A Prayer of Bruce Cockburn

Lord of the starfields,
Ancient of Days,
Universe Maker,
Here's a song in your praise.

Wings of the storm cloud,
Beginning and end,
You make my heart leap
Like a banner in the wind.

O love that fires the sun,
Keep me burning.

Lord of the starfields,
Sower of life,
Heaven and earth are
Full of your light.

Voice of the nova,
Smile of the dew,
All of our yearning
Only comes home to you.

O love that fires the sun,
keep me burning.

My Psalm 112

I praise you, LORD.
I have been so blessed
by men and women who fear you
and find great delight in his commands.

I am blessed to be among them now,
to be one of those who fears you
and loves your Word.

Oh, Lord, please
make my children mighty in the land;
let the next generation be blessed
beyond my wildest dreams.

Grant them true wealth
and enduring riches;
let the walls of their homes be adorned
with righteousness.

Let your light dawns in their lives,
and dispel all darkness for them.
Make them gracious and compassionate and righteous.
Make them generous and anxious to give.
Make them just in all their affairs.

Let them never be shaken;
give them a sterling reputation.
Save them from rumor and gossip.
Make their hearts steadfast, always trusting in you.
Make them confident and fearless.
Give them victory over every enemy, every obstacle.
Bless their efforts on behalf of the poor
and needy
and sick.
And give them influence and honor,
for your name's sake.

Let the wicked look at them and be vexed,
wondering at the blessings of the righteous,
in Jesus' name, amen.

Another Twitturgies Prayer

Thank you God for fires that refine;
roadblocks that force a re-think ;
trials that return a ten-fold crop.

Amen.

(A Twitturgies prayer)

My Psalm 111

LORD, my God, I praise you.
I extol you with all my heart,
unashamedly,
wherever I may be,
in the midst of your people
or among those who don't yet know you.

Your works are great, Lord.
Eye-popping.
Breathtaking.
Awe-inspiring.
Mind-boggling.
The more I think on them,
the more I delight in them.

Everything you do is glorious and majestic,
and your righteousness never ends.

You cause your wonders to be remembered:
you repeat them day after day,
in my life and in the world around me.

You are gracious and compassionate.
You provide food for those who fear you;
you keep all your promises.

You give your people plenty of reasons to acknowledge your works.
You have given us far more than we ever deserved.

Your works are faithful and just;
your precepts are trustworthy.

They remain true for ever and ever,
proven over and over again.

You have redeemed me, Lord,
for which I can never stop praising you.
You have kept your covenant with me,
and with all who trust you.
Holy and awesome is your name.

Submission to you is the beginning of wisdom;
following you is Health 101.
To you belong eternal praise.
Amen.

Twitturgies Prayer

Free me God
from fear of failure.
Silence
the echoes of accusing voices.
May your opinion of me
be the only one that matters.

Amen.

(Source: Twitturgies)

My Psalm 110

Yahweh, you said to my Lord,
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet."

You extended your mighty scepter from Zion;
you ruled in the midst of your enemies.

Your troops rode out
on the day of battle,
when from the womb of the dawn
your Son appeared
in risen splendor,
with all the vigor of youth.

Yahweh, you promised:
"You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek,"
and therefore Jesus has become
the guarantee of a better covenant! (Heb. 7:22)

Lord, you are at my right hand;
you will subdue kings on the day of your wrath.

You will judge the nations,
you will yet show the whole world
that you are God and King over all.

On that day, we will all be refreshed,
our weary heads lifted up,
like one who drinks from a brook beside the way.

(artwork: William Baziotes (1898-1972)
Scepter, 1960-61
66 x 78 1/8 inches (167.7 x 198.4 cm.)
Oil on canvas)

Prayer for Setting Out on Pilgrimage

God of the guiding star,
the bush that blazes,
show me your way.

God of the stormy seas,
the bread that nourishes,
teach me your truth.

God of the still, small voice,
the wind that blows
where it chooses,
fill me with life.

God of the elements,
of our inward
and outward journeys,
set my feet on your road today,
and bless me with a safe journey.

