Temper My Dysfunctions

Abba, Father,
please temper my dysfunctions,
align my disjunctions,
cleanse me from sin,
repair me within,
and grant the remission
of all unsubmission
to you, in Jesus' name, amen.

Reassuring

For my Kids and Grandkids

My prayer today for my kids and my grandkids, from the "31 Ways to Pray for Your Kids" app for iPhone and iPad.

True Home

God before and God behind,
God for us and God for your own self,
Maker of heaven and earth,
creator of sea and sky,
governor of day and night.
We give thanks for your ordered gift of life to us,
for the rhythms that reassure,
for the equilibriums that sustain,
for the reliabilities that curb our anxieties.
We treasure from you,
days to work and nights to rest.
We cherish from you,
days to control and nights to yield.
We savor from you,
days to plan and nights to dream.
Be our day and our night,
our heaven and our earth,
our sea and our sky,
and in the end our true home. Amen.

(from Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth: The Prayers of Walter Brueggemann)

Worthy

Saturday Psalm #138

I praise you, O LORD, with everything in me.
May I embarrass the angels with the ardor of my praise.

I bow, Lord.
I kneel with your people
around the world
to honor your name
and tell of your love and your faithfulness,
to exalt your name and your word.

I call, and you answer.
I grow weary, and you pour out strength.

Your words are worthy to be praised,
your ways are worthy to be followed.
Your glory is great.

High as you are,
ineffable and indescribable,
you look upon the lowly,
and the proud you recognize a mile away.

Whatever trouble my Enemy may send,
you preserve my life;
you strike my foes,
and lift me up with your right hand.

I know you will fulfill your purpose for me;
I am the work of your hands;
you will not abandon me.
There is nowhere I can go
where your love will not reach me.
Amen.

(based on Psalm 138; photo by Shlomaster via pixabay.com)

To Trust in You

On the Bard's Birthday

Deep is Calling Unto Deep

Unto thee will I cry,
Shepherd, hear my prayer!
Poor and needy am I,
Shepherd, hear my prayer!
Deep is calling unto deep,
Rugged are the heights, and steep:
Guide my steps and keep;
Hear, O hear my prayer!
Hear, O hear my prayer!

Where the tempest is loud,
Shepherd, hear my prayer!
'Mid the darkness and cloud,
Shepherd, hear my prayer!
Let me hear thy voice afar,
Coming with the morning star,
Hear, O hear my prayer!
Hear, O hear my prayer!

Let the foe not prevail,
Shepherd, hear my prayer!
My resources would fail,
Shepherd, hear my prayer!
Order all my steps aright,
Carry me from height to height;
Yonder shines the light!
Shepherd, lead me there!
Lead me safely there!

(a prayer by General Albert Orsborn of The Salvation Army)

Round Out Our Lives with the Fullness of God

If that gnarled old year tree in the hog lot can tend such a grand bouquet of blossoms, surely we can offer a garland of kind deeds to man and beast ever to please thee, our Lord. 

As the slim crescent in our night sky grows into the bright full moon, most favorable for maize planting, may we round out our lives with the fullness of God, as the tentmaker said. 

Waft our seed onto good earth, O Lord, and let it bear a hundredfold--feed for thy creatures and meat for thy children the world around. 

Amen.

(from the book, The Farmer Gives Thanks; photo via pixabay.com)

Overwhelmed

Almighty God, 

I am in the midst of a situation that requires me to do what seems impossible. I need your help! Despite the overwhelming circumstances, I thank you for encouraging me to follow you one day at a time. Please narrow my focus to the little tasks I can do today, and empower me to accomplish those so that over time, I might get through this overwhelming challenge. I will trust you to take care of what I cannot control. Thank you that this obstacle is an opportunity for you to show me your power. When I think of it that way, my circumstances don't seem so overwhelming. These hardships that frighten me are often the things that strengthen my faith the most. When I'm looking at the obstacles in my path, please remind that there is always a little something I can do to make progress--take a small step, make a phone call, write a note, study, pray. Thank you, God, for giving me small opportunities each day to obey you so I might overcome life's obstacles through continued faithfulness. 

(an excerpt from the book, 365 Pocket Prayers, by Ron Beers)

The Present Age

Saturday Psalm #137

Like an ancient Israelite
by the rivers of Babylon,
I get homesick, Lord.

Like when I remember
the fervor I once had for you,
the just-baked freshness
of a soul made new.

Or when I think of the rapture when I first discovered
the writings of Brengle
or Tozer.

Or when I remember what it was like
to be a young pastor, free of scars and bruises.

