safe travel to and from L.A. – daughter settled in new position
- Celebration the baptism of two youngsters and those who joined our congregation on Sunday
- Prayers appreciated: Ill mother died peacefully at home
- Thanksgiving for all at work assisting flood victims
- Family celebrating a 50th wedding anniversary this week
- Family happily sharing news of a pregnancy
- Grateful for our faithful youth, youth leadership and volunteers
- One seeks prayers for retention of her eyesight
- Lift up all educators and students as a new school year begins
- Prayers for family as they move a son to assisted living
- Please remember in prayer a father undergoing a heart procedure
- Guidance in decisions: Ill wife with extreme challenges
- Church family mourning the death of beloved father July 29
- One seeking forgiveness from and reconciliation with family
- God’s presence with family, grieving death of cherished cousin
- Prayer support for family -mother discontinuing cancer treatments
- Husband grieving the recent death of his wife
- Longtime friends in Virginia, support as they contend with wife’s breast cancer
- Protection for all our needy friends in our church neighborhood
- Pray for member family seeking ways to best help an extremely ill brother
Finish, then, Thy new creation; pure and spotless let us be;
Let us see Thy great salvation perfectly restored in Thee;
Changed from glory into glory, till in Heav’n we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee, lost in wonder, love, and praise.
Help us to trust, Love Divine, that your love exceeds all others, and that you are guiding, leading, and infusing us with a power that always surprises us. Move us, then, from glory into glory until you welcome us one glad day into your eternal realm. And there, we shall join that ageless chorus in singing praises to your Resurrected Son, who instructed us to pray:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Have a prayer request?
All are welcome at Church Street! We believe every person is of sacred worth and created in God’s image. We welcome and celebrate the gifts God has given to all persons without regard to race, color, national origin, ethnicity, age, gender, disability, status, economic condition, sexual orientation, gender identity, or religious affiliation. We respect diversity of opinion and expressions of Christian faith. We believe God loves everyone unconditionally! As God loves us, so let us love and serve in the name of Christ.
Weekly Prayer – September 21, 2022
Featured, prayer for todayWeekly Prayers for the Church Street Family
Week of September 21, 2022
Rev. Catherine Nance
He’s got the whole world in his hands …He’s got the whole world in his hands ..
He’s got the whole world in his hands …. He’s got the whole world in his hands!
God of the world, many of us heard this song sung on Sunday afternoon as we gathered to talk about caregiving. It reminded us of children singing this song at VBS and doing all the hand motions: Itty-bitty babies – you and me sister – whole world. These songs we learn as children are full of truth and create in us a firm foundation on which to stand later in life when we cannot recall the words we are looking for.
You have the whole world in your hands O God …
We have seen beautiful images of your world this week. Friends have shared pictures of hiking trips and cruises. We see your majesty in creation with the Smoky Mountains and beautiful rivers and lakes in our line of vision each day. While we are lifting our eyes to the hills, we know there are others who are looking over flooded homes in Pakistan. There are farmers who are looking at crops that have burned up from heat. We love the beauty of your earth, O God. Forgive us when we use and abuse this earth and do not take care of it. We pray for communities, industries, and countries to be aware of how we pollute and then convict us, O Maker of Heaven and Earth, to change our ways. May we not so selfish and self-centered; may we sing about your world instead of our world.
He’s got the whole world in his hands ….
We have seen stark contrasts of your world. There were pictures of majesty and beauty and order and reverence as we watched Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral procession with all of the bright and beautiful colors. Then the images that all appear to be grey; Russian and Ukrainian soldiers and the bombed remains of cities. We have no words to fill in the in-between. We know that the funeral was just a snapshot in history and not all of the history is beautiful. Images of war often leave out the images of hopeful and happy families struggling in the midst of war – Russians and Ukrainians alike. Help us to imagine a place where order, beauty, color, and peace is the reality. May we honor one another’s humanity and see each other as your children in your world.
He’s got the whole world in his hands ….
