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Prayers for Marking a Year of COVID-19: Free Coloring Pages

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Prayers to Mark COVID-19

Prayers to Mark COVID-19

As churches and communities begin to look for ways to mark the passing of time during COVID-19, we thought we’d put together a set of prayers and coloring pages to help with that process.

It’s hard to believe it’s been over a year since COVID-19 changed the world as we knew it. As we brought our kids home from school and college and tried to figure out what Zoom worship looked like (it will only be for a few weeks, right?), we had no idea the amount of time we’d be staying home, the number of people who would die, and the toll the pandemic would take on our bodies: physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve started seeing Facebook posts and memes about “Where were you this time last year?” when COVID-19 first started to change our lives drastically.

It’s been over a year since we’ve been together, seen our friends, shared hugs, and experienced the joy of community. And we know that churches, schools, and other community groups are trying to find ways to help people mark this passing of time.

We asked our team of writers to come up with some prayers to help communities mark this year of COVID-19, and we created a set of three coloring pages that go along with these prayers.

This is a free resource, so please feel free to share it widely. Unlike our purchased materials, you can post these free coloring pages on your website and make them available publicly.

FREE DOWNLOAD: Click here to download your free set of coloring pages to help mark a year of COVID-19.

Ash and Starlight: Prayers for the Chaos and Grace of Daily Life

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Ash and Starlight

One of our fantastic contributors, Arianne Braithwaite Lehn, wrote a beautiful book of prayers that accompany us on all of life’s journeys. Her book, Ash & Starlight, is available now.

Would you like to download a sample chapter and enter to win a copy of Arianne’s book? Download your PDF and enter our drawing by clicking here!

Arianne, we are so excited about your book’s release! Tell us a little bit about your dream for this book and how it came to be.

When I was a parish associate at Highland Park Presbyterian, still in my last year of seminary, I started composing a weekly prayer to go out to the congregation every Friday. I incorporated prayer requests from the congregation and slipped them into a more extended prayer to hold and guide our hearts for the day. It became a way to both deepen our prayer lives as well as our vulnerability with one another. An unexpected gift for me was how writing prayers uncovered my authentic voice – and specifically my writing voice – in fresh ways.

When my husband and I moved to Fort Wayne and began ministry at First Presbyterian, I continued the prayer practice there – sending out prayers every Friday. And then, in the spring of 2015, when I needed to step away from my pastoral call, I began a blog for prayers and other writing. It had become such a life-giving practice for my heart, one that helped me navigate some of the rockiest waters I’d encountered – death, birth, loss, multiple moves, and a complete upending of my plans.

Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamed of writing a book someday. Books have been an essential and life-changing part of my journey. But only God in God’s goodness and leading could have brought this about. Eight years ago, when I started writing prayers, I wasn’t telling myself, “someday, this will become a book of prayers.” It was indeed a case of fumbling toward faithfulness in the next thing, and then the next. I think of one of my favorite prayers by Thomas Merton:

“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end, nor do I really know myself…but I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you…And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it.”

Tell us about the significance of the name of your book.

The name “Ash and Starlight” holds multiple threads of meaning. I connect with the Celtic Christian tradition, which grounds itself in the goodness and presence of God in creation. There is a term in Celtic Christianity called a “thin place” – a space where heaven and earth co-mingle, and the “veil” feels paper-thin. I wholeheartedly believe these places are in our everyday lives, and they are within us.

The poetry of Genesis in the Bible centers us in this beautiful idea – we’re made of earth, and we’re made of heaven. The creation poem says God created humans from the dust or ash of the earth, then blew divine breath into them. The same breath and spirit that created the stars are embedded within us. We are made of earth and ash, we are made of starlight and heaven, woven seamlessly together.

And so are our lives. I was 31-weeks pregnant with our first child when my dad died. As he sat in his big green recliner, taking his last breaths, I remember holding his hand in one of my hands, and placing my other hand on my pregnant belly, kicking with life. Following his death, his brother commissioned a musical piece in remembrance – not just of my father, but of the message his life spoke. My father and his brother were and are very musical and loved singing together.

My uncle asked a favorite composer of theirs to write the musical score, and he asked me to write the text/lyrics. The piece ended up being called, “Ash and Starlight” – a hearkening to the wholeness God brings to our lives and very selves, with all their mess and glory.

This is such a unique book of prayers, curated for just about every season and twist and turn of life’s journey. How do you envision people using this collection of prayers?

