Prayer

In Your Kingdom

/ The Pastor

Holy God,

In this world,we are divided into political parties;
but in Your kingdom, we are one family.

In this world, we fight for political supremacy;
but in Your kingdom, You sit on the throne.

In this world, discourse is often hate-filled and divisive;
but in Your kingdom, we shout, “Holy, Holy, Holy“.

In this world, pride drives our lives;
but in Your kingdom, we are humbled under Your mighty hand.

It is no wonder, oh God, that this country is going from bad to worse.
More than ever, we need Your intervention,
and therefore I ask for wisdom and discernment for our elected leaders.
May they come together for a common cause.
May their discourse serve to unite people.
May they govern rightly.

In this world, leaders come and go;
but in Your kingdom, You reign forever and ever.

To YOU be the glory,
oh God,
always and forever,

Amen!

The Pastor -|—

I’ve Had Enough

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

It is time for me to resurrect this blog.

I have let it slip into a very deep hibernation but it’s time for it to come back to life. Why, you may ask. Well, I’ve had enough.

I’ve had enough of the whining.

I’ve had enough of the whining about how bad our politicians are. I don’t care if your Democrat or Republican or some other party I haven’t heard of before. I’m just tired of the mean-spirited internet memes. I’m tired of the “news” articles about how bad this person is or how terrible this person’s policies are compared to this person. I’m tired of the celebrities getting on their high horse as if they are claiming some moral authority.

Whining, whining, whining.

What ever happened to praying?

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. [1 Timothy 2:1-2]

I have published passive aggressive posts on social media calling out the whining and calling people to prayer. Well, I can hardly do that if I don’t lead by example. So I am going to do that here. I am going to compile a list of local, state and national leaders and pray for them; some of which I will post here. The prayers won’t be political in nature. I am simply going to pray for our leaders that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.

Enough is enough. Many of you are praying and to that I say AMEN and TO GOD BE THE GLORY. Everyone else, get on your knees. If you want a better country, it’s not going to happen because of an election. It will happen when the people turn back to God.

And so, let us pray…

The (Feisty) Pastor -|—

Beauty

/ The Pastor

“Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth.”
[Psalm 50:2]

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder;
oh Lord,
heal my eyes that I may behold the beauty that is You.
May I see You for who You are.
May I be awed by You.
May I not be seduced by the world’s beauty,
except to be drawn to You.
The beauty of Your creation is perfect, as You are perfect.
The beauty of life is perfect, as You are perfect.
Oh Lord,
beauty is in the eyes of the beholder,
heal my eyes that I may behold You.

The Pastor -|—

Everlasting God

/ The Pastor

Oh Lord,
the everlasting God,
You created the ends of the earth and all therein.
You never grow faint or weary.
Your understanding is unsearchable.
As I reflect on this,
I am humbled and awed
that You give power to the faint
and increase their strength.
I mean, what is man that you are mindful of him, for…
I am weak.
I grow tired.
I become hopeless.
I get lost.
I sin.
But my way is not hidden from You.
You know me.
You hear me.
You love me.
Oh God, may I wait on You and be strengthened;
finding a peace that surpasses all understanding.
May I raise my song to you,
for it is indeed fitting to praise Your most holy name.
Oh Lord,
my everlasting God,
be pleased in my searching,
be pleased with my worship;
for You are my strength
and my hope
and my salvation.
In Jesus name I pray,
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Ascribe

/ The Pastor

Holy God, loving Father,
You anointed Jesus in the Jordan River
and proclaimed him Your beloved Son,
but all too often I overlook this very important fact;
that Jesus is not just your Son
but Your Son who died as the
perfect,
spotless lamb
for the atonement of our sins.
May I be drawn into an ever deeper understanding
of the divine nature of our Lord and Savior,
so much so,
that I ascribe to You what is due Your holy name;
for to see and know Jesus
is to see and know You.
All glory, strength and honor
be ascribed unto You,
oh God,
through Christ Jesus my Lord.
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

The Reason for Christmas

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

Holy Father,
As we inch ever closer to Christmas,
we are reminded that the point of all our preparations is
to worship our Savior,
Jesus,
who was born to die for us.
Many have suggested that Christmas has nothing to do with death,
but without the death and resurrection of Jesus,
we are left with nothing;
no hope,
no peace,
no JOY.
May the JOY of the Advent season fill our lives
so much so,
that Jesus radiates from us
and therefore brings You glory.
In Jesus name I pray,
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

