Prayer

The First Love

/ The Pastor

God bless you as you prepare to worship tomorrow. May you enter His gates with thanksgiving and praise.

My preaching text for Sunday, July 19 is Mark 11:15-19; Jesus cleansing the temple. The sermon focus deals with Church returning/keeping focus on it’s “first love” (Revelation 2, the letter to the Church in Ephesus).

May you, too, remember and keep your eyes focused on your first love, Jesus Christ.

Opening Prayer
Father God, our faith in Jesus Christ leads us to worship You, for it is our joy to lift our praises to You. You sent Your son to save a rebellious bride, the Church, and to sanctify her; washing her clean through the blood of the Lamb.
Oh God, we praise Thee and worship Thee.
Oh God, we thank Thee and adore Thee.
Oh God, we come before Thee, humbled and thankful.
Receive our worship and send Your Spirit. Fill our hearts with praise and may we spill that praise throughout our lives. It’s in Jesus most holy and awesome name we pray, Amen.

Prayer before Preaching [the words of Charles Spurgeon in bold]
Holy Father, do not let any of us lose our first love. Let not our church grow cold and dead. We are not, we fear, what once we were. Lord revive us! All our help must come from Thee. Give back to the church its love, its confidence, its holy daring, its consecration, its holiness. Give back all it ever had and give it much more. Take every member and wash their feet, Sweet Lord, most tenderly, and set us with clean feet on a clean road, with a clean heart to guide us, and do Thou bless us unto your glory. And so, Lord God, I ask that Your Holy Spirit may guide my Words that we may hear Good News and receive encouragement and faith to be Your hands and feet. It’s in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Prayer following the Sermon
Holy God, may we not be founding lacking. May we not be found clinging to other loves in this world, but may we be found clinging to our first love, Jesus Christ. Strengthen our faith through Your Holy Spirit; revealing to us, over and over, the truth of the Gospel and the hope of the resurrection. It’s in Jesus’ name that I pray, Amen.

Offering Prayer
Receive these gifts here this morning, oh God, as an expression of our thanks and worship. Though our offerings don’t even come close to what You have done for us, may this offering be multiplied according to Your wisdom and will for the advancement of Your most glorious Kingdom. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Morning Praise

/ The Pastor

Holy God, faithful Father,

You blessed me with peaceful sleep last night and now I ask for a peaceful day.

May I bask in the glow of Your mercy and love, and may I radiate that glow to those around me unto Your glory. May the hope of the resurrection beat away all temptations; making me so bold to tell Satan to go back to hell when he dares to challenge this child of Yours; but may I not take pleasure or satisfaction in any victories but rather rejoice and worship You for the victory given me through faith in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Creator God,

I take great pleasure in knowing not a breath proceeds from my lungs outside Your divine providence.
I take great pleasure in knowing that You have my life secure in Your mighty hand.
I take great pleasure in knowing that You have my ways ordained to bring You glory through my words and deeds.

And so I pray that
I may be ever mindful of each and every word that proceeds from my mouth ~ Do they point to you?
May I be ever mindful of my actions ~ Do they reflect Your love?
Oh God, guide me.
Oh God, help me.
Oh God, show me.

This is indeed the day that You have made, so I will rejoice and be glad in it; I will be glad I You.

So,
thank You for this morning light.
Thank You for this morning grace.
Thank You for this morning peace.

May this not end but rather carry me to that day when I find myself on my knees before You; soaking in Your perfect radiance in endless worship.

All glory and praise and thanks and honor and worship be onto You, oh God, through Christ Jesus my Lord.

Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Our First Love

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

I commend these words of Scripture to you and the following prayer:

“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands. “‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.
[Revelation 2:1-5]

Lord visit our church. We have heard Thy message to the churches at Ephesus (see text above); it is a message to us also. Oh! do not let any of us lose our first love. Let not our church grow cold and dead. We are not, we fear, what once we were. Lord revive us! All our help must come from Thee. Give back to the church its love, its confidence, its holy daring, its consecration, its liberality, its holiness. Give back all it ever had and give it much more. Take every member and wash his feet, Sweet Lord, most tenderly, and set us with clean feet in a clean road, with a clean heart to guide them, and do Thou bless us unto your glory. [Charles Spurgeon]

I read this prayer and then went to re-familiarize myself with the letter to the Church in Ephesus in Revelation 2 and I was struck by the words: you have abandoned the love you had at first. And I can’t help but wonder if this is still the message to the Church today.