We sometimes say things like, “How can God care about me when God has the whole world?” But, you do care. You care for us as a mother cares for her children. You have promised to be with us and to hear our prayers. We do pray for your world, O God, but with confidence that you know all we care about, we offer now the prayers from our part of your world – the people we know and live with and care for. Thank you for hearing the prayers we offer from our church family …
We pray for…
Continued prayers for…
We offer prayers of thanksgiving for…
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Weekly Prayer – September 14, 2022
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Week of September 14, 2022
Rev. Catherine Nance
With just a hint of cooler weather in the air, we are reminded that you are the God of All Seasons. You created your world, O God, with the beauty and gift of autumn, winter, spring, and summer. Sometimes we speak of these seasons as if they end one day and begin the next. Our calendar will tell us the first day of autumn is just one week away. We give thanks for scientists who can measure and map where Earth is in its orbit and explain the seasons. We give thanks for preschool teachers who teach songs about the four seasons. We are thankful for memories of early artwork – large sheets of paper divided into four equal quadrants – one with orange and red leaves, one with snowflakes, then bright flowers, and the last with a bright, smiling sun! These divisions and measurements give order to our lives and help us plan; your order has given us days to look forward and a sense of knowing that things always change. But there is beauty in the change.
We know that the seasons do not stay in the bold lines of our kindergarten four-square season chart, but that you allow us time to prepare, to anticipate, to hope, and yes, even to be disappointed when a hot summer day appears in October or we need a sweater and scarf on an April afternoon! Thank you for caring for your Earth and for us that we do not abruptly land into a new season, but that you allow for gradual changes. May we take time to savor, to appreciate, to accept right now as the time you have given us.
O God of All Ages and Stages, remind us that you are with us as we go through changing seasons in our lives. There are cycles we anticipate and celebrate and then the not-so-subtle changes we thought we would never experience. May we be graceful and feel your grace as we go through the stages and seasons of life. When we see others around us in different stages and places, may we offer prayers:
Thank you, O God, for the subtlety of change of seasons that gives us time to appreciate, time to give thanks, and time to prepare. We thank you for all of the seasons you have given us.
We turn towards the evening with a grateful heart for your presence and we open our heart in prayer as we share these concerns and thanksgivings from our church family…
We pray for…
We offer prayers of thanksgiving for…
Continued prayers for…
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
September Update
YouthSunday Schedule:
Worship – 8:30AM & 11:00AM
Sunday school – 9:45-10:45AM
NightLife – 5:00-7:00PM ($5 dinner)
Next Sunday, October 9, there will only be Sunday school. We will not have NightLife due to Fall Break. We will return to a regular schedule on October 16.
High School Prayer Breakfast
This year, we are going to rotate locations of our High School Prayer Breakfast. Hopefully, this will allow more students to participate! We will begin after Labor Day. The first two dates & locations are:
If you are interested in a prayer breakfast near your neighborhood, let Jenny know!
Football Parking Fundraiser
For each of Tennessee’s home football games, we have the incredible opportunity to park cars on our campus and raise money for our Youth Department and Youth Choir. Each weekend, we tithe (give 10%) of our earnings to a Parking Lot Maintenance fund, and the remaining is divided evenly between the two groups. We need a lot more help for the Alabama game on October 15!
It requires a significant amount of volunteer support to make this fundraiser work, and we ask all families to volunteer for at least two shifts during the season. Please use the link below to sign up and learn more.
Football Parking Sign-Up
Parent Sign-Ups
Survey: Parents, please use the survey below share with us some helpful information at the start of the year. This survey includes contact info, volunteer sign-ups, and a place to share with us anything that would be helpful in serving your family at the start of the year.
Parent Survey
Annual Release Form: Each year, we ask every student to complete an Annual Release Form. This acts as our medical and liability form for all of our events. Please complete this form for every student in your family!
Annual Release Form
Meal Sign-Ups: Each Sunday, we serve our students breakfast and lunch. We ask families to volunteer to help make these meals happen! The sign-ups are below. If every family signs up for one breakfast and one dinner each, we will have nearly every week covered!