Let your presence be my vanguard
and my rear guard,
and may you be at the end
as surely as you are at the beginning,
in Jesus' name, amen.

[Based on a prayer found in This is the Day: Readings and Meditations from the Iona Community, Neil Paynter, ed., Glasgow, UK: Wild Goose Publications, 2002]

Traveler's Prayer

May it be Your will, Lord, My God and God of my ancestors, to lead me, to direct my steps, and to support me in peace. Lead me in life, tranquil and serene, until I arrive at where I am going. Deliver me from every enemy, ambush and hurt that I might encounter on the way and from all afflictions that visit and trouble the world. Bless the work of my hands. Let me receive divine grace and those loving acts of kindness and mercy in Your eyes and in the eyes of all those I encounter. Listen to the voice of my appeal, for you are a God who responds to prayerful supplication. Praised are you, Lord, who responds to prayer.

(Photo: a copy, in Hebrew, of the Traveler's Prayer (prescribed in the Talmud), found in a 1940's era C-47B-5-DK plane, used in the Six-Day War and Yom Kippur War)

My Psalm 109

O God my praise,
do not remain silent.
Stick up for me when the wicked
wag their lying tongues against me.

Defend me
when I am not around to defend myself.
Actually, defend me, please, even then.

I don't know why
people whom I embrace
act like my enemy.

I don't want to know.
why people repay me evil for good,
and hatred for my friendship.

I don't need to know.
I will simply be a man of prayer,
and turn to you for comfort
and vindication.

It is yours and yours alone to judge.
I thank you that I wish them no harm.

Let them taste your forgiveness.
Let them discover the beauty of peacemaking.
Let them learn submission to you
and to the leaders you choose for them.
Let their children prosper
and learn your ways better than they have.
Preserve their marriages.
Bless their homes.
Restore their integrity
and bring them into the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace.

May THIS be the LORD's payment to my accusers,
to those who speak evil of me.

For you, O Sovereign LORD,
deal well with me for your name's sake;
out of the goodness of your love, you deliver me.

I am poor and needy,
and though my heart has been wounded within me,
and I have nearly faded away like an evening shadow,
you have been my help, O LORD my God;
you save me in accordance with your love.

Let everyone know that it is your hand,
that you, O LORD, have done it.
Let everyone know that I am nothing,
and you are everything.
Let everyone know that all I am
and all I have
and all I will ever be
is due to you and your kindness to me.

With my mouth I will greatly extol you, LORD;
I will not fail to praise you wherever I go,
for you stand at the right hand of this needy one,
to save my life from those who accuse me.

Amen.

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul.
Thank you, Lord, for making me whole.
Thank you, Lord, for giving to me
Thy great salvation so rich and free.

Like Her, Too

Lord God, I want to be like her, too. Like Calleigh.
Ready to smile.
Asking little more than
to eat and sleep
and love
and be loved.

I want to find safety
and assurance in your arms
as she does in her Mommy and Daddy's arms.

I want to be as utterly dependent on you
as she is on them,
in Jesus' name,
amen.

Tell Me a Story

Abba, hold me in your arms tonight. Shield me. Rock me. Tell me a story. And wake me to new exciting adventures with you in the morning, in Jesus' name, amen.

Like Her

Lord, I want to be like her.
Like Mia.
Trusting.
Smiling.
Happy.
Wide-eyed.
Open-handed.
Refreshing others.
Bringing joy to others.
Saying "hi" a lot.
Taking every day as it comes,
as a gift from your kind hand,
and going where my Abba says,
in Jesus' name,
amen.

Like Him

I wanna be like him, Lord.
Like Miles.
I wanna suck the marrow
out of each and every day.
I wanna live life so hard and fast
that it breaks my heart
to go to bed each night.
I wanna wake up impatient
for the day to begin.
I wanna play hard and pray hard.
I wanna learn new words every day.
I wanna experience delight
and wonder again.
I wanna ask "Why?"
until the answers run out.
I wanna grab all that this great wide world
of yours has to offer
until my last bedtime,
when I wanna still be saying, "I'm not done yet!"

