Prayer

The “Worm” of God

/ The Pastor

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Oh God, feed me
Oh God, nourish me
Oh God, provide for me

Fill me with Your holy Word and satisfy my deepest longings.
Fill me with Your love that it may overflow to others.
Fill me with Your wisdom that I may teach others Your ways.

May I be dependent on You for life.
May I be dependent on You for peace.
May I be dependent on You for direction. 

And when that day comes that You push me out of the nest;
calling me to obedience,
may I mount up with wings like eagles
as You provide the lift.

But unlike the vulnerable little bird,
leaving the safety of the nest,
may I know the cradle of Your hands
keeping my life from the snare of the evil one.

So no matter what I find out there may my cry always be:
Oh God, feed me
Oh God, nourish me
Oh God, provide for me

The Pastor -|—

Sunday Worship Prayers ~ God’s Kingdom

/ The Pastor

The preaching text for Sunday is Mark 10:17-31; the rich young man asking Jesus about what he needs to do to inherit eternal life. So the prayers today are Kingdom focused. Use them as you see fit that God may be glorified.

Opening prayer
It is our joy to enter this place of worship this morning. It is our joy to come into this place with our brothers and sisters in Christ to praise Your holy name. It is our joy to come into Your presence to worship You. And as we enter this time of worship, dismantle the walls of our kingdoms, that we have built, and grant us the faith to embrace Your Kingdom, oh God, through Christ Jesus our Lord. May we see Your beauty and flee from our filth. May we see Your holiness and flee from our sin. May we see Your power and flee from Satan. May we see Your love and flee from our selfishness. Holy Father, loving God, mighty King, establish us in Your Kingdom now, through the blood of Jesus, and cleanse us from all impurities. Receive our praise and hear our prayers as we joyfully assemble as Your beloved children. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Prayer before preaching
It’s Your Kingdom I desire, oh God. It’s Your salvation I seek.
It’s Your Kingdom I long for, oh God. It’s Your mercy I need.
It’s Your Kingdom I want, oh God. It’s Your love to which I cling.
And because it is all about Your Kingdom, I desire, seek and need Your Holy Spirit. I need the wisdom that only comes from You. I need Your strength through which I can truly be bold. I need Your Words through which faith and life are created. May Your will be done as I faithfully engage Your most holy Word. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

May God bless your day as you enjoy the hope of the resurrection; looking forward to eternity in God’s glorious Kingdom.

The Pastor -|—

Living In This World

/ The Pastor

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. [1 John 2:15-17]

Living in this world I see the glory of God
but,
Living in this world I fall in love with that which is fading away

Living in this world I draw closer to God
but,
Living in this world I fall away from God

Living in this world I see the beauty of God
but,
Living in this world my eyes are tempted by false beauty

Living in this world I experience God’s provision
but,
Living in the world my flesh wants more and more

Living in this world I am driven to give all that I am
but,
Living in this world I am tempted to gain all I can

Living in this world I see God
but,
Living in this world I see me

Living in this world I am recreated in God through Christ Jesus
but,
Living in this world I feel torn

Oh God, I am at odds living in the beauty of Your created world; wanting to satisfy my desires while at the same time wanting to glorify You. Break this conflict in me that I may worship You and You alone and fall in love with You over and over again. May this world be just a stopping off point to something better.

Oh God, as this world passes away, my I be found in You though Jesus Christ, that I may pass from this world with You to life eternal; living in a better world.

So,

Living in this world, may proclaim Your goodness and lead others to You.

In Jesus name (as I am living in this world), Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Prayer Before Preaching ~ Running Wild

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

In preparation for preaching on Pentecost Sunday and on Mark 10:13-16.

Holy God, loving Father, mighty King, I humbly ask for Your Holy Spirit to be given as we hear Your Word proclaimed. May childlike faith bubble up from deep within; from that place it was first born; but sadly now serves as a prison. May those locks be destroyed and that childlike faith be free to run wild. May we not be ashamed to let our guard down and seek You as our “Abba, Father”. Bless now our hearing and bless later our going that our childlike faith may infect people around us. Come, Holy Spirit, and set our heart aflame. Through Jesus Christ our Lord we pray, Amen.

May the Holy Spirit run wild in your life.

The Pastor -|—

Childlike Seeking and Clinging

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

Good morning and God bless you all.

