Jesus

Trade away my heart of stone

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image via Wikimedia Commons
 
Lord, in your highness you bow your head, 
    so now we have hope that you truly hear us. 
You offer your kiss of reconciliation, of your own accord. 
You were the one who had been grieved and wronged, 
    yet you reached out to us who had done the wrong.
You reach out your arms to embrace us. 
You stretch out your nail-scarred hands to give us all things abundantly, 
    without holding anything back. 
Your heart is open to receive us, 
    if we will enter at the open door. 
Your feet will never leave us, 
    if we do not leave you.
Our Father and Lord, 
    you see the hardness of our heart 
    – and the dullness of it. 
It is not enough for us to be attracted and called so gently, 
    so sweetly, and so lovingly. 
You must be willing even to draw us, pull us, compel us, and drag us.
But this old heart is stony. 
It feels no gentleness. 
It is not moved with any hope of the good things you promise. 
So create in us a new and obedient heart.
Amen.
 
Book of Christian Prayers of 1578
 
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I will sprinkle clean water on you, 
    and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, 
    and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 
And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. 
And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh 
    and give you a heart of flesh. 
And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes 
    and be careful to obey my rules

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A PRAYER FROM DEATH-ROW

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O LORD GOD,
even The GOD and FATHER of our LORD and SAVIOR JESUS, The CHRIST LORD GOD, You are HOLY and RIGHTEOUS;
GRACIOUS and altogether TRUE.
YOUR Mercies are everlasting, and they are renewed every morning.
O LORD GOD,
unto THEE do I lift up my Soul.
And unto THEE do I cry in despair.
Have mercy on me LORD, I pray, and deliver me.
Deliver me from those who are too Strong for me:
And deliver me from certain death.
YOU said in YOUR WORD, that YOU looked down from the height of YOUR Sanctuary; From Heaven YOU beheld the earth; To hear the groaning of the prisoners;
To loose those that are appointed to death.
Behold, I am in prison, and they have appointed my soul for death.
But unto YOU, O LORD my GOD, do I make my appeal.
For YOU are that GOD that took me from my Mother’s bosom, 
    and declared YOUR Love for me, 
    and made YOUR covenant with me, 
    and told me that YOU will never leave me nor forsake me.
But that YOU will be with me always, even until the end of the World:
And caused me to hope in YOU.
And now, O LORD my GOD, in THEE do I put my Trust.
Let me not be brought to shame.
Neither let any that Trust in YOUR HOLY NAME be brought to shame.
But bring me out of this prison swiftly, I pray;
And deliver me by a strong HAND, O LOVER of my soul.
In the NAME of JESUS, I pray AMEN, and AMEN!
 
Pastor Kevin Burns, prisoner on Death Row in Tennessee
 
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Let this be recorded for a generation to come,
    so that a people yet to be created may praise the Lord:
that he looked down from his holy height;
    from heaven the Lord looked at the earth,
to hear the groans of the prisoners,
    to set free those who were doomed to die

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Come quickly and soon, Lord Jesus

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Icon of the Second Coming via Wikimedia Commons
 
Lord, we comfort ourselves with the prospect of a future
    when every evil and infirmity will cease.
We know who said, “Surely I come quickly.”
    And do not our hearts echo to your words?
    Do not the Spirit and the bride agree?
Yes! Amen!
 
Even so, come Lord Jesus.
Come and put an end to our fears and failings.
Come and deliver us from this scene of strife and confusion.
We are weary of living in the tents of this brutal world.
We are weary of ourselves.
 
Oh! We can hardly bear to pass day after day 
    with such faint, unworthy glimpses 
    of your beauty and your goodness.
We are weary and ashamed of our holy things.
So much coldness and wandering in prayer,
    in reading the word, in your public ordinances,
    that we cannot help but say,
“Of that I had wings like a dove,
    that I might fly far away from this vain ensnaring world!”
 
When will this conflict cease?
When will all our tears be wiped away?
When will we see as you are,
    and be formed to resemble you more completely?
 
The time is short, and passing away quickly.
We hold out a little longer, in faith and patience.
You will come and not delay.
In the meantime, may we have grace to improve the present,
    as the only opportunity we can have of glorifying you,
    our Lord and Savior, in a sinful world.
 
When we get safely home, 
    we will not think we have done and suffered to much on the way.
 
I am yours.
Amen.
 
John Newton, 1725 – 1807, English slave trader, then abolitionist and hymn writer
 
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He who testifies to these things says, 
    “Surely I am coming soon.” 
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!

for the Church in the world

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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
_______________________
 

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

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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.

I lift my eyes to the heavens

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Kadisha Valley, Lebanon via Wikimedia Commons


I lift up my eyes to the one who dwells in the heavens.
I lift up my eyes as Abraham lifted his 
    when he wanted to see the eternal promise and seed. 
I lift up my eyes to count the stars of heaven, 
    believing that you are a generous God. 
Like Isaiah, I raise my eyes to contemplate the power of the Most High. 
Like Nebuchadnezzar, I lift up my eyes to you. 
Then my mind is restored and I can bless the Lord of heaven, the Most High.

Before a stinking grave, I lift up my eyes to the Lord of everlasting life. 
Like Jesus, I lift up my eyes, asking that all people know the true God. 
When I meet a mute or deaf person, I lift up my eyes to the Lord of heaven. 
When I need bread and fish, with a thankful heart I raise my eyes. 


Like Stephen, I bow down on my knees. Then
    I lift up my eyes to see heaven open up in the midst of a bloody age. 
On the fields of Samaria, I raise my eyes to see a great harvest 
    in which Arabs and Jews are saved. 
I lift up my eyes to be transformed and to become a divine tool 
    for changing the oppressor 
    and for helping the oppressed and the poor.

Like the eyes of servants looking towards their masters 
    and maids towards their ladies, 
    so my eyes will be lifted up to God, 
    seeking mercy and compassion.
Today I will not look backward like the wife of Lot. 
I will not stare blindly like the servant of Elisha 
    who did not see the angels of God. 
Unlike Asaph, I will not look at the strength of evildoers. 
But like John at Patmos, I will turn towards the voice that speaks to me, 
    in order to behold your greatness. 
O God who lives in the heavens, I lift up my eyes to you.


Yohanna Katanacho, 1967 – , Palestinian Israeli evangelical theologian
Praying through the Psalms


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Psalm 123


To you I lift up my eyes,
    O you who are enthroned in the heavens!
Behold, as the eyes of servants
    look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maidservant
    to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
    till he has mercy upon us.

Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,
    for we have had more than enough of contempt.
Our soul has had more than enough
    of the scorn of those who are at ease,
    of the contempt of the proud.

Remind us that we are your children

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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

the Way, Truth, and Life

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image via pickpik
 
Lord Jesus Christ, 
    you said that you are the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Help us not to stray from you, 
    for you are the Way;
nor to distrust you, 
    for you are the Truth;
nor to rest on any other than you, 
    as you are the Life.

You have taught us what to believe, what to do, what to hope, 
    and where to take our rest.

Grant us grace 
    to follow you, the Way, 
    to learn from you, the Truth,
    and to live in you, the Life.

Desiderius Erasmus,1467-1536, Dutch Renaissance humanist & Catholic priest
 
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Jesus answered, 
    “I am the way and the truth and the life. 
    No one comes to the Father except through me.”
 

witnesses to your resurrection

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
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

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
​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?