Let's give a hand to prayer

Riverton Church is embarking on a new emphasize upon regular, daily individual prayer and devotion as a way of strengthening our church. We are making copies of the Daily Bread available for free in the Narthex, and encouraging those who prefer to get devotional meditations electronically to sign up for the Stillspeaking Daily Devotional. Prayer journals have been distributed to help us track what/for whom we are praying on a regular basis. (It is also possible to create an online prayer journal and of course there is at least one website dedicated to this.)

In order to guide our prayer life I'm encouraging folks to practice the five-finger method as a memory aid. If you've never done it, it's easy to learn and remember. It goes like this:

First finger (pinkie or thumb): Prayers for the world (things like world peace, natural disasters around the world, international crises, the environment)

Second finger: Prayers for our nation (Our government and leaders, disasters/issues in our own nation, concerns we hear on the national news, etc.)

Third finger: Prayers for our community: (Prayers for our local town and church community, acquaintances, friends we don't see as often as we would like, friends of friends, etc.)

Fourth finger: Prayers for those close to us: (Prayers for family and close friends, people we see regularly and situations close at hand.)

Fifth finger: Prayers for ourselves: (Relief of stress, finding balance, health concerns, etc.)

As we continue on this journey I am hoping members will share some of their prayer concerns and experiences with praying in worship each week.

What are you praying for? How is it going?

Dancing for Jesus

The high school youth in our congregation just returned from Synod (the UCC biennial meeting) where they participated in service projects, worship, and a flash mob. They had a great time and the flash mob was definitely a highlight for both of them! This isn't your grandmother's evangelism, but it is evangelism nevertheless. I'm grateful to be part of a church that encourages our young people to dance, tweet, text and Facebook their faith.