for the Church in the world

The Supper at Emmaus, Bartolomeo Cavarozzi, Wikimedia Commons
 

We pray, Lord God, for your Church throughout the world:

  that it may share to the full in the work of your Son,
      revealing you to men
      and reconciling men to you;
  that Christians may learn to love one another,
      as you have loved us;
  that your Church may more and more exhibit the unity
      which is your will and your gift.
 
We pray that we and all Christians
    may be what you want us to be;
    and do what you want us to do:
  that we may be content with whatever comes our way,
    and attain peace of mind in self-forgetfulness.
 
We pray for those who suffer for faith and conviction,
    and are tempted to turn back
    because their way is hard:
  help and strengthen them, Lord;
    so that they may hold out to the end,
    and by their loyal witness draw others to you.
 
We pray for our country:
  that none may exploit others,
    and none be neglected or forgotten;
  that we may be quick to reward service
    and to recognize true worth;
  and that all may work for the common life and welfare.
 
We pray for the life of the world:
  that every nation may seek the way that leads to peace;
  that human rights and freedom may everywhere be respected;
  and that the world’s resources may be ungrudgingly shared.
 
We pray for the homes of mankind:
  that husbands and wives may accept lifelong marriage as their ideal.
We pray for broken homes
    and those in danger of breaking,
  that your love may redeem and remake them.
We pray for the homeless,
  that no family may have to face a lifetime without a home.
 
We pray for those who are ill:
    that illness may not break their spirit;
  that through the healing skill you have given
    they may be made well;
  and that those who are permanently handicapped
    may find the way to use and overcome their suffering.
 
Finally, we pray that the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Chriist
    may be known and accepted by increasing numbers of men.
Draw to yourself all seekers after truth and goodness:
  may they find the unfathomable riches
     which can be found in you alone
And may all the nations you have made
  come and worship you
  and honor your name.
 
edited by Caryl Micklem, 1925 – 2003, English minister
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So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria 
    had peace and was being built up. 
And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, 
    it multiplied.

Set us free to serve

image via Picryl


Set us free, O Lord, from the shackles of sin and earth,
    that we may joyfully serve you and labor on your command.
O Lord! Truly I am your servant.
You have loosed my bonds.
You set us free so that in your service we may find liberty.
You honor us by letting us do your will.


When we wait before you, 
    you incline our hearts to the joy of obedience
    and the blessedness of action for you.
You draw us by mighty motives, 
    and you inspire us with power that is not our own.


We are enriched by so many gifts from your hand,
    and enabled by so many inspirations of your grace.
So grant that we may joyously wait upon you in all holy obedience.


And as the eyes of the servants are toward their master,
   so may ours be to you, our God.
Amen


Alexander Maclaren, 1826 – 1910, Scottish Baptist minister
Joy of Heaven Prayers of the Revivals


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Romans 6:22


But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. 
Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life.

Remind us that we are your children

Let the Little Children Come unto Jesus, Carl Bloch, via Wikimedia Commons




O Lord, help us to ponder it 
    a thousand times more
    than as yet we have pondered it:
That you have regenerated us,
    made us a new creation in Christ,
    and made us your very own children.
Not merely calling us, but making us.
That you give us spiritual life, heavenly life.


This is the wondrous grace we should ponder.
This is the kind of love the Father has given to us.


O Lord, help us by the power of your Holy Spirit to lay it to heart
    a thousand times more 
    than as yet we have laid it to heart.
And grant that, by considering it, praying over it,
    and laying it far more abundantly to heart,
    our hearts may be filled with love towards you.
Make us then grateful, more than ever.


George Müller, 1805 – 1898, evangelist and orphanage director
Joy of Heaven Prayers of the Revivals


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1 John 3:1-2


See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, 
    and that is what we are! 
But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize 
    that we are God’s children 
    because they don’t know him. 
Dear friends, we are already God’s children, 
    but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. 
But we do know that we will be like him, 
    for we will see him as he really is

Holy Spirit, Come!

