Meaningful Prayers and Songs

Below are some of my favorite prayers, along with some words I wrote about why I like them. I hope they bring you peace. :)

Great Thanksgiving, Eucharistic Prayer C

Lord God of our Fathers: God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: Open our eyes to see your hand at work in the world about us. Deliver us from the presumption of coming to this Table for solace only, and not for strength; for pardon only, and not for renewal. Let the grace of this Holy Communion make us one body, one spirit in Christ, that we may worthily serve the world in his name.

(From the 1979 Book of Common Prayer.)

I love this because it reminds us to look outwardly from ourselves and notice the things about God’s work that we wouldn’t normally see – and, for me at least, the people behind that work. I love the wording of “deliver us from the presumption” as well: not just to be reassured and forgiven, but also to be made ready to do more of God’s work in the world. To serve.

This is the call to service that I feel deeply.

Lord, It Is Night

Lord, it is night. The night is for stillness. Let us be still in the presence of God. It is night after a long day. What has been done has been done; what has not been done has not been done; let it be. The night is dark. Let our fears of the darkness of the world and of our own lives rest in you. The night is quiet. Let the quietness of your peace enfold us, all dear to us, and all who have no peace. The night heralds the dawn. Let us look expectantly to a new day, new joys, new possibilities. In your name we pray. Amen.

Written by Rev. John Williamson. According to Rev. Bosco Peters, “After the time of prayer one of the commission members said it should go into the Prayer Book. The others agreed, and the prayer had to be retrieved from the waste paper basket where John, humble as ever, had tossed it after leading that office.”

When we ask for forgiveness in Eucharist, we ask God to forgive us for what we have done and for “what has been left undone.” That always troubled me until a girlfriend showed me this prayer, which offers some peace around what remains undone at the end of a long day. “Let it be,” it says, and I’m always trying my hardest to do just that.

For a State Legislature

O God, the fountain of wisdom, whose will is good and gracious, and whose law is truth: We beseech thee so to guide and bless our Senators and Representatives in Congress assembled (or in the Legislature of this State, or Common-wealth), that they may enact such laws as shall please thee, to the glory of thy Name and the welfare of this people; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

(From the 1979 Book of Common Prayer.)

The number of times I prayed this during lege session…. 😅

For Quiet Confidence

O God of peace, who hast taught us that in returning and rest we shall be saved, in quietness and confidence shall be our strength: By the might of thy Spirit lift us, we pray thee, to thy presence, where we may be still and know that thou art God; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

(From the 1979 Book of Common Prayer.)