Have we abandoned our “first love”?
Have we grown weary of bearing up the name of the Lord?
Have we lost patience in the midst of persecution?
Do we toil for the Gospel?
Do we test the spirits and those who say they preach in the name of Jesus?

Have we abandoned the love we had at first in order to cling to this world?

I read these words of Scripture over and over again and then went back to the prayer of Charles Spurgeon and found myself praying for the Church; pleading to God on behalf of the Church; appealing to God to send His Spirit. I found myself praying for
revival,
renewal,
Gospel boldness,
a renewed sense of passion for Jesus,
courage and strength to resist the tides of change,
faith to be transformed and not to conform.

I found myself wondering why God has put up with the Church so long; why not just dump us. Then I was quickly reminded that Jesus, the bridegroom, will never ever leave his bride, the Church. Jesus died and rose that we may be made holy and sanctified and Jesus is not going to quit until the job is finished. In the mean time there is much to be done.

For you?

Pray for the Church (which includes you). Pray that we return to our first love (Jesus) and proclaim this Good New to a shifting culture. Pray for the Spirit to revive His people and pray for the Spirit to raise up passionate, God-fearing, Jesus-loving disciples. Pray for this nation. Pray for leaders. Pray for peace.

There is indeed much to do. There are many who need THE Good News of Jesus Christ. And there is no time to waste, so let’s get started and…

Let’s pray…

The Pastor -|—

Worship prayers for 07/05/15 ~ Flood Over Us, oh God

/ The Pastor

Good morning and a blessed Lord’s Day to you all. Below are the prayers I prepared for worship this morning. The text for preaching as I continue in the Gospel of Mark sermon series is Mark 11:1-11; Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday).

And as you worship and lift your petitions to God, remember to pray for our nation:
~ Racism
~ Spiritual complacency
~ Leaders
~ The Church
~ Compassion
And the list goes on. But also remember that God is still God even though it is 4th of July weekend.

Let us pray…

Opening Prayer
Holy Father, loving God, awesome Creator, it is our joy to bring You our worship. It is our heart’s desire to lift our praises to You. It’s the core of our being to bask in Your presence; for we are not of this world even though we live in this world. We are destined to live in Your glorious Kingdom through Christ Jesus our Lord. And so as we come to this place this morning, may we close our eyes to worries of this world and look forward to Your Kingdom. May we smash the false idols we have set up and bow to You. May we come to receive from You a holy rest as we offer our worship and hear Your Word proclaimed. May all falsehood and hate be left at the door for Your purifying flames to burn away. May we leave changed and more firmly placed on the road to holiness. So here we are to worship You, through Jesus Christ, we pray, Amen.

Prayer before Preaching
Holy God, loving Father, as sinners in need of cleansing and restoration, wash over us with Your Word and flood us in a sea of Your mercy. May a tidal wave of love overwhelm us and sweep us away from all desires that are not founded in You. And as Your Word drips from our washed souls may we not waste a single drop through careless seeking of worldly streams; streams that can not satisfy. May all refreshment be found in You as we continuously thirst and hunger for Your righteousness. So send Your Holy Spirit to open our ears to Your life-giving Word; inflaming the faith of those You have chosen. All praise and glory be to You, oh God, through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, Amen.

Prayers of Intercession
Holy God, we come before you as broken people; dependent on You for mercy and for our daily bread. You would be just to withhold Your gracious hand from us but rather, as a loving Father, You provide for our daily needs. We also acknowledge that we don’t truly know what we need but yet we come before you with these petitions; asking that You might align our wills with Yours. May You receive the glory as You shower blessings upon us and may we have the faith to lift up our thanksgivings in response. Lord in Your mercy, [Response: “Hear our prayer”]

For the Church, oh God, may You send Your Spirit to inflame faith to lead people to live boldly for You. May our anchor rest on Your promises and may Your Word be our guide as the shifting tides of this culture try to toss us to and fro. Lord in Your mercy, [Response: “Hear our prayer”]

God of mercy, bring healing to this nation as racism and hate seem to be the order of the day. May Your love shine forth in and from our lives, so much so, that the flames of hate are doused in a holy flood of Your love. Bring people together from across all boundaries and break down the barriers that prevent us from seeing each other as Your beloved children. Lord in Your mercy, [Response: “Hear our prayer”]

Hear our prayers, Oh God, and give to us out of Your abundant grace and mercy; but only that which brings glory to Your most holy name. We pray this through Your Son and our Lord, Jesus Christ, Amen

Post-Communion Blessing
May the words “given and shed for you” instill in your hearts a peace that surpasses all understanding as you take joy in the fact that God so loved the world that He gave Jesus to die for you, Amen.

