Christianity

A Guide for Expanding and Personalizing the Lord’s Prayer: Matthew 6:9-18

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Photo taken in Nebraska.

This method of prayer uses the Lord’s Prayer as a guide for many topics to include in prayer. You can expand these guidelines by adding additional items that come to your mind as you pray.

Our Father:

I come in Jesus’ Name to thank and praise You for being everywhere present, all-knowing, all-powerful and unchanging. You provide salvation, and freedom from fear of the past, present, and future. You give companionship, provide for my needs, healing and protection from Satan, the evil one.

who art in Heaven:

A place of perfect rest and peace. Thank you that everyone who accepts Jesus Christ as their personal Savior will have an eternal home there with You.  John 3:15 “That whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.“

hallowed be Thy Name:

Lord, I lift Your Name on high. I praise You for Your awesomeness, revealed through Your creation. Thank you that all who are born again believers can come to You in Jesus’ Name to receive power, strength, and wisdom. Psalm 147:5 “Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite.”

Thy kingdom come:

Dominate my thoughts and reign over every part of my life. May all my and other believers’ actions be inspired by Your Spirit. Colossian 1:17 “And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.”

Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven:

I recognize that and thank You that everything is controlled by You. Therefore, I yield myself to You and ask You to fill and control me with Your Spirit. I trust in You with all my heart lean not on my own understanding. Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.“

give us this day our daily bread:

Thank you that I can trust in You to take care of all my physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional needs. Philippians 4:19 “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

forgive us our sins:

Show me anything that is wrong in my life and any hindrances in my relationship with You. Thank you for dying for my sin on the cross. Direct me to confess all sin to you. 1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

as we forgive those who have sinned against us:

Direct me to anyone I need to forgive. Remove all bitterness, jealousy, malice, etc. that I might have against another person. Ephesians 4:29 “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.”

lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:

Keep me from the things that Satan would like to use to cause me to do wrong. Cover me with the armor of God: the helmet of salvation, breastplate of righteousness, the girdle of truth, the shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit. Ephesians 6:11 “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”

for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever:

I acknowledge that You rule over everything, have all power, all wisdom and are everywhere present. In Jesus’ precious Name, I thank You for the many points of instruction for life in this prayer example, Amen.

**You can find the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:8-13

 

 

 

 

 

Jesus, the Light of the World

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Photo taken in Kansas.

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” John 8:12

Heavenly Father, I want to praise and thank You today for the message in John’s gospel of how Jesus is the Light that does away with darkness which is brought about by sin and how we who believe in Jesus as the Light have been moved from darkness to light and from death to life.

Through the Holy Spirit I have the Light dwelling within me, which gives me all the treasures of God’s wisdom and knowledge. “In Whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Colossians 2:3

Lead my loved ones and I to walk as children of the Light. Give us the strength to have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness wherever we are. I ask that You show us anything in  our lives the may be obstructing the Light of Christ from shining brightly in us.

Jesus said, “I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.” John 12:46

If there are any hindrances to the Light shining, give us the courage to confess them and make any corrections needed.

Thank you for the privilege You give us of having the Light within us, enabling us to walk in it and allowing us to be able to reflect its brightness to those around us.

I ask and pray these things to You, my God, in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 

Scripture #9

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Photo taken in Colorado.

“So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.” Romans 14:12

“Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you [thank you].” 1 Peter 5:7

“Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved [thank you].” Psalm 55:22

God’s Power

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Photo taken in Colorado.

“‘Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You.’” Jeremiah 32:17

“…Jesus… looked at them and said, “With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible.”‘ Mark 10:27

Heavenly Father, based on these two verses, I praise You for being all-powerful, all-knowing, ever present and unchanging. I thank You for loving me so much and for wanting a close personal relationship with me.

Help me to be steadfast in the faith and to be on high alert to resist the work of Satan as he tries everything possible to hinder and destroy us, Your children. (1 Peter 5:7-8)

I come to You in the Name of Jesus, casting all of my burdens and cares upon you.

 

Scripture #8

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Photo taken in Virginia.

“Teach me Your way, O LORD; I will walk in Your truth; Unite my heart to fear Your name.” Psalm 86:11

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest [thank you].” Matthew 11:28

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day [thank you].” 2 Corinthians 4:16

New Year’s Prayer for 2017

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Photo taken in Colorado.

“For You are my hope, O Lord God; You are my trust from my youth.” Psalm 71:5

Gracious Heavenly Father, at the close of another year, I want to thank You for the joys that You have given me during the last year and for the difficulties You have used in my life to allow me to grow in my relationship with You.

