Prayer of Adoration

Prayer of Adoration
Dayspring Baptist Church, 4 October 2009

Our gracious and loving God,
You alone are worthy of receiving all praise and adoration.
Yet how reluctantly praises come to our lips. We are quick to complain, quick to be disappointed, quicker to cry “Encore!” than to shout “Blessed be your name!”
Yet if we are silent, the rocks, the very limestone that shapes this land, will cry out.
So Lord, we come before you, King, Savior, Giver of life
We look to enter the chorus of praise for which we were created-- we recognize that it is our calling to magnify your name for as long as we are gifted with breath.

Let the praises of the heavenly hosts, those thousands upon thousands and ten thousand times ten thousand, be ours this morning; may we in one small church in Waco, Texas, enter into the eternal melody of adoration of the heavenlies:
“Worthy, worthy, is the Lamb, who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
and honor and glory and praise!”
We confess that you, our God, are worthy-- beyond worthy-- to receive all praise. Therefore:
“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be praise and honor and glory and power for ever and ever!”
We praise and adore you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. May adoration be the air that we breathe, today and all days, for you deserve nothing less. Amen.

Prayer of Thanksgiving: Lent 2009

Our most holy and gracious God, we come before you as a people for whom the prayer of thanksgiving does not come naturally or easily.
We are quick to complain and slow to give thanks. Use this time, Father, to create in us the discipline and the habit of thanksgiving. As we take just a few moments to be intentional in giving thanks, we pray that you, Lord, will be glorified as our hearts and minds testify to your goodness.
Let us offer a few moments of silent thanksgiving to our Lord...
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Lord, for all the blessings of this life, we thank you with gratitude for your abundant grace.
For all the trials of this life, we thank you in faith for the promise of renewal and restoration.
In this time of Lent, we thank you, Jesus, for the 40 days you were tempted in the desert.
We thank you, Lord Christ, that because of your 40 days of fasting, our 40 days are lived in the strong presence of a high priest who sympathizes with our weaknesses (Hebrews 4:15).
We give you thanks, Holy Trinity, that you promise your people who dwell now in this season of ashes...
a garland instead of ashes/
the oil of gladness instead of mourning/
the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit
We give thanks to you, God, for the work you are doing in us during this season of Lent. We give thanks to you in advance for the beauty of the transformation you are bringing about in our lives through this season. All glory be yours, Father, Son and Holy Spirit divine. Amen.

Today

Today is glorious. The weather is perfect. Clear skies. Clean, cool air. Sunny with a light breeze. Hardly a cloud in the sky. This is a day when I am glad, so glad, to be alive. Not even my depression can withstand the quiet joys that flood me on a day like today. Hallelujah-- praise the Lord!