Into Your Chamber

Draw me completely into yourself,

So that I might completely melt in your love.

Lay upon me, stamp upon me,

So that my stubborn pride might be destroyed.

Embrace me, kiss me,

So that my spiritual ugliness may turn to beauty.

Lock me into your chamber,

So that I might never stray 

from your presence.

(a prayer by Johann Freylinghausen; photo by truk via pixabay.com)

As I Am

For a Serious Seeking

Keep me O Lord, while I tarry on this earth, 

in a serious seeking after you, 

and in an affectionate walking with you, 

every day of my life; 

that when you come, I may be found 

not hiding my talent, 

nor serving the flesh, 

nor yet asleep with my lamp unfurnished, 

but waiting and longing for you.

 (a prayer by Richard Baxter; photo by Pexels via pixabay.com)

You Speak Words of Promise and We Answer

You speak words of promise, 

and we answer. 

A thousand times we answer, 

in a thousand tongues-- 

we answer in hymns of praise, 

we answer in songs of thanksgiving, 

we answer in lyrics of gladness, 

we answer in candor about hurt, 

we answer in abrasive anger, 

we answer in deep abandonment. 

We answer and draw close to you. 

And in answering we are changed: 

given freedom, 

come to truth, 

bound in obedience. 

We answer and are yours, all yours, 

not our own, 

yours, and 

glad that we belong to 

you our faithful savior. 

(a prayer by Walter Brueggemann, from his book, Prayers for a Privileged People, p. 169)

On Thanksgiving

Our Father in Heaven, 

If ever we had a cause to offer unto Thee our fervent thanks, surely it is now, on the Eve of our Thanksgiving Day, when we, the people of this Nation, are comfortable, well fed, well clad, and blessed with good things beyond our deserving. May gratitude, the rarest of all virtues, be the spirit of our observance. 

Let not feasting, football, and festivity end in forgetfulness of God. May the desperate need of the rest of the world, and our own glorious heritage, remind us of the God who led our Fathers every step of the way by which they advanced to the character of an independent nation.

May the faith and conviction of George Washington be renewed in us as we remember his words:

...there is no truth more thoroughly established than that there exits in the economy and course of nature an indissoluble union between virtue and happiness; between duty and advantage; between the genuine maxims of an honest and magnanimous policy and the solid rewards of public prosperity and felicity; since we ought to be no less persuaded that the propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained...

For if we do not have the grace to thank Thee for all that we have and enjoy, how can we have the effrontery to seek Thy further blessings? God, give us grateful hearts. 

For Jesus' sake.

Amen.

(a prayer from the Senate of the United States, November 26, 1947, by Rev. Dr. Peter Marshall, Chaplain)

On Calleigh's Birthday

Abba, Father, Most Blessed, Most High, 

this girl. 

Isn't she precious? 

Thank you for giving to our family 

the gift of Calleigh,

this precious young woman, 

this beautiful granddaughter, 

this wonderful Calleigh. 

Thank you for preserving her 

through every trial and challenge.

Thank you for her health, 

wholeness, 

charm, 

beauty, 

innocence, 

and intricacy. 

Thank you for entrusting her to the care of such wonderful parents. 

Gentle Shepherd, 

continue as you've begun, 

adding more health, 

more strength, 

more happiness, 

more brilliance, 

more love, 

character, 

and delight

to her life and to our life through hers, 

in Jesus' name, amen. 

For Your Mercies on Me

O my God,

let me, with thanksgiving,

remember, and confess unto you

your mercies on me.

Let my bones be soaked with your love,

and let them say unto you,

Who is like you, O Lord?

You have broken my chains in pieces.

I will offer unto you the sacrifice of thanksgiving

And how you have broken them, I will declare;

and all who worship you, when they hear this, will say:

Blessed is the Lord in heaven and in earth!

Great and wonderful is his name!

(a prayer of St. Augustine; illustration by avi_acl via pixabay.com)

My Little Vessel is Full

O My God, 

Thou fairest, greatest, 

first of all objects, 

my heart admires, 

adores, 

loves thee, 

for my little vessel 

is as full as it can be, 

and I would pour out 

all that fullness before thee 

in ceaseless flow. 

When I think upon and converse with thee 

ten thousand delightful thoughts spring up, 

ten thousand sources of pleasure are unsealed, 

ten thousand refreshing joys spread over my heart, 

crowding into every moment of happiness.

I bless thee for the soul thou hast created, 

for adorning it, for sanctifying it, 

though it is fixed in barren soil; 

for the body thou hast given me, 

for preserving its strength and vigour, 

for providing senses to enjoy delights, 

for the ease and freedom of my limbs,

for hands, eyes, ears that do thy bidding;

for thy royal bounty providing my daily support,

for a full table and overflowing cup,

for appetite, taste, sweetness,

for social joys of relatives and friends,

for ability to serve others,

for a heart that feels sorrows and necessities,

for a mind to care for my fellow-men,

for opportunities of spreading happiness around,

for loved ones in the joys of heaven,

for my own expectation of seeing thee clearly.