JOY

/ The Pastor

Holy God,
we are ever reminded that
the JOY of this season is not found in
gifts
or food
or decorating.
Our JOY is not in
stuff
or vacations
or even in our families.
True and unending
JOY is found only in
Jesus;
something that can not be taken away
by anything
or anyone
of this world.
May that JOY overflow in abundance
that you may be glorified through our lives.
In Jesus’ name we pray,
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Something Different

/ The Pastor

I did something different last night.

Last night was Thanksgiving Eve worship. The service itself was pretty straight forward; nothing out of the ordinary. We did accept non-perishable food items as part of the offering, but that’s not weird; especially for Thanksgiving. The “different” happened during the “Prayers of Thanksgiving”; the spot where, on Sunday, the bulletin reads, “Prayers of the Church”. On Sundays I simply lead those prayers by ending each petition with “Lord in your mercy”, to which the congregation responds, “Hear our prayer”. Last night, though, I did something different.

[What is it already? Stop beating around the bush!]
[Easy now, I’m getting to it.]

During the “Prayers of Thanksgiving” I explained that I was going to start and then let the congregation add what they are thankful for. It was going to be like what many families do at Thanksgiving; going around the table sharing what they are thankful for, much to the chagrin of many children.

[Hurry up, I want some pumpkin pie]

I finished my part of the prayer and was blown away by what happened next. People didn’t just name something they were thankful for, but rather they prayed a prayer, giving thanks and praise to God. The Prayers of Thanksgiving turned into a genuine Prayers of the Church or Prayers of the People. I mean, that’s how it is supposed to be, right? People prayed from their heart. I almost felt bad ending the prayers when I did. We could have gone on for quite a while. People offered up a variety of prayers but the overwhelming topic of the prayers was Jesus and the salvation we have through him. Kind of puts Thanksgiving into perspective, doesn’t it?

Sure, I am thankful for my wife and children. I am thankful for my home and clothes and food on my table. I am thankful for my health and ability to earn a living. Those things are great and I thank God for them. Most of all, though, is the blessing of all blessings: Jesus. Period. For without him, everything else is just stuff that will fade away.

And now, I hope “the different” that happened last night becomes “the norm” for future worship services; people praying the prayers of the church. The people offering their petitions. Yes, I going to do that “different” thing again. So get ready, Living Word, your pastor is going to change some things up 🙂

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. Give thanks to the God of gods, for his steadfast love endures forever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his steadfast love endures forever. [Psalm 136:1-3]

Have a fantastic Thanksgiving; giving Him all your thanks and praise; for His steadfast loves endures forever and ever. Amen.

The Pastor -|—

You Are

/ The Pastor

You are holy,
we are not.
You are perfect,
we make mistakes.
You are love,
we are anything but that.
You are strong,
we are weak.
You are right,
we are wrong.

We have good intentions,
but Your plans always succeed.
We think we’re in control,
but You sit on the throne.
We try to take control,
but You rule over all.
We look to our knowledge,
but You have all wisdom.
We plot out our course,
but You are the Way.

Oh God,

We fall short.
We hurt one another.
We go astray.
We forget about You

On our own we are lost…

[Father God, in Jesus name, forgive us]
[My child, you are forgiven]

Oh God,

YOU are…

AWESOME!

The Pastor -|—

A Prayer

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

I am just going to leave this right here…

A Sacristy Prayer
by Martin Luther

Lord God,
You have appointed me as a Pastor in Your Church,
but you see how unsuited I am to meet so great and difficult a task.
If I had lacked Your help,
I could have ruined everything long ago.
Therefore, I call upon You:
I wish to devote my mouth and my heart to you;
I shall teach the people.
I myself will learn and ponder diligently upon Your Word.
Use me as Your instrument —
but do not forsake me,
for if ever I should be on my own,
I would easily wreck it all.
This text was translated in 1999 for Project Wittenberg by James Kellerman and has been placed in the public domain by him. You may freely distribute, copy or print this text.

The Pastor -|—