But unlike those long-ago Jews
I still live in your City, Lord.
I still worship in your temple.
I am no exile.
I am no captive.
I take Jerusalem with me wherever I go,
the Presence is in me.

As good as those days were, Lord,
these days are good, too.

As fondly as I remember the past,
I am grateful for the present,
for the joy then
is part of the joy now.

Thank you for all you have taught me,
all you have brought me through,
and all you have delivered me from.
Thank you for every attack,
every betrayal,
every hurt,
for you have fulfilled your word:
you have made all things beautiful in your time.

Amen.

(photo by Hans via pixabay.com)

What Else You Are

Lord, my God, you gave me life and restored it when I lost it. Tell my soul that so longs for you what else you are besides what it has already understood, so that it may see you clearly. It stands on tiptoe to see more, but apart from what it has seen already, it sees nothing but darkness. Of course it does not really see darkness, because there is no darkness in you, but it sees that it can see no further because of the darkness in itself.

Surely, Lord, inaccessible light is your dwelling place, for no one apart from yourself can enter into it and fully comprehend you. If I fail to see this light, it is simply because it is too bright for me. Still, it by this light that I do see all that I can, even as weak ees, unable to look straight at the sun, see all they can by the sun’s light.

The light in which you dwell, Lord, is beyond my understanding. It is so brilliant that I cannot bear it, I cannot turn my mind’s eye toward it for any length of time. I am dazzled by its brightness, amazed by its grandeur, overwhelmed by its immensity, bewildered by its abundance.

(a prayer of Anselm; photo by johnhain via pixabay.com)

What Leads to Peace

(my prayer today for my kids and my grandkids, from the "31 Ways to Pray for Your Kids" app for iPhone and iPad).

So to Live Untaxed Lives

On this day of internal revenue
some of us are paid up,
some of us owe,
some of us await a refund,
some of us have no income to tax.

But all of us are taxed,
by war,
by violence,
by anxiety,
by deathliness.

And Caesar never gives any deep tax relief.

We render to Caesar . . .
to some it feels like a grab,
to some it is clearly a war tax,
to some – some few –
it is a way to contribute to the common good.

In any case we are haunted
by what we render to Caesar,
by what we might render to you,
by the way we invest our wealth and our lives,
when what you ask is an “easy yoke”:
to do justice
to love mercy
to walk humbly with you.

Give us courage for your easy burden, so to live untaxed lives. Amen.

(a prayer by Walter Brueggemann, from his book, Prayers for a Privileged People, Abingdon, 2008; photo via everystockphoto.com)

Great is the Lord Who Delights in the Welfare of His Servants

Abba, let my life,
my temperament,
my ministry,
cause people to say,
"Great is the Lord,
who delights in the welfare
of his servants" (Psalm 35:27),
in Jesus' name, amen.

(image by Falco via pixabay.com)

Exalted

Resurrection Day Prayer

It is only right,
with all the powers of our heart and mind,
to praise You Father
and Your Only-begotten Son,
Our Lord Jesus Christ:
Dear Father, by Your wondrous
condescension of loving-kindness toward us,
Your servants, You gave up Your Son.
Dear Jesus You paid the debt of Adam
for us to the Eternal Father by
Your Blood poured
fourth in loving-kindness.
You cleared away the darkness of sin
By Your magnificent and radiant Resurrection.
You broke the bonds of death
and rose from the grave as a Conqueror.
You reconciled heaven and earth.
Our life had no hope of eternal happiness
before You redeemed us.
Your Resurrection has washed away our sins,
restored our innocence and brought us joy.
How inestimable is the tenderness
of Your love!

(Saint Gregory the Great's Easter Prayer)

Silent Saturday Prayer

Rest you well, beloved Jesus,  

Caesar’s Lord and Israel’s King,  

In the brooding of the Spirit,  

In the darkness of the spring. 

(N. T. Wright, from The Challenge of Jesus: Rediscovering Who Jesus Was and Is)

Good Friday Prayer

Am I a stone, and not a sheep,
That I can stand, O Christ, beneath Thy cross,
To number drop by drop Thy blood's slow loss,
And yet not weep?

Not so those women loved
Who with exceeding grief lamented Thee;
Not so fallen Peter weeping bitterly;
Not so the thief was moved;

Not so the Sun and Moon
Which hid their faces in a starless sky,
A horror of great darkness at broad noon--
I, only I.

Yet give not o'er,
But seek Thy sheep, true Shepherd of the flock;
Greater than Moses, turn and look once more
And smite a rock.

