Prayer For Freedom From Oppression
Lord of justice and peace,
we thank you for the freedoms we enjoy
to choose our leaders
and shape the course of our common life.
Give us wisdom to use the power we share...
Expand the charity of host nations
to find the resources to meet their needs.
Inspire hope instead of hatred
and faith instead of fear...
Lord, hear my prayer!
Let my cry reach you!
2 Don't hide your face from me
in my time of trouble!
Listen to me!
Answer me quickly as I cry out!
3 Because my days disappear like smoke,
my bones are burned up as if in an oven;
4 my heart is smashed like dried-up grass.
I even forget to eat my food
5 because of my intense groans.
My bones are protruding from my skin.
6 I'm like some wild owl
like some screech owl in the desert.
7 I lie awake all night.
I'm all alone like a bird on a roof.
8 All day long my enemies make fun of me;
those who mock me curse using my name!
9 I've been eating ashes instead of bread.
I've been mixing tears into my drinks
10 because of your anger and wrath,
because you picked me up and threw me away.
11 My days are like a shadow soon gone.
I'm dried up like dead grass.
12 But you, Lord, rule forever!
Your fame lasts from one generation to the next!
13 You will stand up
you'll have compassion on Zion
because it is time to have mercy on her
the time set for that has now come!
14 Your servants cherish Zion's stones;
they show mercy even to her dirt.
15 The nations will honor the Lord's name;
all the earth's rulers will honor your glory
16 because the Lord will rebuild Zion;
he will be seen there in his glory.
17 God will turn to the prayer of the impoverished;
he won't despise their prayers.
18 Let this be written down for the next generation
so that people not yet created will praise the Lord:
19 The Lord looked down from his holy summit,
surveyed the earth from heaven,
20 to hear the prisoners' groans,
to set free those condemned to death,
21 that the Lord's name may be declared in Zion
and his praise declared in Jerusalem,
22 when all people are gathered together
all kingdomsto serve the Lord.
23 God broke my strength in midstride,
cutting my days short.
24 I said, My God, don't take me away in the prime of life
your years go on from one generation to the next!
25 You laid the earth's foundations long ago;
the skies are your handiwork.
26 These things will pass away, but you will last.
All of these things will wear out like clothing;
you change them like clothes, and they pass on.
27 But you are the one!
Your years never end!
28 Let your servants' children live safe;
let your servants' descendants live secure in your presence.
Dear Lord, I come to You in deepest love and concern for my loved one. As you know it is hard for me to watch them go through this situation. It is even harder sometimes to keep my thoughts and emotions in check. Sometimes when I am in prayer, all these things get stirred up and it is hard for me to concentrate and hear Your voice. As I go into my prayer time with You right now, I pray that You will settle all these things inside me. Clear my heart and mind of anything that will hinder my discernment of Your voice. In Your name I pray. Amen.
LORD, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me! Many are saying of me, God will not deliver him. But you, LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high. I call out to the LORD, and he answers me from his holy mountain. I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me. I will not fear though tens of thousands assail me on every side. Arise, LORD! Deliver me, my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked. From the LORD comes deliverance. May your blessing be on your people.
Father God, we praise you for your love and faithfulness towards your children. We praise you for being a perfect, holy, trustworthy God that is bigger than all the evil we experience here on earth. We ask that you give us eyes to see when evil is before us, hearts to hate evil and the desire to flee from its presence. We ask that you would not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil and draw us closer to yourself. We ask for the long-expected Jesus to come quickly and make all things new. We ask these things His precious name. Amen.
Father, Today, as begin our prayer, we praise You, for You say we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). This world is hard. It threatens to crush us in many ways. Physically, we cannot always outrun the ailments of our bodies. Sickness and injury take hold of us, and we are not always healed to the original state of our health. Mentally, we are bombarded and pulled at by unfiltered thoughts threatening to run away with our self-esteem on a daily basis. Spiritually, You promise us a battle in this life. John 10: 10-11 reminds us, The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. Bring our hearts to focus on Your Truth at the start of each day, expecting a battle, but also deliverance.
