Saying Grace

Lepapillon0311

It is most appropriate to pause before a meal to give thanks to God for the food and all of God’s gifts to us. When others join you for a meal, you may want to be creative in deciding how to say grace.
<br>§        Everyone can hold hands seated or standing around the table.
<br>§        Each person may be given a chance to give thanks for something special.
<br>§        The children can say grace for the group.
<br>§        One person can say grace aloud for the group.
<br>§        The group can say grace together using copies of a prayer placed around the table in advance.
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<br>From the Book of Common Prayer
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<br>Give us grateful hearts, our Father, for all thy [your] mercies, and make us mindful of the needs of others; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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<br>Bless, O Lord, thy [your] gifts to our use and us to thy [your] service; for Christ’s sake. Amen.
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<br>Blessed are you, O Lord God, King of the Universe, for you give us food to sustain our lives and make our hearts glad; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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<br>For these and all his mercies, God’s holy Name be blessed and praised; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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<br>Other Graces
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<br>Bless O Lord this food [these gifts] to our use and us to thy loving service; and keep us ever mindful of the needs of others. Amen.
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<br>Bless O Lord, this food to our use,
<br>And us to thy loving service;
<br>And make us ever mindful of the needs of others, For Jesus’ sake. Amen.
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<br>Lord, Bless this food to our bodies and our bodies to your service. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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<br>Bless us, O Lord, for these Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty. Through Christ our Lord we pray. Amen.
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<br>For what we are about to receive, may the Lord make us truly thankful. Amen
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<br>Let us thank God for food when others are hungry; for drink when others are thirsty; for friends when others are lonely. Amen.
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<br>Be present at our table, Lord!
<br>Be here and everywhere adored.
<br>Your mercies bless, and grant that we
<br>May feast in Paradise with Thee! Amen.
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<br>For good food and those who prepare it, for good friends with whom to share it, we thank you Lord. Amen.
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<br>Bless, O Lord, these gifts to our use and us in your service; relieve the needs of those in want and give us thankful hearts; for Christ’s sake. Amen.
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<br>Blessed art Thou, Lord of all Creation. Through your goodness we have this gifts for our use, the fruit of your bounty and the work of human hands. As they become part of our substance may they give you honor and glory. Amen.
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<br>There is a sort of table grace attributed to Oliver Cromwell:
<br>Some have hunger, but no meat;
<br>Some have meat, but no hunger;
<br>I have both.
<br>God be praised!
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<br>Grace for Children
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<br>A brief grace with hand motions, as follows:
<br>God bless us                 (hands on head)
<br>God bless the food                 (hands on plate)
<br>Amen                 (hands folded)
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<br>Thank you, God, for loving me.
<br>Thank you for my family.
<br>Help me to learn more each day
<br>To be kind at work and play.
<br>Amen.
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<br>Thank you Jesus for this food and for this time together. Amen.
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<br>God is great, God is good.
<br>Let us thank him for our food.
<br>By his hands, we are fed.
<br>Give us Lord our daily bread.
<br>Amen.
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<br>Or
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<br>God is great, God is good.
<br>Let us thank him for our food.
<br>By his hands, we are fed.
<br>Let us thank him for our bread.
<br>Amen.
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<br>Another option is to not use a spoken grace but to encourage each person to take turns giving thanks their own way. One way that we do this is with a “squeeze prayer.” Holding hands, each person prays, then squeezes the next hand when finished.
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<br>Singing Grace
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<br>This Grace is sung to the tune “Edelweiss” from “The Sound of Music”:
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<br>Bless our friends,
<br>Bless our food,
<br>Come, O Lord and sit with us.
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<br>May our talk
<br>Glow with peace;
<br>Come with your love to surround us.
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<br>Friendship and love
<br>May they bloom and glow,
<br>Bloom and glow forever.
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<br>Bless our friends,
<br>Bless our food,
<br>Bless all mankind forever.
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<br>It was once the custom to give thanks after a meal. So, if you occasionally forget to say grace before you start, you can always give thanks before leaving the table.
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