A (Very) Short Prayer for Joy Seekers by Tony Reinke

At the very points in my life when my soul feels most dry and joyless, I often find myself most spiritually speechless. I'm stuck. And when I get stuck in this inarticulate joyless state I turn to the Psalms. There my plea finds its language.

In a lot of ways, Psalm 86 is like the Lord’s Prayer. It's a ready-made prayer for our daily lives — short and simple, yet deeply profound. In it we read this plea:

Gladden the soul of your servant,
for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. (Psalm 86:4)

Short. Simple. Articulate. And life-giving.

What is the psalmist praying for?

First, he asks to be gladdened, gladdened to his core, gladdened to every corner of his life. He seeks happiness, even in the midst of what appears for him to be painful life circumstances. Like all of us, he seeks joy for his life. And to find his joy, the psalmist prayerfully lifts up his soul to God.

Lifting the soul is a metaphor of childlike dependence and trust. It is also an act of confidence, a focused and single-hearted act that pushes away all rivals. But even more specifically, it is an act of eager anticipation. Lifting our souls to the Lord includes all of this — dependence, trust, confidence, anticipation.

Which is why Psalm 86:4 is such a beautiful and simple prayer for an often-dry, often-speechless, joy-seeker like me. Using the compacted language of the psalmist, my prayer is essentially this: “God, I lift up to you my dry, languishing soul. I turn to you because I believe you can restore its joy. I want you alone. I want you to fill me, to fill my soul — to fill my whole being — with joy. Where else can I turn, if not to you? To you alone I lift up my soul, for in you alone will I find the true gladness my soul longs for.”

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Little Prayers by Michael Bynum

Luke 11:1
Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, Teach us to pray......"

This is a hard posting to write this morning....

Why?

Because pray is a part of my relationship that I have always felt I was sorely lacking in.

I pray...

In fact if I stop to think about it...

I pray a lot.

But when I read of others and their being given to prayer, I am embarrassed.
Leonard Ravenhill, noted English Revivalist, once commented that "When we stand before Jesus the one thing that we will be embarrassed by is the "Smallness of our prayers".  In other words, we never launched out into those prayers that changed the world. We prayed safe prayers...prayers that may have been full of selfish needs and wants.

I have had the book for some time...."E.M. Bounds On Prayer". But yesterday as I was in my office transferring some cassette tapes (remember those?) to digital, I pulled the book out and began to read. As John Wesley would have said, "My heart was strangely warmed." In other words, the Holy Spirit was very present as I poured over these words. The opening lines of the book jumped off the page at me...."The prayers of God's saints are the capital stock in heaven by which Christ carries on His great work upon the earth. The earth is changed, revolutionized; angels move on more powerful, more rapid wings; and God's policy is shaped when the prayers of His people are more  numerous and more efficient."

Does this mean that God is waiting upon us to pray so that He can act. Yes, and no. What I have found is that my prayers are actually me "breathing" back to God that which He truly desires to accomplish. He is giving me the incredible opportunity to be a part of this divine plan.......this divine work here on fallen, sinful earth. For this reason, I want to learn how to pray, and I told God that yesterday. "Teach me to pray."

Bounds goes on to write: Prayer is no fitful, short-lived thing. It is no voice crying unheard and unheeded in the silence. It is a voice that goes into God's ear, and it lives as long as God's ear is open to holy pleas, as long as God's heart is alive to holy things." I have got to lay hold of prayer. I have, in the past, given up to quickly. I have thrown up short bursts of emotion laced with words that I think God wants to hear. No more. Prayer has got to be the language of heaven that begins with a heart that is stirred in belief that God is who He claims to be and that He answers the cries of His children.

Everything is possible to those who truly know how to pray, and the one truth that still burns in a world gone dark is that God's ear is not so dull that He cannot hear....and His arm so short that He cannot save. I fear that my own prayers were nothing more than those like the Pharisee's. A cold and lifeless praying that was nothing more than a parody of the real thing. God forgive me. There is a part of me that finds the things of this world more exciting than spending time in prayer. This cannot be any longer. Please read my words with clear vision. I am not pontificating or posturing to lay claim that I am going to be some kind of incredible prayer warrior. I am laying claim to the fact that I have not taken the discipline of prayer as serious as God would have me. How many lives have passed by me and moved deeper into spiritual darkness because I did not wrestle for their very soul in prayer. This cannot be. I am grateful for God's hand to lay hold of me this morning and give me another opportunity to participate in His Kingdom work. Another opportunity to learn and grow. I do not want to squander this.

Don't Stop Praying by Richard Trader

Don't Stop Praying

"Pray without ceasing."

1 Thessalonians 5:17

A certain man had lived a self-centered life, focused on nothing more than his own pleasure. He had been abusive to his wife and neglected his family. One day he shocked his wife by saying, "I want to turn my life around. I need God." The wife was so happy. She invited her pastor to come to their home to talk with her husband. The pastor explained to him how God would forgive all of his sins and change his heart. They had prayer together. The man told the pastor that he wanted to be baptized and join the church. After the pastor left, the man sat with his head down as he wept. His wife said, "Honey, I don't understand. I thought that you would be happy." He said, "Oh, I am, but I wish my mother had lived to see this day. She always prayed for me."

It's easy to get discouraged in prayer, when we don't see immediate results. We prefer to have our prayers answered immediately, but it doesn't always happen that way. The apostle Paul exhorted believers to "pray without ceasing."  Don't give up. Don't let up. Pray with persistence and perseverance.

