A Prayer about Thanking God for Unanswered Prayers

by | Feb 18, 2023 | Daily Prayer, Prayer

A Prayer about Thanking God for Unanswered Prayers

What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead of a fish?

Luke 11:10

Good Father, 

I’ve been thinking a lot about prayers I prayed 

that you didn’t answer the way I wanted 

or prayers that you answered 

with those two hard words, “not yet” or “no.” 

For many of those answers, 

I am now so grateful:

Thank you for not getting me back together 

with that mean high school boyfriend,

Thank you for not letting us

get that house I wanted in my friends’ neighborhood,

Thank you for not giving me that full scholarship to college 

that seemed like a dream come true 

(because I might never have transferred to the college where I met my husband)…

[Name some “prayers answered differently” that you are now thankful for].

I confess, God, there are some prayers I’ve prayed 

that are still answered “not yet” 

and prayers for which I didn’t honestly love your answer: 

The prayer that angels would protect my mother 

when she was sick with Covid.

The prayer that our children would be healthy every day of their lives.

[Name some “answered differently” prayers you’re not so sure about].

And yet, we cannot, we do not, doubt your love for us. 

We cannot, we do not, doubt you want the best for us. 

We do believe that you are a good Father 

who is working your best plan 

not only for our good 

but also for the good of your kingdom. 

And we’re grateful to be part of that kingdom plan. 

Thank you for hearing our prayers.

In Jesus’ faithful name. Amen.

Read Matthew 6:5-15.

*Quotes from Nathan Bierma’s great book, Bringing Heaven down to Earth

A Prayer about the Coming of God’s Kingdom

by | Feb 17, 2023 | Daily Prayer, kingdom living, Prayer

A Prayer about the Coming of God’s Kingdom

Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Matthew 6:10

Heavenly Father,

Forgive us for ever mumbling this prayer by rote, 

not really thinking about what we are asking for.

The fact is, this is a radical prayer. 

It is a prayer you invite us to pray daily. 

It is a prayer for when a marriage falls apart, 

for when a economic woes threaten our business, 

for when a house is under water after a flood. 

When we pray this prayer, 

we remember whose kingdom we’re seeking—yours. 

You are a God characterized by “holy stubbornness,” 

a “refusal to accept ruin.”* 

You are the God who repaired broken creation 

by becoming man and dying on a cross. 

Your kingdom is characterized by shalom, 

universal flourishing, “heavenly wholeness.”*

Your kingdom is the kingdom 

that opposes the kingdom of darkness. 

To pray “your kingdom come” 

is to ask Jesus to defeat the destroyer’s efforts today. 

To pray “your kingdom come” 

is to repent of our tendencies 

to create small kingdoms by placing ourselves, 

our loved ones, our work, our homes, 

or any other thing we see as ours, 

on the throne of our lives. 

Indeed, Lord, your kingdom come.

In Jesus’ coming name. Amen.

Read Matthew 6:7-15.

 

*Quotes from Nathan Bierma’s great book, Bringing Heaven down to Earth

A Prayer about Praying God’s Promises Back to Him

by | Feb 5, 2023 | Daily Prayer, gratitude, Prayer, worship, gratitude

A Prayer about Praying God’s Promises Back to Him

Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever. Exodus 32:13

Merciful Lord,

When we have blown it again, 

help us to remember how badly the Israelites had blown it. 

You had brought them out of slavery in Egypt, 

you had provided manna for them in the wilderness, 

you had promised to make them a great nation 

and to bring them to a land flowing with milk and honey. 

Moses left to meet with you, 

and the next thing we know, 

the people are asking Aaron 

to “make us gods who shall go before us” (Exodus 32:1). 

And Aaron, Moses’ brother, 

the one you provided for Moses’ help, 

collects gold and fashion a golden calf. 

Holy Lord, do we really comprehend 

what an affront to your holiness this was? 

Moses did. 

He understood that he and his people deserved your wrath. 

And yet, he prayed your promises back to you. 

He did not collapse in self-contempt 

as some of us may do when we’ve blown it again. 

Instead, he reminded you 

of your power 

and your might 

and your plan. 

(As if you needed to be reminded.) 

On that basis, 

he asked for your mercy. 

On that basis, 

he asked for your continued presence. 

On that basis, he asked you to show him your glory (Exodus 32:18). 

Not only did you respond 

by giving Moses a glimpse of your glory 

that would not destroy him, 

you gave us Jesus, 

the very living presence of your glory. 