“In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Almighty Father, at the beginning of a new year, I thank You for Your assurance that You will make me victorious in areas where I was defeated, strong where I was weak, successful over sin, and hopeful in any situations of fear. “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

Wise, infinite Father, in the coming year I ask that You will direct me to be surrendered to You so that I will not have to be embarrassed about my life’s record when it is revealed in eternity. Give me more consciousness of fulfilling the directions in Your Word about how to live a Christ-centered life.

In everything that I will be involved with during this next year, keep reminding me of the admonishment in Galatians 6:7-8 “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.”

Thank you that I can move into this new year knowing that You hold the future and that You will always be with me.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 

 

 

Christmas Eve Prayer and Meditation

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Photo taken in Colorado.

 Prayer

Lord, we come to You with thanksgiving, remembering the great love You gave to us in the form of the birth of Your Son, Jesus. How unimaginably perfect You are in all Your ways. “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us” (Mathew 1:23).

Thank you for giving Your only Son to die for our sins and thank you that if we accept Him into our heart and life, You give us eternal life with You in heaven.

Direct us not to be distracted from the true meaning of Christmas or be enticed by the calling of the world to make Christmas all about ourselves. This Christmas, encourage us to have everything we do point back to You and Your Glory. We bring these thoughts in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Christmas Story Meditation

Visualize the Christmas story by slowly and quietly meditating on this Christmas Carol:

Silent night, holy night, All is calm, all is bright, Round yon Virgin Mother and Child,  Holy Infant so tender and mild, sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, holy night, Darkness flies,  all is light; Shepherds hear the angels sing, “Alleluia hail the King! Christ the Savior is born.”

Silent night, holy night, Guiding Star, lend thy light; see the eastern wise men bring Gifts and homage to our King! Christ the Savior is born.

Thank you Lord, for all that this holy night represents.

Daily Yielding Control to God

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Photo taken in Colorado.

This method can help you daily give God control of your life by using the six major parts of the body as a guide for what specifically to turn over to God. You can turn over additional things as well.

“And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.” Romans 6:13

Heavenly Father, I thank You for the Holy Spirit living within me. I yield to You and ask that the Holy Spirit will take full control of my life using these six parts of the body as a guide: mind, eyes, ear, mouth, hands and feet.

Mind: I ask that You will allow my mind to think only on what You want and not on the things I shouldn’t be thinking about.

Eyes: Have my eyes look at what You want me to see, and not anything detrimental to me.

Ears: Allow my ears to hear what You want me to hear instead of negativity.

Mouth: Direct me to say what is pleasing to You and to not say things that could be hurtful to anybody.

Hands: Guide me to do things that are gratifying to You and keep me from  the activities that are not helpful to me.

Feet: Direct me to walk to places that are pleasing in Your sight and turn me from any roads that lead to destruction.

Thank you that when all these parts of my body are under the control of the Holy Spirit I am able to lay aside my own desires and instinctive actions, enabling me to grow in my Christian walk.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

A Christmas Prayer

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Photo taken in Colorado.

‘”Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”‘ Matthew 1:23

Father, amongst the joy and excitement of presents, decorations, family, food, etc., give me a good spiritual understanding of the true meaning of Christmas.

Thank you that Jesus’ coming provided a way of salvation for us to be with You in Heaven forever and eliminated the hopelessness of man. It is because of that first Christmas morning that the revelation in the Bible about Jesus’ coming was fulfilled.

Jesus, for more than twenty centuries, the world has heard Your teachings and has been influenced by them; thank you for being the Light of the world.

Let us remember to share the truth with unbelievers this Christmas season that unless they personally accept Jesus into their life as Savior and Lord, the good news of the Christmas message means nothing for them in eternity.

As we celebrate Christmas as believers, remind us of all the awesomeness surrounding Jesus’  birth recorded in Luke 2 and how it all happened just as it was prophesied in Isaiah 9:6-7 hundreds of years earlier.

Thank you for all the joyful memories You have given me of past Christmases and for all the current blessings of Christmas now.

In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.

Living in God’s Presence

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Photo taken in Colorado.

“The eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.” Proverbs 15:3

Lord, thank you for the peace and comfort it gives me to know that You are everywhere present and that You see every situation in my life; even the events in my life that I do not understand are not a surprise to You.

May I be conscious at all times of the fact that I am living in Your presence. Encourage me to have a growing desire to live in a way that is pleasing to You. When the challenges of life come, direct me to get my focus off of my problems and onto Jesus.

As I invite You, Jesus, to be my defender and counselor, show me how You do not always immediately calm the storms in life but how You are always willing to calm me as Your child in the midst of the storm.

Isaiah 43:2-3 tells me, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…”

I bring these praises and requests to You in Jesus’ precious Name, Amen.