Have you been praying for someone without seeing results? Have you been praying about a personal problem without a change of circumstances? "Pray without ceasing." Just because we see no visible results does not mean that God has not heard our prayers. He always hears the prayer of faith. Surrender to God's will to answer your prayer in His time and His way. Don't stop praying.

Prayer: Father, we believe that You hear our prayers. We confess our impatience in prayer. We believe You are working to answer our prayers according to Your goodness, when we see results and when we don't. We pray without ceasing through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our Deepest Problem Is Internal: A Prayer Of Repentance

Prayer: Lord, We confess that most of us have no knowledge of our deep sinfulness that belongs to us and to which consciously we yield [6]. While the world says that our problems are external, the gospel says that our deepest problem is internal. On the cross, we see that we are so sinful that Jesus had to die for us, but also that we are so loved that he chose to die for us. This year, prick our hearts so that we have a deep consciousness of the danger of our sin so that we cling to your mercy evermore. Amen. - 843 acres - The Park Forum.

A Prayer From John Piper: O God You Are Able

“We are not able in ourselves to win this battle. We are not able to change hearts or minds. We are not able to change worldviews and transform culture and save 1.6 million children. We are not able to reform the judiciary or embolden the legislature or mobilize the slumbering population. We are not able to heal the endless wounds of godless ideologies and their bloody deeds. But, O God, you are able! And we turn from reliance on ourselves to you. And we cry out to you and plead that for the sake of your name, and for the sake of your glory, and for the advancement of your saving purpose in the world, and for the demonstration of your wisdom and your power and your authority over all things, and for the sway of your Truth and the relief of the poor and the helpless, act, O God. This much we hunger for the revelation of your power. With all our thinking and all our writing and all our doing, we pray and we fast. Come. Manifest your glory.”

 (Prayer from John Piper, A Hunger for God, 171)

A Quote From Charles Spurgeon on Intercession

“Intercessory prayer is exceedingly prevalent. What wonders it has wrought! The Word of God teems with its marvelous deeds. Believer, thou hast a mighty engine in thy hand, use it well, use it constantly, use it with faith, and thou shalt surely be a benefactor to thy brethren.”

― C.H.SPURGEON

Oswald Chambers on Intercessory Prayer

 . . men always ought to pray and not lose heart —Luke 18:1

You cannot truly intercede through prayer if you do not believe in the reality of redemption. Instead, you will simply be turning intercession into useless sympathy for others, which will serve only to increase the contentment they have for remaining out of touch with God. True intercession involves bringing the person, or the circumstance that seems to be crashing in on you, before God, until you are changed by His attitude toward that person or circumstance. Intercession means to “fill up . . . [with] what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ” (Colossians 1:24), and this is precisely why there are so few intercessors. People describe intercession by saying, “It is putting yourself in someone else’s place.” That is not true! Intercession is putting yourself in God’s place; it is having His mind and His perspective.

As an intercessor, be careful not to seek too much information from God regarding the situation you are praying about, because you may be overwhelmed. If you know too much, more than God has ordained for you to know, you can’t pray; the circumstances of the people become so overpowering that you are no longer able to get to the underlying truth.

Our work is to be in such close contact with God that we may have His mind about everything, but we shirk that responsibility by substituting doing for interceding. And yet intercession is the only thing that has no drawbacks, because it keeps our relationship completely open with God.

What we must avoid in intercession is praying for someone to be simply “patched up.” We must pray that person completely through into contact with the very life of God. Think of the number of people God has brought across our path, only to see us drop them! When we pray on the basis of redemption, God creates something He can create in no other way than through intercessory prayer.

A Christmas Prayer by Robert Louis Stevenson

O God our loving Father, help us rightly to remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and the worship of the wise men. May Christmas morning make us happy to be Thy children and Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus’ sake, amen.

—Robert Louis Stevenson

A Prayer for Treasuring and Pondering Jesus by Scotty Smith

     So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. Luke 2:16-19

Dear Lord Jesus, it’s hard not to be in awe of Mary’s calling to nurse God the Son and raise the Son of God. Even as I write these words, I realize what a holy mystery the incarnation was. You, the very God who created all things—who sustains all things, and who is making all things new—you humbled yourself and drew life-giving nourishment from a young maiden’s breast. Oh, holy mystery and glorious gospel.

And Mary “treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart”—a response that requires a slower pace and quiet reflection. “Hurrying off” like a shepherd to tell others about you has always been easier for me than sitting still and letting you tell me about yourself.

It’s always been easier for me to talk than to listen—to stay busy than to relax; to be “productive” than to be meditative. I confess this as sin, Jesus. This isn’t okay, for knowing about you is not the same thing as knowing you. An informed mind is not the same thing as an enflamed heart.

To know you is eternal life, and I do want to know you, Lord Jesus, so much better than I already do. I want increasingly to treasure you in my heart and ponder the wonder of who you are. I want to live at the pace of grace, not the pace of the swirling life around me.

I want to more deeply contemplate everything you’ve already accomplished through your life, death, and resurrection; everything you’re presently doing as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords; and everything you will be to us in the new heaven and new earth—Bridegroom to beloved bride. There is so much to take in and treasure!

Lord Jesus, I repent of my much-ness and many-ness—for, at times, living more of a driven life than a called life.  In this season of Advent, may I be able to say in a fresh and sincere way, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Ps. 73:25-26). So very Amen I pray, in your peerless and priceless name.

Salvation and Grace: A Prayer From John Chrysostom

O my all-merciful God and Lord,
Jesus Christ, full of pity:
Through Your great love You came down
and became incarnate in order to save everyone.
O Savior, I ask You to save me by Your grace!
If You save anyone because of their works,
that would not be grace but only reward of duty,
but You are compassionate and full of mercy!