Because of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, 

when we have blown it,

we can “with confidence 

draw near to the throne of grace, 

that we may receive mercy 

and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). 

What great good news this is!

Amen. 

Read Exodus 32-34.

A Prayer about Unspoken Prayer Requests

by | Jan 28, 2023 | Daily Prayer, Prayer

A Prayer about Unspoken Prayer Requests

For we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. Romans 8:26

Heavenly Father, 

Today we come to you 

on behalf of all of the people 

who have “unspoken prayer requests.” 

In our church prayer chains, 

we have no qualms about asking for prayer 

for our ailing aunt or our ongoing job search, 

but we are far more reticent 

to ask for prayer 

for our husband’s struggle with addiction, 

our daughter’s struggle with same-sex attraction, 

or our own struggle with depression. 

What’s worse, 

we don’t even know

how to pray for ourselves. 

So today, we lift up everyone 

who has a prayer request they fear to name. 

May we/they remember 

“your Father knows what you need 

even before you ask him” (Matthew 6:9). 

You are listening, you are looking, 

and when you see misery, you act (Exodus 2:23-24).

May we/they remember that your Holy Spirit 

is actively groaning with and for us (Romans 8:26). 

When we can’t put our prayer requests into words, 

the Holy Spirit joins in our groans, 

and you hear and understand. 

May we/they remember that your Son, 

our great High Priest, 

is praying for us, 

and “Therefore, he is able, 

once and forever, 

to save those who come to God through him. 

He lives forever to intercede with God 

on their behalf” (Hebrews 7:25). 

Finally, may we/they 

take heart that the church cares for us 

and bears our burdens with us, 

even the unspoken ones. 

In Jesus’ comforting name. Amen. 

Read Matthew 6:5-8; Romans 8:25-34; Hebrews 7:25; James 5:12. 

A Prayer about Trusting the Lord to Protect Children

by | Jan 23, 2023 | Daily Prayer, Parenting, Prayer

A Prayer about Trusting the Lord to Protect Children

She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank. Exodus 2:3b

Compassionate Father, 

As loving parents and grandparents, 

we desperately want to protect our children. 

And yet, you alone 

are powerful enough, 

wise enough, 

and merciful enough 

to properly protect them. 

As we read about Moses’ mother 

trying to protect him from the Egyptian Pharaoh 

who ordered the murder of all male Israelites babies, 

we see your saving hand at work. 

You gave Jochebed wisdom and wit 

to develop a plan for protecting Moses — 

she placed him in a basket made of reeds and pitch 

and set him into the reeds by the river bank (Exodus 2:3). 

We wonder if she felt afraid or if she fully trusted 

that you would save her infant son from drowning. 

How many times have we felt this back and forth 

between trust in you and fear for our children—

when they are sick or have an ongoing health issue, 

when we have to leave them in a new place we’re not comfortable with, 

when they make friends at school 

who might not be the best influence.  

Give us the wit and wisdom you gave Jochebed. 

Show us how to best protect 

our children and grandchildren 

from danger of all kinds. 

Most of all, give us the faith to believe 

that you love our children even more than we do, 

and that you are always seeking their good and your glory.

In Jesus’ child-loving name. Amen.

Read Exodus 2:1-10.

A Prayer about the Gift of Prayer

by | Jan 17, 2023 | Daily Prayer, Prayer

A Prayer about the Gift of Prayer

Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.  James 5:13

 Good, Good Father,

May we grasp how precious is the gift of prayer.

Whether we are in trouble or triumph, 

we can cry out to you, with tears or with joy. 

We don’t have to come up with 

highfalutin sounding words. 

In fact, you have given us all the words 

we need to pray. 

When we can’t come up with the words, 

all we have to do is open your Word. 

If we’re feeling sad, there’s: 

“Why are you cast down, 

O my soul, 

and why are you in turmoil 

within me? 

Hope in God, 

for I shall again praise him, 

My salvation and my God” (Psalm 42:5). 

If we’re feeling delight, 

we shout, 

“Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; 

let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation” (Psalm 95:1). 

And when we’re just too numb or confused to pray, 

we have the assurance 

that the Spirit is groaning for us 

and Jesus is interceding for us (Romans 8:26-27; Hebrews 7:25). 

Thank you, Lord, 

for the sweet communion of prayer.

Amen. 

Read James 5:13; Psalm 42; Psalm 95.