Prayers of Ecclesia
In prayer we come to God...
We come helpless. We know that we can do nothing apart from God. Yes we can do many activities, but we will accomplish nothing that will truly glorify God and display His worth and His grace if we strive on our own. Yet God wants to be glorified among His people, He wants to be known and display His grace. And He is all-powerful and full of mercy and can accomplish great, God-size things in our midst. So let us count on Him to do this, and let us ask.
God and What He Demands
Lord, there is none like You. You alone are God. Majesty, splendor, honor and glory find their home in You. You laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish but You will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them and they will pass away, but You are the same and Your years have no end. You uphold the universe by the word of Your power and in You all things hold together. Were it not for You everything would cease to exist. You hold us together, You own us as You own the rest of creation. And we gladly submit to You and are stunned that You would call us Yours. O, grant that our hearts would be wholly Yours, unite our hearts to be whole towards You. May we say with a sincere heart "whom have I in heaven but You and on earth I desire nothing besides You, my flesh and my heart may fail but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." O, center our lives around You and Your Son Jesus. We do not have life outside of You, may we be faithful to you.
The Work of the Lord Jesus (His Gospel)
Jesus, we rest in you. You are the only ground of our acceptance with God. Our sin is so grave and such an offence to a Holy God that it merits eternal punishment. And that punishment would be just. Yet you, Jesus, had an unspeakable mercy on us and rescued us from the just wrath of God. You, God of infinite worth, bore our sin and bore the wrath of God on our behalf when you died on the Cross. You suffered once for sins to absorb the anger of God and to bring us to Him. And even more, now your live of obedience, your perfect righteousness is counted as ours when we come to you by faith. Finally we can stand as righteous before God fearing no condemnation. Jesus, you are the strength of our salvation. And you are strong and your work will stand. O, restore to us the joy of your salvation. Open our eyes to see and taste your amazing grace and kindness. May this be our central message to our community and to the world. May we be a glad bunch of people whom you use to bring your Good News to those who are in darkness. May your Gospel be the inseparable part of our lives, may it be our song.
God's Word and Doctrine
Father, we thank you for your Word in which we can see you. Thank you for making yourself known to us in your Word. Incline our hearts to your testimonies and open our eyes to behold wonders in the Bible, namely your glory. And as we behold you may we become more like you, like your Son Jesus. O, grant that we would handle your Word rightly and guard us from error. Grant us to understand and apply the whole council of God's Word. May we be doers of you Word and not hearers only.
Discipleship and Learning
O God, make this church to be a soil where Christians are brought to maturity in Christ. May we no longer be children but may we grow up in every way to be conformed to the image of Christ. Guard us from spiritual anemia by making us a people of your Word, who strive after holiness, who practice spiritual disciplines and who go to be a light in a broken world. Grant that this would be a place where many disciples of yours are raised and grounded in you and your Word.
Missional Living
Lord you do not want for us to keep you and your Gospel to ourselves. Guard us from selfishness and love of security and comfort. May we live in the light of eternity. May our lives be risky. Give us zeal and intentionality to live missional lives in our community. Shine your light through us. And, O may we be on board with you in making Jesus and his Gospel known among the nations. Use us to take your Gospel to the nations through our prayers, giving and sending.
People
Your steadfast love never ceases and your mercies never come to an end. O, satisfy us with your steadfast love that we may rejoice and be glad in you all the days of our lives. And may your love spill over into our love for people. May this church be a place where people are loved genuinely as you have loved us. Make us to be your hands and feet.
Unity and Peace
Jesus, you reconciled us to God. You are the God of peace. As we center our lives around you, bring unity among us. May we love you corporately and be patient with one another and extend grace to one another. Also work mightily in the churches around us and may we all be united around Christ and be passionate about his purposes for our community and the world.
Family
We are broken, Lord, in many ways. None of us come from a perfect family and all need your healing. So we ask that you would work in our families and bring healing and restore them. May true love reign here, but not a weak kind of love, but love that is ready to confront sin when necessary. Make our church to be a place where the broken and weary can find shelter. Jesus, you do not break a bruised reed and a smoldering wick you do not put out. May we be gentle and meek like you in dealing with broken people.
Community
Lord, be our portion and our delight individually and as a community. May we know and experience you together, and truly be a body of Christ.
Zeal
Father, fill us with your zeal for your Kingdom. Give us zeal to be holy. Give us passion for the things that you are passionate about (your Son, Gospel, our community, nations). Give us hate for the things that you hate (our own sin, injustice, etc). Give us tenacity and discipline to fight for our spiritual lives every day. Give us earnestness in living for you. May we seek you relentlessly.