"Our Refuge and Strength" - Morning and Evening Prayers (26 March 2017)


Sunday morning:
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble (Psalm 46.1). O Lord God, who rules in heaven and on earth, who directs orbits and oceans, governs harvests and hailstorms, who fashions the heart of all people and observes all their deeds (Psalm 33.15), who can set every man against his neighbor (Zechariah 8.10) but can also make wars to cease to the ends of the earth (Psalm 46.9); through your Son, Jesus Christ, you reconciled to yourself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace through the blood of his cross (Colossians 1.20). Attend to our prayers as we seek your face and intercede on behalf of your Church and world.

For your church all around this globe, and around the OKC area, such as: Northwest Baptist Church; Northwest Christian Church; Oak Dale Baptist Church; Oakcrest Church of Christ; Oaktree Assembly of God; and Oasis Church; we pray: guide her leaders, heal her divisions, reclaim her waywardness, right her wrongheadedness, and mend her brokenness. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

For the nations of our world, including our own country, England as they recover from the attack of this last week, Peru as they recuperate from the devastating floods, we pray: stop evil and strengthen good; arouse hearts, hands and wallets to step in and provide for those in need, establish clean drinking water, build solid infrastructures, train and fund good teachers and safe schools, establish and enhance medical services, and create an environment of humaneness. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

For the leaders of nations, like: Filip Vujanović; King Mohammed VI; Filipe Nyusi; Htin Kyaw; and Hage Geingob; as well as our State Representatives such as:  Scott Inman; John Paul Jordan; Chris Kannady; Dells Kerbs; Dan Kerby; and Steve Kouplan; we pray: may their policies and aims construct greater international and indigenous agreement, restrain warmongering, settle unrest and benefit their populations. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

For those in mental darkness we pray… For those in dire straits we pray… For those nearing or in the middle of bankruptcy we pray…. For those brokenhearted and despondent we pray… For those whose homes are filled with trouble we pray… For those who are homeless we pray… For those who have serious Daddy issues we pray… For all in various needs we pray… Please comfort and relieve them according to their specific needs, giving them patience under their sufferings, and a happy conclusion to all their afflictions. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

For those who have never repented and believed the Gospel, those who once made their confession of faith but have since wandered away, and those who find themselves in a crisis of faith, we pray… May your Spirit of truth convince them of their sin and misery, enlighten their minds in the knowledge of Christ, and renew their wills, persuading and enabling them to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the gospel (WSC 31). God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

We lift up our hands, hearts and heads to you, Mighty God, for hearing and answering our prayers for ….. Glory to you, Mighty Lord! God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Amen.

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Sunday Evening:
A Prayer Shaped by Psalm 63

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. There is nowhere else we can go to find our deepest satisfaction, but to you. When times are tough, your tender care lifts our hearts. When loved ones betray us, you are utterly trustworthy! May we always seek you when walking in plenty, or dragging ourselves along through dry and weary lands where there is no water. We pray now for our own or others’ present situations… O Lord, hear our prayer.

Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands. We regularly find ourselves distracted and driven to distraction by our immediate frets and fears, catastrophes and calamities. But your steadfast love is better than life! O God who is even in our wilderness, keep us riveted to you and your goodness all our days. And for those who are being swallowed up in the sand storms and searing pain of brokenness, breakdown and breakup, help us to hold them tight and aid them in being safeguarded in your steadfast love. We pray now for some who are on our hearts… O Lord, hear our prayer.               

My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me. Thank you for filling us up, filling us out, and finding us when we wandered aimlessly in the wastelands. Please give us occasions to kindly and cordially guide others to come and cling to you, that they may realize your right hand upholding them. We pray now for specific people… O Lord, hear our prayer.

But those who seek to destroy my life shall go down into the depths of the earth; they shall be given over to the power of the sword; they shall be a portion for jackals. But the king shall rejoice in God; all who swear by him shall exult, for the mouths of liars will be stopped. May our Lord Jesus, executing the office of King, subdue us to himself, rule and defend us, and restrain and conquer all his and our enemies (WSC 26). We pray now for those enemies… O Lord, hear our prayer.


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