⁴ But may all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You;
may those who long for Your saving help always say, “The LORD is great!
⁵ But as for me, I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God.
You are my help and my deliverer; LORD, do not delay.
~ Psalm 70

The greatness of God, and the poverty and neediness of those who pray, are key to believing prayer.
We recognise our weakness and we appeal to His goodness and power.

“The church lives always in tents and has never any hope for rest until the day of triumph.”
~ Sibbes

Petition: Please join with us in praying for:

1. The World — The number of confirmed cases is 35,016,152 (up 2,048,311 from last week – the past few weeks the increase has been a steady 2 million each week). There have been 1,034,974 deaths of people with Covid-19 (up 38,890). India is the country with the largest daily increases and is soon expected to overtake the US in total number of cases.

2. Australia — now has had 27,136 cases (up 94 compared with 142 in the previous week), with 894 deaths (+22 compared with 23 the previous week).

There are 46 people in hospital (-19) with 6 in intensive care (-6).
7,772,921 tests have been carried out, with 0.4% being positive.
24,504 people have recovered. There are 304 (-201) active cases.
NSW has now gone 10 days without community transmission.

3. Vaccine and Cures — Although politicians are putting their faith in a vaccine being available quickly, there is an increasing awareness that a vaccine may not be the quick panacea that they are gambling on. This report from the BBC explains why a vaccine will not see a quick return to ‘normal’. Remember in prayer President Trump and other leaders who have Covid-19. Pray that the US will know peace and stability.

4. Church — Pray especially for the elderly in our churches, many of whom have been isolated and left alone during this time. Some are fearful about returning to church services, and others miss the support and help of family who are stuck in different parts of the world.

5. Personal and Family — Pray that out of this crisis, Christian families would see a renewed commitment to the Lord and to one another. May family worship and prayers be a renewed habit in our lives.

A Prayer of Repentance:

O Most powerful and glorious Lord God,
at Whose command the winds blow,
and lift up the waves of the sea, and who stills their rage;
We Your creatures, but miserable sinners,
do in this our great distress cry to You for help:
Save, Lord, or else we perish.
We confess, when we have been safe,
and seen all things quiet about us,
we have forget You our God,
and refused to hearken to the still voice of Your word,
and to obey Your commandments;
But now we see, how terrible You are in all Your works of wonder;
the great God to be feared above all;
And therefore we adore Your Divine Majesty;
acknowledging Your power, and imploring Your goodness.
Help Lord, and save us for Your mercy’s sake in Jesus Christ,
Your Son, our Lord. Amen.
~ Book of Common Prayer

A Prayer of Thanksgiving:

O Lord God Almighty, how we bless You for Your restraining hand upon this virus.
We bless You for the many gifts You have given us, to help us deal with it — scientists, governments, workers, family and friends. Most of all, we bless You for Your Church and its head, our Lord Jesus Christ. May we seek our comfort and refuge in Him, for Your Glory. Amen.