The Pastor’s Corner

Prayer: Our most glorious God in heaven, we praise you and thank you for your many mercies and incessant faithfulness toward us, your redeemed people. We are thankful that you have revealed yourself to your creature -- men and woman made in your image. Thank you for your Word, which tells us of your kindness and compassion toward sinners and how you have been working throughout history to redeem a peculiar people to yourself. We are humbled that you call us the apple of your eye, your treasured possession, and a royal priesthood. We know that we are thus because of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for us. He who knew no sin became sin for us that we might have peace with you. We confess that we often live our lives consumed with the things of this world. We fail to store up treasures in heaven where moths and rust cannot destroy. We fail to seek first your kingdom and righteousness. We fail to set our minds on things above, and we fail to deny ourselves and follow all that the Savior commands. Forgive us, Lord. Please remember your promise to us to never leave us or forsake us. You are not like men. You do not lie. You have promised to persevere your people to the very end of their lives. So, please help us and cause us to walk in your ways until we reach that heavenly rest prepared for us through the work of the Lord Jesus.

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Prayer: Our God in heaven: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we praise your name today because you alone are God, and there is no other. You are sovereign, and you orchestrate all of our days according to the counsel of your own divine will. Your wisdom is beyond our understanding, and your ways are not our ways. We confess to you our miserable existence in a world experiencing the consequences of sin and rebellion. We witness the sowing of immorality, and we experience the results it brings. Your Word tells us that these things would happen to any person or nation that rejects you as the true God of heaven and earth. Thus, we sometimes grow weary and are often anxious about what is happening. Yet, we are also comforted by your Word that tells us that the king's heart is in your hand. Forgive us, Father, for often forgetting that no actual harm will come to your people. Though threats and violence constantly assail us, though we may face death as it has been appointed to all men, we know that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. We know that your Son has conquered death and the grave. Therefore, what can man do to us? Thank you, almighty God, for your comfort and grace, and thank you for preserving us to the very end. Please grant us an extra measure of your Spirit today as we pilgrim through it that we would do all to your glory we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Be pleased, our Father, to refresh the hearts of your people with the knowledge of who you are, what you have done, and what you promise us. We live in trying and difficult days. We know that there is nothing new under the sun, but we feel the weight of this fallen world all around us. We struggle with meeting our basic needs, caring for our families, and staying faithful to you. We are witnessing atrocities of the highest order in our world and grieve the things occurring in other countries. We are easily bothered by the smallest of circumstances and often forget that your providence is working for the good of your people. Though we indeed grieve these things, we confess to you that we are lazy, often seeking our kingdom more than we seek yours. We have not placed public worship and the preaching of your Word as the highest priority. We refuse to pray with and for your people, often neglecting the opportunity to gather and plead with you for those things that we see are wrong and constantly complain. Instead of using our time wisely, we spend too much of it on social media instead of on our knees. We would rather gripe about our leaders instead of praying for them, although your Word tells us that the heart of the king is in your hand. Forgive us, Lord, for these things. We desperately need your help, so please give us what you command us.

Please help our leaders and those leaders of other nations. We plead with you for their salvation. We plead for your church that she would remember her purpose in this world and strive to be faithful to all that the King and Head of the church commands. We ask for great revival through the means of grace. Finally, we plead with you to pour out your Spirit on us for the sake of Christ, your beloved Son in whose name we pray. Amen.