You said, O my Christ,
“Whoever believes in Me shall live and never die.”
If then, faith in You saves the lost, then save me,
O my God and Creator, for I believe.
Let faith and not my unworthy works be counted to me, O my God,
for You will find no works which could account me righteous.

O Lord, from now on let me love You as intensely as I have loved sin,
and work for You as hard as I once worked for the evil one.
I promise that I will work to do Your will,
my Lord and God, Jesus Christ, all the days of my life and forever more.

- John Chrysostom

Binding And Loosing Prayer: Tom White

"For those in need of deliverance  I advise a two-track mode of binding and loosing prayer. I ask the Spirit to make the person sick of his or her sin, to plant seeds of truth in the person's mind and, if for an unbeliever, to stir the person to seek salvation. I also ask the Holy Spirit to silence, subdue and separate demonic influence from the person, thus allowing him/her to respond to truth. Having done this, I wait and watch for God to open doors and bring opportunity to work directly with the one in bondage."

- Tom White, The Believer's Guide To Spiritual Warfare, page 202

The Hidden Life of Prayer

"Certainly, if we are to have a quiet hour set down in the midst of a hurry of duties, and to keep that time inviolate, we must exercise both planning and self-denial. We must be prepared to forego many things that are pleasant, and some things that are profitable. Let no one who can find time for their vanities say that they do not have enough time for prayer."

- David M'Intyre in The Hidden Life of Prayer, p. 39.

Morning Prayer - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

MORNING PRAYER

O God, early in the morning I cry to you.
Help me to pray
And to concentrate my thoughts on you:
I cannot do this alone.
In me there is darkness,
But with you there is light;
I am lonely, but you do not leave me;
I am feeble in heart, but with you there is help;
I am restless, but with you there is peace.
In me there is bitterness, but with you there is patience;
I do not understand your ways,
But you know the way for me…
Restore me to liberty,
And enable me to live now
That I may answer before you and before me.
Lord, whatever this day may bring,
Your name be praised.

- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Cast Your Cares on God - St. Augustine of Hippo

Behold, O Lord,
I cast all my cares on You,
that I may live
and see wondrous things out of Your Law.
You know my incompetence and my infirmities;
teach me and heal me.
Your only Son,
He in whom are hid all the treasures of
wisdom and knowledge,
has redeemed me with His blood.
                                - St. Augustine of Hippo

You Have Loved Us First

Father in heaven!
You have loved us first,
help us never to forget that You are love
so that this sure conviction
might triumph in our hearts
over the seduction of the world,
over the inquietude of the soul,
over the anxiety for the future,
over the fright of the past,
over the distress of the moment.

But grant also that this conviction
might discipline our soul
so that our heart might remain faithful
and sincere in the love which we bear
to all those whom You have commanded us
to love as we love ourselves.

You have loved us first, O God, alas!

We speak of it in terms of history
as if You have only loved us first but a single time,
rather than that without ceasing
You have loved us first many times
and every day and our whole life through.

When we wake up in the morning
and turn our soul toward You
- You are the first -
You have loved us first;
if I rise at dawn and at the same second
turn my soul toward You in prayer,
You are there ahead of me,
You have loved me first.
When I withdraw from the distractions of the day
and turn my soul toward You,
You are the first and thus forever.
And yet we always speak ungratefully
as if You have loved us first only once.

- Soren Kierkegaard 

"Pray the Lord of the Harvest to send Laborers...."

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved, you and your whole household.” Dear Lord of the Harvest, we ask You to send laborers into the fields around the world. In every place Your Word is preached, call and anoint fishers of men. Even in the most difficult places we pray the nets would be let down and be filled with a new, abundant, spiritual harvest in this hour. We pray for the nets of salvation to overflow with decisions for Christ in our homes, our churches, our schools, our prisons, our streets, our cities and nations. Revive Your work in the earth! Raise up and send preachers to proclaim the gospel. We pray that faith, revelation, and repentance will be given to all who hear their message and that salvation in the name of Jesus will be settled in the souls of men and women everywhere. Great Shepherd of the sheep, seek and save the lost today! Shod your servants with the power of the gospel that men may be reconciled to You. Send Your servants, pour out the Holy Spirit, and release the reapers, Your angels, to bring those who have not yet believed into Your fold. Where the preaching of the gospel is bound or prohibited, we pray for sovereign conversions in the manner of Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus. We pray for divine appointments and for a release of faith exercised from the heart to cause sinners to repent and salvation to abound. We ask for household salvation and intercede with those who are praying for lost loved ones. We harmonize with their prayers that these family members will come to Christ. Where there is one believing as Rahab at Jericho or Cornelius at Caesarea or the keeper of the prison at Thyatira, cause their righteousness and faith to be a beacon and a well of salvation springing up to testify and convict, to save and bring into salvation, all the members of a family or household. Father of Lights, let the light of Your Presence shine to illumine Your Son in even the darkest places! Great Physician, we cry to You for those who are spiritually sick and dying without a revelation of faith in Christ. We pray for the spirit of holy conviction to shake the hearts of our citizens that they would no longer conform to this world but be transformed by the renewing of the mind. Send Your Holy Spirit through believing vessels to bring the word of faith and repentance to those who are thirsty for God. As Christ has shed His blood for the cleansing of the sins for all who will receive Him, we lay hold of His saving power and the full effects of His intercession as our High Priest before the throne of heaven as we ask for salvation of souls today Lamb of God, cause Your Spirit to seek and save the lost in every corner of the land that Your Book of Life may be written in today with new names of those receiving eternal life through faith in Your death, burial and resurrection. You have declared that only the Father knows the hour of Your return, prepare the way we pray by the preaching of the gospel message and a great ingathering of souls in our day. Thank You for answering and sending power and grace from Your sanctuary. Jesus, Lover of our souls, as You stand knocking upon the door of men’s hearts, cause them to hear and answer that the nations will walk in heaven’s light, and kings will bring their splendor into it. In Jesus’ name, Amen. “If you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” - Mahesh Chavda Ministries Scripture References: Matthew 9:37, 38; Habakkuk 2:2; Romans 10:12-15; Acts 16:30, 31; Romans 10:8-12; John 3:16, 17; Matthew 18:12-14; Matthew 9:12, 13; Luke 5:4, 10; John 17:10-13; Hebrews 9:24-28; Romans 12:1, 2; Revelation 3:20, 21; Revelation 21:24-27

