This far, no further

Praying for Wisdom

based on Job 38

Lord, you laid the earth’s foundations;
    you placed its cornerstone;
while the morning stars sang together
    and all the angels shouted for joy,
you set limits for the sea and said,
     “This far and no further!”

You gave orders to the morning
    and showed the dawn its place;
you moulded the earth until it took shape.

You alone know the springs of the sea;
    you alone comprehend the vastness of the universe;
    you alone know the laws of heaven:

Lord, give wisdom to our hearts
    and understanding to our minds.
Amen.

 
~ written by Michael Perry, and posted on re:worship

From the blog
Song in the night
In the school of prayer with Eddie Askew
Continually curious
 

Far horizon

Drawing Near

A Blessing

It is difficult to see it from here,
I know,
but trust me when I say
this blessing is inscribed
on the horizon.
Is written on
that far point
you can hardly see.
Is etched into
a landscape
whose contours you cannot know
from here.
All you know
is that it calls you,
draws you,
pulls you toward
what you have perceived
only in pieces,
in fragments that came to you
in dreaming
or in prayer.

I cannot account for how,
as you draw near,
the blessing embedded in the horizon
begins to blossom
upon the soles of your feet,
shimmers in your two hands.
It is one of the mysteries
of the road,
how the blessing
you have traveled toward,
waited for,
ached for
suddenly appears,
as if it had been with you
all this time,
as if it simply
needed to know
how far you were willing
to walk
to find the lines
that were traced upon you
before the day
you were born.
 
 
~ by Jan Richardson from Circle of Grace,
      posted on paintedprayerbook.com

From the blog
On pilgrimage
In a new light
In the school of prayer with Pádraig Ó Tuama
 

Joyful response

Call to Worship

(inspired by Psalm 40: 1-11)

O God, you called us by name to come,
and we respond with delight and gladness.
In joyful obedience,
we come to worship our God.

Rising out of the depths of despair,
we gratefully gather for worship.
In joyful hope,
we come to worship our loving God.

Our God had given us a new song
of praise to sing to our Awesome God!
In joyful trust,
we come to worship our God. Amen.
 

~ written by Joan Stott, and posted on re:worship
 

From the blog
Hear and answer
In the school of prayer with Angela Ashwin
Theme: Do not lose heart   [prayer sheet]
 

Our help is in the name of the Lord

 
Psalm for Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost, RCL Year A

Psalm 133

A litany: a sung response alternating with spoken word (preferably with feeling)

 

 

 
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Maker of heaven and earth

v 1-3
1 If the LORD had not been on our side—
      let Israel say—
2 if the LORD had not been on our side
      when people attacked us,
3 they would have swallowed us alive
      when their anger flared against us;

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Maker of heaven and earth

v 1a, 4-5
1a If the LORD had not been on our side
4 the flood would have engulfed us,
      the torrent would have swept over us,
5 the raging waters
      would have swept us away.

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Maker of heaven and earth

v 6-7
6 Praise be to the LORD,
      who has not let us be torn by their teeth.
7 We have escaped like a bird
      from the fowler’s snare;
the snare has been broken,
      and we have escaped.

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Maker of heaven and earth

 

From the blog
my help / your protector
First steps
Prayer poem: Not forsaken
 

Good, how good

 
Psalm for Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost, RCL Year A

Psalm 133

A litany: a sung response alternating with spoken word (preferably with feeling)

 

 

 
Good, how good, so good, so pleasant
when the people of God come together as one

v 1
1 How good and pleasant it is
      when God’s people live together in unity!

Good, how good, so good, so pleasant
when the people of God come together as one

v 2
2 It is like precious oil poured on the head,
      running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
      down on the collar of his robe.

Good, how good, so good, so pleasant
when the people of God come together as one

v 3
3 It is as if the dew of Hermon
      were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the LORD bestows his blessing,
      even life forevermore.