I hope this book will be a prayerful companion for people amid their everyday lives. A book to pull out after getting off a tough phone call, while feeding the baby, when pouring that first-morning cup of coffee, or in an intentional two minutes of centering after crawling into bed at night. The prayers are purposely named and written for the chaos and grace of life – “When I want to avoid, numb and block,” “When I’m struggling to accept my life right now,” “When I’m headed to work,” “When I can’t sleep,” “When I’m in the messy middle of something,” and more.

The prayers can be starting spots for peoples’ own prayers – a springboard to use in offering God their unique thoughts and feelings they need to let loose. Or the prayers can be a place to rest. I have been so thankful for the prayers of others when I didn’t have it in me to pray – or didn’t want to.

Following each prayer are a few scripture references. These connect with the themes of the prayer and provide nourishment for further meditation if people want to go deeper.

Ash and Starlight is meant to help people see how the experiences and emotions we often want to leave behind are integral to who we are and are becoming. I pray this book empowers people to approach life with grace and curiosity, to surrender and trust amid fears, to rejoice in their current lives, even as they’re moving toward something else.

I believe we all need to be grounded in the deepest promises of which we all need the most reminding: We are loved as we are. We are not alone. We are instruments of blessing, even when we don’t realize it. This book will hopefully help be a source of that reminding when people pull it out during the day.

Would you like to download a sample chapter and enter to win a copy of Arianne’s book? Download your PDF and enter our drawing by clicking here!

Will you share some wisdom or experience you’ve had for integrating prayer into the everyday rhythms of life?

I am continuing to learn how prayer is not something separate from our lives – it can be woven into the fabric of our everyday rhythms and routines. One way to think about prayer is a recognition of God’s presence in the midst of whatever it is we’re doing or feeling. Simple breath prayers have been helpful for me – “God, I know you are with me.” “God, center my heart.” “God, give me courage.” “God, this person is driving me crazy!!!” It’s recognizing what you’re holding within you and holding that in the presence of God.

As a parent of a two and four-year-old, our home is chaotic and noisy. But prayer does not have to be peaceful, focused, or solemn! I try to take some early morning time for reading, prayer, and/or journaling (I’m talking 5-10 minutes – not long), but I am also learning more and more the grace and benefit of prayer throughout the day. When I’m out on a stroller walk with the kids, we might take turns naming things we want to thank God for – a fun playground to visit, the flowers we see in someone’s yard, the chance to be together.

When I’m driving in the car and not too distracted by the chaos in the backseat, I might think of some people I want to hold in light. When I run, I take a chunk of that time to listen to and see my surroundings – an exercise in being present to God’s world. And sometimes, I will pull out prayer books that are meaningful for me, and read those aloud with the kids. Even as all the layers of those prayers don’t register – and they might not pay attention at all – they are taking it in, even in their own way.

What other resources inspire you in your prayer life and with your two young children?

Some of my personal favorites:

For prayer as a family:

And a couple of books that just help me connect faith with parenting in general:

Thanks so much for this, Arianne. We are so grateful for your gift of prayers here. Where can we find out more about your work?

Links to purchase Ash and Starlight:

The Lord’s Prayer: An Illustrated Curriculum

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Illustrated Ministry has published three 12-week curricula over the past few years:

The feedback we’ve received on our curricula has been very positive and tells us we’re creating something new in the children’s ministry curriculum world that people want.

“…The curriculum is absolutely beautiful. The lessons are extremely user-friendly with very little prep required, yet they are beautifully profound with fantastic illustrations. We turn the coloring pages into little books that the children complete and take home each week…”

“…One of the best things about the curriculum is how adaptable it is…Also, there are lots of practical applications and projects for the kids to do together…”

“…The theology of Illustrated Ministry is solid and the openness to wonder about the mystery of God is present…”

Our Father Curriculum

Our newest curriculum is called The Lord’s Prayer: An Illustrated Curriculum. This is a flexible, six-session curriculum that is a verse by verse study of the Lord’s Prayer from Matthew 6:9b-13.

FREE INFOGUIDE AND SAMPLE LESSON: This post contains a lot of information about the curriculum, but if you want to download the complete Scope and Sequence, detailed information about the curriculum and coloring posters, and get a FREE SAMPLE LESSON, click here. We will send you a PDF of the information in this post (as well as the Scope and Sequence and additional details about pricing) that you can print out and take and share with your colleagues and community.

Why the Lord’s Prayer?

We have a page on our site where you can submit product ideas. Every week we get lots of fun and creative ideas from our customers. One submission we’ve received over and over again was resources for the Lord’s Prayer.

No matter your denomination or tradition, most likely the Lord’s Prayer has found its way into your personal devotional life or communal worshipping experiences. For many churches, it’s a prayer we say Sunday after Sunday after…you get the idea.