A Prayer of Basil The Great

We bless you, O God most high and Lord of mercies,
always working great and mysterious deeds for us,
glorious, wonderful, and numberless;
who provides us with sleep as a rest from our infirmities
and as a repose for our bodies tired by labor.

We thank you for not destroying us in our transgressions.
Instead, because of your love toward mankind you have raised us up,
as we lay in despair,
that we may glorify your Majesty.

We appeal to your infinite goodness:
enlighten the eyes of our understanding
and raise up our minds front the heavy sleep of indolence;
open our mouths and fill them with your praise,
that we may unceasingly sing and confess you,
who are God glorified in all and by all,
the eternal Father, the Only-Begotten Son,
and the all-holy and good and life-giving Spirit:
now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

- Basil the Great

A Summary Theology of Prayer by John Piper

Below are five statements from John Piper as a summary theology of prayer. An assumption behind these statements is that to know more of God's purpose will deepen our commitment to pray and help us glorify God for why he does what he does.

1. God created the universe and all that is in it to display the riches of the glory of his grace.

Isaiah 43:6-7: Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, 7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made."

Ephesians 1:6, 12, 14: to the praise of his glorious grace…to the praise of his glory…to the praise of his glory.

Romans 9:23: …in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory.

2. Therefore all persons should act in a way that calls attention to the glory of God's grace.

Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

3. The obedience and service of God's people will glorify him most when they consciously and manifestly depend on him for the grace and power to do what they do.

1 Peter 4:11 Whoever speaks [must do so] as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies-in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

2 Thessalonians 1:11-12: To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, 12 so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

4. Prayer for God's help is one way that God preserves and manifests the dependence of his people on his grace and power. The necessity of prayer is a constant reminder and display of our dependence on God for everything, so that he gets the glory when we get the help.

Psalm 50:15: Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.

John 14:13 Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

5. When the Spirit inspires and directs the groanings in our hearts, the ultimate purpose of the universe happens: God gets the glory because God the Spirit creates the groanings in us; God gets the glory because God the Father is the one who hears and performs what the Spirit asks; God gets glory because God the Son purchased for sinners every blessing they ever receive; and God gets glory because our hearts are made the theater for this divine activity, so that we know and experience God's gracious intercession for us and consciously give him thanks and praise.

A Prayer from John Wesley

We offer up again our souls and bodies to you to be governed,

not by our will, but yours.
O let it be ever the ease and joy of our hearts,
to be under the conduct of your unerring wisdom,
to follow your counsels, and to be ruled in all things by your holy will.
And let us never distrust your abundant kindness and tender care over us;
whatsoever it is you would have us to do
or to suffer in this world;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Lord's Prayer Expanded

The Lord’s Prayer Expanded

BY BETHANY

Highlighted Verses: Matthew 6:9-13
Full Readings: Isaiah 58; Matthew 6

Lord | “Our Father in heaven.” | We proclaim that you’re our Father. Together, with those who have gone before us, we are your children. In Christ, we call you Father, as we seek you together. Unlike us, you’re in heaven, where you have perfect perspective. Our ways are not your ways. Here, sin and death reign. In heaven, however, Christ is king and he lives to intercede for us.

You | “Hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” | May your name be holy, may your kingdom come, and may your will done. May all that we do – how we relate to you, our families, our friends, our possessions – glorify your name. Set us apart as people who bear your name, Christ-ians. Make us holy, as you are holy. Make your gracious rule reign in our hearts. Let us not fear what those around us fear; instead, let us fear you so that we run to you. Let us obey your commands as a response to your abundant grace in Christ. We also pray that your name be treated as holy in our cities, as our good works are lights that shine your glory [1].

Us | “Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” | We long to join you in making your name great, your kingdom come and your will done. Therefore, we pray for health, forgiveness and holiness. We need forgiveness daily because we’re sinners daily and we can’t thrive with guilt. Yet we don’t deserve your forgiveness, which means that we are called to show forgiveness to others when it isn’t merited either. Therefore, we plead through Jesus, our redeemer. We long to fight for holiness. We don’t want to keep on sinning. So we pray that you remove us from temptation. Guard us from sin and the deception of the Evil One. Let us walk in holiness for your name’s sake.

Amen | We agree with you that your name should be loved and cherished. For as many as are the promises of God, they are Amen in Christ; therefore, also through him is our Amen to the glory of God through us.  - Copied from www.theparkforum.wordpress.com 

Christ In All - Charles Spurgen

Christ is All

Our Father,
we dare call You by that blessed name,
for we feel the spirit of children.
We love You, we trust You,
and we desire in all things to be obedient to Your will,
and to seek Your honor.

All our dependence is placed on You
since the day when You taught us to believe in Jesus Christ
and now, You are all in all to us,
You are our fullness,
and we lose ourselves and find ourselves completely in You.