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Prayer: Almighty God, we praise you for your divine providence in ordering a new day for us. This day is no ordinary day because it is the day that you call your people away from their worldly cares, employment, and recreations to sit at the feet of the Savior and find rest and comfort for our souls. We confess to you, our God, that our souls are weary from the activities and cares of this life. The effects of sin are all around us and in us. We are burdened with so many things. We are less like Mary and more like Martha, anxious and troubled by many issues. We thank you that you gave us Lord's Day that we might have the good portion of this life and be reminded of the life to come. Please, O God, remind us of the rest that is ours in your Son. Please grant us something of your presence as we gather with our brothers and sisters in public worship. Please help us cast our cares on you because you care for us. Please help us to hear the living voice of our Savior today as your Word is preached, we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Grant, Almighty God, that we your people would not grow weary and faint in our journey from this land that is perishing to the land that will never pass away. As you are pleased to redeem us from the land of bondage, you are also pleased to leave us in this world of sin and misery for a season to run the race you have for us. Though we would rather be where you are, it is your eternal will to leave us to walk the road leading to our heavenly rest. Here, in this place, you are daily conforming us to the image of Christ and making us ready for the place where the eye has not seen, or ear hear what you have in store for those who love you. We confess that we sometimes grow weary in doing good. We admit to the occasional discouragement and temptation to give up and quit. We confess that we sometimes grumble and complain as the church of old did as they journeyed from Egypt to the Promised Land. We know how much that displeases you, and we mourn it and turn away from it placing our whole life in your hands. We are sometimes faithless though you remain faithful. We are occasionally discontented though you have proven your care for us day after day. Your faithfulness is new to us each morning. Please forgive us, Father. Please help us to remain steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of our Savior. Please give us a contented mind and heart, trusting in your good providence and fatherly care. Please grant us patience as we make this journey to a better country, we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Almighty God and Creator of all things, we praise you for the privilege of prayer, knowing that through it, we do not change your mind but only have our minds brought into alignment with yours. We pray, "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven," because there is much we do not know and have not been promised. Therefore, holy Father, we ask that you accomplish your purposes today in the world you made and in the church, you redeemed through the blood of the Great High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ. We ask that your people, especially, would be mindful of your will and seek to do all that glorifies you, whether in thought, word, or action. Though we know that your people sin and fall short of your glory, we are comforted with the eternal and unchanging truth that you are just and righteous, forgiving your people as they humble themselves before you. Though we are like sheep often going astray, you are the Good and unchanging Shepherd who loves your people and seeks them when they wander. Thank you, Father, for being so kind and gracious to us. Thank you for giving us your Spirit who helps us in prayer and practice as we seek to honor you. As a Father, you stand able and ready to help us. Help us, Lord!

Therefore, we cry out to you for the state of our souls and the state of the world. We are grieved at the events of the world you have made. Men, made in your image, promote themselves and boast in their wisdom. Yet, they do so to their folly and shame. Professing to be wise, they are fools. We long for righteous leaders who fear you and walk humbly with you. We know that a nation rejoices when these things are so. Therefore, we ask that you would be pleased to rescue our leaders from their misery, shame, and sin and open their eyes to the only hope they have -- the Lord Jesus in whose name we pray. Amen.

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Prayer: Our Father in heaven, we praise you because you are good. Your righteousness is from everlasting to everlasting, and your holiness is beyond our comprehension. Since you are holy, your demands as given in your law are just and right, pointing us to how we must live if we should dwell on your holy hill. Yet, we cannot keep your law perfectly in thought, word, or deed due to our fallen condition. We transgress it daily, always falling short of your glory. Therefore, we need a Redeemer, your only begotten Son who accomplished everything necessary to purchase our freedom, bringing us peace with you. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to you without him. We thank you for so great a salvation, yet many refuse it. We have friends and loved ones who reject the offer of forgiveness in Jesus Christ. Seeing, they cannot see. Hearing, they do not hear. Father, we plead with you to open their eyes and ears to the hope of Christ. Be pleased to rescue them from their pitiful condition and show them the beauty of the Savior. Please spare them from the wrath to come and usher them into your glorious kingdom.