Post-Communion Prayer
Oh, God, you have fed us with the body and blood of Jesus. May the reality of Jesus’ death on the cross send us running to Your merciful arms and may the hope of the resurrection give us strength and boldness in this world. Send us now, and use our lives to bring glory to Your most awesome name, through Jesus Christ our Lord we pray, Amen.

Benediction (from ~ “Benedictions: A Pocket Resource” by Robert Vasholz)
Receive this blessing ~ Now may He who has rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, fill you with all knowledge so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of the Lord. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Have a blessed and safe weekend 🙂

The Pastor -|—

God, Help Us and Have Mercy

/ The Pastor

Holy and merciful God,

ALL of scripture is breathed out by You.
ALL of scripture is inspired by You.
ALL of scripture is authoritative.
ALL of scripture is useful for teaching and rebuking and correcting and training in righteousness.

ALL of scripture is life-giving and holy and blessed, but yet, as Your Church, we don’t run to and grasp Your holy Word as we should. We more often than not toss Your Word around as just a tagline or a sound bite or as an arrow to be fired off in an argument/debate. The awe of Your Word is more times than not, lost on us and thus we are lead to actions and thoughts and words that are anything but glorifying to You, oh God.

For this I confess on behalf of me and the Church, but only I can declare my intent to repent and receive Your Word as Your almighty, authoritative Word. My hope is that the Church would too, so I ask that Your Spirit may be sent into Your Church. Bring about repentance and a deep desire to speak Your Word of truth with passion and conviction and honesty and boldness; yet doing so out of love for ALL of our neighbors.

Oh God, have mercy.

May we flee judgmentalism
May we flee idolatry
May we flee hate
May we flee worldly passions
May we flee cultural acceptance

May we see the way of Jesus as our way; fearing nothing but You, oh God. And as curves and bumps and deadly ravines appear along the way, may we cling to Jesus.

We do not live in heaven on earth, far from it, but Your kingdom is coming. May we look with longing expectation for that Kingdom; proclaiming this truth and calling all people to repentance; ALL people.

May Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven and help us to see this through Your most holy Word.

In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Worship prayers for 06/28/15 ~ Spiritual blindness

/ The Pastor

Good morning and happy Lord’s Day.

The sermon text for this morning is Mark 10:46-52. This is Jesus’ encounter with blind Bartimaeus on the road from Jericho to Jerusalem. This is the last healing story of this Gospel as we head into chapter 11 with the Triumphal entry into Jerusalem (what we call Holy Week). My focus will be on spiritual blindness and the Church’s call to seek the blind with the Gospel of Jesus Christ; for when one calls out to Jesus in faith, he will stop, as he did for Bartimaeus. So the prayers are written with that theme in mind.

May your Lord’s Day be blessed as you worship our awesome God.

Let’s pray…

Opening Prayer
God of Hope, in a world filled with spiritual blindness, we come looking for Your guiding hand; seeking Your forgiveness; seeking Your Truth. For You are God almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
You are our King.
You are our Life.
You are our Light.
And so we plead with the words of the blind Bartimaeus, Lord, have mercy on us. We humbly beseech You to stop and turn to us as Jesus did on that Jericho road.
Receive our worship.
Receive our praise.
Receive our thanks.
Restore our sight.
For You are worthy and thus we are worthy of judgment, but have mercy upon us as You heal our blindness and make us so bold that our way becomes the way of Jesus. So here we are. May our worship be pleasing to Your ears, in the name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

Prayer before Preaching
Mighty God, our great Physician, You are the opener of eyes, the healer of faith and the giver of hope. Through Jesus Christ You heard the call of the blind man and did for him what he had asked through faith, that You may be glorified. You then sent him on his way; healed and redeemed. And so we gather here on this dusty road of life as blind beggars; seeking Your Word and healing touch. May all who hear Your Word cast off all that would hinder their coming to You and may they run with haste to get a taste of Your glorious Word. So I humbly ask that You would send Your Holy Spirit to open our eyes that we may proclaim the glories of Your awesome name. Heal all the ails us, not according to our will but may Your will be done. Drive away despair. Bury our sin. Grant us hope through Jesus Christ our risen Savior, Amen.