A depiction of the Holy Spirit, by David Bumgardner via Unsplash


Holy Spirit, you are worthy of all worship. 
In the almighty Trinity you proceed from the Father and the Son, 
    and you are equal to either of them.

Holy Spirit, you are worthy of all worship
In the almighty Trinity you proceed from the Father and the Son, 
    and you are equal to either of them.

With your holy breath you cleanse our minds. 
You comfort us in sorrow and cheer us with pure gladness.
You lead us into all truth, and you kindle the fire of love in us. 
You knit us together with the glue of peace, 
    and you enrich us with gifts by which we profess the name of the Lord Jesus—
    by whose working all things live, 
    and whose delight is to live in our hearts.

I ask now that you would maintain your gifts in me, 
    and increase them daily,  
    so that by your governance 
        the desires of the flesh may die more and more in me, 
        and the desire for the heavenly life would come alive and increase.

Let me pass through the misty desert of this world, 
    with your light leading me on. 
May I not be defiled by Satan’s vices. 
And may I not be entangled with errors that disagree with your truth
    —delivered by the true church under your guidance.

You live and reign with the Father and the Son, amen.

Book of Christian Prayers of 1578
Grace from Heaven, Prayers of the Reformation


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Acts 4:31


And when they had prayed, 
    the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, 
    and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit 
    and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

witnesses to your resurrection

Birth, Crucifixion, and Resurrection of Christ triptych, Hans Memling, 1510 via Wikimedia Commons
 
Lord Jesus Christ, by your glorious resurrection,
    in which you appeared alive and immortal
    to your disciples and faithful followers,
    by your forty days abiding and sweet converse,
    in which by many infallible proofs,
    speaking of things pertaining to the Kingdom of God,
    you comforted them and assured them of your actual resurrection,
    removing all doubt from their hearts;
grant that we may be numbered
    among those appointed to be witnesses to your resurrection,
    not only by the words of our mouths,
    but by the evidence of our good works;
to your honor and glory,
  for you are alive and reign,
    with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
      one God for ever and ever. Amen.

Ludolph of Saxony, c.1295 – 1378, German Carthusian & Catholic theologian
2000 Years of Prayer
 
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During the forty days after he suffered and died, 
    he appeared to the apostles from time to time, 
     and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. 
And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.

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Question

In what way can you be a witness to Jesus’ resurrection before people who do not believe?

growing into your likeness

​CompositeJesus via Wikimedia Commons
 
Spirit of Truth, direct our attention to the life of Jesus
    so that we might see what you would have us be.
Make us, like him, teachers of your good law.
Make us, like him, performers of miraculous cures.
Make us, like him, proclaimers of your kingdom.
Make us, like him, loving the poor, the outcast, the children.
Make us, like him, silent when the world tempts us
    to respond in the world’s terms.
Make us, like him, ready to suffer.
 
We know we cannot be like Jesus
    except as Jesus was unlike us, being your Son.
Make us cherish that unlikeness,
    that we may grow into the likeness
    made possible by Jesus’ resurrection.
Amen
 
Stanley Hauerwas, 1940- , American ethicist and theologian
 
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Romans 8:29-30
 
For God knew his people in advance, 
    and he chose them to become like his Son, 
    so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 
And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. 
And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. 
And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.

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Questions

In which of the ways mentioned have you become more like Jesus?
Which of the ways presents the biggest challenge in becoming more like Jesus?

Stay with us Lord

The Pilgrims of Emmaus on the Road, James Tissot, via Wikimedia Commons
 
 
Stay with us, Lord
for the day is far spent
and we have not yet recognized your face
in each of our brothers and sisters.

Stay with us, Lord
for the day is far spent
and we have not yet shared your bread
in grace with our brothers and sisters.

Stay with us, Lord
for the day is far spent
and we have not yet listened to your Word
on the lips of our brothers and sisters.