Thanks for the Things I Take for Granted

Thank you, Lord, for the things I too often take for granted,
things too numerous to mention.
Thank you that my wife loves me.
Thank you that I slept through the night last night.

Thank you that my joints don't ache.
Thank you that I can hold down food.
Thank you that I can see, hear, smell, taste, and feel.
Thank you for my clothes.
Thank you for the ability to digest and metabolize food.
Thank you for hot showers.
Thank you for the many people who overlook my faults.
Thank you for the love and respect of my children.
Thank you for the people my children married.
Thank you for the ability--and many reasons--to smile.
Thank you for my salvation.
Thank you for prayer.
Thank you for the grace to thank you.
Thank you for you.
Amen.

Day of Wonders

Give us a day of wonders,
Jehovah, bare thine arm;
Pour out thy Holy Spirit,
Make known thy healing balm;
Give blessings without number,
Supply us from thy store;
Dear Saviour, richly bless us,
Baptize us more and more.

Lord, hear us while we pray!
Lord, hear us while we pray!
Now thy Spirit give,
let the dying live,
And bless us here today.

We offer Thee this temple.
With power, Lord, enter in
And teach us when we worship
Or wage the war with sin.
O may the sinner find thee
Within these hallowed walls,
Here may young, eager spirits
Obey when Jesus calls!

Give courage for the battle,
Give strength thy foes to slay;
Give light to cheer the darkness,
Give grace from day to day;
Give rest amidst life's conflict,
Give peace when lions roar;
Give faith to fight with patience
Till fighting days are o'er.

(A hymn by John Lawley, 1859-1922)

A Musical Psalm 62

Only in God is my soul at rest;
In Him comes my salvation.
He only is my Rock,
My strength and my salvation.

My stronghold, my Savior,
I shall not be afraid at all.
My stronghold, my Savior,
I shall not be moved.
Only in God is my soul at rest;
In Him comes my salvation.

Only in God is found safety,
When my enemy pursues me.
Only in God is found glory,
When I am found meek and found lowly.

My stronghold, my Savior,
I shall not be afraid at all.
My stronghold, my Savior,
I shall not be moved.
Only in God is my soul at rest;
In Him comes my salvation.

1980 Birdwing Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)|(Admin. by BMG Music Publishing)
BMG Songs, Inc. (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)|(Admin. by BMG Music Publishing)

Pray for Haiti

For love of my brothers and sisters,
I say: “Peace upon you.”
For love of the house of the Lord
I will ask for your good.

Lord, have mercy.
Let your people
reach out to your suffering ones
like never before,
in Jesus' name.

(Based on Psalm 122: 8-9)

Dancing Shoes

Covenant Prayer

I am no longer my own, but thine.
Put me to what thou wilt,
rank me with whom thou wilt.
Put me to doing,
put me to suffering.
Let me be employed by thee
or laid aside for thee,
exalted for thee
or brought low for thee.
Let me be full,
let me be empty.
Let me have all things,
let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things
to thy pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
thou art mine, and I am thine. So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.

(From John Wesley's Covenant Service , 1780)

A Leader's Prayer

Lord, please don't let me make things worse.

Faithful

For faithful wife,
faithful friends,
faithful kids,
faithful coworkers,
faithful volunteers,
cars,
appliances,
promises,
readers,
maps...
For all things faithful,
most of all you,
I give you thanks, God.

My Psalm 108

My heart is fixed, O God;
I will sing
and make melody in my heart.
I will put the sweetest songbirds
to shame today;
I will awaken the dawn.

I will glorify you, O LORD, everywhere I go;
I will sing your praise
in front of anybody,
because your love
is enormous,
immense,
greater than the expanse of the universe.

So why shouldn't your praise be likewise
lifted above the heavens?
I can't possibly give you the glory you deserve.

Save us, Lord, and help us with your right hand,
show your love by working wonders for us.

You spoke from your sanctuary;
you promised to give your people victory,
and lead us into a spacious place.

And you have certainly done so,
but we still struggle so much.
Sometimes our salvation seems so fragile,
and our deliverance so far off.

