Let this be thy whole endeavour, this thy prayer, this thy desire,–that thou mayest be stripped of all selfishness, and with entire simplicity follow Jesus only.
Prayers
Corrie Ten Boom
Thank you, Lord Jesus, that You will be with us today and tonight and forever. Will You keep us from danger and protect us against fear? And will you show us the right way and not let go when we choose the wrong way and when we are in danger? It is wonderful to know that You take hold of our hands, that You hold us tight. And when you hold us tight, You lead us on, all our life. And when You lead us on through life, there will be a day when You bring us home safely. Thank you, Lord Jesus, Amen.
Randy Clark
God! Let your eye fall on me, for I want to be totally yielded. I want to be that person through whom you can show yourself strong. I want to be the coin in your pocket for you to spend any way you want. I want your glory to rest on me. I want to be the donkey that you ride on. I just want to be yielded, God, and I want to believe that I can be the person that you clothe yourself with. I want to believe, God, that I can be mightily used in your kingdom. God, in my heart I am saying to you, please, look upon me and let your grace fall upon me because I want to reveal your glory. Show yourself strong through my life.
George Hodges
Thou who hast given so much to me, give me one more thing – a grateful heart!
Graham Cooke
Father, I’m weary of being misunderstood. I’m tired of the ungracious scrutiny of others. Hide me, dear Lord, in the secret place of Your presence. Keep me from people who speak about me, but not to me. I am helpless against the riptide of their words. I cannot defend myself. Refresh my heart to look on them with love. I accept this part of Your cross. Change my heart to speak with Your love and sculpt my life through these situations. Let their hard words chiel away my roughness, forming Christ.
Peter Marshall
Lord, where we are wrong, make us willing to change; where we are right, make us easy to live with.
Rev. Richard J. Fairchild
Eternal God, this holy night is radiant with the brilliance of your one true light. May that light illuminate our hearts and shine in our words and deeds. May the hope, the peace, the joy, and the love represented by the birth in Bethlehem this night fill our lives and become part of all that we say and do. May we share the divine life of your son Jesus Christ, even as he humbled himself to share our humanity. Amen.
John Bell
You keep us waiting. You, the God of all time, Want us to wait. For the right time in which to discover Who we are, where we are to go, Who will be with us, and what we must do. So thank you … for the waiting time.
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Jon Reid
Lord, remove every barrier the enemy has put in place so that the only barrier which remains is the cross itself.
Henri J.M. Nouwen
I am looking to you, Lord. You have said so many loving words. Your heart has spoken so clearly. Now you want to show me even more clearly how much you love me. Knowing that your Father has put everything in your hands, that you have come from God and are returning to God, you remove your outer garments and, taking a towel, you wrap it around your waist, pour water into a basin and begin to wash my feet, and then wipe them with the towel you are wearing …
You look at me with utter tenderness, saying, “I want you to be with me. I want you to have a full share in my life. I want you to belong to me as much as I belong to my Father. I want to wash you completely clean so that you and I can be one and so that you can do to others what I have done to you.”
I am looking at you again, Lord. You stand up and invite me to the table. As we are eating, you take bread, say the blessing, break the bread, and give it to me. “Take and eat,” you say, “this is my body given for you.” Then you take a cup, and, after giving thanks, you hand it to me, saying, “This is my blood, the blood of the new covenant poured out for you.” Knowing that your hour has come to pass from this world to your Father and having loved me, you now love me to the end. You give me everything that you have and are. You pour out for me your very self. All the love that you carry for me in your heart now becomes manifest. You wash my feet and then give me your own body and blood as food and drink.