Our Father in Heaven we pray to you -- the God who is three in one, the One who watches from heaven in love, the God whose very essence is love, the God who commands us to reflect him by loving even our enemies.

Because of your great love, your heart breaks when you see the suffering in our nation from attack, fire and flood. But Lord, our walls have been breached because of our great sins and you have withdrawn your hand of protection. We confess that we have turned from you, Lord, and beg for mercy. We need you! We can’t survive without your protection.

Therefore we, the body of believers who together comprise your church, determine to stand in the gap for our nation by returning to you with repentance, gratitude and pleas for mercy. We will obey your commands. We will praise you openly without fear of the disapproval of others. With our mouths we will declare our love for you and cry out that you are good. Because you alone are God and here is no other, we choose to love and serve you with our whole hearts. We pray this in the name of your Son Jesus. Amen

Bless our God, O peoples; let the sound of his praises be heard. Psalm 66:8

And I sought for a man among them who should build up the wall and stand in the breach before me for the land that I should not destroy it, but I found none. Ezekiel 22:30

Boston Marathon Prayer

Holy Spirit, please help us in our distress. Our precious nation has been invaded by evil.
We don’t even know what we should pray or how we should pray. All we can do is bow, palms up, feeling your grief for hurting people. Longing to feel your love. Needing your mercy.

Please pray for us with your groanings that can’t be expressed in words. Plead for us. Plead for our nation. Plead for comfort for today’s victims and their families. For terrified spectators. For citizens traumatized by pictures streaming across television screens. For innocent unsuspecting children.

We confess that we have sinned. Forgive us for turning our backs and waving you off. Please open our eyes to see the path back to you. You are our only hope.

We pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.

Romans 8:26 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our distress. For we don’t even know what we should pray for, nor how we should pray. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. NLT

From the book How to be a Praying Mom, by Jeannie St. John Taylor, published by Hendrickson publishers. 

Dear Lord,

     I don’t want my children to be bullies. Give them compassionate hearts that strive to treat others the way they want to be treated. Help them be kind to others – known for their gentle and gracious spirits. Enable them to see the good in other people, but give them sufficient wisdom to eschew the evil around them.

     Protect them from bullies who would see their kindness as weakness and wish to harm them. Protect their bodies from the pain those bullies want to inflict. Protect their spirits and emotions. Help them know how to respond if they are treated badly. Help them endure the hateful words without allowing the accusations to enter their hearts. Let them be examples of Jesus.

     Help them recognize the changing forms bullying can take as they grow older. Make them refuse to make cruel jokes at others’ expense. Keep them from sarcasm and all other put-down language. Make them encouragers whose words delight the people around them.

     I ask these things in Jesus’ name, amen.

Supporting verses

“Be kind to each other.” Ep. 4:32

“Do for others what you would like them to do for you.” Matt. 7:12

Holy God, 

I admit I am powerless over my entrenched habits and addictions and my

only hope for healing and freedom comes from you. You are not simply a nameless higher power. You are the Only God and there is no other god. You are Creator, Jehovah, the I AM, powerful God of the Old Testament, Father of Jesus Christ the Messiah. You are King over all the kings who ever lived.

Yet, because of the death and resurrection of your precious Son Jesus, you allow me to approach you boldly. How incredible! Thank you!

            You are omniscient — you knew me before I was born, you still see everything I do, you know my thoughts. You know how weak I am. You know that I am only dust and prone to wander from you and your ways. I am awestruck that you could know all that  and still love me, but you do.

Thank you!

            You are omnipotent — you can do anything you want. You are the only one who

has the power to take away and forgive my sins. I completely submit myself, my will, to you. Heal me. Transform me into your masterpiece. Teach me your truths as I read the Bible. Send wise friends who can advise me. I am willing to obey you — make me willing to obey you. You have rescued me. I know victory comes through you. I owe you my deepest love and gratitude. Thank you that instead of seeing me as someone unworthy – the way I view myself so often – you treasure me as your beloved child. Because your son lives inside me you impute his righteous to me. Thank you! 

Supporting verses (the majority from the ESV) . . .

“O LORD, you have searched me and known me! You . . . are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.”  Psalm 139:1, 4

“For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.” Psalm 103: 14

 “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Eph. 2:10 NLT

Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

O Father, God Who Forgives and Transforms, 

            Your thoughts are higher than our thoughts and your ways higher than our ways. You see into our minds and hearts. You understand our motives even when we don’t understand our own motives.

            Knowing that you are a God who loves us and wants the best for us, we give you permission to examine our hearts and reveal hidden secrets about ourselves to us. Show us Truth and give us courage to accept the difficult secrets about ourselves we have failed to recognize. Yet at the same time help us overflow with joy as you remind us of ways we’ve acted righteously.

Point out the unrighteous thoughts leading us astray and help us take them captive by replacing them with positive, noble things. Help us forsake the wicked ways you reveal. Show us how to turn from all evil. Send miraculous help. Provide counselors and responsibility partners for those of us who struggle with deep problems. Help all of us to glean insights from your Word. And give us continual overflowing gratitude in the midst of trials.

Jesus, thank you for making a way – by willingly giving your life on the cross -- for us to boldly approach your Father in prayer. We gratefully offer this prayer in your name. Amen.

Supporting verses:

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. For as the rain and snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty; but it shall accomplish all that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55: 9-11

“You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways.” Psalm 149: 3,4

“Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God for he will abundantly pardon.” Isaiah 55: 6,7

“Fear not, for you will not be ashamed; be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced; for you will forget the shame of your youth . . . you will remember no more.” Isaiah 54:4

Father God, you search my heart and know everything about me. You know what I’m thinking, and before I speak a single word you know what I’m going to say. No one could possibly count the many times your thoughts rest on me every day. I don’t understand why you would care so much about me. But I’m grateful that you do.

Though I will never really understand your love for me, I thank you with my whole heart for loving me. Thank you that you watch over me and my loved ones for our good to prosper us. Thank you that you will never leave me or forsake me. Teach me to seek after you with my whole heart and help me remember the many benefits of knowing you and obeying your Word. We pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.

Supporting verses:

“O LORD, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I could count them, they are more than the sand.” Psalm 139:1, 2, 6. 17 & 18

“When I look at the heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” Psalm 8:3,4

“I give you thinks, O LORD, with my whole heart.” Psalm 138:1

“I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Heb. 13:5b

“Therefore keep the words of this covenant and do them,  that you may prosper in all that you do.” Deut.29:9

“. . . forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems you life form the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good.” Psalm 103:2-5

O God,

We are so grateful to know that when we pray, our thoughts and words mingle with the incense in the golden bowls around your throne, and you delight in them. You answer us. You bend down to right wrong and rescue your children. You touch us with your comfort.

We are blessed to be known by the name of your Son Christ – Christians. We are grateful that you answer prayer and offer help. We your children will never cease praying for one another. We will continue to intercede and ask for blessings for our biological families, our loved ones and friends, our spiritual brothers and sisters in our nation and the world.

Please fill each of us with the knowledge of your will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Strengthen us with all power according to your glorious might. Teach us to be joyful and thankful even as we endure troubles and learn patience -- because you have delivered us from the kingdom of darkness and qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light; because you forgive our sins and remove all our guilt.

We wait for you, Jesus, and pray this in your name. Amen.

Supporting verses:

“We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. . . . And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:3,4, 9 –14

“And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of the saints on the golden altar before the throne, and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel . . . and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.” Revelation 8:3--5