In the Recent Groanings of a Broken Creation

Father, we pray for those who have lost property or loved ones in the recent groanings of a broken creation. Please heal bodies and hearts and provide relief. Let your people show love and compassion to their neighbors and show the truth, goodness, and beauty of Jesus. Amen 

(from the Daily Prayer blog; photo via everystockphoto.com)

I Lift My Heart to Things Above

God of almighty love,
By whose sufficient grace
I lift my heart to things above,
And humbly seek your face.

Through Jesus Christ the Just,
My best desires receive;
And let me in your goodness trust,
And to your glory live.

Whate'er I say or do,
Your glory be my aim;
My offerings all be offered through
The ever-blessed name!

Jesus, my single eye
Be fixed on you alone:
Your name be praised on earth, on high;
Your will by me be done!

Spirit of faith, inspire
My consecrated heart;
Fill me with pure, celestial fire,
With all you have and are.

(a hymn by Charles Wesley, slightly revised and updated; NASA photo via everystockphoto.com)

Precious

 

All We Have Accomplished

 

Servant Prayer

Heart and Spirit

 

When I Am Afraid

 

Let It Be a Golden Autumn Day

When I must go, dear God, please let it be 

A golden autumn day; when red leaves fall, 

When purple grapes in shining clusters hang 

And bittersweet glows bright against the wall, 

When o'er the barren fields and russet meads 

Their last farewells the crickets cry. 

Let me make my silent journey

When the homing birds fly south across the sky.

When I must go, dear God, please let me go

As silently as autumn rain,

As still as lacy shadows 'neath the willow trees,

As calm as is the moon above the hill.

So let me go--and may there be no grief

When life is done and I must say goodbye.

I'll take my leave with flowers and falling leaf

And lie in peaceful sleep beneath the sky.

(unattributed)

Never Have You Ever

 

Forgive The Prayers

Abba, Father,
forgive my prayers.
Forgive all the misguided prayers I have prayed.
All the selfish prayers.
All the self-righteous prayers.
All the stupid prayers.
All the small-faith prayers.

Forgive the prayers I have "preached"
instead of truly prayed.

Forgive the times I have only or mostly
mouthed the words.

Forgive the countless times
I have prayed only what was on my heart,
not even bothering to seek what was on your heart.

Forgive the weak prayers.
The manipulative prayers.
The faithless prayers.
The feckless prayers.
The fraudulent prayers.

Forgive, Lord,
and thank you more than I can say
that you still listen...
after all that.
Amen.

Sufficient

 

Kyrie

Fill Them With Joy

Today's prayer (which I pray for my kids and my grandkids) in the "31 Ways to Pray for Your Kids" app, available for iPads and iPhones.

Thank You For Not Snickering

God, 

thank you for not snickering 

at my delusion 

that I am doing 

Really Important Things.

(suggested by a line in Close Enough to Hear God Breathe, by Greg Paul; 

photo illustration by @carrier_lost via unsplash.com)

Unpleasant Tasks

Lord Jesus, you persevered through unpleasant tasks. You corrected thick-headed disciples. You rebuked your closest friends. You agonized in Gethsemane over your approaching passion. You gritted your way through your execution. 

Help me to do half so well. Help me through the unpleasant tasks that face me. Help me to stay dependent on you, and not on my own strength. Help me, Lord, help me. 

Help me not to mistake ease for your blessing, or pleasantness for your will. I surrender my desire for a smooth path and an easy road to you, even as I ask your grace to bless both my obedience and my stupid mistakes, in Jesus' name, amen.

Keep It Too

Oh that mine eyes might closèd be 

To what becomes me not to see; 

That deafness might possess mine ear, 

To what concerns me not to hear; 

That Truth my tongue might always tie, 

From ever speaking foolishly; 

That no vain thought might ever rest, 

Or be conveived in my breast;

That by each word, each deed, each thought,

Glory may to my God be brought.

But what are wishes! Lord, mine eye

On thee is fix'd, to thee I cry;

Oh purge out all my dross, my tin,

Make me more white than snow within;

Wash Lord, and purify my heart,

And make it clean in every part;

And when 'tis clean, Lord keep it too,

For that is more than I can do.

(a prayer of Thomas Elwood; detail from photo by @mimg via unsplash.com)

My All in All

I've little strength to call my own, 

And what I've done, before your throne, 

I here confess, is small; 

But on your strength, O God, I lean, 

And through the Blood that keeps me clean, 

You are my all in all. 

(from a song by Herbert Booth, slightly revised; photo via everystockphoto.com)

Ebenezer

All through the years, your providence has led me,

Your abounding goodness has been all my song,

All through the years, I sing your love and mercy, 

Singing Ebenezer as the years roll on.

Lord, I Need You

Faithfulness and Truth

 

To Show Proper Respect

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

Fragrance

Dear Jesus, 

Help me to spread your fragrance everywhere I go. 

Flood my soul with your spirit and love. 

Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly 

that all my life may only be a radiance of yours. 

Shine through me and be so in me that every soul 

I come in contact with may feel your presence in my soul. 

Let them look up and see no longer me but only Jesus. 

Stay with me and then I shall begin to shine as you shine, 

so to shine as to be a light to others. 

Amen

(a prayer of Mother Teresa, slightly revised; photo by Léonard Cotte via unsplash.com)

Breathe

 

Appointment

Lord, please be present in today's appointment, 

in your wonderful, gracious, miracle-working power, 

in Jesus' name, amen. 

(photo illustration by Anton via unsplash.com)

All Our Work and Toil

O God, creator of the world,
of sun and moon and stars,
you chose to fashion us, your own,
your handiwork of love.

Indeed, we are your hands’ own work
and yet into our hands
you give the care
of every living thing.

In more ways than we can count
our work builds up
or tears apart what came
from your own hand.

Keep us faithful in preserving
all you’ve given
lest we harm the smallest part
of all you’ve made.

Give us good and honest work to do
and rest at each day’s end.
Give a fair and good day’s wage
for a good day’s work well done.

Give us work that nurtures and sustains
the ones who serve and those they serve.
Let those who labor work in peace,
in freedom without fear.

Give those in need a job to do
and to the tired well earned rest.
Let all our work and toil, Lord,
give glory to your name.

Amen.

(From A Concord Pastor Comments blog; photo by skeeze via pixabay.com)

In Christ Alone

All My Work is for You, Master

Savior, if my feet have faltered

on the pathway of the cross,

if my purposes have altered,

or my gold be mixed with dross.

O forbid me not your service,

keep my yet in your employ.

Pass me through a sterner cleansing,

if I may but bring you joy.

All my work is for you, Master,

you are all my heart's desire.

O, that you will count me faithful

in the day that tries by fire.

Have I worked for hireling wages?

Or as one with vows to keep,

with a heart whose love engages

life or death to save the sheep?

All is known to you, my Master,

all is known, and that is why

I can work and wait the verdict 

of your kind but searching eye.

Let me love you, let love rule me,

springing up and flowing forth 

from a childlike heart within me

or my work is nothing worth-- 

Love with passion, love with patience,

love with principle and fire,

Love with heart and mind and utterance

serving you my one desire.

In Jesus' name, amen.

(a hymn of Albert Orsborn, slightly revised; public domain image from pixabay.com)

Hiding

Adonai, you are my hiding place.

I hide in you right now; 

cover me with your hand.

Help me to hide in you throughout this day,

that even when I am out and about 

among other people,

I remain hidden in you,

in Jesus' name, amen.

Isaiah 33:2 Prayer