The Pastor’s Corner

Prayer: Grant, Almighty God, that since Thou art pleased kindly to invite us to Thyself and hast consecrated thy Word for our salvation --
O grant that we may willingly, and from the heart, obey Thee and become so teachable that what Thou hast designed for our salvation may not turn to our perdition.
But may that incorruptible seed by which Thou dost regenerate us into a hope of the celestial life so drive its roots into our hearts and bring forth fruit that Thy name may be glorified.
And may we be so planted in the courts of Thy house that we may grow and flourish, and that fruit may appear through the whole course of our life, until we shall at length enjoy that blessed life that is laid up for us in heaven, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
(Lifting Up Our Hearts: 150 Selected Prayers of John Calvin. Edited by Dustin W. Benge)

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Prayer: Grant almighty God that we, as your redeemed people who have been called by your name, would honor you in the ways you have commanded. You have given us your moral law and taught us what is good, right, and holy. We grieve our failure in all areas of your law, and we especially lament our lack of zeal for the Christian Sabbath, the Lord's Day. We are ashamed of how worldly we are as we order our day. Too often, we engage in behavior and activities contrary to the demands of your law -- a law you gave for our good as the Sabbath is made for man and not man for the Sabbath. We confess that we are short-sighted of what the Lord's Day exemplifies for us: our eternal rest. Our Father, forgive us and help us to take full advantage of the day set apart as holy as we gather as your people, sing your praises, pray, and hear you speak to us through the preaching of your Word.

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Prayer: Almighty God and heavenly Father, we praise you and thank you for giving us your eternal Word. We stand in awe of your condescending grace in providing us with your mind and will, which guides our steps and lights our path. Without your Word, we would be lost and blind and unable to discern what is good and right and true. Throughout your Word, you teach your desire to redeem a people for yourself that they might be holy and blameless in your sight. Ever since our first parents fell in the garden, you have been reversing the effects of sin through the labor of the seed of the woman who came, lived, served, obeyed, and died for the sins of his people. Yet, though we have a bountiful number of copies of your Word, too often we fail to use it, read it, and meditate on it. We know that your Word is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, which is profitable for all things pertaining to life and godliness. Yet, we often neglect it and fail to consume it as our daily bread. Forgive us, Father, and grant us a greater desire to read and study your Word so that we might not sin against you.

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Prayer: Our glorious and majestic God in heaven, we thank you and praise you for another day to serve you and offer our lives a living sacrifice to your glory. Though we are your people, we often stray from your commands and use our tongues for evil instead of good. With the same mouth, we bless you and curse others. We are prone to think the worst of our brothers and sisters instead of extending maximum charity. We harbor ill-will, and bitterness grows in us like a rotten weed choking out all that is good and right. Indeed, our tongues are a restless evil -- small and capable of great destruction -- as a spark will level whole forests, so too our tongues destroy lives. Forgive us, Father, for our loose lips that demonstrate the evil in our hearts. Forgive us for failing to remember that you have not treated us as we deserve but extended your grace through the labors and death of your beloved Son. Please grant us more of the love described in your Word and help us to demonstrate it to others. Though our sin in this area is reprehensible in your sight, we know that even that cannot outrun your grace extended to all those who seek you in humility.

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Prayer: Our most glorious and majestic God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we bless and adore your name today because you have been kind and compassionate to your people. You have not treated us as our sins deserve. We know and confess that we are prone to wander and stray from your commands. You have told us to love you with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Yet, we fall short of that command and plead with you to give us what you command. We long for that day when the church militant will be the church at rest. We lament our fallen condition and are repulsed by our wicked hearts and thoughts that press in on our lives each day. We know that you have made us a new creation and that we are being transformed by renewing our minds day today. We long for more of your grace that we would honor you with our whole being. Forgive us, Father, for the ways we fail you. We thank you that we are your children, bought with a great price, ushered into a heavenly family with Christ as our elder brother who secured our redemption through his life and death.

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Prayer: Grant almighty God that we as your redeemed people would love your church, the very bride of your beloved Son, as you do. We grieve at how poorly we treat her at times. We see how she is sometimes maligned, scorned, and treated with selfish motives and goals. We sometimes use the church to promote our ego and fail to use the gifts you have given to us for the good of your people. We see our grievous attitudes and how we act immaturely when we do not get what we want in the way we want it. We are ashamed that we do not treat the church with the dignity, respect, and honor you give her. Forgive us, Father. Please grant to us a great love for your church, the very bride of your dear Son. Please grant us patience with others in the church, a zeal to serve and love them, and a willingness to extend maximum charity.