We often feel successful when we’ve taught children and young people to memorize the prayer. However, we all know there is a big difference between being able to repeat back a few verses by memory and taking the time to learn the meaning behind the prayer itself.

Because of our community’s repeated requests for Lord’s Prayer resources, and our desire to offer a way to immerse oneself in the Lord’s Prayer, we are excited about this new product, The Lord’s Prayer: An Illustrated Curriculum.

ICM’s Intentions behind the Curriculum

Each component of the six-session curriculum is an invitation to experience this well-known prayer through art, reflection, and discussion. Through the use of inclusive language and meaningful theology, children have opportunities to explore our belongingness and connectedness to each other, the world, and God. Not only that but how that belongingness and connectedness means we must also collaborate with God to bring God’s kingdom into the world.

Inclusive Language
The very first word of the Lord’s Prayer is “Our” not “My.” It immediately reminds us that this is a communal prayer. We all belong to God, to each other, and to the earth God made. God is bigger and more beautiful than we can imagine, and every single one of us is made in God’s incredible image. With this as a foundational belief, we always choose to use inclusive language.

“Our Loving God” versus “Our Father”
Jesus’ choice to begin the prayer with “Father” was impactful. It was meant to remind listeners how loving God is and how God always reaches out to care for them as all loving parents would. It was also a political statement that challenged loyalties – either with a loving God or a government that pushed people down. That is why we chose to begin the prayer with “Our Loving God.”

In a way, it knocks us off balance, challenges us from getting stuck in thinking about God in a limited way (specifically, God as male), and cares for people who have been deeply hurt by their fathers. It also reminds us to consider the countless names and attributes we know God by and gives us a chance to discuss them.

Different Versions of The Lord’s Prayer
As you know, there are several traditional versions of the Lord’s Prayer. In fact, we have a couple of versions in our Bibles. One is in Matthew’s Gospel and another in Luke’s Gospel.

Today, different faith communities have their way of saying the Lord’s Prayer, often with slight differences in the words. Some churches say “sins” or “debts,” while other churches say “trespasses.”

Some Christians include the Doxology, “For Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen” at the end of the prayer, and some don’t.

Because we focused primarily on Matthew’s version, we chose to use the word “debts.” While this is the version we decided on, as always, we encourage you to customize the material to fit your context. Feel invited to use your church’s preference for the prayer whenever you pray it. That is the beauty of coming together with our different words and traditions; we recognize that despite these differences, we all are searching for the same things: forgiveness and restoration.

How to use the curriculum?

Over the years, many churches have found creative ways to utilize the versatile and little to no-prep design of our curricula. Some churches have used it for intergenerational summer Sunday School programs, foundational materials for Vacation Bible Schools, sermon series based on the curriculum texts, lessons to fit their schedules, and more.

With a little time and use of our appendix, The Lord’s Prayer: An Illustrated Curriculum can easily transform into materials for a retreat setting, foundational materials for a five-day Vacation Bible School, or expand into a 12-session program.

When we first began to explore the Lord’s Prayer, we were overwhelmed by the possibilities! There were so many different ideas, topics, and activities we came up with to engage with the Lord’s Prayer. Our team was inspired by all the ways we found to interact with, and live out the call of the Lord’s Prayer. Our hope for you is that this isn’t just a 6-session curriculum, but that it transforms into something that helps your faith community fully embody the message of the Lord’s Prayer.

Structure of the curriculum

Our goal is to offer you a no-prep curriculum that can be led by anyone in your congregation. With hopes of minimizing your workload, we have designed The Lord’s Prayer: An Illustrated Curriculum in a way that requires little background material/reading before presenting the lesson.

The structure of the curriculum includes these components: a gathering activity, scripture reflection, an activity, a time for imagining and coloring, a closing prayer, and a take-home sheet. Additionally, we include an appendix filled with other ideas and activities and a glossary to cover any words we use in the curriculum that we feel need further definition and context.

To download the complete 6-session Scope and Sequence, more detailed specifics about the structure of the curriculum and pricing, and a FREE sample lesson, click here.

The Lord’s Prayer Curriculum Coloring Posters

To enhance your experience and learning of the Lord’s Prayer, The Lord’s Prayer Curriculum Coloring Posters are fully integrated into the flow of this curriculum. To get the most out of The Lord’s Prayer: An Illustrated Curriculum, we highly encourage you to purchase The Lord’s Prayer Curriculum Coloring Posters.

Hand-Lettered Give Us This Day our Daily Bread
These are the three hand-lettered posters that come with the Hand-Lettered Lord’s Prayer Coloring Posters and Coloring Pages. Different versions with “Our Father,” “sins,” and “trespasses,” not pictured.

