Daily Prayer & Hymn Suggestion
Sunday 24th August
Hymn: Born in song (StF21/H&P 486)
Prayer:
Right from the very beginning, Lord God, creation sang to you a song of praise, and that song has echoed down the ages in Psalms and hymns expressing our love, our thanksgiving, and often our desire to draw near to you and know you better. And so as we worship you today, Lord, we want to thank you that you have taken that first step in coming to us in Jesus, in His life on earth and through His death and Resurrection enabling us to discover more of your great love, your mercy and your forgiveness. And even more amazing is that you constantly make yourself known to us through your Holy Spirit, giving us an awareness of your presence with us, and your guidance in every part of our lives. So help us not to keep this song to ourselves, Lord, but to go out from our worship today singing your praises for all to hear!
Amen
Liz Stuart
Saturday 23rd August
Hymn: Under grace
Prayer:
As we look back over the last week, Lord, over new experiences we have had, perhaps new friendships made and things we have enjoyed, we sometimes also become aware of times we have acted unkindly or spoken sharply, or perhaps have not responded to another person’s need for help or for comfort because we were too busy, or simply felt out of our depth and reluctant to get involved. We feel that sense of regret and guilt now and know we have let you down, Lord. We’ve not responded to the promptings of your Holy Spirit or shown the patience or the love we have received from you, and we are sorry. We thank you that through Jesus we know that, in your grace and mercy, you forgive us, and so our prayer today is that you will help us to be more ready to listen and more thoughtful in our reactions, so that our words and our lives will become channels of your love and compassion to those around us.
Amen
Liz Stuart
Friday 22nd August
Hymn: Your love never fails (SofF 2461)
Prayer:
Lord God, however much we turn away from you, ignore the guidance of your Holy Spirit and break the promises we have made, you never give up on us, and your love for us never fails. Many of our human friends would have abandoned us long ago, but you are always there for us, never forcing yourself on us but waiting for us to come to our senses, and longing for us to come home to you. And the wonderful part of it, Lord, is that you welcome us just as we are and as if we had never strayed away, enfolding us in love and showering us with your blessings. Lord, if that is us today, please open our hearts and minds and lives afresh to your amazing grace, that we may know again your presence and your peace.
Amen
Liz Stuart
Thursday 21st August
Hymn: Mighty to save (Everyone needs compassion) StF 627/SofF 1757
Prayer:
Everyone needs you, Jesus – the trouble is many don’t realise this! They may sense that something is missing from their lives, they may be going through difficult times – times of anxiety, of illness, of grief, of guilt, of fear of what the future may hold – and longing to find comfort, relief, freedom, peace and hope, but not knowing that you are there longing for them to turn to you. Lord, we who have found in you our Saviour and friend, can provide the answer to their seeking, but sometimes we don’t see the needs even of those close to us, and when we do, we somehow lack the courage or the confidence to speak up. Lord, light that spark of love for you within us in such a way that it will burn brightly and warm the hearts of those who are searching – and when the words falter on our lips we ask that you will speak through us by your Holy Spirit.
Amen
Liz Stuart
Wednesday 20th August
Hymn: Father, hear the prayer we offer (StF 518/H&P 436/SofF1229/MP 132)
Prayer:
Lord God, often the prayers we pray are ‘fair weather’ prayers, our hopes for an easy life, a quick answer to our problems, and sometimes seeking your blessing on the plans we ourselves have made, but we know that life isn’t actually like that. We all have to face times of testing, of disappointment, of hardship, of anxiety and so on, and it’s often in times like this that we have the opportunity to witness most effectively to our faith in you. So may our prayer today be that, whatever circumstances we find ourselves in, you will give us the patience and the trust to keep going, sure that you are with us and that you will supply all the strength we need.