We ask that you would strengthen your church wherever she may be found. We plead with you to purify her and make her a beautiful bride adorned with beauty and majesty for her husband. We pray that your church would boast in their husband, the Lord Jesus Christ, and exalt him in all things. Finally, we ask for your church to be useful salt and light in a decaying and dark world. We ask these things through Christ our Lord, the church's king, head, and husband. Amen.

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Prayer: Grant, Almighty God, that as we have not only been created by Thee, but when Thou hast placed us in this world Thou has also enriched us with abundance of all blessings --
O grant that we may not transfer to others the glory due to Thee, and that especially since we are daily admonished by Thy Word, and even severely reproved, we may not with an iron hardness resist, but render ourselves pliable to Thee, and not give ourselves up to our own devices, but follow, with true docility and meekness, that rule Thou hast prescribed in Thy Word, until at length having put off all the remains of errors, we shall enjoy that blessed light Thou hast prepared for us in heaven, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Grant, almighty God,
since during our pilgrimage in this world we have daily need of the teaching and government of Thy Spirit, that with true modesty we may depend on Thy Word and secret inspiration and not take too much on ourselves.
Grant, also, that we may be conscious of our ignorance, blindness, and stupidity, and always flee to Thee, and never permit ourselves to be drawn aside in any way by the cunning of Satan and of the ungodly. May we remain so fixed in Thy truth as never to turn aside from it whilst Thou dost direct us through the whole course of our vocation, and then may we arrive at that heavenly glory that has been obtained for us through the blood of Thine only begotten Son. Amen.

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Prayer: Grant, almighty God, that your people, called by your name and bought with an immeasurable price, would gather to praise you and adore you today in spirit and truth with holiness of heart and mind. We are your people and the sheep of your pasture, and we come to make a joyful noise to you and to serve you with gladness and joy. We long to be in the gates of your temple, entering with thanksgiving for all you have done for us. But, though we are your sheep and you the Good Shepherd, we know that there are times when we go astray looking beyond the pasture you have set for us. We are ashamed at how easily we turn from the place you bring us and, instead, turn to other things that will never satisfy our weary and restless souls. Forgive us, Lord, and remind us that you are good to your people, faithful through all ages and for all time.

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Prayer: Our most glorious and wise God, we thank you and praise you for revealing yourself to your creatures. You have declared your glory through all that you have made. You preach your majesty each day as we take note of the sunrise and star shine. Each day we see the changing of the weather, and each season we take note of your habits. We thank you for your Word, which reveals who you are in exacting and precise nature. We bless you for the wisdom of your Word and how it is a light for our feet to guide us on the path of this life. Forgive us, Father, for how often we move through our day failing to thank you and praise you for what you allow us to see. Forgive us for not spending time in your Word, sitting at your feet, and learning from the eternal Spirit that penned it. Please grant us a great willingness and zeal to read, meditate, hear, and do all that your Word tells us to do.

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Prayer: Grant almighty God that your people who you have loved from all eternity would serve you and glorify you with their whole heart, soul, mind, and strength. We are your people, and we have been bought with a tremendous price in which you demonstrated that love by being pleased to crush your own Son for the sake of sinful people. We are those people that you have brought safely out of Egypt and are moving steadily toward our heavenly rest. Forgive us, Lord, for our cold hearts that are so often wayward. We are ashamed by how much we know and how little we do to honor you. Our obedience is often weak, and it is often mixed with thoughts that are far from you. We long for that day when we will no longer struggle with indwelling sin. Please forgive, our God, and help us.

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Prayer: Our Father in heaven, you alone are holy and deserving of our praise, love, adoration, and worship. As your redeemed people, we have given up all rights to our lives and have been called by you to serve you as living sacrifices. We thank you that you rescued us from a life of misery brought on by sin. Though we still live in a fallen world, we do not live like those without hope as we cling to the promise of the New Heavens and the New Earth. We look forward with great expectation to the day when our faith will be sight, and we will be our Savior. Until then, Father, please continue to work in us a greater love and zeal for you and your Word. Your Word is life to our weary souls, and through it, you tell us all that we need to live to your glory in this world. Please help us and sustain us and cause us to remain free from the stain of this world being conformed daily to your image.

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