The Divine Crash

Dear Jesus, there are so many people around us who are so deeply hurting. It is simply impossible to help them all. Guide me to the right ones, help me be able to at least help someone to the best of my ability.  Show me how you were able to decide which blind person to heal? When it comes to the church, which cause do I fight for? We will burn out if we go after them all. So show us the way that we can do your work with the biggest impact. – Amen.

Dear Jesus, as your body gathers for worship this morning may you be with them. May you guide them closer to you.  May your holy nudge awaken a sleeping soul and remind them that you join them in worship. – Amen

Dear Jesus, right now people all around getting ready for corporate worship.  Some are even getting ready to lead that worship. As your ordained pastors stand up to preach your word may you speak through them. May your spirit go out and change your people.  May new people be added to your numbers and may you see new disciples call out your name today.  May those who have been comfortable for far to long become strangely warmed and uncomfortable.  May your preachers preach with boldness and the prophetic word that only comes from you. – Amen.

Dear Jesus, for all those who say they need to get back to what they have been putting off, give them strength and inspiration.  For all those who have slacked off in using the gifts you gave them, make them uncomfortable until they get so fed up that they start using your gifts again. – Amen.

Recently, my mom gave me a box of things from when I was a kid.  In it were various trinkets of my childhood.  One of them was a note from a girl. This note was your standard note full of giggles, and strange comments that pre-teens make.

I don’t know why I kept that note but what struck me was that this note was about basic things that were important to me and her.  She wrote about friends and family (and how mean they were) and about our plans for the weekend.

It makes me wonder about how often we send notes to God? How often do we just tell God about the basic things? It is easy to pray when everything is horrible and hopefully when things are great we remember to say thank you, but how often do we pray when things are just “ok?” 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says to pray without ceasing, if we do that we eventually run out of bad things and good things and we move on to just the “ok” things.

I know I don’t pray that way enough, maybe I should take some cues from my Jr. High crush and just talk about the regular stuff.

Dear Jesus, for those whose creative energies are running on empty we pray. For those who need something new to break-forth into their world, may you be that someone who changes the very way we look at the world.  May you invade, infect, and impact the very world in which we live. May you burst on to the scene like a hot pepper on our tongues.  - Amen.

Dear Jesus, in our post Easter letdown, may we still remember that the tomb is empty and you are still with us. – Amen

“Up from the grave he arose,” Jesus, we sing that song so many times every single year. And yet too often we as your people are still exhausted. Still walking around like the living dead.  May this be the year we finally find eternal life. May this be the year we finally break free from the ties that hold us down. May this be the moment our hearts are warmed and we find your grace is even for us. – Amen