We would lie in the very dust before You because of sin;
and yet, at the same time, rejoice in the great Sin-bearer,
that the sin is not imputed to us,
that it is put away by His precious blood,
that we are accepted in the Beloved.
But even this does not content us;
we are crying after the work of the Holy Spirit within,
till Satan shall be bruised under our feet,
and sin shall be utterly destroyed.

This is our soul’s grandest desire,
that Jesus’ name be lifted high,
and His throne be set up among the people,
to the praise of the glory of His grace.

- Charles Spurgeon, 1880

You Know Each Soul and Our Prayer - Basil The Great

O Lord,
the Helper of the helpless,
the Hope of those who are past hope,
the Savior of the tempest-tossed,
the Harbor of the voyagers,
the Physician of the sick…

You know each soul and our prayer,
each home and its need.

Become to each one of us what we most dearly require,
receiving us all into your kingdom,
making us children of light,
and pour on us your peace and love,
O Lord our God.
Amen.

- Basil the Great

Copied from Trevin Wax

Because of Brother Jesus: A Prayer from Martin Luther

Lord God, Heavenly Father,
I consider myself Your dear child
and You my beloved Father.

Not because I deserve it,
nor could ever merit it,
but because my dear Lord,
Your only begotten Son Jesus Christ
would be my Brother.

Of His own accord
He offers and makes this blessing known to me.

Since I may consider myself His brother,
as He regards me,
You will permit me
to become and remain a child of Yours forever.
Amen.

- Martin Luther

Not Ashamed To Pray by Cheryl Odden

"Perhaps one of the biggest stumbling blocks in our prayer life and our relationship with Christ is disappointment. We are disappointed in our spiritual life, job, country, church, and perhaps even our family.

If we get to the heart of the issue, our disappointment is directed not at these areas of our lives but at God. We may ask: How could he allow this (circumstance) to happen? Why isn’t he helping me overcome these sin issues in my life? Why isn’t he rewarding me for my hard work? Why isn’t he bringing about revival in our nation? Why isn’t he working in our children’s hearts?

The apostle Paul had every "right" to be disappointed in God. Paul was given a dramatic salvation experience and was launched into ministry. People were coming to Christ; religious and government officials were being convicted. It couldn’t get any better than that, could it? It did. Paul was thrown in jail. There he wrote several letters, which today are cornerstones of the Christian faith.

Yet Paul saw his chains not as a disappointment or a setback, but as an opportunity. He wrote to Timothy, advising him not to be ashamed of him, and used Onesiphorus as an example of one who was "not ashamed" of his chains." He invited Timothy to share in his sufferings through God’s power. Then earlier in his letter to the Philippians, he tells them that his imprisonment has furthered the gospel not frustrated it (1:12-14). And more so, his bonds have emboldened believers to preach without fear.

As we pray for the persecuted church, let us first evaluate our relationship with Christ. Spend some time alone with God, asking him to reveal any areas of your life where you are disappointed in him. If we allow ourselves to be honest, have we accused him of being indifferent toward our trials? Are we viewing our current sufferings as an obstacle for the gospel or an opportunity? Agree with him that your disappointment ultimately is sin. Thank him that he uses all things for his good purposes, and then stand on what’s true about him: Jesus is the chief cornerstone (Matthew 21:42); the earth is his and all it contains (Psalm 24:1); and he is the "ruler over the kings of the earth" (Revelation 1:5).

Then start praying for your persecuted family who is inviting you to fellowship in their sufferings according to God’s power." This artical wascopied from www.persecution.com

The Gospel Prayer by J. D. Greear

The Gospel prayer is from the outstanding book,Gospel, by J.D. Greear.I posted this prayer a few months ago, but I am currently using Pastor Greear's book for my morning devotional. I am participating in, The Gospel Project, which is reading through the four Gospels in the forty day reading plan in his book. And praying the Gospel Prayer daily.

"In Christ, there is nothing I can do
that would make You love me more,and nothing
I have done that makes You love me less."


"Your presence and approval are all
I need for everlasting joy."


"As you have been to me,so I will be to others."


"As I pray, I'll measure Your compassion by the cross
and Your power by the resurrection."

A Secret Trait of Effective Intercessors: J D Greear

“Not only does Isaiah understand that sin separates us from God, he also identifies himself completely with his sinful people:

“All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” (Isa 64:6).

The greatest intercessors have always recognized that far more connects them with the common lot of sinners than what distinguishes them—and in any case they do not hesitate to plead with God on behalf of those who will not plead for themselves.”

A Prayer For Thanksgiving by Dr. Peter Marshall

A prayer for Thanksgiving:

Lord God of Heaven, Who hath so lavishly blessed this our beloved land, make us, Thy people, to be humble. Keep us ever aware that these things have come from Thee, and that Thou has lent them to us. Impress upon our smugness the knowledge that we are not owners but stewards, and remind us, lest we become filled with conceit, that one day a reckoning will be required of us. Sanctify our love of country, that our boasting may be turned into humility and our pride into a ministry to all men everywhere. Teach us that Thou dost love them as well as us, and make America thy servant, Thy chosen channel of blessing to all lands, lest we be cast out, and our place be given to another. Make this God's country by making us willing to live like God's people.

Dr. Peter Marshall
December 12, 1946

A Prayer of Thanksgiving

"Almighty and gracious Father, we give you thanks for the fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those who harvest them. Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of your great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen." - (Book of Common Prayer)

Our Hearts are Restless: A Prayer of Augustine of Hippo

Everlasting God,
in whom we live and move and have our being:
You have made us for yourself,
so that our hearts are restless
until they rest in you. - Augustine of Hippo (345-430)

Paraphrase On The Lord's Prayer - Matthew Henry

Another paraphrase on the Lord’s Prayer, in the words of the Assembly’s Shorter Catechism.