Breakfast Sign-Up
Dinner Sign-Up
Have you viewed our page on Church Street’s website? Check it out!
Weekly Prayer – September 7, 2022
Featured, prayer for todayWeekly Prayers for the Church Street Family
Week of September 7, 2022
Rev. Catherine Nance
A prayer inspired by Psalm 139
O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.
These words from the psalms should be a comfort to us, O God. We often complain that no one truly knows us, but yet you know us through and through. Perhaps the psalmist was overjoyed with this intimacy; instead we are embarrassed or ashamed. We would prefer that our thoughts were not so clear to you! Sometimes they are a jumbled mess to us – and yet you are able to discern them. You created every living thing because you desired life around you and through you. May we open ourselves to your loving and living presence and not recoil in fear or shame. Here we are O Lord, you know us so well – and continue to love us!
You pursue me behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.
O God who walks alongside and ahead and behind, we want to feel your companionship and your presence. When we wander off clear paths may we feel your hand leading us home. When we hurriedly move past our family and friends, we are thankful for your hand that reminds us to slow down and pay attention. When we feel immobilized with fear, or boredom, or depression, or anxiety, may we feel the nudging and pushing along of your loving hand on us. You are indeed acquainted with all our ways, O Lord, and what a relief it is to us that you continue to choose to walk with us.
Where can I go from your spirit? Where shall I flee from your presence?
Forgive us, O God who breathed into creation every conceivable place and space, when we say I am all alone. Whether we are feeling the despair of loneliness or fleeing to hide from you, your Holy Spirit breathes on us and reminds us of your steadfast presence. You created us and called us good. May we live into your goodness, O God, and trust that you desire to be with us. May your love for us make us loving toward others. Lift our eyes beyond the confines of our daily world to imagine others in your world, people of all nations who are also loved and cherished by you.
Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts; and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!
We truly want to be disciples of Jesus Christ! Sift through our hesitation and our doubting. Sift through the selfishness and the justifications. As we open ourselves to you, may you transform us into disciples who rejoice in the grace you offer. Your love and acceptance of us should cause us to rejoice and yet we often grumble and accuse others who think differently or have experienced you in a way with which we are not familiar. Oh God, lead us in your way!
How profound to me are your thoughts, O God!
It is with a sense of profound awe that we lay before you the concerns and petitions of our brothers and sisters …
We pray for…
A ten-month old who is having both feet amputated this week because of severe club feet.
We continue prayers for…
We give thanks for…
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Weekly Prayer – August 31, 2022
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Week of August 31, 2022
Rev. Kim Goddard, Superintendent of New River District
This week’s prayer was written by Rev. Kim Goddard, Superintendent of the New River District. Kim also serves as the Dean of the Cabinet. We are sharing this from the “We Pray Together” project offered by our Holston Conference Communications.
Gracious Lord,
You once met a woman by a well and offered living water she did not know she needed. You quenched her thirst, filled her to overflowing, and everyone she met saw the transformation.
Oh, Living Water, do for us, what you did for her.
Make us thirsty again.
Cause us to drink so deeply from your springs of living water that we are transformed.
We confess, too often we content ourselves with half-hearted discipleship, and it leaves us parched and weak.
You offer us means of grace, like dippers, to drink in your presence and guidance. Too often, we leave them to gather dust.
We pray at meals, at church, when we emoji praying hands on Facebook, but find it so hard to quiet ourselves to linger and listen for your voice.
We open the Bible to prepare a sermon, or Sunday School lesson, or prove a point, but rarely go to scripture expecting to be challenged or changed.
We fast for our physical health, but Lord, when have we fasted for the singular joy of following you, communing with you?
We love to attend church where we experience family and fellowship, but do we leave without bending to you in worship and submission?
We send thoughts and prayers to the suffering and lost, but let others take the cup of cold water, the blanket, the Bible, the real presence of a friend.
