| Lenten Devotions |
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| As you pray remember that God’s Spirit surrounds and supports you wherever you are. Open your heart to God in worship, pray with an open heart to God, thank God for the help God gives, has given and will give you, and listen to hear God speak with you as you are “still” with God.MORNING PRAYERS: Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10) Begin by sitting in a comfortable place as you enter into the presence of God. Scripture: Music Link: “As the Deer” (based on Psalm 42) Please listen to the Song and repeat as many times as you want. As you listen, close your eyes and give your attention to how the Psalmist expresses a longing (thirsting) for God. Use your imagination to help you to see the images the Psalmist describes. Allow yourself to “feel” that you are in a time of waiting for God as you long to reconnect with the presence of God’s Spirit. As you listen again, put yourself into the pictures you have imagined and focus on how you experience God in your life – as Creator, as Jesus, and as Spirit. Pause to reflect on the ways the Song and the words of the Psalm bring you closer to God’s presence. Now lift up any sense of being alone, any feelings of being distanced from God, any fears of abandonment you might have during this time in your life as you focus again on the words from the Psalm. Pray your prayers for God’s presence and healing in the life of your loved ones, friends, family and for yourself. Offer thanks to God for God’s care for you and others…you may include any other personal prayers and prayers for others you want as you conclude with this prayer: GOD I am the wind that breathes upon the sea, I am the wave of the ocean, I am the murmur of leaves rustling, I am the rays of the sun, I am the beam of the moon and stars, I am the power of trees growing, I am the bud breaking into blossom, I am the movement of the salmon swimming, I am the courage of the wild boar fighting, I am the speed of the stag running, I am the strength of the ox pulling the plow, I am the size of the mighty oak tree, And I am the thoughts of all people who Praise my beauty and grace. Amen. (Celtic Prayers: A Book of Celtic Devotion/Daily Prayers and Blessings, Robert Van De Weyer, Abingdon Press, Nashville, 1997, pg.17) EVENING PRAYERS: Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10) Music Link: “As the Deer” (based on Psalm 42) Reflect on the words to the Psalm from the morning and focus the day as you ask yourself these questions: How did my day demonstrate worship of God? Did I pray (talk with God) during the day? In what ways did God care for me (and those I love) today? When did I “long” for God? At what moments did I feel the presence of God? Offer thanks to God for God’s grace and mercy to you and to others. Sit in quiet gratitude to God. Offer your personal prayers for the day and for God to be with you during the night….. Conclude with the Lord’s Prayer. Psalm 42 (NIV version) As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng. Why my soul are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, For I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon – from Mount Mizar. Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me. By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me – a prayer to the God of my life. I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?” My bones suffer mortal agony As my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?” Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, My Savior and my God. REFRAIN TO THE SONG: “As the Deer” As the deer pants for the water, so my soul longs after you. You alone are my heart’s desire, and I long to worship you. You alone are my strength, my shield; to you alone may my spirit yield. You alone are my heart’s desire and I long to worship you. (Words and Music: Martin j. Nystrom, 1984 Maranatha Praise Inc., admin by The Copyright Co.) Copyright © 2021 United Ministry, All rights reserved. |