Offering Prayer
Holy Father; giver of life, nothing we give compares to what You have done for us through Jesus Christ, but it is not about trying to out give you but rather express our thanks through our worship. So receive these gifts collected this morning as our worship to You for the advancement of Your Kingdom, and in turn, may You continue to bless us that we may bless others; for this ministry is not ours but Yours. Let our lives be a living worship service unto Your glory as we serve our neighbors in love. Through Christ Jesus our Lord we pray, Amen.

Benediction
As Jesus opened the eyes of the blind,
may your eyes be opened to the love and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.
May you see your lives as fleeting in this world but held secure in the arms of God.
May you see the plight of your neighbor and reach out with the love of our Lord.
May you see the strength of our awesome God as your strength.
May you see the spiritual blindness in this world as your calling to live boldly for God.
And may you see the way of Jesus as your way.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen

Morning Lifting

/ The Pastor

Holy Father, mighty God,

I lift my prayer to you this morning as I begin my day; ready to face all that will confront me.

I lift my prayer to you this morning as I begin my day; seeking Your will and the faith to stand strong.

I lift my prayer to you this morning with a heavy heart for those who are around me; those who know you and those who know you not:
~ For the lost that they may see Your redeeming face.
~ For the misguided that they may know the Truth of Your son, Jesus Christ.
~ For those who serve false gods as they should serve You; may they see the error of serving gods that will not and can not save.
~ For those who have heard Your name but live in fear of living for You. Grant them confidence, hope and peace.
~ For those who believe in Your Son, Jesus Christ, but feel they have nothing to offer; show them their worth.
~ For those who believe in Your Son and live boldly; may they continue to live boldly for You.
~ For those in leadership that they may live above reproach; giving glory to You through their lives.
~ For the Church that it may be faithful with it’s gifts and talents; boldly proclaiming the coming Kingdom and serving those in need.
~ For those who have heard the name of Jesus but have turned away; carry them home as a shepherd seeking and restoring a lost sheep.

And I pray for those who I have not thought of praying for; may they be brought into my life that I may serve them as You would have me serve them.

Receive my prayer this morning, oh God, that Your glory may shine bright in this dark world.
Receive my prayer this morning, oh God, that I may live for You.
Receive my prayer this morning, oh God, that Your Kingdom may come and Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

And as I do this “heavy lifting” this morning, lighten my load with the knowledge and faith that all those who come to You will find a burden that is easy and a load that is light; for it is You that does the “heavy lifting”.

So…

I lift this prayer to you as I head out into this wonderful creation.
Guide me,
Teach me,
Show me
Your most holy way.

In Jesus name I pray, Amen

The Pastor -|—

Worship prayers for 6/21/15 ~ Happy Father’s Day

/ The Pastor

Happy Father’s Day to fathers of all kinds as God, our heavenly Father, continues to bless and use you for His glory.

I also pray for those affected by the tragedy in Charleston, SC. On Father’s Day (or any day for that matter) we shouldn’t have to deal with something like this hanging over us. But I praise God that Jesus was found hanging on a cross for sinners that His Kingdom may be established, and thus sin and evil ultimately stamped out. So on this Father’s Day, cling to that hope as we praise and worship our heavenly Father.

So with that I commend to you these worship prayers/blessings prepared for today. May God be glorified.

Opening Prayer
Holy God, mighty King, loving Father, we come before You in holy awe; for there is no other response that is close to being worthy. We also come before You in fear and grief and sadness and confusion and anger and a myriad of other emotions we dare not name; but ones You know very well. We hold close to our hearts those who died in the Charleston shooting along with their friends and family members and others who are intimately connected to this tragedy. And today we especially remember those who are mourning the death of a father. We struggle to make sense of things; why in a house of prayer did this happen; why these people; why this event; why, oh God, why? There are so many questions; so many conflicting emotions. But You are a God of peace in a world that is anything but peaceful. So I ask that Your peace may be what wins the day. Grant faith to make us witnesses of Your love in this world and may our lives be a living worship service that brings You glory each and everyday. Bring healing. Build hope. Erase hate. Ignite Revival. Draw people together as Your bring Your glorious Kingdom. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Prayers of Intercession
…For The City of Charleston, SC as they mourn. It’s hard to imagine the feelings these people are experiencing. So instead of us trying to imagine and thus minimizing their grief, grant us empathy that we may mourn with our brothers and sisters in Christ and then work to be grace-filled witnesses in this world that Your Spirit may affect a world-wide, heart-changing revival. Lord in Your mercy…