Lord, is it any wonder we find it hard to guide others to your springs of living water when we are so parched ourselves?
Oh, Living Water, do for us, what you did for a Samaritan woman at a well.
Make us thirsty again.
Cause us to drink so deeply from your springs of living water that we are transformed.
Then, transformed, send us with dippers and buckets to share.
O God who hears all of our prayers, we offer the following requests on behalf of our church family:
We pray for…
Continued prayers for…
We give thanks for…
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Have a prayer request?
Weekly Prayer – August 24, 2022
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Week of August 24, 2022
Rev. Tim Best
We give you great thanks for the gift of rest and renewal in your Son Jesus. Guide our lives that we might find patterns of liberation and renewal from all those forces that when not controlled and bounded by your love bind and control us. Grant us your peace that our spirits might be cured of what ails us and we might stand tall with dignity and love.
Heal me, hands of Jesus!
Merciful Lord,
Heal and comfort those who suffer in body and spirit. We pray for those who grieve. May you walk alongside them and help them to find rest in the promise of resurrection. We ask for healing for all recovering from injury or operations. May they have access to good Doctors, caring and qualified nurses, and attentive caregivers. Awaken our hearts that where there is need your church may be at work to care, advocate, and support. Bless all the suffering neighbors and friends that we name before you in our hearts.
Heal me, hands of Jesus!
Almighty God,
You fashioned all things out of nothing. Let us rejoice in the gifts of your creation and show care for all life that dwells upon the earth, that swims in the seas, that lives under the earth, or fills the skies. As you give us Sabbath that we might know freedom from our labors and our cares, may we grant rest to the earth and all creatures from toil and use. Help us to rejoice in the beauty of all that you have made and to use all resources well and to your glory.
Heal our earth, O Lord!
Ruler of all things,
We pray for our community, our state, and our nation. Grant your wisdom and compassion to those who make decisions on behalf of others and for the sake of whole communities. We pray for Mayors Kincannon and Jacobs. We pray for governor Lee and all state legislators. We pray for all senators and members of the house of representatives. We pray for President Biden. We pray for the leaders of all the nations, those we consider friends and those we think of as enemies. Guide your church in our work to be peace within our community and within the world.
Heal our communities, O Lord!
Loving Father,
Lord in your mercy… God of mercy and healing, you who hear the cries of those in need, receive these petitions of your people that all who are troubled may know peace, comfort, and courage.
We pray for …
We give thanks for …
Life-giving God, heal our lives, that we may acknowledge your wonderful deeds and offer you thanks from generation to generation through Jesus Christ our Lord as we pray that prayer he taught us, praying…
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Have a prayer request?
Weekly Prayer – August 17, 2022
Featured, prayer for todayWeekly Prayers for the Church Street Family
Week of August 17, 2022
Rev. Jan Buxton Wade
You are the Lord, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens,
with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them;
you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you. (Nehemiah 9:6)
Vibrant Framer of the Universe, the shadows shift as the wind makes its way through the trees, rearranging the path of clouds, delicate and dense alike. Truly your name is proclaimed with each stirring of the heavens above. Such stirrings echo your Spirit’s soaring over the void to create light and life. In richness and variety you clothed your creation, a masterpiece of color and texture no human mind could fathom. By the solace our earth offers, by its freshness that brings peace, by its richness that feeds body and soul, we are more than blessed.
O Lord, we praise you!
Merciful Creator, you planted us within your world to love and to tend, yet we confess that through both greed and ignorance we have maimed your astonishing creation, our blessed inheritance. We have been careless in polluting the pure air, water, soil that were gifted us, forgetting you intended this as our common home, sufficient to sustain all peoples. Will this remain our legacy – always taking more than we give? We weep at the thought. Open our eyes and our hearts, we pray, to behold the harm we have caused; move us to cherish the resources we have neglected and to join in the deliberate act of restoration—for the world’s sake and for your glory.
O Lord, forgive us!