Our Father in heaven, we come to thee as children to a Father able and ready to help us.

We beseech thee, let thy name be sanctified; enable us and others to glorify thee in all that whereby thou hast made thyself known, and dispose of all things to thine own glory.

Let thy kingdom come; let Satan’s kingdom be destroyed, and let the kingdom of thy grace be advanced; let us and others be brought into it, and kept in it, and let the kingdom of thy glory be hastened.

Let thy will be done on earth as it is done in heaven; make us by thy grace able and willing to know, obey, and submit to thy will in all things, as the angels do in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread; of thy free gift let us receive a competent portion of the good things of this life, and let us enjoy thy blessing with them.

And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us. We pray that for Christ’s sake thou wouldst freely pardon all our sins, and that by thy grace thou wouldst enable us from the heart to forgive others.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Either keep us, O Lord, from being tempted to sin, or support and deliver us when we are tempted.

For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever. Lord, we take our encouragement in prayer from thyself only and desire in our prayers to praise thee, ascribing kingdom, power, and glory to thee: And in testimony of our desires and assurance to be heard through Jesus Christ, we say Amen.

The Prayer of Polycarp: Martyrdom

They did not nail him then, but simply bound him. And he, placing his hands behind him, and being bound like a distinguished ram [taken] out of a great flock for sacrifice, and prepared to be an acceptable burnt-offering unto God, looked up to heaven, and said, "O Lord God Almighty, the Father of thy beloved and blessed Son Jesus Christ, by whom we have received the knowledge of Thee, the God of angels and powers, and of every creature, and of the whole race of the righteous who live before thee, I give Thee thanks that Thou hast counted me, worthy of this day and this hour, that I should have a part in the number of Thy martyrs, in the cup [456] of thy Christ, to the resurrection of eternal life, both of soul and body, through the incorruption [imparted] by the Holy Ghost. Among whom may I be accepted this day before Thee as a fat [457] and acceptable sacrifice, according as Thou, the ever-truthful [458] God, hast foreordained, hast revealed beforehand to me, and now hast fulfilled. Wherefore also I praise Thee for all things, I bless Thee, I glorify Thee, along with the everlasting and heavenly Jesus Christ, Thy beloved Son, with whom, to Thee, and the Holy Ghost, be glory both now and to all coming ages. Amen." [459]

Footnotes:
[456] Comp. Matthew 20:22, Matthew 26:39; Mark 10:38.

[457] Literally, "in a fat," etc., [or, "in a rich"].

[458] Literally, "the not false and true God."

[459] Eusebius (Hist. Eccl., iv. 15) has preserved a great portion of this Martyrium, but in a text considerably differing from that we have followed. Here, instead of "and," he has "in the Holy Ghost."

A Morning Prayer - Syrian Clementine Liturgy

A Morning Prayer

O God, Who are the unsearchable abyss of peace, the ineffable sea of love, the fountain of blessings, and the bestower of affection, Who sends peace to those that receive it; open to us this day the sea of Your love, and water us with the plenteous streams from the riches of Your grace. Make us children of quietness, and heirs of peace. Kindle in us the fire of Your love; sow in us Your fear; strengthen our weakness by Your power; bind us closely to You and to each other in one firm bond of unity; for the sakd of Jesus Christ. AMEN.

--Syrian Clementine Liturgy

Hope and Petition: Prayers of Saint Augustine of Hippo

Act of Hope

For your mercies' sake, O Lord my God, tell me what you are to me. Say to my soul: "I am your salvation." So speak that I may hear, O Lord; my heart is listening; open it that it may hear you, and say to my soul: "I am your salvation." After hearing this word, may I come in haste to take hold of you. Hide not your face from me. Let me see your face even if I die, lest I die with longing to see it. The house of my soul is too small to receive you; let it be enlarged by you. It is all in ruins; do you repair it. There are things in it - I confess and I know - that must offend your sight. But who shall cleanse it? Or to what others besides you shall I cry out? From my secret sins cleanse me, O Lord, and from those of others spare your servant. Amen.


Act of Petition

Give me yourself, O my God, give yourself to me. Behold I love you, and if my love is too weak a thing, grant me to love you more strongly. I cannot measure my love to know how much it falls short of being sufficient, but let my soul hasten to your embrace and never be turned away until it is hidden in the secret shelter of your presence. This only do I know, that it is not good for me when you are not with me, when you are only outside me. I want you in my very self. All the plenty in the world which is not my God is utter want. Amen.

Why Aren't My Prayers Answered? John Piper

Back in 1996 John Piper preached a message titled, Praying From The Fullness of The Word, in which he addresses the questions, "Why aren't my prayers being answered?" - Ed Stetzer: He says in part,

It says we may not be praying according to God's will; 1 John 5:14, "If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us."
Or it could be we have cherished sin that we will not let go from our lives; Psalm 66:18, "If I regard wickedness in my heart, the Lord will not hear."

It could be that we have man-centered and not God-centered motives; James 4:3, "You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures."

Or it may be that we do not believe that God will do it; Mark 11:24, "All things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you."

Or it could be that God wants you to persevere, and is testing your obedience to his command in Luke 18:1, "At all times [you] ought to pray and not to lose heart."

Or it might be that God is, in fact, doing far more every time you pray than you can imagine and is daily putting in place a part of the mosaic that will in good time be the full answer to your prayer (as in Daniel 10:2,12).