Father, in overwhelming moments help us to recall the truth of Psalm 32:7, You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. Remind us of the greats of faith that have gone before us in bravery, with courageous faith in Your protective hand of deliverance.
David defeated Goliath against all odds, and even after being not the run for his life from King Saul cried out to You in faith to deliver Him. Even after he made terrible mistakes, but You delivered David, loving him still. For Paul, who tortured and had other Christians killed, You never left him even in his own jail cell. What we don't understand is how much You love us regardless of our faults and fears. Help us to believe and strengthen our faith in Your love, for the one who is in us is greater than the one who is in the world. (1 John 4:4)
Galatians 5:1 calls us to action, to stand firm in our faith. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Help us turn from shame, make a way for kindness, and rise up for those who can't speak for themselves and find a way to make sure those who are burdened by distorted thoughts of who they are. Equip us, through the lessons of our own deliverance, to become ambassadors for Your love. For You assure us when we seek You, we will find You, when we seek You with all of our hearts. (Jeremiah 29:13)
Father we are grateful that You hear us and care for us beyond our understanding. The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. Psalm 34:17 We prayerfully proclaim deliverance in our own lives, and in the lives of those suffering next door to us, and around the world. We cry out to You in faith that You will deliver us from our physical pain and mental anguish. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. Psalm 107:6
Help us to let go of our timeline and embrace Your process and Your perfect timing. We live in a have to have it now world, but Your ways surpass the convenience of free shipping and next day delivery. Give us the faith and patience to embrace Your process and purpose for our lives, remembering Isaiah 43:18-19, Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
When others mislabel us, give us the grace to pray for and empathize with them, but maintain the truth of what You say about us, and who You say we are. May we always remember to love others above all else (1 Peter 4:8) but have the inner strength to discount and discern lies from Your Truth. Kids aren't the only ones that are bullied and teased. Tune our ears to Your voice of grace, love and kindness, as we respond and react to the attacks of others. Heal our distorted thoughts and broken-down boundaries. Help us to shield our hearts from shame and separate our mistakes and missteps from our magnificent purpose in life.
Grant us the courage to be brave and courageous as Jesus was when we walked this earth, yet kind and compassionate at the same time. Make the impossible possible in our lives as we seek Your will in our lives over our own vindication and defense mechanisms. Help us to remember this powerful truth: Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. James 5:13
Deliver us, Father, from the everyday attacks on our conscious, health, relationships, and beyond. From what can see coming and would never expect, protect and deliver us from anything that threatens to throw us off Your course for our lives. Give us strength to love people that are seemingly unlovable without compromising our character as Christians. Build a confidence in us that is unstoppable and immovable but guard our hearts from pride. Deliver us from our distorted thoughts, sickness, debt, sadness, struggles, hunger, pain, fear, oppression, conflict, and unbelief, for we proclaim Your Peace over our lives through prayer, today. Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Ephesians 6:10 Help us to put on Your armor, daily, Father. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Heavenly Father, thank you for the great gift of freedom.
I can't have freedom outside Jesus' costly sacrifice.
Help me to never take my spiritual freedom for granted.
Remind me that I have the power to choose freedom over oppression.
You have defeated sin, death and the devil with your resurrection, Jesus.
Help me trust in your strength as I fight against Satan's schemes.
Set me free from the cries of my flesh, which hold me in bondage.
Free me from the attacks of the world and people set against me.
Release me from the thought life traps which often snare me.
Help me be free from the sins of the past, which you have already forgiven.
Give me a love for your Word, so I can use it to know you better.
Draw me close to you in prayer, so I can feel your great love for me.
Heal me with the fellowship of other Christians, so I can become whole.
Holy Spirit, help me choose freedom over oppression in all areas of my life.
In Jesus' name,
Amen.
Almighty God, who hast created us in thine own image: Grant us grace fearlessly to contend against evil and to make no peace with oppression; and, that we may reverently use our freedom, help us to employ it in the maintenance of justice in our communities and among the nations, to the glory of thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.