Pastoral Prayer | May 22, 2022

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  • Pastoral Prayer | May 22, 2022
  • Precious Lord, we draw near to the throne of grace by the finished work of our great High Priest – the Lord Jesus Christ. We praise you that we are your regenerate and adopted sons and daughters through faith in the finished work of Christ. As we come to your throne for grace and mercy, we rejoice that in Christ all your promises are yes and amen. 

    We are sinful; you are holy. We were born in sin and have continued to sin. We are rebellious sheep who have turned away from the shepherd of our souls. We deserve curses, judgment, and punishment for the guilt of our selfish attitudes, fleshly desires, worldly priorities, unwholesome speech, and defiant conduct. 

    Hear us as we silently confess our sins to you… 

    Thank you that if we sin, we have an Advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ the righteous. He himself is the propitiation for the sins of the whole world. Thank you that your Son died on the cross as our Substitute to pray for our sins and rose from the dead that we might walk in newness of life. Thank you that his atoning blood cleanses us from the penalty of sin and sets us free from the power of sin. Conform us to the image of your Son by the Holy Spirit.

    Your word admonished us that we do not have because we do not ask. So, we bring our supplicationsand intercessions to you. 

    We pray for those in authority over us. May every member of our government’s executive,legislative, and judicial branches do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you. Guide and govern the Supreme Court as it deliberates Roe vs. Wade. As the God who cares for widows and orphans, grant that the outcome would protect the innocent lives of children in the womb and that the mothers and fathers would make righteous decisions even under challenging circumstances. May international leaders would use their influence to help end the war between Russia and Ukraine. 

    We pray for every Bible-believing, gospel-preaching church in our city. Raise up church plants to reach communities that need a Christian witness. Revitalize churches that have declined or are in a plateau. Grant that the churches in our city would reflect the character of God, proclaim the truth of God, and pour out the mercy of God. We pray that missionaries would be called, deployed, and supported to reach the more than three billion people around the world who have not heard the gospel of Christ. 

    We pray for the salvation of the lost. May all men would repent and come to the knowledge of the truth. Call the unsaved and unredeemed out of the darkness of sin and into the marvelous light of your grace. Use us to reach one person this year with the love and truth of Jesus Christ. Burden us to pray for the salvation of the lost people you have placed in our lives. Lead them to call on the Lord for salvation.  

    We pray for your church. Make us holy even as you are holy. May love abound among us in all knowledge and discernment. Help us to faithfully teach your people to obey all that the Lord Jesus Christ has commanded. Bless what your will for us is; tear down what is not of you. Bear fruit through us to the praise of your glory. May our elders and deacons be godly mean who guard their lives and doctrine. Save every member of our congregation who may walk in a false presumption of salvation. 

    Finally, we pray for the troubled, suffering, and afflicted. 

    • Grant healing to those who are sick. 
    • Grant comfort to those who mourn. 
    • Grant rest to those who are weary. 
    • Grant provision for those who are in need. 
    • Grant peace to those who are anxious. 

    We pray these things in the name of he who taught us to pray: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. 

    H.B. Charles Jr.

    Pastor-Teacher at the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church of Jacksonville and Orange Park, Florida.