4 Ways To Pray The Gospel Over Your Life - J D Greear

One of the revolutionary ideas of the gospel is that we begin to do what we ought for God as we are captivated by the story of what he has done for us.

Spiritual fruits do not develop in us as we focus on them; spiritual fruits come as we abide in Jesus (John 15:5). Spiritual “fruit” is much like physical “fruit.” When a husband and wife conceive physical “fruit” (i.e. a child), they are not thinking about the exact, scientific mechanics of making that child. They get caught up in a moment of loving intimacy with one another, and the fruit of that loving intimacy is a child. In the same way, spiritual fruits do not grow by focusing on fruit production, but by becoming intimate with the doctrines of the gospel.

Grow Your Fruit with the Gospel

Jesus said that saturating ourselves in the gospel, or “abiding” (lit., “making our home”) in it, is the way to abundant fruit. Sanctification is the daily process of pulling up the roots of our hearts from the flesh and grounding them in the soil of the gospel. Or, to change metaphors, we must send out missionaries to the unreached parts of our heart to preach the gospel and bring our heart under the subjugation of the gospel.


Things like radical generosity and audacious faith are not produced when we focus on them, but when we focus on the gospel.


A Prayer of God's Righteousness

About four years ago, I wrote a prayer for our church to help to this end. We often talk about “preaching the gospel to ourselves daily,” but how can you do that? This four-part prayer confronts us with the reality of God’s gift-righteousness and love:

1.“In Christ, there is nothing I could do that would make you love me more, and nothing I have done that makes you love me less.”

Pray about this “gift righteousness” of the gospel (2 Cor. 5:21) and go to war against the incipient works-righteousness hardwired into our hearts.

2.“Your presence and approval are all I need today for everlasting joy.”

Pray about this value of God’s presence in our lives. It’s one thing to know that Jesus is your possession; it’s another for that approval to have such weightiness in our hearts that our captivity to other idols is snapped.

3.“As you have been to me, so I will be to others.”

Pray about and consider the extravagant generosity of God toward us. His generosity toward us leads us to radical generosity toward others.

4.“As I pray, I’ll measure your compassion by the cross and your power by the resurrection.”


Pray that God would help you view the world through the lens of the gospel. Seeing the compassion and power of God revealed in the gospel produces bold, audacious faith in our hearts.



Focus on What Jesus has Done For You

Things like radical generosity and audacious faith are not produced when we focus on them, but when we focus on the gospel. Focusing on what we ought to do for God creates only frustration and exhaustion; focusing on what Jesus has done for us produces abundant fruit. Resting in what Jesus has done for us releases the revolutionary power of the gospel.



J.D. Greear is the pastor of the Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham, NC. This article is adapted from his newly released book, Gospel: Recovering the Power that Made Christianity Revolutionary.

Three Things Jesus Prays For Us by Jonathan Parnell

Thomas Watson:

When a Christian is weak, and can hardly pray for himself, Jesus Christ is praying for him; and he pray for three things.

First, that the saints may be kept from sin (John 17:15). "I pray that thou shouldest keep them from evil." We live in the world as in a pest-house; Christ prays that his saints may not be infected with the contagious evil of the times.

Second, for his people's progress in holiness. "Sanctify them" (John 17:17). Let them have constant supplies of the Spirit, and be anointed with fresh oil.

Third, for their glorification: "Father, I will that those which thou hast given me, be with me where I am" (John 17:24). Christ is not content till the saints are in his arms. This prayer, which he made on earth, is the copy and pattern of his prayer in heaven. What a comfort is this; when Satan is tempting, Christ is praying! This works for good.

All Things for Good, 1663, (Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth Trust, 2008), 23, paragraphing mine.

________

The Reflective Life by Jack Deere

(This article was copied from Jack Deere's blog on the Wellspring Church website.)

Socrates said that the unexamined life is not worth living (Apology 38a). The unexamined life will also get us in trouble. About 120 years earlier, one of the Hebrew prophets said the same thing. Haggai said, “Give careful thought to yours ways” (1:5, 7). It’s rare to find anyone who pays attention to Socrates or Haggai. When is the last time you gave careful thought to your ways? When is the last time you gave careful thought to the ways of God? How do you do that? I’ll tell you how I do it. I keep three journals: a prayer list, daily events, and daily meditation.


1.Prayer List

1.There are three sources for regular conversations with God: whatever is on my heart, the prayers of Scripture, and my own personal list. God frequently speaks to us while we’re praying.

2.My current list:

1.i. Thanks/praise
2.ii. Confession
3.iii. Family
4.iv. Dreams

1.Give us the right interpretation.
2.Warning dreams: don’t let these happen
3.Good dreams: let these happen
5.v. Extended family
6.vi. Immediate needs
7.vii. Wellspring and our services
8.viii. Congregation
9.ix. Questions for the Lord
10.x. Upcoming conferences
11.xi. Friends who don’t go to Wellspring
12.xii. Enemies
13.xiii. My disciples
14.xiv. My men’s group
15.xv. VIP group (people I know that don’t yet know the Lord)
16.xvi. Record answers with date and “thank you” in red.

3.Problems with a list:

1.i. Can limit us.

2.ii. Can burden us. When my list gets too big, I file it and start over with a smaller one.

3.iii. Can get mechanical.

2.Journal of daily events.

1.The disciples took notes:

1.i. Luke 1:1-4

2.ii. Rev. 1:19

3.iii. Luke 2:19, 51, “But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.”

4.iv. We take notes because we treasure what the Lord does and what He gives us.

2.What not to write

1.i. Don’t record all the details of the day.

