A Prayer about Who God Is and Why It Matters

by Elizabeth | Aug 2, 2023 | Daily Prayer, worship, gratitude

A Prayer about Who God Is and Why It Matters

Praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord, O my soul!

I will praise the Lord as long as I live;

I will sing praises to my God all my life long. Psalm 146:1

God-Above, Maker of Heaven and Earth,

How often do we pause to consider who you are,

your graciousness,

your goodness,

your generosity?

Not often enough.

When we take time to consider

your “wondrous works” and “mighty acts,”

we receive a blessing—

our worry shrinks and our confidence grows.

Let’s start naming just a few of the things we praise you for:

You “uphold all who are falling

and raise up all who are bowed down” (Psalm 145:15)

[Name why this matters to you or those you pray for.]

You are our help and our hope,

the God “who made heaven and earth, the sea,

and all that is in them” (Psalm 146:6).

[Name why this matters to you pr those you pray for.]

You “execute justice for the oppressed,

you give food to the hungry” (Psalm 146:7).

[Name why this matters to you or those you pray for.]

You “lift up the humble;

you cast the wicked to the ground” (Psalm 147:6).

[Name why this matters to you and those you pray for.]

You “take pleasure in your people;

you adorn the humble with salvation” (Psalm 149:4).

[Name why this matters to you and those you pray for.]

Good and gracious Father,

for all of these things and thousands more,

we praise your name,

we rejoice in you,

we adore you,

we give you glory.

Develop in us a regular rhythm

of praising all of your goodness.

In Jesus’ wonder-full name. Amen.

Read Psalms 145-150.

A Prayer about the Lord’s Benefits

by Elizabeth | May 29, 2023 | Daily Prayer, worship, gratitude

A Prayer about the Lord’s Benefits

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits…Psalm 103:2

Oh, Lord,

We do bless you!

Thank you for reminding us of all your benefits:

You forgive all our iniquity:

when we tell half-truths,

when we join in the coffee room gossip,

when we put our trust in things of this earth rather than you —

you forgive us!

You heal all our diseases—

when we tolerate toxins which destroy our hearts,

things like envy, comparison, unforgiveness, impatience—

you inject your antidote of grace, love, mercy, and compassion! (Psalm 103:3)

You redeem our lives from the pit—

when we have sunk farther than we ever thought we could go,

you extricate us from our mucky ruts! (Psalm 103:4).

Not only do you forgive and heal and redeem—

you crown us with steadfast love and mercy,

you satisfy us with good,

you renew our youth like the eagle’s (Psalm 103:4-5).

Lord, today may we truly rejoice in all of your benefits,

living and loving in the hope of your renewal.

[Name some of the benefits you are rejoicing in today.]

In Jesus’ redeeming name. Amen.

Read Psalm 103:1-5.

A Prayer about Seeing the Glory of Jesus

by Elizabeth | May 21, 2023 | Daily Prayer, worship, gratitude

A Prayer about Seeing the Glory of Jesus

And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. Matthew 17:2

Glorious Jesus,

How we long to see your glory,

to really see it,

the way Peter, James, and John saw it

in the transfiguration.

You took them to a high mountain,

and as you were praying,

you began shining like the sun,

your face lit up in fierce, overpowering light,

your clothes whiter

than newly bleached sheets.

Even though we have not yet physically seen you

in your glory,

help us to engage our imaginations

so that we see what Peter, James, and John saw.

Dazzling in your glory,

you spoke with Moses and Elijah,

two men who had caught glimpses of God’s glory.

God’s glory-cloud descended on this whole bunch

gathered on the mountain,

and the voice of your Father spoke,

“This is my beloved Son,

with whom I am well pleased.

Listen to him” (Matthew 17:5).

The disciples sank to the ground,

terrified by it all.

But you, the fiery yet gentle Jesus,

touched them,

telling them,

“Rise, and have no fear” (Matthew 17:7).

Lord, may we see your glory

even in this very story.

And may we imagine your glory

shining today into every crack and crevice of sin,

every rupture and ravage of evil,

healing and cleansing

and bringing hope to hurting hearts.

In your beautiful name. Amen.

