This resource is a gift from the Rev. Kelly Colwell, an authorized minister in the NCNC who created the original Prayer Cycle as part of her Member in Discernment process in advance of ordination. It has been updated by Conference staff to reflect changes since the original resource was published. We continue to be grateful for her spiritual leadership and the ongoing legacy of her nurturing a common prayer life for our Conference inspired by our covenant.
In the UCC, we are a denomination of sacred promises.
Rather than laws, rules, or strings, we are bound to each other by the covenant we make with each other. More than a collection of local churches, richer and more creative than a structure, stronger than a ministerial, we bind ourselves as local churches into Associations, Conferences, Regions, and even a Denomination through covenants. Covenants are the shape of our relationships to each other, and while we maintain nearly total autonomy for local churches to act, we also call on each other to respect the actions of all other settings of the church. Our 1959 Statement of Faith names the ultimate source of all our covenants:
“You bestow upon us your holy Spirit, creating and renewing the church of Jesus Christ, binding in covenant faithful people of all ages, tongues, and races…”
We proclaim that God has bound us in covenant with each other at every level of our denomination. We proclaim that God has given us to each other for mutual benefit, as we have written in our statement of covenant. God has brought us together to support each other, to challenge each other, to appreciate each other, to help each other, to share our dreams and visions with each other. Our faithful God is continually calling us to be in closer and more faithful relationships with each other across the Conference.
In these relationships, we can truly rejoice in each other’s blessings and weep for each other’s sorrows. We can raise money for each other when tragedy strikes, invite each other to share events and experiences, offer each other resources, teach each other our best practices. We can bear witness to each other about what God is doing in our own midst. Sometimes we can bear witness to what we see God doing in our neighbor’s context, helping each other recognize the presence of the Holy One. We can be rightly proud and grateful for our rich relationships within our Conference. We are in covenant with each other, and we are bound to live up to the promises we have made to each other.
One of the promises we have made is to pray for each other.
Prayer Cycle
- At the very simplest, you might simply name the settings in prayer during yourSunday worship service, perhaps during the Prayers of the People or PastoralPrayer.
- You might also simply choose to list the prayer cycle in your bulletin, asking yourcongregation to lift those settings up in prayer.
- An additional option would be to build in a regular section of your worship service:the lighting of a candle or the singing of a simple refrain, saying “We are in community with Elm United Church of Christ in Daly City and Hudson Memorial Church in Fresno this morning as we worship, and we lift them up to God.
- You might project the names and pictures of the congregation during the announcements, naming them as our prayer partners for this week.
2024-25 Prayer Cycle
Week Beginning | Church 1 | Church 2 | Church/Other Ministry |
---|---|---|---|
Jan. 26, 2025 | LODI United Congregational Christian DOC UCC | WOODLAND St John’s UCC | Leadership in the Santa Clara Association |
Feb. 2, 2025 | MODESTO College Ave. Congregational UCC | FAIRFAX Community UCC | Members of the Sacramento Valley Association |
Feb. 9, 2025 | PESCADERO Community UCC | MURPHYS Open Door UCC | Our full communion partners in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Northern California Nevada Region |
Feb. 16, 2025 | SAN CARLOS, Kalavaria Reformed CCCSA UCC | SAN MATEO Congregational UCC | Our full communion partners in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Sierra Pacific Synod |
Feb. 23, 2025 | FREMONT United Church of Christ Fremont | OAKLAND Skyline Community UCC | Our full communion partners in the Presbyterian Church (USA), Presbyteries of Nevada, Redwoods, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Jose, and Stockton |
Mar. 2, 2025 | NORTH FORK Grace Community UCC | PETALUMA United Church of Christ | Our full communion partners in the Reformed Church in America, Central California Classis, City Classis |
Mar. 9, 2025 | BERKELEY Chinese Community UCC | HAYWARD, Satauro O Le Ola UCC | Our full communion partners in the United Church of Canada |
Mar. 16, 2025 | SAN MATEO College Heights UCC | OAKLAND First Congregational UCC | Our full communion partners (kirchengemeinschaft) in the Union of Evangelical Churches, Germany (UEK) |
Mar. 23, 2025 | MARINA, Ola Fou – New Life Church | LOS ALTOS Foothills Congregational UCC | Our ecumenical partners in the United Methodist Church, California-Nevada Conference |
Mar 30, 2025 | PITTSBURG Community PCUSA UCC | BERKELEY First Congregational UCC | Our ecumenical partners in the Congregational Christian Church of American Samoa |
Apr. 6, 2025 | SAN FRANCISCO St John’s UCC | SAN FRANCISCO Light of Life/First Samoan Congregational UCC | Our ecumenical partners in the Congregational Christian Church of Samoa |
Apr. 13, 2025 | LOS GATOS Skyland Community UCC | SAN CARLOS Community UCC | Our ecumenical partners in the Iglesia Evangelica Unida de Puerto Rico (IEUPR) |
