Lord God and Father in Heaven, you know our hearts, our struggles, our joys, our desires. Transform us into the image of your Son. Create in us the soul designed for eternity. Give us wholeness, sincerity, integrity, and holiness in Christ. Make us men and women of faith. Carry us through our day with patience, longsuffering, wisdom, and love. Bring us through the pains of suffering with maturity and strength. Embolden us in your power.
Defend us in your glory
Be with us, O Lord, that you may defend us in your glory.
Be among us, that you may receive us.
Be around us, that you may preserve us.
Go before us, that you may lead us.
Be on our side, that you may intercede for us.
Be above us in all things, that you may bless us.
Summon us to your Kingdom
Where you live and reign forever.
—Alcuin, in D. Dale, A Mind Intent on God, 5
The prayer you taught us
Oh, Lord, the prayer you taught us to pray covers the bases. We direct our hearts and thoughts to you as he who dwells in heaven and is the source of all that is good. Your relationship to us as Father determines how we regard every other relationship. The deep reverence for your name awakens in us a corresponding respect for all you have done, for the life you place in others, and for the purpose you have given us here on earth.
That purpose is wrapped up in the kingdom, in your powerful and gracious rule over mankind. May more and more people acknowledge you. Help us to work so that others may confess you.
When they do, they, like we, will fulfill your will. What we want is not important. We have so little basis for judging what is good and right and beneficial. Our emotions get in the way. Our desires drive us far from the ultimate good. We confess our limitations. We want what you want, O Lord. Make your will predominate, just as angels and spiritual beings do your will without question or doubt in the heavenly realms.
It’s a hard world down here, while all seems to go smoothly up there. We work hard, money is tight, budgets get out of control. We worry about paying bills, at the same time that we spend on unnecessary items. How we waste our resources! In all that material confusion and weakness, Father, help us to depend upon you to provide for our needs. You always have. We’ve never gone hungry. We’ve always had clothes to wear. Give us control of our income. Provide us with work of dignity and sufficiency. Continue reading “The prayer you taught us”
Lord, I Would Be a Simple Soul
Lord, I would be a simple soul,
Make me see with a single eye.
I’d always speak an honest word,
Come fill me with the gospel truth.
I ask to be a saint of zeal,
Show me the living passion of Christ.
I seek to sanctify my heart,
Let me know your holiness.
I’d wield the Spirit’s powerful sword,
Give me wisdom in the Scriptures.
I want to please you in the Way,
Strengthen my feet to walk your path.
Lord, I would be a fisher of souls,
For I was taught and led to Christ.
Take, Lord, All My Liberty
Take, Lord, all my liberty,
Receive my failing memory,
My mind for thought, my heart for feeling,
And all I have and now am seeking.
You give, and I to you restore,
I cannot struggle any more;
Illusions led me far away —
Come keep the preying wolves at bay.
Your glory shines as brightly ever,
Your grace, a strong and moving river;
With tenderness, you waken souls,
No word of yours or promise fails.
Make rise, O Spirit, these prayers to heaven,
These wordless yearnings deeply driven;
Such wisps of thought and stirrings unformed
With the Kingdom’s reasonable tongue be framed.
A few lines at the beginning were inspired by a prayer by Ignatius of Loyola, published in the Oxford Book of Prayer, by George Appleton. Please join us in these prayers by signing up to receive them by email.
Good People, Mostly
Good people, mostly — as men count goodness —
Who see no need to change their lives,
Content to continue on with less,
Averse to change, to conversion to Christ,
With only a form of godliness.
Break through, O Lord, my neighbors’ shell,
For them to see their future is dim;
Save men and women and families from hell,
May light shine brightly to redeem,
To enter the Savior’s citadel.
May they reject their human good,
And measure by your holy name;
Let Scripture be their daily food,
The image of Christ, their principal aim,
To live in faith and gratitude.
At knowledge how shall they arrive?
What power will cause their wills to move?
How then shall truth become alive?
What tongue will tell, that they may prove?
O Lord, to their door drive me.
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Visions of heaven and peace in our country
Our Father in Heaven, let the words of Scripture leap from the page into the deepest recesses of my heart, with your power recreating life and rearranging priorities, purifying motivations and replacing worldly thoughts with visions of heaven and your divine love.
At the same time, we pray for peace in our country. May violence be contained. May the economy permit productive activity and lives of prosperity. May justice prevail within society. May corruption be rooted out. May local and national leaders rise who are honest and who sincerely work for the security and peace of its citizens.
Make us promoters of peace and proclaimers of eternal hope.
A Mix of Trial and Trust
Our lives are a mix of trial and trust,
You prove us, Lord, and prod us forward;
So teach us wisdom in tests of faith,
In our distress, be the God of truth.
The day when we live
Heavenly Father, let this be a day of peace, when fullness and joy and blessing populate the hours.
Let this be a day of security, when we rest in you and find safety in your shadow.
Let this be a day of sowing, when the seed of the gospel is scattered far and wide and the power of salvation comes to needy souls.
Let this be a day of reaping, with shouts of joy at seeing friends and family and perfect strangers come into your family.
Let this be a day of faithfulness, as we decide in every situation to do your will and please you in all things.
Let this be a day of hope, with sights set on heaven and the prayer of Jesus’ return on our lips.
Let this be the day when love is shown and shared and received, when people are treated as equals, and our time is dedicated to others, and our obedience brings to us your special presence.
O Lord, let today be the day when we live for these things and not for the world and its passions and ephemeral pleasures; let today be yours and a closer step toward our life in heaven with you.
Future Unknown
Future unknown, present uncertain,
Past obscured by faulty memories—
Events mow down our hopes and dreams—
O Sovereign God, come bear our burden!