The Messiah came as a Servant...

And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  -Mark 10:42-45

The Servant Messiah carries out his ministry in the lives of his ministers. His life is reproduced in their lives, so they also are servants. But this ministry is exercised in and towards the Church, so as to enable the Church itself to carry out the ministry of the Servant. The Messiah came as a Servant; his ministers are servants; and the Church he created is a Servant-Church.   -Anthony T. Hanson

Our Father, hear our prayer...

 

 Our Father 

Don Moen

Hear our prayer

We are your children and

We've gathered here today

We've gathered here to pray

Hear our cry, Lord we need your mercy

And we need your grace today

Hear us as we pray

Our father who art in heaven

Hallowed be thy name'

Our father hear us from heaven

Forgive our sins we pray

Hear our song

As it rises to heaven

May your glory fills the air

As the waters cover the sea

See our heart

And remove anything

That is standing in the way

Of coming to you today

Our father who art in heaven

Hallowed be thy name'

Our father hear us from heaven

Forgive our sins we pray

And though we are few

We're surrounded by many

Who have crossed that river before

And this the song we'll be singing for ever

Holy is the lord

Repeat

Hear our prayer

We are your children and

We've gathered here today

We've gathered here to pray

Hear our cry, Lord we need your mercy

And we need your grace today

Hear us as we pray

Our father who art in heaven

Hallowed be thy name'

Our father hear us from heaven

Forgive our sins we pray

Those who believed were of one heart and soul...

Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. 

-Acts 4:32-35 Image

Love—and the unity it attests to—is the mark Christ gave Christians to wear before the world. Only with this mark may the world know that Christians are indeed Christians and that Jesus was sent by the Father.  -Francis A. Schaeffer

Enlighten us, O God, by your Spirit...

Enlighten us, O God, by your Spirit, in the understanding of your Word, and grant us the grace to receive it in true fear and humility, that we may learn to put our trust in you, to fear and honor you, by glorifying your Holy Name in all our life, and to yield you the love and obedience which faithful servants owe to their master and children to their fathers, seeing it has led you to call us to the number of your servants and children. 

-John Calvin Image

Guard me, O Lord...

Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men;

preserve me from violent men,

who plan evil things in their heart

and stir up wars continually.

They make their tongue sharp as a serpent's,

and under their lips is the venom of asps. Selah

Guard me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;

preserve me from violent men,

who have planned to trip up my feet.

-Psalm 140:1-4

 

To relinquish any of the Psalms on the excuse that its sentiments are too violent for a Christian is a clear sign that a person has also given up the very battle that a Christian is summoned...to fight. The Psalms are prayers for those who are engaged in an ongoing spiritual conflict. No one else need bother even opening the book. -Patrick Henry Reardon

Such is our dependence upon God...

In the path of your judgments,

O Lord, we wait for you;

your name and remembrance

are the desire of our soul.

My soul yearns for you in the night;

my spirit within me earnestly seeks you.

For when your judgments are in the earth,

the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

-Isaiah 26:8-9

Such is our dependence upon God that we are obliged not only to do everything for His sake, but also to seek from Him the very power. This happy necessity of having recourse to Him in all our wants, instead of being grievous to us, should be our greatest consolation. What a happiness is it, that we are allowed to speak to Him with confidence, to open our hearts and hold familiar conversation with him by prayer! He Himself invites us to it.  -François Fénelon

Continue steadfastly in prayer...

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.  At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

   Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. -Colossians 4:2-6

Give me an open ear, O God, that I may hear Thy voice calling me to high endeavor.

Give me an open mind, O God, a mind ready to receive and to welcome such new light of knowledge as it is Thy will to reveal to me.

Give me open eyes, O God, eyes quick to discover Thine indwelling in the world which Thou hast made.

Give me open hands, O God, hands ready to share with all who are in want the blessings with which Thou hast enriched my life.   -John Baillie

You shall fear the Lord your God...

You shall fear the Lord your God. You shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear. He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. -Deuteronomy 10:20-21

Let God’s distinguishing love to you be a motive to you to fear Him greatly. He hath put His fear in thy heart, and hath not given that blessing to thy neighbour; perhaps not to thy husband, thy wife, thy child, or thy parent. O what an obligation should this consideration lay upon thy heart greatly to fear the Lord! Remember also... that this fear of the Lord is His treasure, a choice jewel, given only to favourites, and to those that are greatly beloved.   -John Bunyan

Holy, Holy, Holy!

Holy, Holy, Holy!

Keith & Kristyn Getty

Verse 1

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!

Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee

Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!

God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!

Verse 2

Holy, holy, holy! all the saints adore Thee

Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea

Cherubim and seraphim, falling down before Thee

Who wert, and art, and evermore shalt be

Verse 3

Holy, holy, holy! though the darkness hide Thee

Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see

Only Thou art holy, there is none beside Thee

Perfect in pow'r, in love and purity

Verse 4

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!

All Thy works shall praise Thy name, 

in earth and sky and sea

Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!

God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!

Let love be genuine...

Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. 

-Romans 12:9-13

Love—and the unity it attests to—is the mark Christ gave Christians to wear before the world. Only with this mark may the world know that Christians are indeed Christians and that Jesus was sent by the Father.   -Francis A. Schaeffer

And with his wounds we are healed...

Surely he has borne our griefs

and carried our sorrows;

yet we esteemed him stricken,

smitten by God, and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our transgressions;

he was crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,

and with his wounds we are healed.

-Isaiah 53:4-5

God may thunder His commands from Mount Sinai and men may fear, yet remain at heart exactly as they were before. But let a man once see his God down in the arena as a Man, suffering, tempted, sweating, and agonized—finally dying a criminal’s death—and he is a hard man indeed who is untouched.  -J.B. Phillips

Blessed are those who dwell in your house...

How lovely is your dwelling place,

O Lord of hosts!

My soul longs, yes, faints

for the courts of the Lord;

my heart and flesh sing for joy

to the living God.

Even the sparrow finds a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself,

where she may lay her young,

at your altars, O Lord of hosts,

my King and my God.

Blessed are those who dwell in your house,

ever singing your praise! 

-Psalm 84:1-4

To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God, to feed the mind with the truth of God, to purge the imagination by the beauty of God, to open the heart to the love of God, [and] to devote the will to the purpose of God. 

-William Temple