Apr. 20, 2025 | SAN JOSE Cong'l Church of Almaden Valley UCC | FOSTER CITY Island United Church UCC | Our ecumenical partners in the Alliance of Baptists |
Apr. 27, 2025 | AUBURN First Congregational UCC | HAYWARD United Church of Hayward UCC | Our ecumenical partners in the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church |
May 4, 2025 | SAN JOSE New Community of Faith ABC UCC | SAN FRANCISCO Pilgrim Community UCC | Our ecumenical relationships in the World Council of Churches |
May 11, 2025 | CEDARVILLE Surprise Valley Community UCC | SAN JOSE Urban Sanctuary | Our ecumenical relationships in the World Communion of Reformed Churches |
May 18, 2025 | SAN JOSE Cosmopolitan Evangelical UCC | SAN JOSE, Epenesa Fou CCCAS UCC | Our ecumenical relationships within the National Council of Churches in the United States |
May 25, 2025 | SONOMA First Congregational UCC | LOOMIS Loomis Basin Congregational UCC | Our local ecumenical relationships |
Jun 1, 2025 | LA SELVA BEACH Community UCC | TULARE First Congregational UCC | Staff and leaders in our National Setting |
Jun. 8, 2025 | DANVILLE Congregational UCC | OAKLAND Plymouth UCC | Committee on Ministry, Section A (Initial Authorization for Ministry) |
Jun 15, 2025 | SUISUN CITY Suisun-Fairfield Congregational UCC | STOCKTON First Congregational UCC | Committee on Ministry, Section B (Support & Oversight of Ministers) |
Jun 22, 2025 | KENSINGTON Arlington Community UCC | FREMONT Niles Discovery Church DOC UCC | Committee on Ministry, Section C (New & Emerging Churches) |
Jun 29, 2025 | SUNOL Little Brown Church of Sunol | DALY CITY, Samoan Cong'l Church of Jesus Christ | Committee on Ministry, Section D (Covenant Support with Churches) |
Jul 6, 2025 | SACRAMENTO, Christian Cathedral UCC (in care) | SAN BRUNO St John’s UCC | Committee on Ministry, Section E (Accountability for Ministerial Ethics) |
Jul 13, 2025 | OAKLAND, Ministerio Latino (church in care) | CAMPBELL Congregational Church of Campbell UCC | NCNC Justice & Witness Ministries |
Jul 20, 2025 | TIBURON Community Congregational UCC | EL SOBRANTE The Good Table UCC | The ministry of Camp Tamarack |
Jul 27, 2025 | SAN JOSE First Congregational UCC | SAN BRUNO First Filipino-American UCC | All those in our conference who minister with elders. |
Aug 3, 2025 | WEAVERVILLE, Trinity Congregational UCC | PLEASANT HILL Hillcrest Congregational UCC | Students, faculty, and staff at Pacific School of Religion |
Aug 10, 2025 | CARMEL, Community Church of the Monterey Peninsula UCC | FREMONT Filipino-American UCC | Students, faculty, and staff across the Graduate Theological Union |
Aug 17, 2025 | OAKLAND/ALAMEDA First Samoan Congregational UCC | SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO Faafouina CCCAS UCC | Students and chaplains at UCC and ecumenical campus ministries in our Conference: San Francisco State, Stanford, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, and UC Santa Cruz |
Aug 24, 2025 | SACRAMENTO Sierra Vista Community Church UCC PCUSA | BENICIA Community Congregational UCC | UCC chaplains in hospitals and hospice settings |
Aug 31, 2025 | PORTOLA VALLEY Ladera Community UCC | EUREKA United Congregational Christian Church UCC/DOC | BELMONT Congregational Church of the Peninsula UCC |
Sept 7, 2025 | KENWOOD Community UCC | SACRAMENTO, Marshallese Ministry UCC | REDDING Pilgrim Congregational UCC |
Sept 14, 2025 | MARTINEZ First Congregational UCC | SAN JOSE Tafatolu CCCS UCC | UCC Chaplains in prison and jail settings |
Sept 21, 2025 | HAYWARD San Lorenzo Community UCC | ORINDA Community UCC | SAN FRANCISCO First Congregational UCC |
Sept 28, 2025 | EL CERRITO Sycamore Congregational UCC | RENO First Congregational UCC | CLOVERDALE United Church of Cloverdale UCC |
Oct. 5, 2025 | OAKLAND City of Refuge Community UCC | ELK GROVE Field of Hope UCC | UCC Military chaplains |
Oct. 12, 2025 | ALAMEDA First Congregational UCC | FRESNO Community UCC | Participants and ministers at the San Francisco Night Ministry and other ministries to poor and unhoused people |
Oct. 19, 2025 | SACRAMENTO Parkside Community UCC | SANTA ROSA Wellspring UCC | All Members in Discernment and those considering authorized ministry |
Oct. 26, 2025 | SAN FRANCISCO Chinese Congregational UCC | ALTURAS Federated Community UCC | All Retired UCC Authorized Ministers |
Nov. 2, 2025 | WOODSIDE Village UCC | SANTA CRUZ Peace UCC | All those in our conference who minister with children and young people |
Nov. 9, 2025 | FRESNO First Congregational UCC | MILL VALLEY Community Church of Mill Valley UCC | The Northern California and Nevada Conference ministers, staff, and committee members |
Nov. 16, 2025 | SAN RAFAEL First Congregational UCC | SUNNYVALE Congregational Community UCC | Members of our Conference who serve on boards and committees of the wider UCC |
Nov. 23, 2025 | OLYMPIC VALLEY Olympic Valley Chapel UCC | OROVILLE First Congregational UCC | Leadership in the Bay Association |
Nov. 30, 2025 | SANTA ROSA First Congregational UCC | CLOVIS United Japanese Christian Church UCC UMC | Leadership in the Golden Gate Association |
Dec. 7, 2025 | PALO ALTO First Congregational UCC | HAYWARD Eden UCC | Leadership in the Sequoia Association |
Dec. 14, 2025 | SACRAMENTO Pioneer Congregational UCC | SUNNYVALE Filipino-American UCC | |
Dec 21, 2025 | DALY CITY First Congregational Christian Church of American Samoan CCCAS UCC | SEBASTOPOL Community UCC | In gratitude, we pray that our covenant be upheld and strengthened by the Holy Spirit. |