Category: Pray

Don’t try!

Ruth Kirk

Pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17; NIV).

Don’t try to make yourself pray:
Just offer your thinking
To Christ.

Don’t try to make yourself pray:
Just pour out your troubles
To him.

Don’t try to make yourself pray:
Just face all your anguish
With Christ.

Don’t try to make yourself pray:
Just share all your burdens
With him.

Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light” (Matthew 11:28-30; NLT).

Blessed be the LORD! Day after day he bears our burdens (Psalm 68:19; CSB).

References

I am the one who answers your prayers and cares for you (Hosea 14:8; NLT).

Surely he took up our pain, and bore our suffering (Isaiah 53:4; NIV).

In all their suffering he also suffered, and he personally rescued them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them. He lifted them up and carried them through all the years (Isaiah 63:9; NLT).

Hope

Ruth Kirk

Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be” (Romans 4:18; NIV). 

Let’s hope,
Despite hopelessness;
Love,
Despite loneliness;

Serve,
Despite suffering;
Live,
Despite loss.

Let’s pray,
Despite pointlessness;
Wait,
Despite weariness;

Trust,
Despite trials –
And carry
Our cross.

Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23; NLT).

I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world (John 16:33; NLT).

 

When you ask for healing

Ruth Kirk

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them (1 Timothy 2:1; NLT).

When you ask for healing,
Pray for others, too.
Pray for those who suffer
Yet nothing makes them new.
Plead for all who live with pain –
Jesus, make us whole again.

When you crave forgiveness,
Pray for all, as well.
Pray for those who’ve hurt you,
And caused you years of hell.
Plead for those who’ve spoiled your life –
Jesus, may we see your light.

When you seek salvation,
Pray for all the earth.
Pray for those who don’t believe
In God, who gave them birth.
Plead for those who just say, “No!” –
Jesus, help us change and grow.

I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is (Ephesians 3:16-18; NLT).

It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow (1 Corinthians 3:7; NLT).

When praying…

Ruth Kirk

The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will (Romans 8:27-8; NLT).

When praying in silence,
Just open your mind,
And watch each distraction
Drift by.
No judgement, dismissal,
Denial, or guilt:
Just share all your thinking
With God.

When praying in stillness,
Just open your heart,
And watch every feeling
Flow past.
No shyness, resistance,
Repression, or shame:
Just share your emotions
With God. 

When praying in darkness,
Just open your soul,
And watch Yahweh’s Spirit
At work,
With patience, forgiveness,
Compassion, and love:
Just share in the oneness
Of God.

The LORD our God, the LORD is one (Deuteronomy 6:4; NIV).

The person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him (1 Corinthians 6:17; NLT).

References

We are the temple of the living God (2 Corinthians 6:16; NLT).

Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us (Colossians 3:11; NLT).

The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you (Romans 8:11; NLT).

Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light” (Matthew 11:28-30; NLT).

The way of love

Ruth Kirk

They hated me without cause (John 15:25; NLT).

When people criticise and blame,
Hate my writing, scorn my aim,
Love remains my only goal:
Lord, they cannot harm my soul.

When people tear my work apart,
Blast my motives, pierce my heart,
Love remains my only way:
Lord, I plead for them each day.

I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! (Matthew 5:44; NLT).

References

Follow the way of love (1 Corinthians 14:1; NIV).

Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God (Ephesians 5:1-2; NIV).

I know the LORD is always with me. I will not be shaken for he is right beside me (Psalm 16:8; NLT).

The way of the cross

Ruth Kirk

He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood (Luke 22:44; NLT).

Praying; grieving;
Sweating; pleading;

Slipping; sliding;
Stumbling; falling;

Stripping; nailing;
Lifting; reeling;

Bleeding; dying;
Rising; healing.

For you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture (Malachi 4:2; NLT).

Love and longing

Ruth Kirk

I love you, LORD (Psalm 18:1; NLT).

As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God (Psalm 42:1; NLT).

I love you, Lord,
And long for you;

Rejoice in you,
And pine for you.

