Pastor’s Prayers

O Lord,
The house of my soul is narrow;
enlarge it that you may enter in.
It is ruinous, O repair it!
It displeases Your sight.
I confess it, I know.
But who shall cleanse it,
to whom shall I cry but to you?
Cleanse me from my secret faults, O Lord,
and spare Your servant from strange sins.

St. Augustine of Hippo (AD 354-430)

Grant me, O Lord my God,
a mind to know you,
a heart to seek you,
wisdom to find you,
conduct pleasing to you,
faithful perseverance in waiting for you,
and a hope of finally embracing you.

Amen.

-Thomas Aquinas

Father , for this Jesus-life I pray: to be born of the Spirit – free to spin, twist, dive, and climb, whirled along by the breath of God. Just as a bird relies on the wind and trusts it to carry her by its power, and becomes familiar with the ways to rest in its strength, I pray to move, and live, and have my being in you, O God, you who will be worshiped in spirit and in truth.

–Teri Hyrkas

Odeh LaEl

Pay heed, pay heed, to your own soul:

Opal, amethyst, and gold, As bright as is the sun’s warm glow,

Far brighter than the morning!

I thank the God who probes all hearts When stars sing in the morning. In this wilderness she roams,

A gemstone hewn from God’s throne,

To redeem us from wrath’s flame

And light our way before morning.

Awake! Awake! For every night

Your soul ascends to a place on high

And there accounts for her deeds that day

To the Maker of night and of morning.

If He finds her fair and fetching,

Clothed in prayer and thanksgiving,

Like a bride dressed for her wedding,

It will be in the morning.

Thus restoring her to Him,

You’ll be her faithful guardian.

No one need die in his sin,

For after night comes morning.

Don’t let her be a homeless waif,

Once so innocent and chaste.

He who cannot keep her safe,

What light will he have in the morning?

May we see this very year God

In His graciousness appear

And say, our griefs replaced by cheer,

“You shall hear My voice in the morning.”

I am no longer my own, but thine.
Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt.
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed for thee or laid aside for thee,
exalted for thee or brought low for thee.
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

thou art mine, and I am thine.
So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven.
Amen.

–John Wesley, The Covenant Prayer (British Methodist Church)

God of compassion,

your love for humanity was revealed in Jesus,

whose earthly life began in the poverty of a stable

and ended in the pain and isolation of the cross:

we hold before you those who are homeless and cold

especially in this bitter weather.

Draw near and comfort them in spirit

and bless those who work to provide them

with shelter, food and friendship.

We ask this in Jesus’ name.

Amen.
   

 –The Church of England