Good, how good, so good, so pleasant
when the people of God come together as one

 

From the blog
Theme: Good news  [prayer sheet]
Quiet my heart
Change … like little children
 

Seek the Lord and His strength

 
Psalm for Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost, RCL Year A

Psalm 105:1-6 (optional ending: 16-22)

A litany: a sung response alternating with spoken word (preferably with feeling)

 

 

 
Seek the Lord, keep on seeking
Seek His presence; seek His strength

v 1-2
1  Give praise to the LORD, proclaim his name;
      make known among the nations what he has done.
2  Sing to him, sing praise to him;
      tell of all his wonderful acts.

Seek the Lord, keep on seeking
Seek His presence; seek His strength

v 3-4
3  Glory in his holy name;
      let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.
4  Look to the LORD and his strength;
      seek his face always.

Seek the Lord, keep on seeking
Seek His presence; seek His strength

v 5-6
5  Remember the wonders he has done,
      his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,
6  you his servants, the descendants of Abraham,
      his chosen ones, the children of Jacob.

Seek the Lord, keep on seeking
Seek His presence; seek His strength

 
OPTIONAL ENDING
v 16-22 (about Joseph in Egypt)
(Refrain)

 

From the blog
Guest post: Memories of the hurricane
All my days and forever
Interpreting the times
 

I call on you, my God

 
Psalm for Tenth Sunday after Pentecost, RCL Year A

Psalm 17:1-7, 15

A litany with a sung response alternating with spoken word (preferably with feeling).

 

 

 
I call on you, my God, for you will answer me
Turn your ear to me and hear my prayer
 

v 1-3
1  Hear me, LORD, my plea is just;
      listen to my cry.
Hear my prayer—
      it does not rise from deceitful lips.
2  Let my vindication come from you;
      may your eyes see what is right.
3  Though you probe my heart,
      though you examine me at night and test me,
you will find that I have planned no evil;
      my mouth has not transgressed.
 

I call on you, my God, for you will answer me
Turn your ear to me and hear my prayer

 
v 4-5
4  Though people tried to bribe me,
      I have kept myself from the ways of the violent
      through what your lips have commanded.
5  My steps have held to your paths;
      my feet have not stumbled.
 

I call on you, my God, for you will answer me
Turn your ear to me and hear my prayer
 

v 7, 15
7  Show me the wonders of your great love,
      you who save by your right hand
      those who take refuge in you from their foes.
15  As for me, I will be vindicated and will see your face;
      when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.
 

I call on you, my God, for you will answer me
Turn your ear to me and hear my prayer
 

From the blog
On Writing Prayer-Poems
We bring our stories
In the school of prayer with Brother Lawrence
 

Flower where you are

Opening Prayer

“Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness….” Psalm 29:2

 
O God,
whose holiness is not limited to
      grand cathedrals or saintly persons,
      spectacular mountains or mountain-moving leaders;
O God,
whose holiness is often discovered in simple everyday places
      and simple everyday folk,
plant Your holiness in this place,
      in us now.
Grow us this hour,
      that we might flower,
      right where we are,
      with the beauty of Your holiness.
Through Jesus we pray.
Amen.

 
~ posted on My Redeemer Lives website.

Note: Next month’s theme is “Response”. Week by week I will be posting a litany based on the lectionary psalm and a sung response I’ve written specially for services in my church in Rotterdam in the month of August. The psalms are Psalm 17, 105, 133 and 124.
 
Get in touch if you’d like to use the litanies too. I can provide recordings and basic notation (melody line and chords).
 

Ever blooming

 

Kindness, peace, love —
may they never stop blooming
in you and from you.
Jude 1:2,  VOICE

 
 

Opening prayer

God of small seeds and mighty plants, you take our meager lives and with your love cause them to produce acts of loving kindness for you in this world. You hear our cries and find us when we are lost and wandering in fear. You bring us home with you so that we may be made whole, rejoicing in your goodness. Help us to joyfully serve you all our days, knowing that you are always watching over us. Prepare our hearts to receive your word and our spirits to respond in eagerness to serve you. In Jesus’ name, we pray. AMEN

 
~ written by Nancy Townley, posted on www.ministrymatters.com
 

From the blog
Theme: He heals the brokenhearted  [prayer sheet]
The Gift #12 : Recreator
Walk the walk