From: Psalm 95:1-7a CEB:

Come, let’s sing out loud to the Lord!
Let’s raise a joyful shout to the rock of our salvation!

Let’s come before him with thanks!
Let’s shout songs of joy to him!

The Lord is a great God,
the great king over all other gods.

The earth’s depths are in his hands;
the mountain heights belong to him;

the sea, which he made, is his
along with the dry ground,
which his own hands formed.

Come, let’s worship and bow down!
Let’s kneel before the Lord, our maker!

He is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,
the sheep in his hands.

I invite you to be in prayer while looking at your hands as we pray:

Creator God, Ever-Present Help in Times of Trouble,

The Psalmist reminds us this morning that everything from the depths of the earth to the mountain heights are in your hands. All that is and ever has been, from the sea to dry ground, were formed in your own hands.

Shepherding God, today and always you are our God, we are the people of your pasture, the sheep in your hands. You are faithful to care for us.

As we consider the intricacies of our own hands – the way each of our unique fingerprints whorl and loop, it is astounding to consider that even these tiny details matter to You.

From the moment our hands emerged, our fingers were counted and held. We thank you for the hands who nurtured us as we began this life. Thank you for the caring hands along the way who wrapped fingers around ours, guiding us to safety and along life’s path.

Thank you for the hands who have written, typed and taught us, instructing us and modeling how to live and love.

We praise you for the good our hands have been able to do. For good food which has passed through our hands, for good work made by our hands. 

We ask for forgiveness for when our hands have caused harm– for any times we acted in anger, neglected to love our neighbors, or caused brokenness in your creation.

We ask you to hold our hands right now. As we live with fear and anxiety, not sure about our future, concerned about those who are sick or who may become sick, we need to know your presence. Remind us of the peace that is found in you alone. Fill us with the assurance that we are still the sheep in your hands.

As we frequently wash our hands, fill us with the Living Water that we find in you alone. May we be instruments of your handiwork.

We pray this in the name of the carpenter, the one whose hands were pierced and the one who taught us to pray in unity, saying:

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. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.