Look down and see


Artwork by Irene Bom
 

My eyes will flow unceasingly, without relief, until the Lord looks down from heaven and sees.

 

Prayer of intercession

The LORD upholds all those who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down. (Psalm 145:14)

God of love
hear the cry of those who yearn for love;
fractured families, broken homes
neglected, unwanted, alone.
God of love
hear our prayer

God of justice
hear the cry of those who yearn for justice;
persecuted and oppressed,
exploited, ill-treated, broken.
God of justice
hear our prayer

God of peace
hear the cry of those who yearn for peace;
in battle zones and broken states,
frightened, fearful, anxious
God of peace
hear our prayer

God of healing
hear the cry of those who yearn for healing;
physical and spiritual
hurting, weakened, depressed
God of healing
hear our prayer

God of mercy
Hear the cry of those who yearn for mercy;
convicted, in need of your Grace,
contrite, humble, bowed down,
God of mercy
hear our prayer

I love the LORD, for he heard my voice;
he heard my cry for mercy.
Because he turned his ear to me,
I will call on him as long as I live. (Psalm 116:1-2)

May you know
The peace of God
The love of God
The justice of God
The healing and mercy of God
This day and all days
Amen
 

~ written by John Birch, posted on www.faithandworship.com

From the blog
Blessed assurance
Go where it is deeper
Broken spirit sacrifice
 

Grow down deeply


 

“Let your roots grow down deeply in Him, and let Him build you up on a firm foundation. Be strong in the faith, just as you were taught, and always spill over with thankfulness.”
Colossians 2:7, The Voice

 

A summer prayer for grace

God of gentle rains and warm sun,
God who encourages growth;
we are creatures who sometimes grow quickly,
and sometimes get stuck.
God of freedom, of liberation, of binding ropes being cut;
we are bound in ways we don’t always understand or recognize.
God of exodus and exile and homecoming,
God who calls us to leave where we are and come home;
help us to have the courage to make the journey
and to trust in the path.
God of health and healing,
God who wants us to be made whole;
we come as people who are wounded in body and in spirit,
people who seek healing.
God who has laid out a way for us to live,
who has given us rules for living in community;
we come as people who sometimes go astray,
people who stretch the rules.

God of Grace,
we come as people who live through that Grace.
And so we praise you for the growth,
we rejoice in being set free,
we dance along the path that leads us home,
we give thanks for the healing we have received,
we relax in the knowledge that we are forgiven
and we live as people of Grace. Amen.

~ written by Rev Gord, and posted on Worship Offerings.

From the blog
Food for thought
From prayer and conversation to answers
Theme: Called into community  [prayer sheet]
 

Slow down

 

Wise words
Desert father Abba Anthony said, ‘Pay attention to what I tell you: whoever you may be, always have God before your eyes; whatever you do, do it according to the testimony of the holy Scriptures; in whatever place you live, do not easily leave it. Keep these three precepts and you will be saved.’

Prayer
Grow us slowly, persistently, and deeply, Lord, to be people who watch without distraction, listen without interruption, and stay put without inclination to flee. Amen.

from this morning’s devotion in Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals by Shane Claiborne, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove and Enuma Okoro, p. 304

 
 

My life a prayer

by Irene Bom

I pray to GOD – my life a prayer –
and wait for what he’ll say and do.
(Psalm 130:5, The Message translation)

 
My life a prayer …
      if only!
My life a prayer …
      I don’t know.
My life a prayer …
      really?
My life a prayer …
      please, Lord,
      make it so.

 
~ written as part of the Presbytery Project, Prayer Poems for Lent 2026

 

From the blog
Bend down low
Quiet my heart
Sister moon
 

In the school of prayer with the Spirit


Poetry of the People exhibition, World Museum Rotterdam
 

Announcement
I will be taking short a break, resuming weekly posts in a few weeks time.

Meanwhile, here are some verses on praying in the Spirit for us to ponder in the run-up to Pentecost 2026, all from the J.B. Phillips translation.
 

It is because you really are his sons that God has sent the Spirit of his Son into your hearts to cry “Father, dear Father”.

By the Spirit we connect with the Father and the Son.

We do not know how to pray worthily as sons of God, but his Spirit within us is actually praying for us in those agonising longings which never find words. And God who knows the heart’s secrets understands, of course, the Spirit’s intention as he prays for those who love God.

As our helper, counsellor, comforter, advocate and intercessor the Holy Spirit ministers to us in many and varied ways.

Pray at all times with every kind of spiritual prayer, keeping alert and persistent as you pray for all Christ’s men and women.

What does it mean for you to ‘pray at all times’ in the context of your daily life?

But you, dear friends of mine, build yourselves up on the foundation of your most holy faith and by praying through the Holy Spirit keep yourselves within the love of God. Wait patiently for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ which will bring you to the life eternal.

