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Archive for the ‘Prayers’ Category

You and Me

Posted in Free Verse / Poetry, Prayers on July 25, 2011| Leave a Comment »

We were created to be with You

Which is why life is so chaotic and confusing without you

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Lord, help me to be ever mindful of Your nearness

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We were meant to follow You

Which is what makes us so susceptible to pursuing the agenda’s of mere men

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Lord, train my eyes to remain fixed upon the Author & Finisher of my faith

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We were crafted in Your image

Which is why we struggle to “find ourselves” without You

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Lord, transform me by the power of Your most Holy Spirit

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We were made to love You

Which is why no other relationship seems to fill the void within us

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Lord, help me to love You, with all of my heart, soul & spirit

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We were fashioned for worship

Which is why we so easily fall into idolatry

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Lord, guard my heart against the treason of my human nature

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We were designed with a purpose

Which is why life seems so meaningless to those who don’t know You

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Lord, guide me to the destiny that You have ordained for me

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We were first conceived by You

And to You we shall one day return

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Lord, I pray that on the day we come face to face, all that I am will have already been placed in your hands

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The Breaking of the Dawn

Posted in Free Verse / Poetry, Prayers on June 21, 2011| 1 Comment »

I wake in the midst of this classroom called “life”

The walls of my being like chalkboards

Covered with the dusty remnants of lessons already taught

Full of information, but devoid of context

 

Like graffiti scrawled across my soul

Thoughts and feelings and fears and dreams swirl within me

Each one, like an eager child

Trying to shove their way to the front of the line

 

As I climb from my bed, they crowd around me

Trying to bully me into a corner

The morning fog obscures my vision

And the undertow pulls at my footing

 

In the dim light of the dawn, I ponder the possibility of retreat

Maybe I’m the wrong man

In the wrong place

At the wrong time

 

But then, like a flash of lightning penetrating my spirit

I remember that this is the day that You have made

That through You, all things are possible

And that I am Yours

 

Come Lord Jesus

Come most Holy Spirit

Wash my slates clean with Your word

As I surrender afresh to Your will

 

Create in me, O Lord, a clean heart

And renew in me a right spirit

Guide me in the faith You’ve authored

And be glorified in my days

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Heart Check

Posted in Free Verse / Poetry, Prayers on September 22, 2010| Leave a Comment »

“The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked;

who can know it?”  (Jer 17:9)

 

I say that I’m one of Your sheep

But how well do I know Your voice

 

I say that everything that I have is Yours

But am I willing to take the test that You gave Job

 

I say that I am Your follower

But am I willing to wait for Your direction

 

I say that I am a new creation

But can there be a resurrection if there has been no death

 

I say that my hope is in You

But how is it then that I am so easily discouraged

 

I say that I trust You

But am I willing to put my Isaac (i.e. the fulfillment of Your promises, my hope for the future…) on the altar of sacrifice

 

I say that I’m in Your Army

But can I really be of service if I don’t know how to wield a sword

 

I say I want Your will to be done in my life

But am I really like the prodigal son, trying to demand and spend my inheritance on my own terms

 

I say that I want to see signs and wonders for Your glory

But how wicked and perverse can a generation become before no sign will be given

 

I say that You are my Savior

But is that possible if You are not also my Lord

 

I say that I want to be like You

But am I willing to be a man of no reputation or a man of sorrows who is acquainted with grief

 

“Search me O God and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.” 

(Ps 139:23-24)

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Change My Name

Posted in Heart of "The Father", Prayers on August 30, 2010| 4 Comments »

Dearest Lord Jesus, as this new day begins I confess my utter dependence upon You

Without Your grace I would not have the breath to speak

Indeed this is the day that You have made

and

I do rejoice that I may be a part of it

But Lord, I pray that this would not be just another day, like so many others in my life

A day filled with my own thoughts and lived under my own power

 

I confess O Lord that I have been like Abram, afraid for people to know who I am

And that I have been like Jacob, a manipulator, trying to gain my own life

That I have also been like Simon, bold in the safety of your presence, yet weak before men

And that I have been like Saul, enacting judgment on those whom You love

Come Holy Spirit and rise up within me

Consume the darkness of my nature

 

I have heard your words Lord, but my heart has not fully grasped them

I need your heart, for my love is a pitiful, small thing

I want to love like You love, gently, patiently, unconditionally

Without You Lord, I have nothing to give

I have no wisdom of my own,

no power of my own,

no righteousness of my own

All of these are Yours

It is only by Your grace that I partake of them

 

You have said that You’ve destined me to be conformed to Your image

Lord I pray, come quickly and do Your Holy work in me

Change my name Lord

Like Abraham, give me a heart full of faith

Like Israel, fulfill in me the promise of a great nation

Like Peter, give me a heart of boldness for You

Like Paul, remove the scales from my eyes, that I might live by Your truth

 

Lord I want to disappear into Your Spirit

Until all the world sees is You

I pray my life would be an invitation to You

 A pleasing aroma in Your nostrils

That You would be blessed and glorified in it

 

Change my heart

Change my name

Change my life

Amen

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A Soldier’s Creed

Posted in Prayers on April 6, 2010| 3 Comments »

I am a warrior in a battle unseen

My armor is intact

Though outwardly I am perishing

Inwardly I am renewed day by day

 

