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Prayer for the Week 10.14.18

 

This week’s prayer is gorgeous in its simplicity:

 

Lord,

we pray that your grace may always precede and follow us,

that we may continually be given to good works;

through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

Amen.

 

Grace and good works. These two go hand in hand for people who follow the way of Jesus. Everything we do, all that we are, each breath that we take...it's ALL by God's grace, isn't it?

God's grace is always present, but sometimes it helps to be mindful of the way that grace paves the way for us to be able to do God's will by going before us. And we need that same grace to follow in our wake--to bring healing, redemption, and restoration through the work that we do...otherwise our efforts are in vain. God's grace takes what we are able to give to others, and multiplies it so that the ripples of goodness go on and on.

Because of the grace--the unearned mercy and love--that we have received, we can freely give. What a beautiful thought.

Do you need an extra measure of grace in your life? I'm praying for you this week. Life gets hard sometimes, and the idea of being "continually given to good works" can seem impossible to put into practice. I get that, believe me. That's why it's comforting to know that we are all in this together. We can pray for strength to see our way clear to walk in the grace that is being offered us.

Have a blessed week!

Rachel

Prayer for the Week 10.7.18

 

 This week's prayer:

 

Almighty and everlasting God,

you are always more ready to hear than we to pray, and to give more than we either desire or deserve:

Pour upon us the abundance of your mercy,

    forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid,

    and giving us those good things for which we are not worthy to ask,

except through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ our Savior;

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Amen.

 

I admit that sometimes I don't believe that God is listening to me, or that He really even cares about the things I care about. In those times, I find that I'm reluctant to pray, hesitant to give voice to the things on my heart.

This week I've been in that place.

Making this particular prayer a part of my day speaks the kind of truth I need to hear.

I need to be reminded too, of God's mercy toward me for even those things that I'm too afraid to confront in myself. His compassion reaches to the deepest, darkest parts of us and offers forgiveness and healing through Jesus Christ.

There is powerful theology here, my friends. 

Perhaps you're in a place of reluctance to pray. Maybe you're in a place of feeling angry toward God and you've stopped speaking to Him. I believe that the mystery of a prayer practice that incorporates an ancient prayer like this one is that it forms us. 

 

This is formational prayer, and it's powerful.

 

This week, even if you aren't feeling particularly spiritual, I encourage you to print off this prayer (or do a screen grab) so that you can simply say the words each day. Don't put pressure on yourself (or God) to make something happen.

Stop working so hard.

Just rest in the words and let them form you.

That's it. That's all you need to do.

Your friend,

Rachel