(by Christina Rosetti)

Maundy Thursday Prayer

Lord,
wash,
not my feet only,
but also
my hands
and
my head.
And
my heart.
And
my mind.
And
my life.
Amen.

(based on John 13:9).

Holy Wednesday Prayer

Lord Jesus, gracious Savior, I come to you in this sacred week to ponder your great and wondrous love; love that led you to the cross that my sin might be blotted out and that I might be reconciled to my heavenly Father. O Christ, give me strength and grace to crucify my sinful desires and dedicate myself anew to you, who has loved me with an everlasting love and brought to me eternal salvation.

I confess to You my sins. They are many, and You know them all. For each and every one of them you suffered the agony of the cross and shed your precious blood that I may be cleansed and made acceptable in your sight. Thank you for the forgiveness and cleansing that is mine. Thank you that none of the sins of yesterday cling to me. Humbly I come, grateful for your mercy. Daily let me fulfill the tasks and duties to which You have called me with joy, confessing you as my Lord and Savior, and being of service to my neighbor.

Grant that your suffering and death, proclaimed for the salvation of mankind, may by the power of the Holy Spirit awaken in many a deeper love to You. O Lord, have mercy upon me and all sinful mankind, and create in me and all that seek you a clean heart, holy desires, and an undying love. Hear my prayer, gracious Redeemer. Amen.

(borrowed and revised from http://scotkinnaman.com)

Holy Tuesday Prayer

Lord Jesus,
it was on a Tuesday that you
spoke out against
abuse of power, collaboration with oppressors,
misuse of authority.
So today we pray,
comforter of the abused,
strengthen those burdened by corrupted rule
or injustice;
rescue the overwhelmed;
be present to those who call on your name,
to those we name on our lips,
and in the silence of our hearts,
those whose concerns are known only to you;
in Jesus’ name,
amen.

(Illustration: Woe to you hypocrites by James Tissot).

Holy Monday Prayer

God of love,
My prayer is simple:
Your son, Jesus, suffered and died for me.

I know only
that I cannot have real strength
unless I rely on you.

I cannot feel protected
from my many weaknesses
until I turn to you
for forgiveness and your unalterable love.

Help me to share this
strength, protection and love with others.

(from One Prayer a Day for Lent)

On This Palm Sunday

On this day of great rejoicing,
Lord Jesus Christ,
when we welcome You as our King and Savior,
we also walk in the shadow
of Your cross.
Hosanna! we cry.
Blessed are You
who come in God’s name to save us.
Hosanna!
Strengthen our faith
on this Palm Sunday
so that when the time comes
to carry the cross
we might still call out to You
with heartfelt praise.
Give us the grace and the courage
to follow You this Holy Week
from death to resurrection,
from darkness to the fullness of light.
We need You, Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Hosanna! Amen.

Long Have I Loved You (A Birthday Prayer)

Long have I loved you,
But not nearly as much
As your great love deserves.
Each day I have left
Let me love and serve you
With more passion and zeal
Than the 22,645 (or so)
that have gone before.
Amen.

Help Me to Push Myself Aside

Dear God, I cannot love Thee the way I want to. You are the slim crescent of a moon that I see and my self is the earth’s shadow that keeps me from seeing all the moon. The crescent is very beautiful and perhaps that is all one like I am should or could see; but what I am afraid of, dear God, is that my self shadow will grow so large that it blocks the whole moon, and that I will judge myself by the shadow that is nothing.

I do not know you God because I am in the way. Please help me to push myself aside.

(from A Prayer Journal by Flannery O'Connor; photo by NASA via everystockphoto.com)

In This Time of Grievous Sickness

Be Merciful to Me, a Fool

O Lord,
Be merciful to me, a fool!

No pity, Lord,
could change the heart
From red with wrong
to white as wool;
The rod must heal
the sin: but Lord,
Be merciful to me, a fool!

'Tis not by guilt the onward sweep
Of truth and right, O Lord, we stay;
‘Tis by our follies that so long
We hold the earth from heaven away.

These clumsy feet, still in the mire,
Go crushing blossoms without end;
These hard, well-meaning hands we thrust
Among the heart-strings of a friend.

The ill-timed truth we might have kept–
Who knows how sharp it pierced and stung?
The word we had not sense to say–
Who knows how grandly it had rung!

Our faults no tenderness should ask.
The chastening stripes must cleanse them all;
But for our blunders — oh, in shame
Before the eyes of heaven we fall.

Earth bears no balsam for mistakes;
Men crown the knave, and scourge the tool
That did his will; but Thou, O Lord,
Be merciful to me, a fool!

(from a poem by Edward Rowland Sill)