Healing Hand, in many ways, we are like the bent-over woman whom Jesus restored on the sabbath, staring at our own feet, thinking it impossible to change existing circumstances. But you, O Lord, are in the business of re-creating and you call us forth to be a new creation. Show us, through that same holy healing power, that you can straighten what is bent in body and soul, aligning our commitment with your own vision. Even if our first steps are hesitant, you will strengthen us to correct the wrongs we have inflicted upon your people and your good earth. Point us and move us into your future, even if it means giving up our dreams of wealth and progress.
O Lord, heal us!
And now, Faithful One, we turn our thoughts to the myriad signs of graciousness that have come our way throughout these recent days, and we also share the deepest concerns of your people of the Church Street community:
We pray for …
Prayers of thanksgiving for …
Reclaiming Spirit, move among us as we take our rest this evening, for we know we serve a God whose mercy never fails. Bind our hearts together as we sleep, that we might rise straight and tall, refreshed to follow and to serve, always praying as we were taught by Jesus:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Have a prayer request?
Weekly Prayer – August 10, 2022
Featured, prayer for todayWeekly Prayers for the Church Street Family
Week of August 10, 2022
Rev. Jan Buxton Wade
O God of Every Place and Time, when we chance to turn to you, we are assured your listening ears are attuned to our deepest needs and desires. How blessed are we by such favor! You merely ask us, in turn, to just as earnestly listen to your voice that speaks to us throughout our days. We must confess, however, that we seldom reciprocate in these uncertain times. Perhaps, more than anything else, it is our fear that feeds our reluctance to listen.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Because we fear our own poverty, we spend our time clutching our possessions. Because we fear being known for who we truly are, we use our time cultivating that preferred image of ourselves. Because we fear appearing helpless, we pretend we don’t need the help others may offer. Because we fear the future, we exhaust precious hours in secret handwringing. Slow us down, O Attentive One, and calm our souls, we pray. Lean close and whisper that our fears are but a foolish buffer to an authentic relationship with you. Never cease your tender wooing, we pray. We have ears to hear, may we learn to listen!
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
O Spirit of Life, by confessing our own preoccupation with ourselves, we realize how soundly you have grounded us in your life-giving grace. You have given us our church, our home away from home, our commission to serve, our avenue to spiritual renewal. You have honored us with the privilege of regularly partaking of Holy Communion, a tangible reminder that we are members of the body of Christ, called to share the burdens of others. And when we share in this way, may it be a sign that we are also bearing the cross of Jesus.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Knowing that you help us bear all our trials and also take delight in our joy, we name these particular petitions that have been offered recently by members of our Church Street family:
We pray for…
We pray with thanksgiving for…
And now, stripping away every pretense that would block us from you, O God Beyond Place and Time, we lay our earnest prayers at the feet of your Blessed Son, using the ancient, yet most powerful words he taught us:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Have a prayer request?
August Update
YouthKick-Off Recap
On Sunday night, we started our year with a time of fellowship, celebration, and worship. It was such a joy to look toward the year ahead! Many students shared about why Youth Ministry matters to them – they helped us all remember the importance of community and pursuing our faith together.
At the close of the night, there was an absolute downpour. In case you don’t know this about me, I simply love rain. There are about a million reasons why, but top of the list is the way it reminds me of God’s grace and provision. In Hosea 6:3, scripture says, “He will come to us like rain.” And I couldn’t help but see that quick summer shower as a promise of God’s goodness as we step into a new year together. Our God often operates with abundance, and after the rain had stopped, there were rainbows – another tangible reminder of Presence and Promise.
I’m going into the year hopeful and expectant. I hope you are, too.
Jenny
Football Parking Fundraiser
For each of Tennessee’s home football games, we have the incredible opportunity to park cars on our campus and raise money for our Youth Department and Youth Choir. Each weekend, we tithe (give 10%) of our earnings to a Parking Lot Maintenance fund, and the remaining is divided evenly between the two groups.
It requires a significant amount of volunteer support to make this fundraiser work, and we ask all families to volunteer for at least two shifts during the season. Please use the link below to sign up and learn more.
