Past treasure 1

A prayer for Epiphany, reflecting on the decision of the 'wise men' to return to their own country by another road, and the wisdom of a four year old - whose immediate response on hearing the gospel of Matthew chapter 2 read aloud was "Mummy - I want Jesus to be the king and not Herod to be the king." The ideas of King and Empire were explored in the teaching on this Sunday (by the brilliant preacher to whom I am married) and a lot of the words in this prayer are taken directly from the gospel for the day. The context of this prayer was St Stephens Sydney, which is located on the same street as Sydney hospital and the State Parliament.

God of other roads

Of worshippers and star-followers

Of seekers and travellers

Of all who journey

In all time and in every place

At this time and in this place

We want Jesus to be the King and not Herod to be the King

We pray for ourselves

The people in this place this morning

As we retrace familiar steps

Or find everything so different

On this first Sunday of a new year

May our hearts be attuned to your heart

Our spirits given life by your Spirit

So that we know deep within us

What it means for Jesus to be the King

How our lives change when we pay him homage

We pray for all making the return journey to work tomorrow

for bankers and bureaucrats and politicians

nurses and strategists and retail therapists

and the baristas who brew coffee to perfection

Keep us all expectant

With eyes wide open

And minds alert to the possibility

of new perspectives and ways of doing things

So that decisions are guided and informed

By the child in the Bethlehem house

And our allegiance is not diverted

By those who seem to be in control

That in this great city of Sydney

Jesus and not Herod is the King

We pray for those who take us into other worlds

Stretching imagination and taking us beyond ourselves

Through art and literature

Film and performance

For the presenters and participants in the Sydney festival

Challenging us to examine the way we are

And to consider the forces

That compete for the allegiance

of our collective soul and mind to Jesus as King

God who we know in Christ Jesus

Who we meet in the gospel today

In a house with his mother Mary

We pray for our human family

And especially today

For those journeying away from their homelands

To welcome newborn babies or celebrate marriages

To farewell loved ones and settle estates

For migrants seeking a better future

And refugees carrying unspeakable memories

As they escape cruel tyrannical powers

Who like Herod will stop at nothing

To try and stop Jesus being King

We pray for those especially on our hearts and minds this morning

…

God of other roads

Of worshippers and star-followers

In all time and in every place

At this time and in this place

We pray that you will bring to completion

Our hope for Jesus to be King

In our lives

And the lives of those we love

In the life of our city

Our country

And our world

As we pray in the words Jesus taught us

Our Father in heaven …