Of the Way

“Regard the prayer of Your servant and his supplication, O Lord my God, and listen to the cry and the prayer which Your servant is praying before You today.” I Kings 8:28

Blessed be the LORD, who has given rest to His people, according to all that He promised. Our Heavenly Father, there has not failed one word of all Your good promises, which You promised through Your servants Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, and your prophets. May You be with us, as You were with our fathers. May You not leave us nor forsake us, that You may incline our hearts to Yourself, to walk in all Your ways, and to keep Your commandments and Your statutes and Your judgments, which You commanded our fathers and fulfilled in Christ.  May you graciously continue to build Your temple of living stones, bringing reformation, unity, and faithfulness to the churches in our land and to the ends of the earth where [name deleted] is proclaiming the gospel to the lost in a Russian prison.  May your church worship You in reverence and godly fear as living sacrifices, being transformed by the faithful preaching of Your word (which is sharper than a two-edged sword) and by the sacraments that all of us may be one, Father, just as You are in Christ and He is in You.  May we also be in You so that the world may believe that You have sent Jesus Christ. Through the Holy Spirit, He has given us the glory that You gave Him, that we may be one as You are one: Christ in us and You in Him. May we be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Jesus Christ and have loved us even as you have loved Christ.

Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. We ask that You would reform Your ministers of justice even as You reform Your church.  We ask that they would be a terror to the lawless rather than the lawful and protect Your saints around the world.  Let Your deacons of the sword in Indonesia use it justly to judge between Your people and those who persecute them.  At home we ask that You would conform all civil magistrates to the image of Your Son, from President Obama and Governor Perdue down to local mayors, city councils, and policemen.

The cords of death entangle [names deleted], the anguish of the grave comes upon them; We are overcome by trouble and sorrow.  May they called upon Your name and cry out, “O LORD, save me!”

You, O Lord, are our strength and our song; You have become our salvation. Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous: “The LORD’s right hand has done mighty things!”  Knowing Your Grace and Mercy toward us, we can boldly request that You heal the sick and wounded among us.  Pour out your healing grace upon  [names deleted].  Provide buyers for the [names deleted] homes.

We will give you thanks, for You answered us; You have become our salvation. The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the LORD has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. O LORD, save us; O LORD, grant us success in Jesus’ name through the Holy Spirit.  Amen.