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Two Girls Praying
by Emile Munier (1840-1895)
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Two Girls Praying
by Emile Munier (1840-1895)
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Prayer of Confession
Eternal God, our judge and redeemer,
we confess that we have tried to hide from you,
for we have done wrong.
We have lived for ourselves, and apart from you.
We have turned from our neighbors,
and refused to bear the burdens of others.
We have ignored the pain of the world,
and passed by the hungry, the poor, and the oppressed.
In your great mercy forgive our sins and free us from selfishness,
that we may choose your will and obey your commandments.
Amen.
"How To Talk To God In Prayer" *
The Scriptures tell us in Luke II: 1-2 that Jesus' disciples came to Him and asked Him, "Lord, teach us to pray." And then in Matthew 6:9-13,which is a corresponding passage, Jesus gives the "model" prayer that we incorporate into our worship services each Sunday. I am of the opinion that many times the recitations, etc. that we utilize in our worship can become ritualistic (which is not necessarily bad) and so routine that we do not think about what we are saying (or praying). What follows is an attempt to bring us back to consciousness and "prayerful" meditation about the significance of the Lord's Prayer.
Yes, the disciples came to Jesus and said, "Lord teach us to pray." This simple prayer which Jesus taught His disciples can show us too, how to talk to God in prayer.
Our Father, who art in heaven - Jesus taught His disciples to call God our Father. It is this intimate Father/child relationship that makes prayer possible. As children of God, we come to His throne expectant and unafraid because we are accepted in His beloved Son (Hebrews 4: 15-16). Because we are His children, we can come often and speak with our Heavenly Father, for He delights to hear our prayers!
Hallowed be Thy name - Worship! To honor and adore God is the highest privilege of the Christian. We who have experienced this miracle of His saving grace can praise Him for His love. Every day, we can offer praise and thanksgiving as He showers us with His blessings. I Chronicles16:29 says "Give unto the glory due unto His name. Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness."
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven - is the next phrase. As Gods children, we long for His righteous reign throughout the earth. But His reign must first begin in our own lives. We are made sensitive to His will for us as we prayerfully read and meditate on the Word of God. As we pray, God measures our spiritual condition and brings our desires into conformity with His will. From these first three petitions, the Lord teaches us that His glory and kingdom must have pre-eminence in our prayers and lives. God promises those who put Him first - "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matt. 6:33).
Give us this day our daily bread - We are dependent upon God for all our needs, both spiritual and material. Daily bread, in Bible times, referred to daily necessities. He is speaking of necessities, not superfluous wants (although there is freedom to ask for anything). Like any loving Father, He desires to richly bless us. Nothing is too great for His power and nothing is too small for His love. My advice is to share the most intimate details of our life with Him. Phil.4:4-7 says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God which passes all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors - As we speak with our loving Father and read His Word, realizing that He expects us to be gracious to others, we must confess all sin, including our unforgiveness toward others. Unconfessed sin hinders our communication with God. The Psalmist said, "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me." Our hearts must be clean before He can hear and answer our prayer. Of course, He always hears the sincere prayer of confession because He is faithful and just to forgive our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil - The Lord has promised to protect His children in the hour of temptation. We're told in I Corinthians10:13 that ".. .there is no temptation taken us but such as is common to all; but God is faithful, Who will not permit us to be tempted above that which we are able, but will, with the temptation also make a way of escape, that we may be able to bear it." Let us, therefore, pray for wisdom to see His way of escape. As we learn to pray to the Father, we will enter the glorious doxology which closes the prayer.
For Thine is the Kingdom - we know that God has control over all matters and we can trust our deepest needs to Him.
And the power - He has power to accomplish all that we ask, for "He is able to do above that which we are able to think or ask. And then the phrase...
And the glory forever. Amen. - We worship Him as the Almighty God, the Giver of every good and perfect gift.