Send us help against the enemy,
for all human help is worthless.

With you, Lord, we will gain the victory,
we will do valiantly,
and you will trample on our foes!

Sunday Prayer

Lord, let your people worship you truly today.

Quicken our conscience with your holiness.
Purge our imaginations with your beauty.
Open our hearts to your love.
And help us fully devote our wills to your purpose, in Jesus' name, amen.

(Based on a stanza by Dr. William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury).

Shut

Lord, you shut the mouths of lions for Daniel.
Shut their mouths for me, too.
Shut the mouth of my adversary.
Shut the mouth of my tempter.
Shut the mouth of the faithless.
Shut the mouth of the cruel,
the cynic,
the jealous,
the bitter,
the abuser,
the liar.
Shut the mouths of all those
who would lead me astray,
tempt me to evil,
and drown out your voice
or distract me from you,
in Jesus' name, amen.

Rejoice Over Me

God, it's no wonder to me that you rejoice in yourself, in your perfection, because you are perfect, and utterly praiseworthy.

But to believe that you rejoice in me--not in the abstract "me," the "work of your hands," the vessel of clay, the "very good" humanity that I share with all humankind; but the "me" me, the proud, lazy, gluttonous, greedy, lustful, jealous, faithless me, the all-too-fallen me (though redeemed by your Son)--that's almost too much to believe.

But you do rejoice in me. You rejoice over me with singing. You dance over me. Because of your Son, yes, but nonetheless, this is me we're talking about. It's too wonderful for me. You are too wonderful for me. But I thank you, in Jesus' name, amen.

Shelter Me

(A Prayer of Bruce Carroll, Billy Sprague, and Bob Bennett)



When I cannot close my eyes,
And the nights goes on,
Troubles taunt on every side,
And my doubt is strong,

Shelter me, shelter me,
Let the thought of your compassion be my strength.
Prince of peace, shelter me.

From the tempest of my unbelief,
Mighty God who calmed the sea,
Come and shelter me.

A Prayer of Thomas Merton

Justify my soul, O God, but also from Your fountains fill my will with your fire. Shine in my mind, although perhaps this means “be darkness to my experience,” but occupy my heart with Your tremendous Life. Let my eyes see nothing in the world but Your glory, and let my hands touch nothing that is not for Your service.

Let my tongue taste no bread that does not strengthen me to praise Your great mercy. I will hear Your voice and I will hear all harmonies You have created, singing Your hymns. Sheep’s wool and cotton from the field shall warm me enough that I may live in Your service; I will give the rest to Your poor. Let me use all things for one sole reason: to find my joy in giving You glory.

Therefore keep me, above all things, from sin. Keep me from the death of deadly sin which puts hell in my soul. Keep me from the murder of lust that blinds and poisons my heart. Keep me from the sins that eat a man’s flesh with irresistible fire until he is devoured. Keep me from loving money in which is hatred, from avarice and ambition that suffocate my life. Keep me from the dead works of vanity and the thankless labor in which artists destroy themselves for pride and money and reputation, and saints are smothered under the avalanche of their own importunate zeal. Stanch in me the rank wound of covetousness and the hungers that exhaust my nature with their bleeding. Stamp out the serpent envy that stings love with poison and kills all joy.

Untie my hands and deliver my heart from sloth. Set me free from the laziness that goes about disguised as activity when activity is not required of me, and from the cowardice that does what is not demanded, in order to escape sacrifice.

But give me the strength that waits upon You in silence and peace. Give me humility in which alone is rest, and deliver me from pride which i s the heaviest of burdens. And possess my whole heart and soul with the simplicity of love. Occupy my whole life with the one thought and the one desire of love, that I may love not for the sake of merit, not for the sake of perfection, not for the sake of virtue, not for the sake of sanctity, but for you alone.

For there is only one thing that can satisfy love and reward it, and that is You alone.

(from New Seeds of Contemplation by Thomas Merton)

Enclose

Enclose my children in your care, Lord, please. Keep them as the apple of your eye. Hide them in the shadow of your wings.