Amen
Liz Stuart
Tuesday 19th August
Hymn: Love songs from heaven (SofF 914/MP 1002)
Prayer:
We hear the news, Lord God, we see the devastation, death and destruction on our screens, and it fills us with horror and dismay. How can human beings inflict such misery on each other? What has happened to justice, to compassion? Why does evil seem to prosper and the innocent suffer? And yet we believe, Lord, that love and truth, light and goodness will have the final word, and we can be confident of this because on the Cross and through His Resurrection Jesus conquered the power of evil and death once and for all. And so we continue to live in hope of peace and reconciliation, trusting that you have not let go of your world, and, meanwhile, seek to do our best to bring the knowledge of your love and light and truth to the people and in the places where we live.
Amen
Liz Stuart
Monday 18th August
Prayer:
Lord, we love to lift our voices in praise when we meet together to worship you, but somehow on a Monday morning, when the week’s routine kicks in, it doesn’t come quite as easily to us. And yet what a difference it would make if we began every morning with praise, remembering your goodness, your faithfulness and your love, and the difference all of this makes to our lives – what a start to the day that would be! With the result that not only would we be giving you glory, Lord, but discover it affecting our thoughts, our feelings, our attitudes, finding ourselves noticing all the many blessings we receive and filling us with thanksgiving. So let us begin this week on a new note, with praise on our lips and a new song in our hearts!
Amen
Liz Stuart
Due to staff annual leave we are taking a short break from the daily prayer. We will be back on Monday 18th August, in the meantime you can access the Methodist church daily prayer here.
Monday 4th August
Hymn: Go forth and tell! O church of God awake! (H&P 770/SofF 738/MP 178)
Prayer:
We love to sing your praises and sometimes even tell our stories in the security of our church buildings and among our Christian friends, but we have to admit, Lord, that we’re not as good when it comes to those people we meet on other occasions, in the groups we belong to, the conversations we have at the supermarket or the bus stop – those times when we have the opportunity and yet let it slip by. And afterwards we feel so ashamed that we have again let you down. So, Lord, our prayer today is that we may have more courage – not in our own ability but for the faith to rely on your Holy Spirit to speak through us and to give us the words to say. And then, Lord, to trust you to do the rest!
Amen
Liz Stuart
Sunday 3rd August
Hymn: Come to us creative Spirit (StF 726/H&P 377)
Prayer:
Lord God, you made us in your image and so have blessed us with your imagination, your creativity, with minds to seek and discover, and with skills to develop ideas and put them into practice, all of them gifts from you, all of them to be used to your glory. Sometimes though, Lord, when we come to worship you we seem to leave these abilities at home, only to be used in our ‘other day’ lives instead of offering them to build up the life of our churches and to enhance our worship. Help us to bring our whole selves to you today, Lord, and not to hold back from offering the great variety of talents you have given us, so that all may be used in our praise of you, and in thanksgiving for inviting each one of us to part of the Body of Christ.
Amen
Liz Stuart
Saturday 2nd August
Hymn: Deep peace of the running
Prayer:
In a world full of noise and confusion we seek peace, Lord God. Not the peace of compromise that satisfies no one, or the peace that comes from the laying down of weapons but with no reconciliation. Not the peace that comes from pushing one’s problems, hurts or disappointments to the back of one’s mind and pretending they no longer matter, and not the peace that is simply the shutting out of noise, wearing earplugs to get some semblance of quiet. No, Lord, the peace we crave is the deep peace that Jesus offered His disciples when He was just about to be betrayed, denied and put to death, a peace beyond all understanding. It’s a peace that comes from our rightness with you, Lord, a harmony of heart, mind and soul that no circumstances can disturb or destroy or take away. May we each discover this peace today.
Amen
Liz Stuart
Friday 1st August
Hymn: Never let go of your hand
Prayer:
This year is going so fast, Lord God, faster than ever, and however much we try, it seems we can never catch up or fit in all the things we need or want to do. But even when we forget you and in our busyness leave you out of our lives, in those times when we become so overwhelmed that we can’t begin to think outside ourselves, you never forget us, and, like the loving Father you are, you simply wait patiently for our return. We come to you at the beginning of this new month, Lord, thanking you for your faithfulness and the reassurance that you are always there, holding us steady in our lives and surrounding us with your love. You never let go of us, Lord, and so we put ourselves and our lives in your hands for today and for all that the future will bring.
Amen
Liz Stuart