Prayer For The Church
Jesus, twice You cleared the Temple in righteous anger, because Your house was to be a house of prayer. Help us not to take that lightly. Lord, direct us to our knees, and seal our commitment and desire to be devoted to communing with You in prayer. Let our church be known as a house of prayer. Keep us awake, alert. Fill our hearts with joy no matter the circumstances as we come to You as a church body in prayer. Amen.
Dear God,
Fill us with the power of your Holy Spirit this day. Fill us with your joy, your wisdom, and with constant reminders that Your Presence will go with us, and you will give us rest. Thank you that you came to give new life, peace, hope, and joy to your children. Thank you that your power is made perfect in our weakness. We know that you are with us, and you fight for your people. We believe that it's not by might, nor by power, but by your Spirit that you make a difference in our world. We choose to trust you today and to recognize the authority of who you are in our lives.
In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Lord, You have given us what seems like an impossible task with this passage. You have asked us to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow You. Even when our spirits are willing, the flesh is weak. You know our hearts, Father. Help us, with Your Holy Spirit, to examine our hearts and hear from You. The longer we walk with You, the more we look like You. We desire to become more and more like You, less selfish and more selfless, willing to deny ourselves in any and all situations. You have told us that when we lose our life for Your sake, we will save it. Save us from ourselves, God.
As we lift up these words for our churches, let us come before God with humility and a willingness to obey. Let us put others first and serve our brothers and sisters in Christ. May we seek God first, putting aside our own desires. May we become intercessors for our brothers and sisters in Christ. May we pray more and criticize less. May we be encouragers and uplifters.
Father God, You desire peace and unity and encouragement for our body of believers. Help us, Lord, to pursue what makes for peace and for building one another up. To pursue the things You will lead to peace and unity. Give us discerning hearts to know Your will and give us the courage to be obedient. Lord, we know that without You and Your Holy Spirit indwelling each of us, we cannot do any of these things. But, with You and for Your glory, grant our body peace and unity.
Dear God,
We give you the glory and honor for all that you're doing in our lives every day, even in the times we can't see it or understand your ways. Shine your light in us, through us, over us. May we make a difference in this world, for your glory and purposes. Set your way before us. May all your plans succeed. We may reflect your peace and hope to a world that so desperately needs your presence and healing.
Thank you that:
Your ways and thoughts are far greater than ours
You had a plan to redeem and make all things new
Your face is towards the righteous
You hear our prayers and know our hearts
You reign supreme
We are more than conquerors through the gift of Christ
You are holy and just
Help us not to follow after the voice of the crowds, but to press in close to you to hear your whispers and seek after you alone. We will declare that your love stands firm forever. For your lovingkindness endures forever.
In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Lord, thank you for all you do in our lives. I am truly grateful for all you have provided me. From my friends to my family, you are always blessing me in ways I can't imagine or completely understand. But I feel blessed. Lord, today I lift up to you my church. It is the place I go to worship you. It is where I learn about you. It is where you are present to the group, and so I ask for your blessings over it.
My church is more than a building to me, Lord. We are a group that lifts one another up, and I ask that you give us the heart to continue in that way. Lord, I ask you to bless us with the desire to do more for the world around us and for one another. I ask that those in need are identified by the church and are given a helping hand. I ask that we reach out to the community where you see fit to help. Most of all, though, I ask that you bless us with the resources to fulfill your mission for our church. I ask that you give us the ability to be great stewards over those resources and that you guide our hand in using them.
Lord, I also ask that you give us a strong sense of your spirit in our church. I ask that you fill our hearts with all that you are and direct us in ways that we are always living in your will. I ask that you bless us in our direction and point us toward how we can do more in you. Lord, I ask that when people enter our church they feel you all around them. I ask that we remain hospitable to each other and to outsiders, and I ask for your grace and forgiveness when we slip up.
And Lord, I ask for the blessing of wisdom on our church leaders. I ask that you guide the messages that come out of our leader's mouths. I ask that the words uttered among the congregants be ones that honor you and do more to spread your Word than to harm relationships with you. I ask that we be honest, yet uplifting. I ask that you guide our leaders to be examples to others. I ask that you continue to bless them with servants' hearts and a sense of responsibility to those they lead.
I also ask that you continue to bless the ministries in our church. From Bible studies to youth group to child care, I ask that we be able to speak to each congregant in ways they require. I ask that the ministries be led by those you have chosen and that we all learn to be more by the leaders you have provided.
Lord, my church is one of the most important things in my life, because it brings me closer to you. I ask for your blessings on it, and I lift it up to you. Thank you, Lord, for allowing me to be a part of this congregation and a part of you.
In your holy name, Amen.
We pray You,
O almighty and eternal God!
Who through Jesus Christ
hast revealed Your glory to all nations,
to preserve the works of Your mercy,
that Your Church,
being spread through the whole world,
may continue with unchanging faith
in the confession of your name.
Amen.
Dear God,
We are so incredibly in need of your power and your strength. We ask that you would fill us with your Spirit of love and unity among believers all around our world. We ask for your help to set aside our differences and look to the greater cause, the cause of Christ. Please help us to truly live out a life of love. We know that this is only possible through the power of your Spirit, so we ask that you would move across our land in miraculous ways, with fresh filling and awareness, turning your people back to you, drawing others to come to know you. We need your unity and your love to stir our hearts and give direction to our days. We need your wisdom to guide us, we need your Spirit to lead us, to live out godly lives that would bring honor first to you. We thank you that you are always with us; and give us great purpose and hope.
In Jesus' Name, Amen.