Daily Prayer: March 2017

A Selfless Prayer

I give you a bit of inspiration to pray today. This is one of my wife's favorite prayers.

The Prayer of St. Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred let me sow peace;
where there is injury let me sow forgiveness;
where there is doubt let me sow faith;
where there is despair let me give hope;
where there is darkness let me give light;
where there is sadness let me give joy.

0 Lord, grant that I may
not try to be comforted, but to comfort,
not try to be understood but to understand,
not try to be loved but to love.

Because it is in giving that we receive,
it is in forgiving that we are forgiven,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

There is a selflessness communicated in this prayer that I am drawn to. In this Lenten season, let us endeavor to be praying people. God has given us many gifts and we all have much to be thankful for. I pray that we (read that I) will be agents of hope, encouragement and inspiration to those who we encounter in our travels.

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Political Divisions

Father,

I pray that You will heal the political divisions. Show us what is really right and really wrong and what is a matter for compromise. But more than that, take away the deep hatred on both sides. Help us, as far as possible, to understand and respect the others' position. And take away the deep rancor that marks our political discourse.

In Jesus' name,
Amen

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A Diary of Private Prayer

Almighty God, Spirit of purity and grace, in asking Thy forgiveness I cannot claim a right to be forgiven but only cast myself upon Thine unbounded love.
I can plead no merit
I can plead no extenuating circumstances;
I cannot plead the frailty of my nature;
I cannot plead the force of temptations I encounter;
I cannot plead the persuasions of others who led me astray;
I can only say, For the sake of Jesus Christ Thy Son my Lord. Amen.

*A Diary of Private Prayer ~ John Baillie ~

Amen

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The Gift of a Day

Psalm 118:24 (ESV)

This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Prayer is always the best way to begin the day at sunrise or conclude it at sunset. It is a perfect bracket to indicate the value of that day as a gift of God and our desire and determination to live it for His glory. So, I offer this prayer for Saturday March 25^th.

Father, we thank You for the gift of this day. May its seconds, minutes and hours be filled with purposeful living and meaningful relationships. May your glory be our goal, your will our pleasure and your love the expression of our lives.

Others we encounter may be going through rough times in their lives. Help us to be helpful to them. May we be enabled to lift their burden, ease their pain, comfort their heart and give them a since of hope that only comes from You.

Father, at the end of this day, may we sleep in the peaceful rest of a satisfied life looking forward to sunrise tomorrow and the gift of another day.

We thank you for this Father in the Name of Your beloved Son and our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Amen

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Praises of Thy sinless Crucifixion.

Stretching out Thy divine hands upon the Cross,
Thou hast joined together
that which before was divided.

And by Thy mediation
Thou hast offered as a gift to the Father
the nature of mortal man,
that was under condemnation.

Therefore we sing the praises of Thy sinless Crucifixion.

Amen

...a prayer of St. Joseph the Studite

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Dwell in the House of the Lord Forever

(continuing a series on Psalm 23)

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
forever.

Father,

I thank that Your goodness and mercy pursues us. And we can trust You for these, even in difficult times. And I thank You that Your people will dwell with You forever. Help us to live in the light of that. Help us to live, not for the things of now, but the things of eternity.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen

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The Wrong Way

Exodus 23: 2 "Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong.".....

Stand with me, Jesus, when I turn from the crowd and walk the lonely road. When I break from the group because the croup is going in the wrong direction let me know that You are near. The easy way, the wrong way, if often crowded with a loud, enthusiastic throng whose excitement is contagious. Your way is more often traveled alone, or so it seems. But You, Lord, are with me. You will never leave me or forsake me. I am counting on Your Presence, Lord, even now. I love You. Amen.

Taken from the Maranatha Worship Bible

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The Reason for Hope

Psalm 71:5 (NLT)
O Lord, you alone are my hope. I’ve trusted you, O LORD, from childhood.

Father the day will eventually come when I will say with Joshua: “Soon I will die, going the way of everything on earth. Deep in your hearts you know that every promise of the LORD your God has come true. Not a single one has failed!” Joshua 23:14 (NLT)

Dear Father over the years you have proven your faithfulness to your promises time and again. The trustworthiness of your word is beyond doubt and the reason for hope.

Indeed you are the God of hope. So every day you give us is filled with hope and we have no anxiety about the future.

Father I unite my heart with the Apostle Paul’s prayer for all believers: “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 (NLT)

Yes Father, you are the reason for our hope and we praise you for that in Jesus name.

Amen

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Saint Patrick's Breastplate Prayer

I arise today through ...

God's strength to pilot me,
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's host to save me.

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise,

Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

Amen.

... an excerpt from Saint Patrick's Breastplate.

