Father, we kneel before you, grateful in our hearts for your many gifts to us. An old year has come once more to a close. We face with confidence and hope the beginning of a New Year with all the promise that it holds, the mixture of grief and blessings which it now keeps hidden from our eyes.

Now be with us, Father, as this New Year unfolds. Through our efforts and your help, deepen the measure of peace that is ours. Bind us more closely together, to each other and to you, through your great gifts of love. May the blessing of the New Year be in the hearts of all the listeners. And keep us as one in mind and heart with God this day, and all the days of the year ahead. Amen.