Pastoral Prayer - 1 September 2013

{Tonight's Pastoral prayer. Feel free to use it in your church and in your personal prayer time - Mike}

Adoration and Intercession:  One of the blessings and benefits of our being made sons and daughters of God through Jesus’ redemptive work and the Spirit’s filling, is that we have an open door to unburden our concerns into the care of our Father, as the Psalmist writes; “Cast your burdens on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved” (Ps. 55.22).

Lord God, the Almighty, you are firm, resolute and unwavering in Your goodness, love and justice, for which we raise our hearts and hands and voices in thanksgiving! We gather up our prayers and offer them to you through our high Priest, Jesus Christ. We voice our grave alarms at the turmoil in our world, especially in Egypt and Syria; and then we glance across our own national border and hear how brutal and vicious drug cartels are. Give peace in our time, O God, give peace. And bring the drug cartels, and the other thugs in our world, to their knees, put them in fear, O LORD, that they may know themselves to be but men, and that you are the one and only Sovereign whose justice and right cannot be scorned forever! O Lord, hear our prayer.

Save our country from decadence and decay; rescue us from the political and social pragmatism that lives only for the here and now, only for personal tranquility and affluence; and from the heights to the depths in our land, restore love for your truth, righteousness, and the fear of God; O Lord, hear our prayer.

Please continue to provide for our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines, and aid them that they may be safe, especially when in harm’s way; and please keep them from being deployed for any other cause than justice and rightness; O Lord, hear our prayer.

O Lord, faithful God, behold how faithfulness is diminished among the children of men. Guard us against the hurtful deceits of wicked people, and grant us grace to be true and faithful toward all, both friend and foe. Grant us wisdom to prove all things, that we may not be carried away by every wind of doctrine, human cunning, or the craftiness of deceitful schemes, but would always be men, women, girls and boys walking in honesty and truth (***adapted and modified from "Reading the Psalm with Luther" and Ephesians 4.14). O Lord, hear our prayer.

Have mercy, O our God, on those walking in darkness; blind to their own doom as they scoff and flee from Your Son; those deluded in their own comfortability; those satisfied with themselves as they blunder on through life playing religious games and toying with superficial spirituality; as well as those veering off the way of life and careening toward the cliff. … Have mercy, and save them; O Lord, hear our prayer.

Lift up Your face, Father, on Your Church worldwide, especially in Syria and Eqypt, as well as Emmanuel Tabernacle, Emmaus Baptist Church, Everlasting Gospel Lighthouse Church, Faith Bible Church; Kris and Paula and MTW Slovakia, Redeemer Theological Seminary-Dallas; steady your church in her weakness; reclaim her in her waywardness; prosper her in her poverty; grant her to reclaim and be reclaimed by Your Gospel and sound doctrine; and may she pursue peace with all men and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord; O Lord, hear our prayer.

Finally, Father, Creator, Sustainer, Restorer, we pray for You to save, heal, restore, refresh, and help these…..may they be raised up to serve You joyfully the rest of their days. O Lord, hear our prayer.

All of these prayers we offer through Your Son, Jesus Christ, as we now sing:

Hear our prayer, O Lord, 

hear our prayer, O Lord; Incline 

Thine ear to us, 

and grant us Thy peace. Amen. 

Trinity Hymnal #728