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My Cup Overflows

(continuing a series on Psalm 23)

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

Father,

I thank You that You give us above and beyond what we need. I thank You that You give us blessings even in difficult situations. Help us to rejoice in these. Help us to recognize them as from Your hand. And help us in whatever situation we are in to recognize You as a Father who delights to give good gifts to His children.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen

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Weather

Father, we know that you are in control of this world. We look around us and see the devastation happening in parts of the country due to the weather. We pray that you would grant relief to those who have experienced storms and flooding. We pray that you would help them and provide for them as they rebuild and try to get their lives back to normal. Be with those who grieve and comfort them with the comfort only you can give. Give your children compassion and help them to bring your kingdom come to their neighbors. Amen

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The Little Things

Dear Lord, Thank you for the little things in my life that bring me joy. Your sunshine through my window. A cup of tea, as I think and meditate on your love. A home, a family, a church.

The rose bud, and the rain drops. The love of a good and faithful husband. The phone call from a child who is far away.

The fellowship of neighbors and fresh baked bread.

Thank you Father for my life, and the life you live in and through me. I love you so. Amen

Amen

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Choices to Live By (SELFCONRTOL)

Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)
²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness and self-control.

“I am a spiritual being. After this body is dead, my spirit will soar. I refuse to let what will rot rule the eternal. I choose self-control. I will be drunk only by joy. I will be impassioned only by my faith. I will be influenced only by God. I will be taught only by Christ. I choose self-control.” Max Lucado

Father there may be no greater challenge in my life than self-control. The exercise of such discipline holds the greatest opportunity for success and its neglect the greatest certainty of failure. The fierceness of this struggle pulls in both directions with a conflict of intense emotions and immense consequences.

Father the Apostle Paul explains this so well in Galatians 5:17 (NLT) “The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other….”

Thank you Father that the indwelling Holy Spirit enables us to desire and choose self-control and thereby demonstrate the power of your grace in our lives. It is a wonderful benefit which brings the great joy of a self-controlled life.

For this blessing I thank You in Jesus name.

Amen

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Help Me to Remember

O God, when I have food,
help me to remember the hungry;

When I have work,
help me to remember the jobless;

When I have a home,
help me to remember those who have no home at all;

When I am without pain,
help me to remember those who suffer;

And remembering,
help me to destroy my complacency;

Bestir my compassion,
and be concerned enough to help;

By word and deed,
those who cry out for what we take for granted.

Amen.

... a prayer of Samuel F. Pugh

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The Valley of Deep Darkness

(Continuing a series on Psalm 23.)

Even though I walk through
the valley of deep darkness,
I will fear no evil,
for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff,
they comfort me.

Father,

I thank You that You are with us in whatever situation we are in, even if we fight death itself. I thank You that You are our protector and that You guide us to the right path. Help us to trust You in difficulties. May we look always for Your leading. And calm the fear in our heart, no matter how difficult things may get.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen

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Almighty and eternal God
Thou art hidden from my sight;
Thy thoughts are beyond the understanding of my mind;
Thy thoughts are not s my thoughts;
Thy ways are past finding out.

Yet hast Thou breathed Thy Spirit into my life;
Yet hast Thou formed my mind to seek Thee;
Yet hast Thou inclined my heart to love Thee;
Yet hast Thou made me restless for the rest that is in Thee;
Yet hast Thou planted within me hunger and thrist
that make me dissatisfied with all the joys of earth.
I love you. Amen.

Diary of Private Prayer ~ John Baillie

Amen

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Choices to Live By (GENTLENESS)

Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)
²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness and self-control.

Father, gentleness is such a fragile, sweet and delicate word. It implies a soft touch of comfort. It indicates a caring word of encouragement. It infers a kind deed of compassion. Such is the beauty, wonder and tenderness of gentleness.

And how grateful we are for your gentle heart and for the gracious invitation of Jesus in Matthew 11:28-30“²⁸Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For My yoke iseasy and My burden is light.”

Father as we desire to be treated with gentleness may we also be aware of so many around us whose hearts also long for the same thing. Help us then to be gentle in our dealings and to remember the admonition given us in Titus 3:2 (GW) “Believers shouldn't curse anyone or be quarrelsome, but they should be gentle and show courtesy to everyone.”

Father, today may it be obvious that we choose gentleness. In the name of Jesus our Gentle Shepherd we pray, Amen

Amen

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Praying for Miracles

Many feel a need to take an all or nothing approach to the topic of miracles. Some feel that miracles do not exist because they do not regularly occur. Yet others claim that ordinary things like baby births are miracles. Perhaps there is another way to see it?

Perhaps there is a middle ground that embraces the working of miracles without seeing everything as one. Or perhaps we can simply see life itself as a natural miracle that sometimes confronts us with miracles that are supernatural in nature?

Even so. I am praying for miracles. I am asking you Lord that you would work miracles in our lives. Come Holy Spirit. Minister to us in compassion and manifest your power in our bodies, our nations and our world. Thy kingdom come. On earth as it is in heaven.

Amen

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just be still

It's so hard to be still....

It's hard to wait. To rest before the LORD.

But when we do, we yield ourselves to be able to listen.

To hear.

To soak up His presence.

We give Him the control that is His already and then He can work. And move.

And do mighty things in our lives.

Be still.

Cry out.

And be expectant in prayer.

Amen

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