We further pray that you would help your people walk worthy of the calling that they have received. Please help us walk humbly with you, mindful of the needs of others more than our own. Please help us to love with complete patience, kindness, and gentleness. Please help us to forgive the trespasses of others who have wronged us. Please grant to us your Spirit that we would do what you command we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Almighty God and Savior of your people, we thank you and praise you just as the church of old sang songs of worship to you when you safely brought them out of the land of bondage and sin. Like us, they too were ensnared by the messiness of sin, yet, through a mediator, you rescued them. So we, too, have been rescued from our pitiful state and tragic end through the Mediator, the Lord Jesus Christ. In him, we have forgiveness of sin, peace of conscience, joy in the Holy Spirit, an increase of grace, and the hope of perseverance to the very end of our lives. Like the church of old, we now journey to that heavenly city, a city not made with hands, reserved for all those who love you. We look forward to a better country that the eye has not seen or ear heard what you have in store for those who love you and have been loved by you. From all eternity, you have loved us, placing your favor on us. You have demonstrated your love in being pleased to crush your Son for our sake. Though we are like sheep, often going astray, you still love us and care for us. We thank you, our God, that your love is not fickle; that it does not depend on our efforts or labors. Like the church of old, we too stray, but your love remains. Please forgive us and help us to walk worthy of the calling that we have received and grant to us more love for you we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Grant almighty God that you would help your ministers as they seek to be faithful to the Good Shepherd of the Sheep. We know that they, too, are prone to wander. They are not immune to the trials and temptations of this life and are, often, under great attack from the world and the Evil One. We pray that you would protect our pastors today and give them an extra measure of your Spirit as they labor to guide and protect the sheep of your pasture. Please grant them a greater love for your Word, causing them to drink from the well of living water that will never run dry. Please give them insight and wisdom as they ponder the mind of the Spirit and seek to prepare a bounty for your people. Please provide them with guidance and strength as they deal with many issues within the life of the church. Help them as they care for the sick, the afflicted, the struggling, and the downcast. Help them as they pursue the wandering and wayward. Encourage them with your presence, for they are often discouraged by the state of your church and the world and are often under attack by those you have charged them to love. Restore to them the joy of your salvation and help them labor faithfully, pointing others to the glory of Christ. Protect them and lead them in the paths of righteousness we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Grant almighty God that we, as your redeemed people, would heed the warnings and instructions found in your Word and seek to live in it all of our days. As we read and meditate on your Word, we receive your counsel and mind. Your Spirit is communicating your will for our lives through it. Though there are times when we receive counsel from the ungodly, we know that counsel cannot stand in your sight. We are ashamed at how often we take instruction from things that do not point us in the paths of righteousness. Your Word directs us to take counsel in you and delight in your Word as that light unto our path. Grant, therefore, holy Father, that we would bear fruit from finding our source of hope and instruction in the infallible Word written for our good. Please grant us a hunger and thirst for righteousness we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Our God in heaven, we lament and ask what it is that makes your people stray so easily from your paths. We take note of the ease with which we wander from the green pastures you have provided for us. We are ashamed at how easily the enemy of our souls leads us by the nose, enticing us with our desires, leading to disaster and destruction. We grieve the reality that we are prone to wander, Lord, we feel it, prone to leave the God we love. We are easily enthralled with the desires of this life, exposing the worldliness of our hearts. We trade that which is right for that which pleases the eyes, the flesh, and pride. No wonder your word calls us creatures of dust and unprofitable servants. Yet, despite all these things, you demonstrated your love toward us in that while we were still sinners, your Son died for us. He died because we do wander. He died because we are easily lured and enticed by the Evil One. He dies because we are sinful to the core. Through Christ, we now have peace of conscience with you. We thank you for so great a salvation. Please grant us a greater willingness to mortify the deeds of the flesh and serve you all our days we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Grant, Almighty God, that as Thou invites us daily with so much kindness and love and makes known to us Thy paternal goodwill, which Thou didst once show to us in Christ Thy Son -- O grant that, being allured by Thy goodness, we may surrender ourselves wholly to Thee, and become so teachable and submissive that wherever Thou guidest us by Thy Spirit, Thou mayest follow us with every blessing.

Let us not, in the meantime, be deaf to Thy warnings; and whenever we deviate from the right way, grant that we may immediately awake when Thou warnest us, and return to the right path, and deign Thou also to embrace us and reconcile us to Thyself through Christ our Lord. Amen.
(From Lifting Up our Hearts: 150 Selected prayers of John Calvin)

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