A Prayer about Hope in a Dark World

by | Feb 26, 2025 | Daily Prayer, Gospel living, Spiritual Growth

A Prayer about Hope in a Dark World

He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13-14

Father, 

I confess, 

sometimes the darkness of this world 

seems all-encompassing. 

The depressing news, 

the bent toward meanness, 

the joy in judginess

…I see it everywhere—

in my own heart and in the hearts of others. 

What good news it is to remember then, 

that we who are in Christ

no longer live in the “domain of darkness.” 

You have transferred us and transformed us. 

Now we have a rich inheritance: 

“the inheritance of the saints in the light” (Colossians 1:12). 

Now we are freed from the tyrant Satan 

to serve you, our redeeming and forgiving King. 

Now our primary language is “thanksgiving” 

and our primary work is “endurance and patience and joy” (Colossians 1:11). 

Now we have been “strengthened with all power, 

according to his glorious might” (Colossians 1:11).

to live as citizens of the kingdom of the beloved Son.

So very gratefully we pray. Amen. 

Read Colossians 1:9-14.


A Prayer about Not Repaying Evil for Evil

by | Feb 25, 2025 | Daily Prayer, Gospel living, Spiritual Growth

A Prayer about Not Repaying Evil for Evil

 How do you not repay evil for evil?

See to it that no one repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone.  1 Thessalonians 5:15

 

Good Father,

 

Not only are you “abundantly good,” 

 

you sent your Son to defeat evil, 

 

in our hearts, and in this world. 

 

We know our hearts are “deceitful” 

 

and “desperately sick” (Jeremiah 17:9), 

 

and we know we are blind to our own potential 

 

to harm others and to rebel against you. 

 

Show us, we pray, by your Spirit, 

 

the ways we harbor evil, 

 

the ways we seek revenge 

 

when someone has done us evil. 

 

Destroy every crack and crevice 

 

of bitterness or resentment 

 

we might harbor. 

 

Draw us to “seek to do good”— 

 

to “one another” and to “everyone,” 

 

not just to the people 

 

who have been nice to us, 

 

the people we agree with on all the hot-button issues, 

 

or the people who look, talk, and act like us. 

 

In Jesus’ kind name. Amen. 

 

Read 1 Thessalonians 5:12-28.

 

A Prayer about the Peace of God

by | Feb 24, 2025 | Daily Prayer, Gospel living, Spiritual Growth

A Prayer about the Peace of God

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7

Peace-bringing God,

We have all been there, 

whether in the waiting room 

while a loved one undergoes a big surgery 

or in a living room 

hearing the news that a loved one is battling an addiction 

or in a boss’s office 

wondering if we’re about to get the axe…

in short, in a place that induces fear and anxiety.

In such places, we desperately need to know your peace, 

“the peace of God.” 

What is it like?

First of all, it is your peace. 

It belongs to you, 

and it characterizes you. 

Would the God who created the universe 

ever be found wringing his hands over what-if’s? 

We don’t think so. 

You are 

the all-knowing 

and all-powerful 

Creator and Ruler of the universe.

Second, it is a surpassing peace. 

It’s far more soothing  

than the scent of a lavender candle. 

Third, it is a peace 

that surpasses all understanding. 

It is a puzzling peace, 

a seemingly impossible peace given the situation.

Finally, it is a peace that comes 

from being “in Christ Jesus.” 

It is the saving peace 

of knowing our foundation 

is sure and unshakeable. 

Oh, Father, 

wherever we are today, 

grant us this surpassing peace.

In Jesus’ peace-bringing name. Amen.

Read Philippians 4:4-9.

Friends, this prayer is an excerpt from my devotional From Recovery to Restoration: 60 Meditations for Finding Peace & Hope in Crisis. If you or someone you know is in crisis, be sure to check it out. 



A Prayer about Longing for a Better Place

by | Feb 23, 2025 | Daily Prayer, Gospel living, Spiritual Growth

A Prayer about Longing for a Better Place

How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord… Psalm 84:1

Heavenly Father, 

As we read the words of the pilgrim psalmist, 

who longed to be with you in your beautiful temple, 

to live with you forever in worship, 

may our longing for our heavenly home grow. 

We all long for the kind of place this “son of Korah” describes, 

a place where “birds find nooks and crannies” 

and “sparrows and swallows make their nests” 

because it is 

a safe place, 

a pleasant place, 

a peaceful place. 

Help us to remember that we are but 

“strangers” on this earth, 

scattered exiles (see Hebrews 11:13), 

that while we have work to do here and joys to experience, 

one day we will live with you forever, 

in your heavenly home. 

In that day 

our faces will shine “with your gracious anointing” (Ps. 84:9, The MSG). 

In that day, 

we will realize that 

“One day spent in your house, 

this beautiful place of worship, 

beats thousands spent on Greek island beaches” (Ps. 84:10, The MSG). 

In that day, 

we will see and sing with all your saints,

“All sunshine and sovereign is God, 

generous in gifts and glory” (Ps. 84:11, The MSG).

How we long for that day!

Amen.

Read Psalm 84; Hebrews 11:13. 



A Prayer about Thanking God for Unanswered Prayers

by | Feb 22, 2025 | Daily Prayer, Gospel living, Spiritual Growth

A Prayer about Thanking God for Unanswered Prayers

What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead of a fish? Luke 11:10

Good Father, 

I’ve been thinking a lot about prayers I prayed 

that you didn’t answer the way I wanted 

or prayers that you answered 

with those two hard words, “not yet” or “no.” 

For many of those answers, 

I am now so grateful:

Thank you for not getting me back together 

with that mean high school boyfriend,

Thank you for not letting us

get that house I wanted in my friends’ neighborhood,

Thank you for not giving me that full scholarship to college 

that seemed like a dream come true 

(because I might never have transferred to the college where I met my husband)…

[Name some “prayers answered differently” that you are now thankful for].

I confess, God, there are some prayers I’ve prayed 

that are still answered “not yet” 

and prayers for which I didn’t honestly love your answer: 

The prayer you would heal my mother 

when she was sick with Covid.

The prayer that our children would be healthy every day of their lives.

[Name some “answered differently” prayers you’re not so sure about].

And yet, we cannot, we do not, doubt your love for us. 

We cannot, we do not, doubt you want the best for us. 

We do believe that you are a good Father 

who is working your best plan 

not only for our good 

but also for the good of your kingdom. 

And we’re grateful to be part of that kingdom plan. 

Thank you for hearing our prayers.

In Jesus’ faithful name. Amen.

Read Matthew 6:5-15.