Category: prayer

Jesus’ circle goes deep and wide


 

“Then Levi gave a great banquet for Jesus in his house and there was a large crowd of tax collectors and others sitting at the table with them.”

A prayer

Jesus of the table,
You gathered unexpected people around
hearths of hospitality.
You stretched out your hand
for grapes and bread, for wine and welcome.
May we populate our tables
with all kinds of people.
Because at the table
our hearts can be glad
for a while.
Amen.
 

To ponder

“Jesus traces his circle wide, calling us all to be kinfolk to him by doing what God desires us to do. And if kinfolk to him, then kinfolk to one another, with all the delights and aches that come in learning to be a family.”

~ from a blog post by Jan Richardson
 

God with me lying down


 

In peace I will lie down and sleep,
      for you alone, Lord,
      make me dwell in safety.

 

Evening prayer

God with me lying down,
God with me rising up,
God with me in each ray of light,
Not I a ray of joy without Him,
      Nor one ray without Him.

Christ with me sleeping,
Christ with me waking,
Christ with me watching,
Every day and night,
      Each day and night.

God with me protecting,
The Lord with me directing,
The Spirit with me strengthening,
For ever and for evermore,
      Ever and evermore, Amen.
            Chiefs of chiefs, Amen
 

from Carmina Gadelica, Vol 1, p. 5,
included in The Book of a Thousand Prayers by Angela Ashwin, #660

From the blog
In the school of prayer with Pádraig Ó Tuama
“A Good Night’s Sleep” inspirations
Up to us
 

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
 

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
 

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
 

Prayer as a practice


 

It will pass

from Prayer: Forty days of practice by Justin McRoberts and Scott Erickson
 

The young woman sat in a wooden chair across from her mentor and grieved, “I am so easily distracted. My mind buzzes with noise and I cannot pray. Please help me.”

Her mentor nodded slowly and smiled, saying, “It will pass. Keep practicing.”

One week later the young woman sat across from her mentor again. This time, sliding slightly lower into the chair, she stared at the empty table. “Nothing works. I sit in silence. I journal. I read the Scriptures. Still, my mind is too noisy. I cannot pray. Please help me.”

Her mentor nodded slowly and smiled, saying, “It will pass. Keep practicing.”

Many weeks went by, during which the young woman did not visit her mentor – until one day, she bounded into the room and stood at the table, beaming. “You were right! I kept practicing. I sat in silence. I journaled. I read the Scriptures. And eventually the busyness of my mind settled like dust and I could pray! I can pray!”

Her mentor rose from the table, set her hand on the young woman’s shoulder, and smiled. “It will pass,” she said. “Keep practicing.”

 

A poem

Let Your God Love You

Be silent.
Be still.
Alone.
Empty
Before your God.
Say nothing.
Ask nothing.
Be silent.
Be still.
Let your God look upon you.
That is all.
God knows.
God understands.
God loves you
With an enormous love,
And only wants
To look upon you
With that love.
Quiet.
Still.
Be.

Let your God —
Love you.

 
~ written by Edwina Gateley, posted on www.journeywithjesus.net

From the blog
In the quiet of God’s smile
3 Prayers while waiting
Thank you. For making me