Father’s Day prayer (based on Tweets from my colleague @rev_david)
We give thanks for loving wonderful fathers, who have given their children so many invaluable gifts.
We pray for all those whose fathers have died, who grieve on this day; celebrating their father in his absence.
We pray for fathers who have made the difficult and loving decision to give a child up for adoption.
We pray for those who were given abuse and heartbreak by the very ones called to love them.
We pray for all who are spending this Father’s Day in a hospital bed or at a hospital bedside.
We pray for the fathers of children with special needs and chronic illness, who know anxiety and exhaustion better than most.
We pray for those who struggle with infertility, whose desire to share parental love is met with frustration.
We weep with fathers who have born the silent grief of stillbirth or miscarriage.
We weep with every father who has had to bear the unimaginable burden of burying a child.
For men who choose to remain without biological children, sharing love with the world, we give thanks.
For far too often overlooked stepfathers, we give much needed thanks.
For uncles and godfathers and neighbors, who share fatherly love with so many children, we give thanks.
We give thanks for those who have answered the call to fatherhood through adoption and foster parenting, who model the adoptive love of God.
We pray for new fathers, with bleary eyes and hope for the future, welcoming new life into the world.
We pray for all men; for showing fatherly love to children of all ages; serving as an example of Your Fatherly love, oh God.
Lord in Your mercy…

Offering Prayer
Father God, You offered Your life that we may live. We therefore offer these meager gifts in response to the enormous gift of eternal life that we have through faith in Jesus Christ; knowing that we can never give enough to match Your gracious love. So may we continue to offer You our lives in faithful witness to others that our living offerings may bring You glory. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Benediction
May you be blessed to be a blessing to others.
May you be strengthened that you may strengthen others.
May you know God through Christ Jesus so well that others see Him in you.
May your light shine bright that others are blinded by His love.
May you show grace and mercy and love that hate and racism are stamped out.
And may the peace that surpasses all understanding sustain you through Christ Jesus our Lord.
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Worship Prayers for 06/14/15 ~ Sinners/Saints

/ The Pastor

Good morning sinners/saints. Once again it is my joy to share with you the prayers that have been prepared for worship this morning. Use them as you may to the glory of our awesome God.

Opening Prayer
Holy God, to come before Your throne in worship brings a sense of awe and holy fear; for we are sinners; stained, spotted, wrinkled and riddled with uncleanliness. We are unworthy to even glance in Your direction to soak in just a tiny morsel of Your holy beauty. We are unworthy to even utter Your holy name in a desperate cry for help. But You, oh God, do not turn us away; but rather receive us in Agape love. And as we crawl to you and fall at Your feet, You lift us up through faith in Your only Son, Jesus; our Redeemer and Savior and Lover of our souls. And therefore what a joy it is to gather as Your children and praise Your awesome and holy name. So receive our praise and thanks, and fill us with Your Spirit as we lay our very lives at Your feet. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Prayer before Preaching
Awesome God, mighty King, Your Word is too deep for our feeble minds to probe. Your Word is too wide for our limited understanding to navigate. You Word is too weighty for our weak faith to bare. Who can handle such an awesome Word without being crushed under the weight of its judgment? But we are not crushed for Your Word gives life to those who would receive it through Jesus Christ. So I ask that you would send Your Holy Spirit, now, so that as I bask in Your Word this morning, I may be able to impart Your Way, Truth and Life to the sinners here gathered; that they may see themselves as saints through faith in Your Son, Jesus Christ. Convict my heart and humble me in Your presence. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Post-communion Blessing
Now may the body and blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ embolden your words and deeds as you live as forgiven sinners; saved by grace through faith, and proclaim the life and death of Jesus to the glory of God our Father. Amen.

Prayer after Communion/Closing Prayer
[Charles Spurgeon]
We cry to Thee this morning for the preservation of Thy church in the world, and especially for her purity. Oh Father, keep us, we beseech Thee, with all keeping, that the Evil one touch us not. We shall be tempted, but let him not prevail against us. In a thousand ways he will lay snares for our feel, but, deliver us as a bird from the snare of the fowler. May the snare be broken that we may escape and thus bring glory to Your holy name. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Now may the Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ, strengthen you for every good work; keeping you humble so that glory may always be to God. Blessings to you this day and always.

The Pastor -|—

Words for Thee

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

Let’s pray…

Lead me down the path that’s true;
guide me in the ways of you.

Help me see where I should go;
may I seek Your Word to know.

Grant me faith to trust You now;
bring me to Your throne to bow.

Grant me words that I may lead,
Words of life that I may feed.

Thank you God for hearing me,
each and every word for thee.

The Pastor -|—