Stay with us, Lord
because our very night becomes day
when you are there.

prayer from Korea
 
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Luke 24:28-29

So they drew near to the village to which they were going.
He acted as if he were going farther,
but they urged him strongly, saying,
“Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.”
So he went in to stay with them.

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Question

Have you ever felt the presence of God intimately 
    and echoed the request of the Emmaus disciples, 
    asking Jesus to stay with you for a while longer?

Resurrect us with resurrection power

Icon of the Resurrection, Bulgarian Icon, via Flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0

 
We pray that this Easter there will be a brand new beginning for all of us.
Grant that our ugly pasts will be buried
  and that we might arise in the newness of life
  as new people who are making a fresh and a genuine new commitment
  to walk with the risen Christ.
May the risen Christ save lost souls, convert us sinners, and teach us
  that we are no longer captives to the sins which bind and blind us.
Have mercy on the sick and suffering.
Heal those who are physically, mentally, and spiritually sick.
Comfort the bereaved and grief-stricken.
Empty out tombs of despair, discouragement, and defeat.
Resurrect us with resurrection power.
Raise us to new levels of powerful and victorious living.
Bless the preaching of your Holy Word.
Burn our altars of prayer with the fire of the Holy Ghost.
Give us the boldness to tell the world that Jesus, our savior, is not dead
  but the living Lord of history.
In Jesus’ name, we pray.
Amen.

J. Alfred Smith, Sr, 1931-2025, African American Pastor in California

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Romans 6:8-11

And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. 
We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, 
    and he will never die again. 
Death no longer has any power over him.  
When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. 
But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. 
So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin 
    and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
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Question

How can the resurrection of Jesus give you power to face your everyday challenges?

Easter Prayer of Gregory the Great

Resurrection, Luca Giordano via Wikimedia Commons

 
It is only right, with all the powers of our heart and mind,
    to praise You Father and Your Only-Begotten Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Dear Father, by Your wondrous condescension of Loving-Kindness
    toward us, Your servants, You gave up Your Son.
Dear Jesus You paid the debt of Adam for us to the Eternal Father
    by Your Blood poured forth in Loving-Kindness.
You cleared away the darkness of sin
    by Your magnificent and radiant Resurrection.
You broke the bonds of death and rose from the grave as a Conqueror.
You reconciled Heaven and earth.
Our life had no hope of Eternal Happiness before You redeemed us.
Your Resurrection has washed away our sins,
    restored our innocence and brought us joy.
How inestimable is the tenderness of Your Love!

We pray You, Lord, to preserve Your servants
    in the peaceful enjoyment of this Easter happiness.
We ask this through Jesus Christ Our Lord,
    Who lives and reigns with God The Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
    forever and ever.

Pope Gregory the Great (c. 540 – 604) of Rome, Patron Saint of Teachers
source
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1 Peter 1:3-4
 
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again
    to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 
    to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, 
    kept in heaven for you.
 
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Questions

What significance does the resurrection of Jesus make in your life?
What difference does Jesus’ resurrection make in your relationships?

blessings of a home

Motif from a small northern French town, Jules Achille Noël via wikimedia commons
 
O God, bless those who have no homes.
Bless those who have to live away from home
  in lodgings and boarding-houses and hotels.
Bless those who have been left alone,
  and who are solitary now.
Bless those who are searching or waiting for a house.
Specially bless young couples who have to live in furnished rooms,
  or with relatives, and who have never had the chance
  to be alone together and to have a home of their own.
Bless those who keep house for other people,
  and who have no house of their own.
Bless old people who are coming to the end in some institution
  which is very comfortable but which is still not home.
Help us who have the blessing of a good home
  to keep an open heart and an open door
  to those less fortunate than ourselves.
This we ask for your love’s sake. Amen.

from the Audenshaw prayers, UK
A Procession of Prayers

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1 Peter 4:8-10
 
Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.  
Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others,
as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

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Question

What are some ways you can show hospitality 
    to someone less fortunate than you are?