Evening Prayer
Sometimes It Just Seems to Be Too Much by Ted Loder
Sometimes Lord,
it just seems to be too much:
to much violence, too much fear;
too much of demands and problems;
too much of broken dreams and broken lives;
too much of war and slums and dying;
too much of greed and squishy fatness
and the sounds of people
devouring each other
and the earth;
too much of stale routines and quarrels,
unpaid bills and dead ends;
too much of words lobbed in to explode
and leaving shredded hearts and lacerated souls;
too much of turned-away backs and yellow silence,
red rage and the bitter taste of ashes in my mouth.
Sometimes the very air seems scorched
by threats and rejection and decay
until there is nothing
but to inhale pain
and exhale confusion.
Too much of darkness, Lord,
too much of cruelty
and selfishness
and indifference…
Too much Lord,
too much,
too bloody,
bruising,
brain-washing much.
Or is it too little,
too little of compassion,
too little of courage,
of daring,
of persistence,
of sacrifice;
too little of music
and laughter
and celebration?
O God,
make of me some nourishment
for these starved times,
some food for my brothers and sister
who are hungry for gladness and hope,
that, being bread for them,
I may also be fed
and be full.
~Amen.
3:00pm Prayer
Our Father who art in heaven –
may we know thy love
Hallowed be Thy name –
may we see thy glory
Thy kingdom come –
may we enter it
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven –
may we obey it
Give us this day our daily bread –
may we take and eat with thanksgiving
And forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors –
may we receive thy mercy as we forgive others
And lead us not into temptation –
may we forsake ourselves and seek you
But deliver us from evil –
may our trust in you keep us from the way of death and grant us life.
Amen.
(Lorraine Kisly, The Prayer of Fire, 6-7)
Noon Scripture and Prayer
Psalm 25:4-5 – “Show me your ways, LORD, teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.”
James 1:5 – “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”
Psalm 16:7-8 – “I will praise the LORD, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I keep my eyes always on the LORD. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”
Prayer
O God, we are desperate for you. We long to be in your presence and have come here this afternoon seeking to be closer to you.
Hear us Lord as we pray seeking wisdom and guidance…
Hear us Lord as we pray seeking healing and wholeness…
Hear us Lord as we pray seeking comfort and understanding…
Hear us Lord as we pray seeking forgiveness and peace…
Hear us Lord as we pray offering thanksgiving and praise…
Hear us Lord as we pray whatever lies deep in our souls…
Holy Father, we have lifted up to you what is in our hearts, believing that you will hear both our pleas and our praise. Help us to truly trust in you as we say, thy will be done; and genuinely appreciate our bountiful blessings that you have showered upon us.
You are our Rock and Redeemer Lord and we are your people; Praise be your Holy Name. Amen.
9am Scripture and Prayer…
Scripture: Romans 8:31-39
31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:“For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[a] 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[b] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Prayer
“Lord, may nothing separate me from You today. Teach me how to choose only Your way today so each step will lead me closer to You. Help me walk by the Word and not my feelings. Help me to keep my heart pure and undivided. Protect me from my own careless thoughts, words, and actions. And keep me from being distracted by MY wants, MY desires, MY thoughts on how things should be. Help me to embrace what comes my way as an opportunity… rather than a personal inconvenience. And finally, help me to rest in the truth of Psalm 86:13, ‘Great is your love toward me.’ You already see the ways I will fall short and mess up. But right now, I consciously tuck Your whisper of absolute love for me into the deepest part of my heart. I recognize Your love for me is not based on my performance. You love me warts and all. That’s amazing. But what’s most amazing is that the Savior of the world would desire a few minutes with me this morning. Lord, help me to forever remember what a gift it is to sit with You like this. Amen.”
– Lysa Terkeurst
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