Football Parking Sign-Up
Parent Survey
Parents, please use the survey below share with us some helpful information at the start of the year. This survey includes contact info, volunteer sign-ups, and a place to share with us anything that would be helpful in serving your family at the start of the year.
In order for our Youth Department to operate to the best of its ability, we rely on the generous support of volunteers to make most of our activities happen. From Sunday school to SLA, NightLife to Senior Sunday, many hands make for light work. We would so appreciate you joining us in ministry as we serve your students this year!
Parent Survey
Annual Release Form
Each year, we ask every student to complete an Annual Release Form. This acts as our medical and liability form for all of our events. Please complete this form for every student in your family!
Annual Release Form
Breakfast & Dinner Sign-Ups
Each Sunday, we serve our students breakfast and lunch. We ask families to volunteer to help make these meals happen! The sign-ups are below. If every family signs up for one breakfast and one dinner each, we will have nearly every week covered!
Breakfast Sign-Up
Dinner Sign-Up
Weekly Prayer – August 3, 2022
Featured, prayer for todayWeekly Prayers for the Church Street Family
Week of August 3, 2022
Rev. Jan Buxton Wade*
Love divine, all loves excelling, Joy of Heav’n to earth come down;
Fix in us thy humble dwelling; all thy faithful mercies crown!
Jesus, Thou art all compassion; pure unbounded love Thou art;
Visit us with Thy salvation, enter every trembling heart.
Ah, Love Divine, our hearts indeed do tremble, for these are anxious days. Governments are at odds, the language of war and retaliation is prolific. Our own nation’s leaders seem to work at cross purposes, their bickering aired around the world. We have sullied our good earth and now in remorse we pay the price of our short sightedness: floods, fire, famine and drought are visited upon those most vulnerable. We have all but become comfortable with bloodshed and brutality in our streets and communities. We have abandoned our churches and have not lived up to our vows of faithful presence and witness. You have made us to be beacons, disciples of your unbounded love, O Lord, yet we have slipped far from your holy aim. Clear away our inner doubt and distrust, that there might be sufficient room to build your forever dwelling place. Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy.
Breathe, O breathe Thy loving Spirit into every troubled breast!
Let us all in Thee inherit; let us find that second rest.
Take away our bent to sinning; Alpha and Omega be;
End of faith, as its beginning, set our hearts at liberty.
Loving Spirit, breathe your awakening spirit into our troubled souls. Stir us from the lethargy that whispers everything is out of our hands, for scripture assures us that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Give us courage to plant our feet securely upon your pure and steady rock of grace, believing your own possibilities will unfold if we remain steadfast. Gird us with purpose, we pray, that we might walk unflinching, staring down those prevalent forces of evil, taking a stand for justice in our community and in our world. Alpha and Omega, we depend upon you to give us what we need to respond to the crises of our age, serving our neighbors as ourselves.
Come, Almighty to deliver, let us all Thy life receive;
Suddenly return, and never, nevermore Thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing, serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
Pray and praise Thee without ceasing, glory in Thy perfect love.
Almighty Deliverer, you offer us fulness of life and why we so often take this gift for granted remains an enigma, even to ourselves. Plant anew in our hearts that longing for community, the realization that we, as a body of believers, personally need one another. Knit us together again, we pray, that we might be known as the body of Christ, upholding one another for your work in our world. And even as you watch over us, we ask that your grace would be manifest in the lives of these who submit their most recent prayers and thanksgivings:
Finish, then, Thy new creation; pure and spotless let us be;
Let us see Thy great salvation perfectly restored in Thee;
Changed from glory into glory, till in Heav’n we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee, lost in wonder, love, and praise.
Help us to trust, Love Divine, that your love exceeds all others, and that you are guiding, leading, and infusing us with a power that always surprises us. Move us, then, from glory into glory until you welcome us one glad day into your eternal realm. And there, we shall join that ageless chorus in singing praises to your Resurrected Son, who instructed us to pray:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
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