I am called to many duties lord
and now I’ve been called home.
I’ve had to leave the ones I love
To stand before your throne.
I’ll not complain, its not my way
But there are some things I’ll ask.
And please , Lord, grant them to me
For the loved ones I hold fast.
I dare to ask because I know
How you’ve blessed in the past.
I’ve learned to trust in your grace, O Lord
That’s how I’ve come this far.
So now, O God, I humbly pray
Hear this Fire Chief’s prayer.
Bless my wife and family — so often left alone,
They knew where I was going and Trusted you to bring me home.
Well, now I’m home and wait for them
Keep them within the faith — that one day,
Someday, we’ll be together in this place.
And O dear God, bless my men
I trained them as best I could.
I tried to do your will with them
and lead them as you would.
I need to know your with them Lord
Or else how can I stay
And peacefully enjoy this place of endless day.
This heaven where there is no night
No fire to kill and burn
I guess that’s why its now my rest,
my place, my turn.
And Lord, be with my community
And keep it safe as it can be
For all its folks are special, and very dear to me.
They are all my friends, and by your grace
I served them as best I could.
So hear this Fire Chief’s prayer, O Lord
And grant it please — I already knew you would.
Amen
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Heavenly Father You created all things with your powerful Word and you rule over everything in heaven and on earth. We thank and praise you, on this special occasion, for watching over Chief Matson in his years of service to the Fairfax County fire department.We also ask that you watch over those, who continue to serve in the fire department, help them in their efforts to keep the people Fairfax county safe.”Lord, you have promised your people “never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.” Be with Chief Matson in retirement. As he embarks on this new chapter in his life, bless and comfort him. Assure him that you will follow him wherever he may go We pray this in your name Amen. Recruit Class 131 Invocation O Creator and Author of the human race, Physician of our souls and bodies; Giver of spiritual graces, and the One Who grants eternal salvation: bless, Heavenly Father, this medic unit, that fortified by the power of heavenly protection it may be an aid for physical and spiritual salvation and protection for all who shall make use of it. Bless and guide the hands of those to whom You have given the talent and skill to effect the comfort and cure of the ailing. For it is Yours to show mercy on us and to save us, and to You we send up glory. Amen Come, Holy Father and look with favor upon all of us gathered at this celebration. We are grateful for this opportunity to honor and thank those who are leaving our ranks; first, for their dedication to the ideals of the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department, and secondly, for the personal sacrifices they have made to bring these ideals to many others. Lord we also pray that you give wisdom, vision and courage to those of us who continue in public service. We ask that you reward our work and keep us always in Your care. Now I ask each of us to take a quiet moment to include those who are no longer with us, in our thoughts and prayers. ….. Bless, O Lord, this food to our use and us to Thy service; and make us ever mindful of the needs of others. In your name we pray. Amen. Let us Pray: Gracious Father, we thank you for bringing us together today to complete the Fairfax County Community Chaplain Corps Deployment Training. Bless and protect the graduated Chaplains, their families, and friends. May their efforts and those of all the Community Chaplains be directed toward comforting and protecting those in need, particularly through a ministry of presence, pastoral skills and compassion. Heavenly father, as we carry out our duties as chaplains let us be ever mindful that it is you Father who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort we receive from you. And finally, Lord, bless us all here present we ask this in Your Name. Amen. Dear God, Guardian and Protector of your people, We once again thank you for this opportunity to gather for this 80th Annual Banquet and Installation of Officers here in the ____________ Volunteer Fire Department. We gather this evening in the spirit of our profession and its mission, to provide high quality emergency medical and fire suppression and rescue services through the skill, commitment, and cooperative team effort of our volunteers working hand-in-hand with career staff. We thank you for the opportunity tonight to acknowledge and recognize the outstanding contributions that the Volunteers of this Department have made to their community this past year. We also give thanks for the blessing this association has received, for its leaders, for its membership, but most of all for its spirit. Lord, may everything we do begin with your inspiration and continue with your help, so that all our work may begin in you and by you be happily ended. Please bless the food we receive tonight as nourishment for our bodies, the stories told as nourishment for our minds and the fellowship we share as nourishment for our souls. AMEN. Benediction Volunteer Fire Department Dinner God Our Father, We give thanks for the success this year of the ____________ Volunteer Fire Department. Please continue your blessings on this Association throughout its duration. We ask for your protection upon all who have participated as they prepare themselves for a New Year of Service to this Community. May the God of our Fathers, bless you and keep you. May His face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May He look upon you with kindness and give you His peace. AMEN. |
fairfaxfirechaplains.org
Fireman’s Prayer
When I am called to duty, God
whenever flames may rage,
Give me the strength to save some life
Whatever be its age.
Help me to embrace a little child
Before it’s too late,
Or some older person
from the horror of that fate.
Enable me to be alert
And hear the weakest shout,
And quickly and efficiently
to put the fire out.
I want to fill my calling
and give the best in me,
To guard my neighbor
And protect his property.
And if according to Your will
I have to lose my life,
Please bless with Your protecting hand
My children and my wife
History of the Fireman’s Prayer
The only way he could find to ease the pain of such a tragedy was to sit down and put his thoughts on paper. The phrase, “enable me to be alert and hear the weakest shout”, sends a chill up a firefighter’s spine as you imagine what he experienced on that fateful night. It was a particularly tough time for him as he had young children around the same age.While most accounts of the Firemen’s Prayer conclude with Author Unknown, the world renowned poem was written by Firefighter A.W. “Smokey” Linn. As a young firefighter in 1958 Linn and his crew responded to a fire in which three children were trapped behind security bars and died in the fire.
His granddaughter, Penny McGlachlin said that back then there were no grief counselors to help the firefighters. Penny believes this was an actual prayer from him, to god for the sake of his own family, the other fireman, and the families of the children.
Smokey joined the Wichita, Kansas Fire Department in 1947 after returning from World War 2. He retired in 1975 and became president of the local chapter of the Good Sam Camping Club. He passed away March 31, 2004 of complications following surgery.
The Fireman’s Prayer was originally published in a book called, “A Celebration of Poets” in 1958. The last copyright of the book was 1998. It is the family’s desire that the credit for the Firemen’s Prayer go to the author, A.W. Smokey Linn.
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