Father God,

Today, I pray for Psalm 2’s command for the rulers of the world to Kiss the Son, submitting their rule to Christ as their king. We know that the Word makes clear that You direct the hearts and minds of rulers of this world to carry out Your will. Therefore we cry out for You to bring their rule under direct obedience to Your Word by their conversion to the faith.

We pray that those who do know Your Name already would also fully submit their lives as our leaders to Your commands. I pray against any false and wicked philosophy that their public service does not have to bow to Your commands for obedience.

And I pray for Your children who walk simply as citizens to come to a right and proper understanding of how our public servants are to walk before the face of God in submission rather than rebellion. Remove any false understandings and give us true wisdom in regards to the civil government. Enable us to pray in fullness of truth for our leaders so that we may live Godly lives upon this earth.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.

Father God,

Today, I pray that You would open the gates of heaven and rain down blessing upon those who have been waiting on You, those who have been praying without ceasing, those whose hearts are pure by Your Spirit at work in them, those who have been seeking and knocking, those who have been crying out night and day.

We call upon You by the Name of Christ, by the work of Christ in us, by the blood of the Lamb covering us.

Though we walk through the shadows of Psalm 88, we strive into Psalm 89 proclaiming the glories and promises of a God who delivers, a God who saves, a faithful God, a merciful God, a God who answers prayers.

Hear our cry and let our waiting come to an end.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.

Father God,

Today I pray against the enemy’s attempt to thwart or to hinder both the fruit of Your children’s kingdom work and the enjoyment of it. We know that the enemy continues to press against the building of the kingdom which he knows he cannot ultimately destroy. We know that the enemy wants to deprive Your children of every temporal enjoyment of Your promises even if he can’t prevent their fruition.

But, You have called us to a rest that the enemy cannot steal away from us as we look to You. His work in this world may distract and may seem to put at risk Your work, but the Word and Spirit make clear that Your will is always victorious and thus we will be conquerors in You.

Though we must not get preoccupied with the enemy’s work, lead us to pray against the enemy’s hand and through those prayers, let us overcome his intent and be free of his power as Christ’s victory brings his influence to an end.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.

Father God,

Today, I pray You would give sight to Your remnant both in terms of understanding Your Word rightly and in understanding the times in which we live. We live in an age where the number of “voices” we hear has multiplied and the ability to discern the trustworthiness of those voices has greatly diminished.

We can hear within seconds voices and reports across the world through technology, having awareness of events that may or may not have any impact on our lives. Yet, the distance and the multiplying of voices leaves us potentially even more uncertain about what is true as we cannot personally evaluate the truth of those reports due to that distance and its disconnection from the people involved in those events.

We hear so many voices saying so much that contradicts each other, leaving us unsure regarding what really happened. The media twists and distorts. The ideologies each present their own narratives. Beyond knowing what really “happened”, we do not even have the capacity to mentally sort through the complexities of motives behind the actions and events.

Make us to first fear You in order to seek the beginning of wisdom. Then let us consume Your Word and be consumed by it. Only then turn our gaze upon the world around us and see it through the lens of Word and Spirit, discerning the times like the tribe of Issachar (1 Chron. 12:32). Make us to rest in trusting that though our understanding will always fall short of being complete, we can rest in the reality that our Heavenly Father holds all things in Your hands. Show us what we need to know so we can direct our steps rightly before Your Face and grant us peace to trust You with what we can’t see or know or understand.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.

Father God,

Today, I pray for the faithful but faint of heart or body. We live in wearying world, a world which feels relentless in eroding our faith or at least wearying our strength. For those who want to hold on, who want to persevere but ask themselves if they can hold on for more than one more breath, I pray that You fill them with the air, the strength they need to persevere.

You tell us that “they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” (ESV Isaiah 40:31). Some days we find those words easier to rest in than others. For those who today are asking “How long, O Lord?” be their strong tower, their rock today.

Help me today to be Your voice in encouraging others to find peace in knowing that our Redeemer lives and will hold us up even when our strength appears too exhausted to continue.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.