I love thee above the powers of language to express, 

for what thou art to thy creatures.

Increase my love, O my God, 

through time and eternity. 

(from The Valley of Vision, a collection of Puritan prayers, edited by Arthur Bennett)

Only in God

Flowers in the Desert

As flowers grow 

in the 

desert, 

Lord, 

please bring fruit

from 

the 

rocky 

recesses 

of my heart. 

This Family

God, 

you have given me everything 

in giving me this wife, 

this daughter, 

this son, 

this son-in-law, 

this daughter-in-law, 

these grandkids. 

Thank you. 

Times and Seasons

Thank you, Lord, that the seasons of my life 

have included so many births, and so few deaths; 

more times to plant, than times of plucking up that which is planted; 

No times to kill, and many times to heal; 

infrequent times to break down, and frequent times to build up; 

Fewer times to weep than times to laugh; 

Fewer times to mourn than times to dance. 

Thank you for those times to cast away stones, and times of gathering stones together; 

thank you for times of embracing, and times to refrain from embracing; 

Thank you for so many times to get, and so few times to lose, 

so many times to keep, and so few times to cast away.

Make me wise to recognize times to rend, and times to sew; 

times to keep silence, and times to speak; 

times to love, and times to hate; 

times of war, and times of peace,

in Jesus' name, amen 

(based on Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, KJV; photo via everystockphoto.com).

Just One Single Day

Thank you, Lord, 

for today, just one single day, 

you have given me grace to pray, 

coffee to drink, 

food to eat, 

clothes to wear. 

You allowed me 

to wake in my own bed, 

in health, 

and in (mostly) my right mind.

I have hope of meaningful work, 

innumerable comforts, 

and a happy conclusion to this day. 

By your grace, I can see, hear, touch, taste, feel.

By your grace, I know love and companionship. 

By your grace, I have the means to buy, and abundance to give. 

By your grace, I am forgiven and forgiving. 

For this and more, 

just one day's worth, 

I give you my most heartfelt thanks! 

Amen.

(photo by RachelScottYoga via pixabay.com)

Unquestioning Acceptance

Gracious God, 

please make me more like the birds and the lilies, 

who (in Bonhoeffer's words) "glorify their Creator, 

not by their industry, toil or care, 

but by a daily 

unquestioning 

acceptance of his gifts." 

(photo by Auzz33 via pixabay.com) 

I Claim an Entrance

O God, if still the holy place 

Is found of those in prayer, 

By all the promises of grace 

I claim an entrance there. 

Give me a self-denying soul, 

Enlarged and unconfined; 

Abide within me, and control 

The wanderings of the mind. 

Give me the strength of faith that dares 

To die to self each day, 

That bravely takes the cross, nor cares 

To find an easier way. 

Help me to make more sacrifice, 

To walk where Christ would lead, 

That in my life He may arise 

To hallow every deed. 

Amen.

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

Remember Me

 

That Hoping in Thee We May Do Good

O Lord, in Whom is our hope, 

remove far from us, 

we pray Thee, 

empty hopes and presumptuous confidence. 

Make our hearts so right 

with Thy most holy and loving heart, 

that hoping in Thee we may do good; 

until that day 

when faith and hope shall be abolished 

by sight and possession, 

and love shall be all in all.

Amen.

(a prayer by Christina Rossetti; photo by Lars_Nissen via pixabay.com)

Desires

Lord, please grant me the desires 

of YOUR heart. 

Amen.

(photo via pixabay.com)

Flower and Sun

We are the flower, Thou the sun! 

Forgive us if, as days decline, 

We nearer steal to Thee....

(lines 7-9 of Emile Dickinson's "The Daisy Follows Soft the Sun"; 

photo illustration by Kathas_Fotos via pixabay.com)

On Veterans' Day

God of peace,

we pray for those

who have served our nation

and who laid down their lives

to protect and defend our freedom.

We pray for those who have fought, 

whose spirits and bodies 

are scarred by war, 

whose nights are haunted by memories  

too painful for the light of day. 

We pray for those who serve us now,

especially for those in harm's way:

shield them from danger

and bring them home.

Turn the hearts and minds

of our leaders and our enemies

to the work of justice and a harvest of peace.

Spare the poor, Lord, spare the poor!

May the peace you left us,

the peace you gave us,

be the peace that sustains,

the peace that saves us.

Christ Jesus, hear us!

Lord Jesus, hear our prayer!

Amen.

(from A Concord Pastor Comments blog; photo by KaraSuva via pixabay.com)