Prayers of the People | Epiphany 3C | January 24th, 2016

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Prayers of the People

Epiphany 3C

January 24th, 2016

Here's a prayers of the people for Epiphany 3C.

    God of all goodness and grace,
    we give you thanks this day
    for the gift of your Son
    who grew in years and wisdom
    and proclaims your word to us this day.
    We give thanks that he entered the temple,
    filled by the Spirit,
    and taught the people about your will.
    We give thanks that he embodied the scripture of Isaiah,
        to bring good news to the poor,
        to proclaim release to the captives,
        to restore sight to the blind,
        to let the oppressed go free,
        and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.
    May we, like him, embody your favor for all peoples.

    Merciful God,
    we are reminded by the Apostle Paul,
    that if one member of your body suffers,
        all of us suffer together with it.
    As the one Body of Christ,
    we pray this day for members of the body that are in pain and trial.

    Prayers of intercession may be lifted up in silence or out loud.

    We trust that our prayers have not gone unheard.
    We lift up your name that is above all names
    and beseech you to attend to the prayers we’ve lifted up to you.
    In the name of your Son, Jesus Christ, we pray.  Amen.

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Stephen Fearing

Stephen was born in 1988 in Cookeville, TN, where his parents met whilst attending Tennessee Tech. Shortly after, they moved to Dalton, Georgia where they put down roots and joined First Presbyterian Church, the faith family that taught Stephen that he was first and foremost a beloved child of God. It was this community that taught Stephen that it was OK to have questions and doubts and that nothing he could do could every possibly separate him from the love of God. In 1995, his sister, Sarah Kate, joined the family and Stephen began his journey as a life-long musician. Since then, he has found a love of music and has found this gift particularly fitting for his call to ministry. Among the instruments that he enjoys are piano, trumpet, guitar, and handbells. Stephen has always had a love of singing and congregation song. An avid member of the marching band, Stephen was the drum major of his high school's marching band. In 2006, Stephen began his tenure at Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC where he majored in Religion and minored in History. While attending PC, Stephen continued to explore his love of music by participating in the Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Jazz Combo, Jazz Trio, as well as playing in the PC Handbell ensemble and playing mandolin and banjo PC's very own bluegrass/rock group, Hosegrass, of which Stephen was a founding member (Hosegrass even released their own CD!). In 2010, Stephen moved from Clinton to Atlanta to attend Columbia Theological Seminary to pursue God's call on his life to be a pastor in the PC(USA). During this time, Stephen worked at Trinity Presbyterian Church, Silver Creek Presbyterian Church, Central Presbyterian Church, and Westminster Presbyterian Church. For three years, Stephen served as the Choir Director of Columbia Theological Seminary's choir and also served as the Interim Music Director at Westminster Presbyterian Church. In 2014, Stephen graduated from Columbia with a Masters of Divinity and a Masters of Arts in Practical Theology with an emphasis in liturgy, music, and worship. In July of 2014, Stephen was installed an ordained as Teaching Elder at Shelter Island Presbyterian Church in Shelter Island, NY. Later that year, Stephen married the love of his life, Tricia, and they share their home on Shelter Island with their Golden Doodle, Elsie, and their calico cat, Audrey. In addition to his work with the people who are Shelter Island Presbyterian Church, Stephen currently serves as a commission from Long Island Presbytery to the Synod of the Northeast and, beginning in January of 2016, will moderate the Synod's missions team.