I pray to you,
And ache for you;

I offer thanks,
And thirst for you.

I lift my hands to you in prayer. I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for water (Psalm 143:6; NLT).

I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him? (Psalm 42:2; NLT).

References

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18; NIV).

I long for the Lord more than sentries long for the dawn (Psalm 130:6; NLT).

I will pour out water to quench your thirst and to irrigate your parched fields. And I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children (Isaiah 44:3; NLT).

Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, “Rivers of living water will flow from his heart” (John 7:38; NLT).

When you awake

Ruth Kirk

When I awake, I am still with you (Psalm 139:18; NIV).

“If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. I will be found by you,” says the LORD (Jeremiah 29:14; NLT).

There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all (Ephesians 4:5-6; NLT).

When you awake,
Don’t even open your eyes
Until you are ready
To see God’s face
In everything,
And in everyone,
And in yourself.

When you awake,
Don’t even try to pray
Until you are ready
To hear God’s voice
In everything,
And in everyone,
And in yourself.

When you awake,
Don’t even start to move
Until you are ready
To know God’s presence
In everything,
And in everyone,
And in yourself.

When you awake,
Don’t even think about rising
Until you are ready
To love your Creator
In everything,
And in everyone,
And in yourself.

Suddenly, their eyes were opened, and they recognized him (Luke 24:31; NLT; my emphasis).

References

Thine incorruptible spirit is in all things (Wisdom of Solomon 12:1; KJV).

I am God, and not man; the Holy One within thee (Hosea 11:9; BST).

We are the temple of the living God (2 Corinthians 6:16; NLT).

God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them (1 John 4:16; NLT).

Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us (Colossians 3:11; NLT).

Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? (1 Corinthians 6:19; NLT).

Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me (Matthew 25:40; NIV).

Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me (Matthew 25:45; NLT).

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1; NLT).

He is the Creator of everything that exists (Jeremiah 51:19; NLT).

God, the LORD, created the heavens and stretched them out. He created the earth and everything in it. He gives breath to everyone, life to everyone who walks the earth (Isaiah 42:5; NLT).

The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life (Job 33:4; NLT).

A reading: Luke 10:25-28; NLT.

One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus replied, “What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?”

The man answered, “‘You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“Right!” Jesus told him. “Do this and you will live!”

God, our Maker

Ruth Kirk

Come, let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before the LORD our maker, for he is our God. We are the people he watches over, the flock under his care. If only you would listen to his voice today! (Psalm 95:6-7; NLT).

The Lord our God, the Lord is one (Mark 12:29; NIV).

God, our Maker,
Christ, your Son,
Holy Spirit:
You are One.

Every word you speak
Is true:
Trinity,
Please make us new.

You’re our light,
Our peace, our way:
Help us all
To love, and pray.

Save us; teach us;
Guide us through –
Then we’ll all
Be one with you.

The person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him (1 Corinthians 6:17; NLT).

References

The Spirit is truth (1 John 5:6; NKJV).

Restore our fortunes, LORD, as streams renew the desert (Psalm 126:4; NLT).

I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland (Isaiah 43:19; NT).

Let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes (Ephesians 4:23; NLT).

The one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true” (Revelation 21:5; NLT).

God is light (1 John 1:5; NLT).

The LORD is peace (Judges 6:24; NLT).

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me” (John 14:6; NLT)

Save us, O LORD our God! (Psalm 106:47; NLT).

He will teach us his ways, and we will walk in his paths (Micah 4:2; NLT).

He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name (Psalm 23:3; NLT).

The heart of the gospel

Ruth Kirk

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it (Luke 9:23-4; NLT).

The heart of the gospel:
Just follow Christ Jesus.

The heart of the gospel:
Just give up all sin.

The heart of the gospel:
Just take up your cross,

And the heart of the gospel:
Each day, serve like him.

The heart of the gospel:
Just ask for his Spirit.

The heart of the gospel:
Just constantly pray.

The heart of the gospel:
Rejoice in God’s presence.

The heart of the gospel:
Give thanks, come what may!

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18; NIV).