Monday, November 22, 2010

A Prayer of Thanksgiving

Heavenly Father,

We praise your Holy Name for every good and perfect thing comes from You, the Lord of Hosts in whom there is no shadow of turning. LORD, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, before You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. You alone are the Lord and besides You there is no other. You who made the world and everything in it, are Lord of heaven and earth. You spoke the universe into existence. You measured the waters in the hollow of Your hand, and measured heaven with a span, You calculated the dust of the earth in a measure and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance.

You are Lord of heaven and earth, and do not dwell in temples made with hands. You are not worshiped with men’s hands, as though You needed anything, since You give to all life, breath, and all things. You have made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and have determined our preappointed times and the boundaries of our dwellings, so that we should seek You, in the hope that we might grope for You and find You though You are not far from each one of us; for in You we live and move and have our being. You knew us and shaped us before we were born. You have known us before the foundation of the world. You know our sitting down and our rising up; You understand our thoughts afar off. Behold, O Lord, You know it altogether. Where can we go from Your Spirit? Or where can we flee from Your presence? For You fill heaven and earth.

You have created us in Your image and wrought eternity in our hearts. You loved us so much that You gave us Your only begotten Son that if we should believe in Him we should not perish but have everlasting life. You are rich in mercy, and because of Your great love with which You loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, You made us alive together with Christ, and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come You might show the exceeding riches of Your grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

For by grace you have saved us through faith, and that not of ourselves; it is a gift from You, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are Your workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which You prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Lord you said: “Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls.” But we have said, “We will not walk in it.”. Lord You also set watchmen over us saying, “Listen to the sound of the trumpet!” But we have said, ‘We will not listen.’

Most wise and generous Father, we acknowledge and confess our self-indulgence. We have abandoned your paths and we have foolishly chosen a way that seemed good to us. We have looked on your goodness and counted it a small thing. We have trampled on the blood of Your Son and counted it a common thing. We have despised your word and pursued our own desires. We have squandered your blessings and hoarded our own conceits. We are false in our convictions, presumptuous in our speech, insincere in our confessions, artificial in our repentance, tardy in our obedience, and casual in our worship. We have not loved You with our whole heart and have not loved our neighbor as ourselves. Against You, You only have we sinned and done this evil in Your sight— that You may be found just when You speak, and blameless when You judge. Father, we humbly ask for Your forgiveness. Have mercy upon us, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according to the multitude of Your tender mercies,

Even though we are faithless, You are faithful, and we thank you for all the blessings that you have given us through Your Son Jesus Christ. For all Your promises in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen. Thank you for your unending love, kindness and mercy. Lord strengthen us and keep us, give us a renewed spirit and a clean heart that longs to know You and worship You in spirit and in truth. You have said You will give us one heart, and You will put a new spirit within us, and take our stony heart and give us a heart of flesh, that we may walk in Your statutes and keep Your judgments and do them; and we shall be Your people, and You will be our God. Lord You have said that we will seek You and find You, when we search for You with all our heart. Father draw us closer to You that we may indeed love You will all our heart, all our soul, all our mind and all our strength.

Through Your mercies we are not consumed, because Your compassions they fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness! You are our portion, therefore we will hope in You. You are good to those who wait for You, to the soul who seeks You. It is good that we should hope and wait quietly for your salvation.

In our distress we cried out to You, and You heard us. We waited patiently for You; and You inclined to us, and heard our cry. You also brought us up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set our feet upon a rock, and established our steps. We sought You, and You heard us, and delivered us from all our fears. Father, let us be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let our requests be made known to You; and may Your peace, which surpasses all understanding, guard our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Father we ask all these things in the name of Your Son Jesus Christ...

Amen and Amen

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