This is how the Lord taught His disciples to pray and by His example He showed them the need for time alone with the Father in prayer. We, too, must set aside a time to talk with God and read His Word. Many Christians find that the morning is the best time for this. Others say that late evening is the. best. The following suggestions are given for your time with God:
1. Understand the necessity of prayer. Our Lord taught that prayer is not an option, it is a command. It is not something to do when we feel like it, it's a God-given responsibility. We must make the time to labor in prayer. Jesus said, "People ought always to pray, and not to faint" (Luke 18: I).
2. The Bible and prayer goes hand in hand. Pray as you read and meditate on God's Word. As you read the Bible, praise God for what He has revealed of Himself and pray for strength and wisdom to obey His commands. What you read will give fresh insights as you prayer for yourself and others. Try using some prayers of the Bible as patterns (Matt. 6:9-13; Ephesians I: 15-23; 3: 14-21 and many of the Psalms).
3. Draw up a prayer list. A list of prayer requests reminds you of specific needs and will keep your mind from wandering. By recording how God has answered a request, you will be encouraged to keep praying. But don't let this steal your spontaneity. Remember, you're praying, not just compiling a list, although I believe that a prayer list (journal, diary) is an important aspect of prayer.
4. It's good to have a prayer partner to help you pray consistently. Ask the Lord for a friend with whom you can share and pray. Meeting regularly provides mutual encouragement.
5. Be careful of distractions. Because prayer is a spiritual exercise, you can expect it to become a spiritual battle. If you have trouble with wandering thoughts, try changing positions. Praying aloud, starting a prayer list in your Bible, singing a hymn or whatever you find most effective. But whatever you do - PRAY!
See you in Church !
Ken
* From the September 2005 monthly publication "Communiqué" of Community Church in Pastor Ken's message
The Howey-in-the Hills prayer chain is Praying For You.
The Praying Hands by Albrecht DurerClick for the story below
The Story of the Praying Hands
PRAYER PARTNERS
The Howey-in-the-Hills Prayer Chain has been an important ministry to the church since its' inception. The prayer chain now has many active members praying for the concerns of the church and community. If you want to be counted among the church's "Prayer Warriors," please call the church office.
Our prayer list will never be displayed on the web for personal security reasons.
What would be appropriate to ask the Prayer Partners to pray for? Such requests could include: guidance, knowledge of God's will, strength, healing, comfort, protection for all kinds of things such as travel, surgery or any other situation that may need extra protection.
Who can we pray for? Anyone that has requested i.e. church member, family or family friend, our leaders (not just the President of the United States, but our Church leaders, Pastor, Elders, Session, Presbytery, Synod and General Assembly, our Senators and Representatives, and even ourselves). We can also pray for our soldiers and other service workers such as firefighters and police officers. Some of these should be part of our regular prayers but if you know someone who may be in additional harm's way then we can and should pray for that person. An example would be that when we are praying for our soldiers and if your son or daughter or any kind of relative is fighting in the war, then we would pray for that person individually. Also it would be considerate to ask permission from the person that you are requesting prayer for. I know that sometimes individuals do not want several people that they do not know praying for them.
If you are part of the Prayer Partners it would be very helpful to keep a journal. It helps in remembering who to pray for as well as an excellent tool for keeping track of our praises and in some cases a journey to the Church Triumphant. Once something or someone becomes a praise, we can thank God for that resolution and then remove them from our list.
Lastly, we request that when a prayer is requested, we need to be kept updated as to the status of it or how the prayer was answered or what the current situation is. This helps us know that we are receiving results and that we may need to keep praying or we need to discontinue that particular request for prayer.
I want to thank everyone for the wonderful job that you are doing with the Prayer Partners. Since the first of the year we have had 42 requests for prayer. We also have had at least 12 praises. God has truly heard us. Please keep up the good work and I will try to keep everyone updated with the information that I receive regarding requests and praises. Keep praying.
Prayer Partners