My battle is not against flesh and blood

But against everything that exalts itself against the knowledge of God

The weapons of my warfare are not carnal in nature

But mighty for the pulling down of strongholds

 

In this land I am but a foreigner

A man of little repute

Yet in the country of my citizenship

the King’s enemies know my name

 

Though the earth shakes beneath my feet

Peace abides within me

In seasons of abundance

My spirit remains vigilant

 

I am a warrior in a battle unseen

My armor is intact

Though pressed on every side, I am not crushed

Though persecuted, never abandoned

 

Though my enemy swaggers like a conqueror

and speaks as though a judge

The sword of truth rends every deception

It’s might sets me free

 

Though fiery arrows may find me

I will not be consumed

Though I am struck down

I will not be destroyed

 

These battles that rage around me

are for gains that will one day vanish

But the battle of the unseen realm

is for a Kingdom that has no end

 

I am a warrior in a battle unseen

My armor is intact

I will not be moved

For history has already recorded my victory

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An Invitation

Posted in Prayers on February 15, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Dear Lord, as I begin a new day I confess my utter dependence on You

I do not have the strength nor wisdom nor purity of heart to face this day without You

Indeed I am undone, a man of unclean lips who comes from a people of unclean lips

Often more filled with my flesh than with Your Spirit

I pray that my life would be an invitation to You

Because apart from You, I can do nothing

Lord I want to thank You for the abundance of my life

For a loving wife, for beautiful healthy children, for a wonderful family & friends

But I confess Lord that I have yet to love my wife as You loved the church

That I don’t always demonstrate Your character to those I claim to love

I pray that my life would be an invitation to You

Because only You can work all things to the good of those who seek to fulfill Your purpose

Lord I confess that I have stared into the darkness & that at times it has overwhelmed me

That I have battled discouragement from the things that I’ve seen & heard

That I am often afraid of the kind of world that my children are growing up in

That I’ve often overestimated the enemy and underestimated You

I pray that my life would be an invitation to You

Because only “perfect love” casts out fear

Lord I pray for my family, they are a precious gift from You

I have tried to be a spiritual leader, but I have often failed to yield to Your Spirit

I have often tried to serve You and them in my own strength and I’ve fallen woefully short

It is clear to me that I cannot change a heart or even a mind

I pray that my life would be an invitation to You

Because no one comes to You unless You draw them

Lord I thank You for the changes that You’ve brought about in me and my life

I thank You that You didn’t hand me over to my own stubborn pursuits

That Your love has covered the multitude of my sins

But Lord despite Your abundant gifts to me, I have yielded little fruit

I pray that my life would be an invitation to You

Because only You are able to complete the good work You’ve begun in me

Lord I pray that this day would be different from all of the others

That it wouldn’t be about my wants, needs, desires, thoughts…

But that it would be a day lived for You and about You and through You

That every thought would be in subjection to You, that my body would be a living sacrifice

I pray that my life would be an invitation to You

Because You are worthy of my praise – Amen

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The Work That Only You Can Do

Posted in Prayers on February 15, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Lord, as I rise this morning, I confess that I am in need of the new mercies that You have set aside for me this day

I plead the blood of Jesus over my family and our home

I pray that no evil thing and that no thing in the natural could have its’ way in our home or in our family; that only You, by the power of Your Holy Spirit would have authority over us

Lord I lift up my precious wife to You and I thank You for the gift of her in my life

I pray that You would manifest Your love within me, so that I might love her as You have loved Your church

But Lord I know that no matter how much I love her, I cannot heal the hurts of the past or take away the challenges of today or bring her into the destiny You have for her;

So I pray that You would do the work that only You can do within her heart

Pull back the veil of deception that would try to keep her bound to the things of the past

I pray that You would manifest Yourself to her as the Comforter and the Counselor and the Healer and as the loving Father that You are.

Lord I lift up my beautiful family to You and I thank You for the gift of them in my life

I pray that You would manifest Your strength and gentleness within me, so that I might be the Father and the Son and the Brother that You have called me to be

But Lord I know that no matter how well I serve my family today, it will not keep them from the struggles that this life brings;

So I pray that You would do the work that only You can do in them

Pull back the veil of deception that would try to keep them grounded in the things of this world

I pray that You would go before them, that Your sovereign hand would be upon them and that You would draw them unto Yourself.

Lord I lift up this community, Your church and even this nation to You; I thank You for the freedom and the favor that we have known

I pray that You would manifest Your compassion and grace within me, so that I might love my neighbor as myself

But Lord I know that even if I am a faithful witness of Your goodness, that to those who are perishing, the cross is foolishness.

So I pray that You would do the work that only You can do in them

Pull back the veil of deception that means to keep their souls bound up in our fallen nature

I pray that You take the seeds that have been planted and watered, and bring about the increase that can only come from You.

Lord I come before You and thank You for the abundance of my life

I pray that Your character would be fully manifest within me and that You would somehow be glorified in my life

But Lord I know that my desire to be transformed into Your image is not enough to bring it about;

So I pray that You would come and do the work that only You can do

Pull back the veil of deception that tries to keep me from being the man I was created to be and walking in the inheritance that You died to give me

I pray that You would change my mind, change my heart and complete the good work that You have already begun it me.

In Jesus’ Precious Name – Amen

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