The preaching text for today is Mark 10:13-16; Jesus receiving the little children. The sermon focus will be seeking the kingdom of God with a childlike faith so hence the opening prayer for worship was written with this text and theme in mind:

Holy Father; mighty and victorious; compassionate and merciful, we humbly come before you with all we are and all we have; for all we are is nothing compared to Your awesome holiness and all we have is insufficient because of our sin. We are stained with the dirtiness of ourselves that is self-seeking and self-glorifying. We are stained with pride. We are stained with complacency. We are stained with the fullness of this life that leads us to eat, drink and be merry without the thought that tomorrow we may die. But grant us a childlike faith to empty ourselves of ourselves and worship you with humility and awe. May the wonder of childlike faith not be lost on us as we praise Your awesome and holy name this morning. May we run to you as a skinned-knee, tear-soaked little child; running to the loving arms of mama and daddy; holding back nothing. May we embrace You and cling to You as my little girl clings to my neck in the midst of danger.  All praise and worship be to You, Oh God, our Rock, through Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

I Give You Thanks, O God

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

Awesome and holy God,

the sound of the rain,
the singing of the birds,
the peacefulness of the morning;

I give You thanks, O God.

Time with Your Word,
moments of prayer,
worship with the saints;

I give You thanks, O God.

The cooing of my child,
the babbling of my child,
the love of my family;

I give You thanks, O God.

My parents,
my sister,
all my family;

I give You thanks, O God.

The loyalty of friends,
the strength of community,
the joy of Your church;

I give You thanks, O God.

My shelter,
my clothes,
my food;

I give You thanks, O God.

Your grace,
Your love,
Your faithfulness;

I give You thanks, O God.

Your grace,
Your love,
Your faithfulness;

I give You thanks (again), O God.

The beauty of Your creation,
the presence of Your Spirit,
the love of Your Son;

I give You thanks, O God.

A good cup of coffee,
another good cup of coffee,
and another good cup of coffee;

I give You thanks, O God 🙂

My Father,
my Lord,
my Savior;

I give You thanks, O God.

Your glory,
Your power,
Your kingdom;

I give You thanks, O God.

Your victory over death,
Your victory over Satan,
Your victory given to me;

I gave You thanks, O God.

For the fact that I could go on and on and on and on and …

I give You thanks, O God, in Jesus name I pray, Amen.

——————————————————————-

May God bless you and keep you as you give thanks and praise to our most holy and awesome God.

The Pastor -|—

Prayer of Discernment

/ The Pastor

As I am constantly praying; seeking God’s will and direction in my life. As I speak to people who are doing the same, the prayer at the end of this was placed on my heart.

Are you searching,
wondering,
looking,
floundering,
lost,
confused,
frustrated?
Are you seeking God and looking for a black and white answer? Whatever it is, lift it up to the Lord and then…

…listen.

I am not writing a discernment prescription. I am not guaranteeing a black and white answer for you. Rather, I’m encouraging you to do something you already know…

…PRAY.

So let’s do that…

Oh God, holy and mighty, immortal and omniscient,

You see the whole picture for You are the whole picture. You have my life in Your mighty hands for You are the giver and sustainer of life. You keep my going out and my coming in, now and forever more.

And so I appeal to Your wisdom and ask for Your Holy Spirit.

I feel caught in between what seems to be a myriad of
options,
paths and
opportunities,

and I don’t know where to go. One moment I think “This is the path” and then the next moment that doesn’t look good. And then, “Maybe that is the path” and then I am not so sure. Oh God, my wisdom is fleeting and flawed and incomplete.

I’m so discouraged. So,

I ask for Your wisdom so I may see.
I ask for patience that I may listen.
I ask for courage that I may follow.
I ask for boldness that I may lead.
I ask for faith that I may show Your glory.

And I ask for Your will to be done through me. Holy and mighty God, hear my prayer and glorified through Your holy will through me. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

May God bless your day 🙂

The Pastor -|—

Worship prayers for 05-10-15 (Mother’s Day)

/ The Pastor

Good morning and blessings to you on this Lord’s Day and Mother’s Day. Below are some of the prayers I have written for worship this morning. I usually get this out earlier in the weekend but the chaos of life prevented me from doing so. Hopefully I can get back on track next week 🙂

So with that I commend these to you; praying that God is glorified in your worship.