Father God,

Today, I pay that we would not get stuck on the period at the end of Psalm 88. In this Fallen World, we often find ourselves somewhere along the verses of Psalm 88, crying out for one reason or another. We literally come down to the only hope being that You will hear our prayers, hear our cries in the night.

Leading up to our echoing Psalm 88 in our own lives, we may try our own strength or our own wisdom. We may try this way and that way to overcome some situation. Ultimately, we have nothing left but to cry out to our Lord and Savior, holding on until You answer.

As we look forward to the answers found in Psalm 89, we are still reminded that even our ability to cry out in 88 comes from Your faithfulness to preserve us through whatever storm we face. The fact that we know to look to You for provision reminds us that You are still working in us.

And then we step over the period that closes out 88, and begin 89 with “I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord forever”. Your faithfulness explodes from our lips though we still wait in verse 46, “How long, O Lord?” We know the we are not done until Your faithfulness finishes its work.

Keep us both faithful as we wait and filled with joy knowing that Your faithfulness will never fail us.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.

Father God,

Today, I pray against the patterns of quick reflexive judgements prevalent in our society from bottom to top. We have been a society in which tempered and slow reflection before a calm and tempered response has disappeared, being replaced by soundbytes and emotional outbursts.

From the relationships between individuals to the discussions of doctrine to the policies of the nation, we rush through to finish and to win rather than to understand and agree and maintain fellowship.

The speed of the world has consumed us, has convinced us that we must rush, has hindered our ability to love one another. Teach us to slow down and listen. Teach us to slow down and dialogue. Teach us to slow down and love one another.

Then let that loving one another in calm, unrushed dialogue bring us to a deeper and stronger connection both with one another AND with You in truth that we find together rather than tightly held positions which we try to force upon one another.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.

Father God,

Today, I pray for a reformation of community according to Your desires and purposes. I pray against the false views of community which have filled even our church, that look more like that of the world than of Your bride.
I pray that we as a people of God would once again learn what it means to love one another, to build one another up, to mourn together and to rejoice together. I pray that fellowship would extend far beyond the walls of a church building and fill the nooks and crannies of our lives.

I pray that our conversations would be filled with the realities of life as seen from the realities of a heavenly view. I pray that we would see and feel and think about life through Your Word and Spirit so that we would be knit together by eternal bonds rather than temporal bonds of this world’s distractions.

May Your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.

Father God,

Today, I pray for those who have been so ravaged by the world that they feel no security nor trust in anything including themselves. They feel as though not even sand supports their feet as they walk through life. They feel as though the world is pulling them into the abyss constantly.

I pray that You would be their Rock, the One who has already borne them from the womb though their eyes fall short in perceiving Your upholding hand in the midst of their ongoing storms.

I pray that You would be their Fortress, the One who has already protected them, the One who is protecting them, the One who will protect them as Your own children.

I pray that You would be their Shepherd, the One who has already tenderly cared for them, leading them to green pastures.

The burden of this world has stolen their sight to see how You have cared for them. They are blinded by the pain they have endured. I pray that You would restore their sight so they may see Your ever-present Hand. I pray that with sight, they would find the security for which they long and thirst. I pray that they would feel in their innermost spirit the security of their God.

Bind up the deep wounds of lives lived in pain and deliver them from their despair. Though the whole world may turn against them, let them know that they are safe in You on the Rock.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.

Father God,

Today, I pray for a reformation of a Biblical worldview in health and in medicine so that the body and soul is cared for as the image of God in man. I pray that the influence of materialism, the influence of greed, the influence of hedonism, the influence of the new age, and the influence of excessive spiritualism would be silenced so that Your children could hear and receive truth.

Each of these contemporary influences distorts or perverts some aspects of a true view of the imago dei and how we are to care for it. I pray that You would restore a right view of man as body and soul so that we would then be able to care for others in a God-glorifying manner.

In Christ’s Name,

Amen.