prayer journal > day30

scripture

Now may the God of peace—
who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus,
the great Shepherd of the sheep,
and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood—
may he equip you with all you need
for doing his will.
May he produce in you,
through the power of Jesus Christ,
every good thing that is pleasing to him.
All glory to him forever and ever! Amen.

Hebrews 13.20-21

reflection

“Prayer is listening as well as speaking, receiving as well as asking; and its deepest mood is friendship held in reverence.  So the daily prayer should end as it begins—in adoration…. The word ‘Amen’ is not idle: it means ‘So let it be.’  It is our resolve to live faithfully in the direction of our prayers, and our act of faith in God’s power.”

George A. Buttrick, Prayer

prayer journal > day29

scripture

Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.

Colossians 4.2

reflection

I bind unto myself this day,
The strong name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.

Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in the hearts of all that love me,
Christ in the mouth of friend and stranger.

A Prayer of St. Patrick

prayer journal > day28

scripture

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust            in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 15.13

reflection

“Jesus taught a model prayer, the Lord’s Prayer, but otherwise gave few rules. His teaching reduces down to three general principles: Keep it honest, keep it simple, and keep it up.”

Phillip Yancey, Prayer:Does It Make Any Difference?

prayer journal > day27

scripture

I always thank my God when I pray for you, Philemon, because I keep hearing about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all of God’s people.  And I am praying that you will put into action the generosity that comes from your faith as you understand and experience all the good things we have in Christ.

Philemon 1.4-6

reflection

“It is not so true that prayer changes things as that prayer changes me, and then I change things; consequently we must not ask God to do what He has created us to do.”

Oswald Chambers, If You Will Ask

prayer journal > day26

scripture

Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives           marked by godliness and dignity.

1 Timothy 2.2

reflection

Grant to them, Lord, health, peace, harmony, and stability, that they may blamelessly administer  the government which you have given them.  For you, heavenly Master, King of the ages, give to the sons of men glory and honor and authority over those upon the earth. Lord, direct their plans according to what is good and pleasing in your sight, so that by devoutly administering in peace and gentleness the authority which you have given them they may experience your mercy. You, who alone are able to do these and even greater good things for us, we praise through the high priest and guardian of our souls, Jesus Christ, through whom be the glory and the majesty to you both now and for all generations and for ever and ever. Amen

Clement of Rome,  Letter to the Corinth Church

prayer journal > day25

scripture

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf,        and give thanks for them.

1 Timothy 2.1

reflection

“For when we hold up the life of another before God, when we expose it to God’s love, when we pray for its release from drowsiness, for the quickening of its inner health, for the power to throw off a destructive habit, for the restoration of its free and vital relationship with its fellows, for its strength to resist a temptation, for its courage to continue against sharp opposition only then do we sense what it means to share in God’s work, in His concern; only then do the walls that separate us from others go down and we sense that we are at bottom all knit together in a great and intimate family.

You may pray for the release of some area of life in a friend and find that you are called upon to set right something in your own life that has acted as a stumbling block to him.  You may pray that your friend be given courage to endure certain hardships and find that you are drawn to pack your bag and go and join him or that you are to give up your pocket money for the next month or even perhaps to give a fortnight or a month’s salary to help along his cause. In intercessory prayer one seldom ends where he began.”

Douglas V. Steere, Prayer and Worship

prayer journal > day24

scripture

Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.

1 Peter 4.11

reflection

Lord, teach me to be generous.

teach me to serve you as you deserve;

to give and not to count the cost;

to fight, and not to heed the wounds;

to labor, and not to seek to rest;

to give of myself and not to ask for reward,

except the reward of knowing that I am doing your will.

A Prayer of Ignatius Loyola

prayer journal > day23

scripture

Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.

2 Chronicles 7.14

reflection

Lord Jesus Christ, we come to you with a deep sense of gratitude, care, concern, devotion, love for you, and desire to live responsively to you. We sense that we’re with friends in your company of followers—friends who share the life of resurrection and want others to get in on it, notice it, and begin participating at the center of what you’re doing rather than on the periphery. We pray for strength and discernment to understand the culture we are in—the deadening effects, the seductive lures…We ask your blessing on the church—scattered and dispersed and so much of it in despair. We pray that wherever we are and whatever places we go back into—whether it’s pew or pulpit—we may be part of this resurrection life, knowing that you are present and doing your work. You’re not anxious about what is going to happen or whether this is going to work or not. It’s worked a long, long time and will continue working. Mostly, keep us faithful, attentive, adorational, sacrificial, and personal. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Eugene Peterson, “Resurrection Prayer” from Living the Resurrection

prayer journal > day22

scripture

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault,       and it will be given to him.

James 1.5

reflection

“We have to live depending on Jesus Christ’s wisdom, not on our own.  He is the Master, and the problem is His, not ours.  We have to use the key he gives us, the key of prayer.  Our Lord puts the key into our hands, and we have to learn to pray under his direction.  That is the simplicity which He says His father will bless.”

Oswald Chambers, So Send I You

prayer journal > day21

scripture

So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.

1 Colossians 1.9-10

reflection

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred . . . let me sow love
Where there is injury . . . pardon
Where there is doubt . . . faith
Where there is despair . . . hope
Where there is darkness . . . light
Where there is sadness . . . Joy

O, Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled . . . as to console
To be understood . . . as to understand,
To be loved . . . as to love
For it is in giving . . . that we receive,
It is in pardoning, that we are pardoned,
It is in dying . . . that we are born to eternal life.

A Prayer of St. Francis of Assissi