Opening prayer
Holy God, on this Mother’s Day, we come first and foremost to worship You. For it is You, though the love of mothers of all types, who show what it truly means to love a child. For it is through the death and resurrection of Your one and only son, Jesus, that we have eternal life. And that right there is deserving of our worship and thanks.

But also, Lord God almighty, we honor those woman You have used as instruments of Your love in our lives. In whatever form they come, we thank You, oh God. In whatever role they have played in our lives, we thank you, oh God.

May women not see the passage of DNA as a barrier to living out their calling to mother someone. And may You continue to raise up Your children through the self-sacrificing love of a mother. To You, oh God, be all worship and praise this day and always. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Prayer before preaching
Holy Father, Creator of heaven and earth. I am about to embark, once again, on the awesome task of proclaiming Your holy Word. This is something not to be taken lightly so I humbly ask for Your Spirit to guide and give life to these words. My words are dead words and with no power, but Your words, oh God, have power to create and destroy; resurrect and heal; kill and bring to life. Your Words are grace and truth; law and Gospel; command and freedom. Your Word is awesome and so I approach Your holy Word with fear and trembling; committing everything to You. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to You, oh God, our Rock and Redeemer, Amen.

Post-Communion prayer
Holy Father, You have blessed us and fed us with this holy food, the body and blood of Jesus. I ask that You may make us so bold to live lives of hope as we cling to Your promises given through the death and resurrection of Jesus, Your son. And in light of the forgiveness proclaimed to us today, may we live lives of repentance as we strive to be more like Your dear son, Jesus Christ our Lord and in whose name we pray, Amen.

May God bless your day as you love on your mothers 🙂

The Pastor -|—

National Day of Prayer 2015

/ The Pastor

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Today is the National Day of Prayer. It is a national observance that takes place on the first Thursday of May. The Jackson Kiwanis Club alongside the Jackson Ministerial Association leads prayer time for the teachers early in the morning and then at the flag poles, just before the school day starts, at the four schools in our district. At 12 noon today there will be a prayer service on the steps of court house (weather permitting, otherwise we’ll be inside).

Today, I was leading the prayer time at Riverside Elementary which is next door to Salem Lutheran Church. There were a lot of kids and community members that showed up to pray for our government, Church, military, families, education, media and businesses. What a privilege to be able to do this.

But my cute story from this morning happened as I was welcoming the crowd at the flag pole. I was talking about what we are going to be doing and thanking everyone for showing up. As I was talking, a little boy on the other side of the circle had his hand up. He had to be in kindergarten or 1st grade or so. So I called on him, half expecting a prayer-type question, instead I got this:

[Looking up] How big is this flag pole?

Got to love kids 🙂

With a smile, I directed him to his principal, but part of me wishes I had been more on my toes with a better response. At least this little boy was looking up, and maybe I should have recognized that and encouraged him to keep looking up, to God, not just now or this one day in our year, but always. What a teachable moment. Maybe next time I’ll be ready for the random/cute question of a child.

In the mean time, look up to God and pray, not just today but always. Our nation needs our prayers.

Holy God, on this National Day of Prayer, may we be a praying people always and not just today. We want to follow You and be obedient. So send Your Spirit, oh God, that we may be a blessing to others and for Your glory. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

God Is The Audience

/ The Pastor

Let us prepare to worship God on this Sabbath Day…

Almighty and holy God,

worship is what we are about. The only question is who or what do we worship. Too often it is anything or anyone but You. There are activities that take place on Sunday. There is recovering from a late Saturday night. There is laziness. There is complacency. There is ______. My point? We make all kinds of excuses to make worship what we want it to be and when, instead of putting You center stage.

As worshipers we are not the audience; waiting to be entertained. You, oh God, are the audience; waiting to be worshiped.
Oh how we have failed at bringing the glory due Your name.
Oh how we have failed to honor Your holy name.
Oh how we have failed to bring all that we are for all that we are comes from You.

Oh God, how we have fallen short.

Forgive us.

May our hearts be turned towards You, for it is from You that we have Life; for Jesus was sent to die and rise that our sins would be forgiven and that we may live forever with You.

So therefore YOU are worthy of worship. YOU are worthy of praise.

Send You Spirit, oh God, to convict our spirits this morning and everyday. May we turn aside from those things and people we so easily worship instead of You and may we cling to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

You are an awesome God. May You be praised always and forever. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Blessings to you as you worship and serve our awesome God.

The Pastor -|—