Mercy, Lord. Grace. Your abundance, I pray, for them. Your will. Your pleasure. Your laughter. Your glory, in Jesus' name, amen.

God My Help

O God, my help in ages past,
My hope for years to come,
My shelter from the stormy blast,
And my eternal home.

Under the shadow of Thy throne
Thy saints have dwelt secure;
Sufficient is Thine arm alone,
And my defense is sure.

Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting Thou art God,
To endless years the same.

A thousand ages in Thy sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.

O God, my help in ages past,
My hope for years to come,
My shelter from the stormy blast,
And my eternal home.

My Psalm 107 (Part Two)

I give thanks to you, LORD, for your unfailing love
and your wonderful works in my life.

I will sacrifice to you
as a way of giving thanks;
I will tell of your works
with exuberant songs.

Like others, I have been on the sea in ships;
I have seen your power
displayed in the mighty waters.

I have seen your works, LORD,
in the panoply of the heavens,
in the fecundity of the forest,
in the silence before the storm,
in the intricacy of an insect.

I have seen you work in a human soul,
in a frail human body,
in a miraculous work of grace.

I give you thanks, LORD,
for your marvelous love,
for your miracle mercy to me.
I will lift your praises high and loud
when the people assemble,
and will praise you in the council of the elders.

You turn rivers into a desert,
flowing springs into thirsty ground,
and fruitful land into a salt waste,
because of the wickedness of men.

But you also turn the desert into pools of water
and parched ground into flowing springs
for those who wait on you
and please you.

Do it for me, Lord God,
and for your people,
the flock I serve.
Send us a a fruitful harvest in 2010,
bless us,
and make our numbers greatly increase,
and our prosperity as well,
individually and corporately.

Please tell me we've seen enough
oppression, calamity and sorrow for now.

Lift the needy out of their affliction
and increase their families like flocks.
Let the upright see and rejoice,
but all the wicked--shut their mouths!

Make us wise,
in the things that matter to you,
and show to us your great love, O Lord.
Amen.

My Psalm 107 (Part One)

I give you thanks, LORD, for you are good, good, good;
your love goes on and on.
Let all the redeemed say so,
and say so loudly—
all those whom you redeemed
from the hand of our foes,

all those you gathered
out of the darkness,
and brought from distant places
to your side.

You have redeemed those who wandered in wastelands,
empty and alone.

You have redeemed those who were hungry and thirsty,
and feeling their lives ebbing away.

But when we cried out to you in our trouble,
you delivered us from our distress.

You have certainly led me by a straight way
to a city where I could settle.

I give thanks to you, LORD, for your unfailing love
and your wonderful works in my life,

for you satisfy my thirst
and fill me with good things.

Without you, I would be sitting in darkness
and deepest gloom,
a prisoner in chains of my own making,
the victim of my own rebellion,
suffering for my failure to heed the counsel of the Most High.

I deserve nothing but bitter labor,
the most severe punishment.

But I cried to you, LORD,
and you gave me light for darkness,
beauty for ashes,
joy for sorrow,
clean robes for my filthy rags.

You brought me out of darkness
and deepest gloom
and broke my chains.

I give you thanks, LORD, for you are good, good, good;
your love goes on and on,
for you burst through my prison walls
and cut through bars of iron.

Without you, I would be a fool
confounded by my own rebellious ways
and suffering because of my many sins.

I would be too sick to enjoy anything,
and would loathe my life.

But I cried to you, LORD,
and you delivered me,
you spoke your word and healed me;
you brought my life out of the grave.

New Year Petition

Heavenly Father, for this coming year, just one request I bring.

I do not pray for riches or earthly possessions.

I do not ask to understand the mystery of your ways or how you lead me.

Only this I ask: teach me to do the thing that pleases You.

I want to know Your guiding voice, to walk with you each day.

Heavenly Father, make me swift to hear and ready to obey.

Thus the year I now begin, a happy year will be, if I am seeking just to do that which pleases You.

Amen.

(borrowed from lifepaladin.wordpress.com)