Read Matthew 17:1-13.

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A Prayer about Ascribing Glory to the Lord

by Elizabeth | May 19, 2023 | Daily Prayer, worship, gratitude

A Prayer about Ascribing Glory to the Lord

Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Psalm 29:1

Glorious Lord,

It’s easy to come to you in prayer

with a grocery list of wants and needs.

Forgive us for forgetting

that the best prayer starts

with recognizing your glory,

your strength,

your splendor,

your holiness,

your majesty,

and your might.

Thank you for Psalm 29,

which reminds us that we join

with heavenly beings

when we pause to reflect

on your glory.

Today, we join David in awe

at just a few of your many marvels:

Your “voice” is “over the waters” (29:3),

waters which in ancient times were chaotic and dangerous.

In other words, you establish order in the midst of chaos.

Your voice “breaks the cedars of Lebanon” (29:5),

the renowned and majestic trees

of the great ancient city of Lebanon;

in other words, your power overcomes

the most powerful forces we face.

Your voice “shakes the wilderness” (29:8),

a dangerous and murderous world in ancient times;

in other words, you grab what threatens us

and shake it to its core.

And on and on we can go

ascribing your glory to you.

Thank you for these reminders of your glory

that change the list of requests we name.

For indeed, what we truly want and need most

is for your glory to reign forever and ever.

In Jesus’ glorious name. Amen.

Pray Psalm 29 (aloud).

A Prayer about Seeing God’s Glory

by Elizabeth | May 15, 2023 | Daily Prayer, worship, gratitude

A Prayer about Seeing God’s Glory

But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.’ Luke 5:8

God of Glory, Holy Lord,

Recently our pastor encouraged us

to pray to see God’s glory.

I’m so thankful for his encouragement.

Glory is such a weighty and unwieldy concept to grasp.

Furthermore, Isaiah 6:3 tells us,

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty;

the whole earth is filled with his glory.”

So in other words, your holiness and your glory are intertwined.

How do we grasp your holiness and your glory?

I think Peter gives us a clue in this moment with Jesus.

He was a fishermen; he knew fish.

He had been fishing all night

without catching so much as a minnow.

So when Jesus, after concluding one of his teaching sessions,

tells him to cast his nets,

we can imagine Peter’s eye-roll.

And we can also imagine the commanding look

Jesus gave him in return,

because Peter quickly says,

“But at your word I will let down the nets.”

Sure enough, so many fish swim into the nets

they almost burst wide open.

And it is here that Peter sees Jesus

for who he really is.

Holy.

Glorious.

Something other.

Something beyond.

Something beautiful.

And that is why this rough and rowdy fisherman

collapses in a pile of fish

and prays this prayer,

“Depart from me,

for I am a sinful man, O Lord.’

How we thank you for your holiness, Lord,

for your glory,

and for how you reveal it to us.

May we see it all day every day—

in the sun and moon and stars

and fish and faces and fellowship,

in your Word and in your work in this world.

In Jesus’ beautiful name we pray. Amen.

Read Isaiah 6:3; Luke 5:1-11.

A Prayer about Giving Thanks to Our God

by Elizabeth | Mar 14, 2023 | Daily Prayer, gratitude, Lent, worship, gratitude

A Prayer about Giving Thanks to Our God

You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God; I will extol you. Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever. Psalm 118:28

Loving Lord,

May we address you as this psalmist does:

Firmly, emphatically, declaring:

“You are my God,”

not my children, my work,

my dating life, my sports, my home,

or any other thing on this earth

that we sometimes serve and worship.

And oh, how thankful we are,

with the psalmist,

that you are our God,

because you have rescued us

“out of [our] distress and set [us] free” (Psalm 118:5).

[Name some of the distress he rescued you out of.]

Because you sent your Son to us, we “extol” you—

we praise you,

we talk about how great you are and how much we love you.

[Name some things you love about God.]

And then, like the psalmist,

we turn to others and invite them into our praise:

“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for he is good…”

because we know your praise

was always intended to be sung in a chorus, not as a solo.

In Jesus’ steadfast name. Amen.

Read Psalm 118:1-29.