2.ii. Don’t give our journals the authority of the Bible.


3.What to write

1.i. I start by recording my wake up time, my weight, and whether I worked out and/or did cardio. If I’m recording it means I am paying attention to my life and trying to move forward. When I don’t record, I’m just going with the flow, trying to survive.

2.ii. Anything that stands out or is meaningful to me.

3.iii. Anything that I think God may be showing me that day.

4.iv. Some days I may only record two lines. I don’t let writing in my journal become a burden. It is simply a tool to help me reflect on my life.

5.v. I write honestly with no intention of showing my journal to anyone. It is password protected.

3.Journal of meditation on the ways and works of God that are illumined to us in Scripture. NB. This journal sometimes overlaps with my journal of daily events. You may only want to keep one journal for both.

1.Writing causes us to read expectantly not passively.

2.An example from my meditation: 8/16/10 (Phil. 3:7-11). Paul lost “all things” for the sake of Christ. In order to “gain Christ,” that is, to move to the next level of friendship, you always have to lose something, to give up something that has been holding you back. You have to risk something for nothing more than a closer relationship to Jesus. If you risk the loss for anything other than this your motive is ulterior and you lose. “not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ”—real righteousness begins in the heart with faith, not with the external performance. By faith in Christ, Mary sat at Jesus’ feet and did nothing other than listen to Him. Righteousness is first established in the heart through faith and then it is manifested in external behavior. Paul quotes Ps. 116:10 in 2 Cor. 4:13 to this effect, “I believed, therefore I spoke” (Study the contexts of these two texts, both are about suffering and death). Jesus was rewarded for heart attitudes in Heb. 1:8-9. Faith increases by feeding the heart Scripture, which God illuminates so that we can interpret our experience by Scripture. Our experience increases our faith when we understand our experience by the light of illuminated Scripture. Sometimes God interprets our experience by speaking to us directly from heaven, but mostly it is spoken to us when God illuminates His written word. God has locked the explanation of our individual lives, the interpretation of our experience, in the Bible. “These things happened as examples to us.” Or “how shall a young man cleanse his way.” Or “it is the glory of God to conceal a matter and the glory of kings to search it out.” On another note, what happens to leaders is used by God to produce life in their followers (2 Cor. 4:12). This is why Paul is always telling his story, talking about his struggles. Whatever is going on in his life is meant to strengthen the faith of others.

Prayer In The Mist of The Storm- Stowe Missal

O God, make speed to save us.

We have sinned, O Lord, we have sinned, spare our sins,

And save us; Thou who guidedst Noah over the flood waves,

Hear us; Who with Thy word recalledst Jonah from the abyss;

Deliver us; Who stretchedst forth Thy hand to Peter as he sank, help us,

O Christ Son of God, Thou didst the marvelous things of the Lord with our fathers, be favourable in our days also;

Stretch forth Thy hand from on high.

Deliver us, O Christ.

Hear us, O Christ."

-Stowe Missal, 9th Century A.D.

Seven Kinds of Prayer to Soak our Bible Reading by John Piper

But since our text is Psalm 119:18, "Open my eyes, that I may behold wonderful things from Your law," we should let this psalmist show us how he prays more generally about his reading of the Word of God. So let me close with a little tour of Psalm 119, and show you seven kinds of prayer with which you can soak your Bible reading this year.

We should pray . . .

1. That God would teach us his Word. Psalm 119:12b, "Teach me Your statutes." (See also verses 33, 64b, 66, 68b, 135). True learning of God's Word is only possible if God himself becomes the teacher in and through all other means of teaching.

2. That God would not hide his Word from us. Psalm 119:19b, "Do not hide Your commandments from me." The Bible warns of the dreadful chastisement or judgment of the Word of God being taken from us (Amos 8:11). (See also verse 43).

3. That God would make us understand his Word. Psalm 119:27, "Make me understand the way of Your precepts" (verses 34, 73b, 144b, 169). Here we ask God to cause us to understand - to do whatever he needs to do to get us to understand his Word.

4. That God would incline our hearts to his Word. Psalm 119:36, "Incline my heart to Your testimonies and not to [dishonest] gain." The great problem with us is not primarily our reason, but our will - we are disinclined by nature to read and meditate and memorize the Word. So we must pray for God to incline our wills.

5. That God would give us life to keep his Word. Psalm 119:88, "Revive me according to Your lovingkindness, so that I may keep the testimony of Your mouth." He is aware that we need life and energy to give ourselves to the Word and its obedience. So he asks God for this basic need. (See also verse 154b)

6. That God would establish our steps in his Word. Psalm 119:133, "Establish my footsteps in Your word." We are dependent on the Lord not only for understanding and life, but for the performance of the Word. That it would be established in our lives. We cannot do this on our own.

7. That God would seek us when we go astray from his Word. Psalm 119:176, "I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Your servant." It is remarkable that this godly man ends his psalm with a confession of sin and the need for God to come after him and bring him back. This too we must pray again and again.

Be Encouraged To Pray by J.C. Ryle

"I dare not lay down too strict rules on such points as these. I leave them to your own conscience. You must be guided by circumstances.

Our Lord Jesus Christ prayed on a mountain;
Isaac prayed in the fields;
Hezekiah turned his face to the wall as he lay upon his bed;
Daniel prayed by the riverside;
Peter, the Apostle, on the housetop.

I have heard of young men praying in stables and haylofts. All that I contend for is this, you must know what it is to "go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen" (Matthew 6:6)."

There must be stated times when you must speak to God face to face, you must every day have your times for prayer — You must pray.

J. C. Ryle, Thoughts For Young Men (Kindle edition, locations 668-673).