A Daily Prayer

Father, we are grateful to be among the redeemed who triumph in victory over sin and seek to please You in all things.  You have called us out from the influences of the world and yet You have also strategically placed us among those in the world who have yet to bow their knee in surrender to Your lordship. So many are searching but have not yet found the answer their heart is longing for; a deep, abiding peace.  This can only come from a relationship with You, Father.  You heal the broken-hearted, You forgive and restore the fallen one.  Help us to freely share that life-changing message with one who so desperately needs to hear it.  Amen.  

Father, as ambassadors of Your heavenly Kingdom, we want to be keenly sensitive to those whose difficulties seem overwhelming.  Some of our brothers and sisters are weighed down with troubling circumstances that might overtake them if not for those of us who take them by the arm and pull them up out of the quicksand of discouragement that ultimately sinks them further to depression or despair.  As we walk heart to heart and hand in hand with our family of believers we also weep with them in their sorrows and rejoice with them in their victories.  Would You lay upon my heart today two individuals, a believer and an unbeliever, and love their souls through me.  Help me to do my part to strengthen my brother or sister in their faith journey.  Reveal to me a way that I can show genuine concern for the unbeliever, through my caring words or in a loving deed, who needs to see the love of Christ represented in human form. In the blessed name of Jesus, I pray.  Amen

Father, year after year our lives are marked by change which brings growing transformation in our lives just as You rotate the seasons of the calendar bringing about distinct change in the weather pattern transforming all of nature.  As Solomon writes, there is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.  Our pilgrimage includes a time for gain and a time for loss, a time for plenty and a time for want, a time of understanding and a time of perplexity, a time for listening and a time for speaking, a time for searching and a time for finding.  In the midst of all these changes we are assured that You do not change, for You are the same yesterday, today and forever.  And in all these changes we are assured that You are working for our good, for we know that in all things You work for the good of those who love You, who have been called according to Your purpose.  We thank You for Your immutable nature that remains when all else changes.  Amen.

Father, we long to hear Your voice which gives us direction, affirmation, conviction, reproof, and comfort.  Help us with the spiritual exercise of observing how You are working in our own heart and in the lives of those around us.  And we especially need to observe the ways You are present in the daily grind of life.  The daily routine can easily squeeze out those special sightings of Your glorious presence and supernatural workings where You make visible that which is not seen with human eyes, but only through the eyes of faith.  True and Faithful God, just as You formed the universe with Your own hands, You also shape the human heart with Your own Spirit, bringing it into conformity to Your will for our lives.  Help us to surrender ourselves fully to You so that we are among those who have supernatural faith which makes us confident of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see with human eyes.

Father, Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Your Word is eternal and it stands firm in the heavens.  You give me understanding to learn your commands and the fortitude to apply these principles which is a life-changing process over my lifetime.  You established Your Law to last forever though it is often mocked by modern philosophers and those who want to sway the truth to their own liking.  Help us not to be intimidated by those who claim “more education” has made them wiser than the miraculous black and white truths delivered to us by the Holy Scriptures.  Help us to carefully exegete the Word of God as we earnestly contend for the faith once and for all entrusted to the saints.  Amen.

A Thankgiving prayer (written by Joe Sherer pastor of the Mount Joy Mennonite Church and shared as the benediction at our community Thanksgiving Eve service):

May the Lord bless you and keep you, May He make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you.

May the broad expanse of God’s love and the abundance of His riches in glory, shape your perspective on your own life and needs, including those things which disappoint you.

May the eyes of your heart be open to all the blessings which surround you; may this awareness produce a harvest of generosity in your spirit.

May thankfulness rise up within you, not just during this short season, but day after day, from the early morning watch until you retire for the night.

May your prayers reflect gratitude, while also acknowledging the needs of others whose situations are so drastically different.

May thoughts of Jesus fill your mind, and hunger for God drive your soul, and love for Lord guide your speech and your actions.

And finally, may the grace, peace, and love of the triune God, protect, defend, and empower you to run with perseverance the race marked out for you.

Amen.

In thanksgiving we lift our voices of praise from grateful hearts, Father, as we sing songs of praise and adoration to You, our blessed King.  Whether in seasons of prosperity or in seasons of want we find Your grace sufficient to meet each one of our needs.  You guide us, protect us, and You provide for us as we journey here below.  Every good and perfect gift comes from Your hand.  Thank You, faithful Father!  Amen.

 Father, I know that contentment with godliness is of great benefit.  It brings about a lasting peace and grateful heart that only You can give.  Help me not to focus so much on the material possessions that I lose sight of that which is of vital importance.  May the character of my soul and the fruit of my actions be of much greater importance than the perishable goods that capture my attention.  I look to You for proper balance in the things You have blessed me with and the attitude in which I receive these good things from Your hands. 

Father, it would be easy to be driven to despair in the midst of the evil that surrounds us if we didn’t walk in the light of Your truth.  We walk in the true wisdom that comes from heaven, not in the flawed wisdom that comes from the world.  Help us to make the most of every opportunity to stand up for divine truth in our speech and in our actions.  We want to be the light that shines forth in the creeping darkness of our land so that we can show others the way to eternal life.  In the name of Your dear Son, Jesus, we pray.  Amen.

Father, I want to walk in the wisdom of Your Holy Word as I make choices this day since the choices I will make tomorrow reflect the choices of today.  You’ve given me the freedom to choose but You’ve also given me the wisdom and insight to know that the weight of those decisions bring about good or bad.  May my actions not be based on man’s changing words or the standards of my brothers and sisters, for I know we are frail and subject to faulty thinking.  I want the standards of the unchanging, living Holy Word to be an anchor for my soul judging the thoughts and attitudes of my heart so that I will stay the course for which You have called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.  And help me to be watchful for those who are veering off course so that I can encourage them in the faith and be prayerful for their wandering souls.  In the name of Your Son, Jesus, I pray.  Amen.