These hand-drawn posters are fully integrated throughout each session of the curriculum. The first three posters create a beautiful hand-lettered illustration of the Lord’s Prayer. The second three posters are interactive, designed to be communal, and draw children into the lesson through creative prompts. Children are invited to add their expression and ideas to create the final look of the posters as they move through the lessons.

There are many nuances to this prayer, one being how the writing technique of poetic parallelism is used throughout. Each word and phrase in the prayer was used intentionally. As a way to highlight that, we chose to design the interactive posters to reflect some of the parallelism of the prayer by combining some of the sessions on the same poster. There will be a couple of sessions where you return to a poster to complete it. The use of the posters will look like this:

  • Session 1: The hand-lettered Lord’s Prayer posters (2 or 3 in total depending on whether your church’s tradition includes the Doxology of the Lord’s Prayer)
  • Session 2: Interactive Poster 1 (“Our Loving God, who is in heaven, hallowed be your name.”)
  • Session 3: Interactive Poster 2 (“Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”)
  • Session 4: Interactive Poster 1 (“Give us this day our daily bread”)
  • Session 5: Interactive Poster 2 (“And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors”)
  • Session 6: Interactive Poster 3 (“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”)

When you purchase the curriculum, you’ll have a better sense of the types of activities that will lead to engagement and participation with the interactive coloring posters. But you can see the three posters below, as well as some photos of the posters in action!

If using the posters isn’t an option for you, be sure to use the coloring pages included with the curriculum. They are slightly modified versions of the interactive posters, and children will have a similar, more individualized experience with them. But to get the most out of the curriculum, we highly recommend using The Lord’s Prayer Curriculum Coloring Posters.

NOTE: If you buy the Physical Posters, you will receive just ONE version of the Lord’s Prayer (our version that begins with “Our Loving God”). We talk about the differences in wording throughout the curriculum and it will give you many chances to talk about the differences if your community uses “sins” instead of “debts” or you’d prefer to use “Our Father” instead of “Our Loving God.” If, however, you need a specific version, you can add the Digital Files (which includes all of the different versions available listed below as part of the digital files for our Hand-Lettered Lord’s Prayer Coloring Posters) to your purchase of the physical coloring posters for half the price of the digital files.

Hand-Lettered Lord’s Prayer Coloring Posters

Because the Lord’s Prayer is common with so many communities, we knew that there may be some who would love the coloring posters for the prayer and didn’t need the curriculum. In that case, you can purchase our Hand-Lettered Lord’s Prayer Coloring Posters.

These posters include only the three hand-lettered posters that illustrate the Lord’s Prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is separated into three separate posters so you can decide to use or not use the Doxology poster, depending on your church’s tradition.

These posters are meant to be printed out as 2’x 3′ posters and are ONLY available as B&W digital files. Because they are digital files, it allows us to provide a variety of different options for you. To make these posters as inclusive of all communities who may want to use them, we will offer the following versions:

  1. We will include two versions of the first poster. One version of the first poster will begin the prayer with “Our Loving God” and another version will begin the prayer with “Our Father.”
  2. We will include three versions of the second poster. The first version will use “debts” and “debtors,” the second version will use “sins” and “those who sin against us,” and the third version will use “trespasses” and “those who trespass against us.”
  3. We will include one version of the third poster. This is the Doxology to the prayer (“For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever, Amen.”), and you can decide whether to include this poster or not, based on your church’s tradition.

We will also be offering Hand-Lettered Lord’s Prayer Coloring Pages as well, so if you are looking for small versions of this for coloring, you can choose this option.

These posters will be perfect for coloring and framing to decorate an area of your church! This is the first time we’ve offered hand-lettered illustrated posters like these, and we’re excited to see all of the creative ways our community finds to use them.

Related Lord’s Prayer Products

Our Father, Who Are in Heaven Stickers

The Lord’s Prayer Sticker Sheets: In addition to our curriculum and coloring posters, we also have some amazing Lord’s Prayer Sticker Sheets. Use these along with the curriculum, or grab a set to help your students learn the Lord’s Prayer.

We ordered these from the same place we ordered our amazingly high-quality Illustrated Nativity Sticker Sheets, and you’ll find many uses for them.

The Lord’s Prayer: An Illustrated Prayer Booklet: And if you’re looking for a specific way to use the stickers, we are launching a Lord’s Prayer Booklet for kids. This digital download provides participants with a prayer book to use with their stickers. Each page has a spot for the sticker, a prompt to get them thinking about the specific verse, and a chance to respond to a prompt related to the verse through drawing or writing.

As always, please let us know if you have any questions by contacting us here.