prayer – A spiritual diary

6.12.23: In your hand

December 5, 2023Ruth Kirk

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God (Romans 8:26-7; NIV).

My prayers are in your hand, Lord God;
My prayers are in your hand:
Your Spirit prays on my behalf,
For I’m at your command.

When you bring pleasure, I rejoice;
When insight, I receive;
When you bring others’ pain to mind,
You help me intercede.

When you bring silence, I am hushed;
When you reprove, repent;
When you bring stillness, I’m at rest;
When peace, Lord, I’m content.

My thoughts are in your hand, Lord God,
My words and actions, too;
My life is in your hands, and so
I give my self to you.

I give myself to you (Psalm 86:4; NLT).

References

Our lives are in his hands (Psalm 66:9; NLT).

The life of every living thing is in his hand, and the breath of every human being (Job 12:10; NLT).

I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine (Song of Songs 2:16; NIV).

23.11.23: One with Christ

November 23, 2023Ruth Kirk

Everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him (Philippians 3:8-9; NLT).

May we be one with Christ
In prayer:
Joining with him
In peace and love.

May we be one with Christ
In all:
Seeing his face
In friend and foe.

May we be one with Christ
In joy:
Praising with those
In heaven above.

May we be one with Christ
In grief:
Yielding with him
On earth below.

Jesus left them a second time and prayed, “My Father! If this cup cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done” (Matthew 26:36-9, 42; NLT).

References

I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one – as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me (John 17:21-3; NLT).

You are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28; NLT).

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

Your immortal spirit is in every one of them (Wisdom of Solomon 12:1; GNTA).

Love your neighbour as yourself (Leviticus 19:18; NLT).

Love your enemies (Matthew 5:44; NLT).

I heard what sounded like a vast crowd in heaven shouting, “Praise the LORD! (Revelation 19:1; NLT).

He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death” (Matthew 26:38; NLT).

9.11.23: Christ is all

November 9, 2023Ruth Kirk

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

No matter what each new day brings,
I want to make this prayer my key:
May I see you in all, Lord,
And may all see you in me.

No matter what each new day holds,
I want to serve in all I do:
May I love you in everyone,
And grow much more like you.

The Lord – who is the Spirit – makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image (2 Corinthians 3:18; NLT).

7.11.23: A love-letter

November 7, 2023Ruth Kirk

This prayer came to me in the middle of the night, when I looked out of my bedroom window. I couldn’t sleep, because the day before we had made an offer for a small, wheelchair-accessible bungalow in a nearby town.

Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will leave this life. The LORD gives, and the LORD takes away. Blessed be the name of the LORD (Job 1:21; CSB).

My beloved Father,

As long as I have this beautiful view from my room, I feel I can cope with whatever life brings. Yet I will lose it soon, for we must move.

As long as I can write, and post prayers on my website, I feel my life has a purpose. But I already know that one day, at a time of your choosing, you will stop giving me any more prayers.

As long as I have my much-loved icons around me, I feel I can face whatever losses and suffering you send. However, even these icons will have to be left behind one day. Then, no matter what comes, I must go on without their help.

As long as I can pray, I feel that my life is worth living, because I can experience your presence, no matter what I have to endure. Nevertheless, I realise that I won’t necessarily always be able to pray.

Lord, as I grow older, more unwell, forgetful and disabled, my life is slowly reducing to the absolute essentials of faith, hope, and love. These I will consciously cling to for as long as I possibly can. Yet even when I can cling no longer, whatever happens, I know that nothing can ever separate me from your love, because:

From the beginning, long before my life began, for as long as it continues, and eternally, beyond my death, I am part of you, my God, and I am one with you.

Thank you, beloved Lord, that nothing can ever take this truth away.

For I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow – not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below – indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-9; NLT).

References…

The LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul (Genesis 2:7; KJV).

I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb (Jeremiah 1:5; NLT).

There is in humans a Spirit, the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding (Job 32:8; GWT).

Then he [Jesus] breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:22; NLT).

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

The dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 12:7; NIV).

…and further references

Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the LORD! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! (Habakkuk 3:17-18; NLT).

I tell you the truth, when you were young, you were able to do as you liked; you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will dress you and take you where you don’t want to go (John 21:18; NLT).

Three things will last forever – faith, hope, and love – and the greatest of these is love (1 Corinthians 13:13; NLT).

I cling to you; your strong right hand holds me securely (Psalm 63:8; NLT).

I want your will to be done, not mine (Luke 22:42; NLT).

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him (Job 13:15; KJV).

5.11.23: Filled with prayer

November 5, 2023November 5, 2023Ruth Kirk

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).

Lord,
May my exile here
Be filled with prayer,
And all my days on earth
Be shaped by love.

Lord,
May my pathway here
Be lit by joy,
Guiding me step by step
To heaven above.

Lord,
May my thinking here
Be formed by peace,
And all my words and deeds
Framed by your law.

Lord,
May my journey here
Be made with thanks,
Then I’ll be one with you
For evermore.

Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him (Philippians 3:8-9; NLT).

19.10.23: Wait for God (for J.)

October 19, 2023October 19, 2023Ruth Kirk

I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning (Psalm 130:6; NIV).

1. Throughout the silent watches
Of the night,
Just wait for God alone,
For He is near.

2. No need to say a word –
He knows them all.
Just wait with God alone,
For He is here.

3. Our Father lives in you,
And you, in Him,
So wait in God alone,
Just wait, and share

4. The darkness, dryness, silence –
All is well:
Together, you are one,
And this is prayer.

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

References

Verse 1:

I lie awake thinking of you, meditating on you through the night. Because you are my helper, I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings (Psalm 63:6-7; CSB).

Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD (Psalm 27:14; NIV).

The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart (Psalm 34:18; NKJV).

Verse 2:

Before a word is on my tongue you, LORD, know it completely (Psalm 139:4; NIV).

The LORD is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it! (Genesis 28:16; NLT).

I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! (Psalm 139:7; NLT).

Verse 3:

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them (1 John 4:16; NIV).

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done (Philippians 4:6; NLT).

Verse 4:

If you are walking in darkness, without a ray of light, trust in the LORD and rely on your God (Isaiah 50:10; NLT).

Moses approached the thick darkness where God was (Exodus 20:21; NIV).

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water (Psalm 63:1; NIV).

The LORD is in his holy Temple. Let all the earth be silent before him (Habakkuk 2:20; NLT).

Be silent before the LORD, all humanity (Zechariah 2:13; NLT).

We are the temple of the living God. As God said: “I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people” (2 Corinthians 6:16; NLT).

All is well (1 Kings 5:4; NLT).

13.10.23: When you send a prayer

October 13, 2023Ruth Kirk

I want your will to be done, not mine (Luke 22:42; NLT).

Father,

When you send a prayer
I make a willing sacrifice:
I listen, thank you, write, and share
Each insight, for the sake of Christ.

When you give a revelation,
I will leave my contemplation,
Giving up your consolation:
Every prayer, a consummation.

So, this is my promise, Lord:
I’ll gladly give up anything
You ask. May every word outpoured
Be nurtured well, and then take wing.

When you give a revelation,
I will leave my contemplation,
Giving up your consolation:
Every prayer, a consummation.

And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word (Luke 1:38; KJV).

References

The LORD gives, and the LORD takes away. Blessed be the name of the LORD (Job 1:21; CSB).

“Give whatever he takes, with a big smile” (Saint Mother Theresa).

11.10.23: Hear my call

October 11, 2023October 11, 2023Ruth Kirk

Parable of the Good Shepherd by Philips Galle, 1565: metmuseum.org.

Hello to everyone who visits here. Yesterday I decided to stop describing how each prayer comes to me. This is because my energy is now so limited. If there is anything I feel I should share, I will briefly outline it. Otherwise, from now on I’ll just post my blogs. Meanwhile, my twice-daily intercessions for all readers will continue unchanged.

So, this is what God showed me yesterday:

Hear my voice when I call, LORD; be merciful to me and answer me (Psalm 27:7; NIV).

Come quickly, LORD, and help me (Psalm 70:1; NLT).

Yahweh, Father, hear my call
And come to me, my All in All.

When I sin, Lord, hear my prayer,
For You, alone, can pardon me.

When I’m lost, please seek me out,
For You, alone, can rescue me.

When I fall, Lord, lift me up,
For You, alone, can steady me.

When I die, please walk with me,
For You, alone, can comfort me.

Yahweh, Father, hear my call
And come to me, my All in All.

The Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all (1 Corinthians 15:28; NIV).

10.10.23: Sharing (for B.B.)

October 10, 2023Ruth Kirk

Yesterday I woke at 3am, began to pray, and was immediately flooded with the joy of God’s presence. As today’s verses began to flow, I marvelled at all the different experiences God wants to share with us during prayer.

Although I received the first few lines in words, and could see the shape and rhythm of the whole poem, it proved astonishingly difficult to put into words. The first rough draft was completed just after 8am, but the whole piece wasn’t finished until 11.30 last night!

In your presence is fullness of joy. In your right hand there are pleasures for evermore (Psalm 16:11; WEB).

Prayer is such a pleasure, Lord,
So, may I rest in you alone,
Sharing the joy and peace you bring:
Father, you want my soul to sing.

Prayer is such a banquet, Lord,
So, may I feast with you each day,
Sharing your pain and ecstasy:
Father, you set my poor soul free.

Prayer is such a wellspring, Lord,
So, may I intercede for all,
Sharing the love that you outpour:
Father, you help my soul to soar.

Prayer is such a comfort, Lord,
So, may I lodge here through life’s storms,
Sharing your perfect truth and light:
Father, you make our souls unite.

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

References

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

Listen to my prayer and my plea, O LORD my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is making to you today (1 Kings 8:28; NLT).

Since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering (Romans 8:17; NLT).

Those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles (Isaiah 40:31l NLT).

May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light (Colossians 1:12; NLT).