Your Prayer Guide for the Week of Sunday, January 18

Welcome to the Week

The rhythm of prayer is becoming familiar now, like well-worn paths we return to again and again. This week, Luther reminds us that prayer isn’t an occasional religious duty but the very business of our lives as Christians. As you move through these prayers and scriptures, remember that you’re engaged in the work you were made for: communion with the living God. Come with the confidence of one who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, and let that holy refuge shape everything else.

“As it is the business of tailors to make clothes and of cobblers to mend shoes, so it is the business of Christians to pray.” (Martin Luther)

This Week’s Scripture

• Jeremiah 32:1-3, 6-15
• Psalm 91:1-6, 14-16
• 1 Timothy 6:6-19
• Luke 16:19-31

Adoration

Psalm 91:1-2
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

Come, Thou Almighty King (verse 1)
Come, thou almighty King, help us thy name to sing, help us to praise! Father all glorious, o’er all victorious, come and reign over us, Ancient of Days! (Anonymous)
Take time now to offer God your praise and worship.

Confession

But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. (1 Timothy 6:11-12)

Almighty and everlasting God, who hatest nothing thou has made, and doest forgive the sins of those who are penitent: Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, truly lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wickedness, may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (The Book of Worship for Church and Home, 1965)

As David did in Psalm 139, ask the Lord to search you and know you through and through. Confess the sins God brings to mind, knowing you are forgiven and that He will cleanse you from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

Thanksgiving

Help us to pray always and not to faint, in everything giving thanks, offering up the sacrifices of praise continually, possessing our souls in patience, and learning in whatsoever state we are therewith to be content; for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord and Master. (Fielding Ould)
Spend some time reflecting on the prayer of thanksgiving above and then thank God for who he is and the many ways he has poured out his goodness and grace in your life.

Prayer Prompts

Use the following prayer prompts to encourage you to pray beyond your usual prayer requests. These prompts are included here to help get your own creative juices flowing and not to be regarded as strict and legalistic requirements. Use them or do not use them according to your need. May the Lord bless you as you go deeper with him in the holy communion of prayer.

Petition – prayers for yourself

• Help me to grow in wisdom and become who you created and redeemed me to be.
• Renew my mind and enable me to cultivate a godly perspective and attitude regarding the various spheres and circumstances of my life.
• Today’s events and interactions with others, planned and unplanned
• Other needs

Intercession – prayers for others

• My family, immediate and extended
• Those struggling with sin, illness, or difficulties in their workplace
• Other needs

My God... Thou art all my good in times of peace, my only support in days of trouble, my one sufficiency when life shall end. Help me to see how good thy will is in all, and even when it crosses mine teach me to be pleased with it. Thou bottomless fountain of all good, I give myself to thee out of love, for all I have or own is thine, my goods, family, church, self, to do with as thou wilt. (from The Valley of Vision)

A Word as You Go
​
The shelter of the Most High is not a place you visit occasionally, it’s where you dwell. As you return to the demands and distractions of your week, remember that prayer is your true business, the work beneath all your other work. Let the steadfastness and gentleness Paul calls for shape your interactions, and trust that the God in whom you take refuge goes with you into every circumstance. Walk faithfully, knowing you are held by him.