‘Praying in/by/through/in accordance with the Spirit is tied up with faith, hope and love.

From the blog
The Gift booklet : a 12-part series of readings and prayer poems on the Holy Spirit originally created for Pentecost 2017
 

Free spirit


 

On freedom

We have a visceral awareness of how free we feel as we move through the world, even though freedom, like energy is not something we can see, taste or touch. How do our senses know when we’re free? It seems to run along a continuum, one that we define in relative terms. The playground is freer than the classroom, the picnic freer than the formal banquet. But at each end of the spectrum there are absolutes. On one end lie places we all agree are restrictive, like the tunnel of an MRI machine or a solitary-confinement cell. On the other are places that feel entirely unconstrained – fields and lakes, parks and beaches. As I thought about it, I realized that the most liberating places are, with few exceptions, found in nature.

 

A prayer

As the beautiful, dew-covered rose
      rises from amongst its thorns,
so may my heart be so full of love for you, my God,
      that I may rise above the storms and evils that assail me,
and stand fast in trust and freedom of spirit.
 
after Hadewijch of Brabant (first half of thirteenth century)
from The Book of a Thousand Prayers by Angela Ashwin, #238
 

From the blog
Nature bringing joy
Ancient Irish Prayer
Restless heart
 

Lord of the captive and the free


 

 

An aboriginal activist sister said, “If you have come to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us walk together.“

A prayer

Lord of the captive and Lord of the free, fill our voices with songs that proclaim hope, joy and justice for all creation. Guide us this day to walk alongside the oppressed as fellow sojourners. Amen.

 
 
Both the quote and the prayer are from Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals by Shane Claiborne, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove and Enuma Okoro, p. 245.

From the blog
Theme: Ever sustaining  [prayer sheet]
Make us a chalice
No more tears
 

Free gift of forgiveness


 

Prayer of Confession

We have failed to love you with all our heart
and to be good stewards of your creation:
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

We have failed to take up the cross of discipleship
and to be good stewards of your gospel:
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.

We have failed to be faithful members of your church
and to be good stewards of your spiritual gifts:
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

 
Declaration of Forgiveness

God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners,
Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

Confident in his free gift of forgiveness,
I declare to you Christ’s word of grace:
Your sins are forgiven.
Thanks be to God.

 
~ by David Beswick from his Worship and Preaching website.

From the blog
In the school of prayer with Terry Hinks
Go. Speak. Love. Forgive. Receive.
Forgiven and forgotten
 

Rising … into freedom


Good Friday “cross talk” installation with addition of white marks to imply “things rising”

Prayer for all things rising

For all things rising
out of the hiddenness of shadows
out of the weight of despair
out of the brokenness of pain
out of the constrictions of compliance
out of the rigidity of stereotypes
out of the prison of prejudice;

for all things rising
into life, into hope
into healing, into power
into freedom, into justice;

we pray, O God,
for all things rising.

 
written by Jan Richardson, from paintedprayerbook.com

From the blog
Hear and answer
Interpreting the times
Theme: Change my heart, O God  [prayer sheet]
 

Practice Good Friday

 
For many years now it’s been my practice and privilege to lead the Good Friday service in our church in Rotterdam. The theme this year is Cross talk.

We will end the service as usual with a Tenebrae liturgy, recalling the 7 ‘words’ of Jesus from the cross. I’ve written a refrain to sing after each ‘word’, as a candle is snuffed out:

This is God’s Son, the chosen one
Listen to him, listen
He has the words of eternal life
Listen to him

A prayer

Oh God, we thank you for the gift of years; for the opportunity to see the pattern of our lives and to have experienced the deaths from which we have risen over and over again. As we continue our journey, give us lightness of step and lightness of heart that we may grace our world with a spirit of joy and gratitude. We ask this in the name of Jesus who has gone before and continues to walk the way with us.

The woman’s prayer companion, from The Book of a Thousand Prayers by Angela Ashwin, #984

From the blog
In the school of prayer with Terry Hinks
Asking and answers
Thank you. For life
 

Practice paying attention

 
This photograph was taken on the walled path leading up to Voltaire’s chateau in Ferney-Voltaire, France, close to Geneva.

I was amply rewarded as I slowed down and took the trouble to pay closer attention to the local ‘wall-life’ – including various varieties of moss, petite ferns and little lizards. It made the afternoon excursion to Ferney-Voltaire a true delight. And now I get to share it with you …
 

Call to Worship

inspired by Psalm 23

In the darkest valley,
at the banquet table;
in the hard work of life,
at the moments of ease;
in our day-to-day reality,
at times set aside –
like this time, now –
for worship, for listening, for paying attention;
with every step we take:
goodness and mercy follow us;
our cups overflow.

~ written by Joanna Harader and posted on Spacious Faith. https://spaciousfaith.com/

From the blog
All my longings
All my days and forever
Plant us, root us, grow us