Autumn Majesty

I looked out of the window and saw a magnificent display of colors from a deep golden glow to a resplendent red and deep rich browns this morning. The leaves are turning on the trees. God is showing off again.

Don’t be in such a hurry today. Walk a little slower. Breathe in the smells, sights and sounds of this transition. Take a different route home so you can enjoy the majesty of the season.

Let us pray:

Great Creator God, we come to you today in the quiet mystery of early morning dew and the majesty of autumn’s splash of color. Help us to treasure your creation with the same intensity as we treasure our Creator.

We lift before you those who have experienced a loss in their lives – the loss of a friend or family member, the loss of employment or health benefits, the loss of sleep or the loss of peace. Help them to let go just as the leaves are releasing their hold upon the branches of the trees to make room for hope and healing. Guide those who can comfort and correct to be visible and vocal on their behalf.

Now, may the plans you have for them, plans not to harm but to prosper them be greater than the pain of the moment. In Jesus name, Amen.

BREATHING PRAYER

Have you forgotten the breathing prayers we learned over the summer? Remember when we are stressed, we tend to take shallow breaths. Breathe and do it deeply in prayer. Try it today.

Exhale: Lord I need you. Inhale: Lord I receive you. Repeat.

VMM

Be Faithful

Remind us anew today that you are always with us; that circumstances surrendered to you become stepping-stones to high purpose; that crushing blows left in your hands do heal and become teaching tools for our survival both in this lie and the lie to come; that illness may weaken and even destroy the body, nut will not destroy our soul. Help us to trust you more fully and to remain faithful in all circumstances, as did those first followers whom you taught through Christ to pray:

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your Kingdom come, 
your will be done, 
on earth as in heaven Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. 
Lead us not into temptation, 
but deliver us from evil. 
For the kingdom, 
the power and the glory are yours. 
Now and forever.

Amen.

Henry Fields

Above Our Circumstances

Let us pray together:

Thank you Lord for being all beginnings and all endings. In the morning you cradle the world and in the evening you heal our wounds so we can fight another day; You are the morning dew and the evening mist; You are the early morning sun kissing the potential of a new day and you are the twilight whispering promises yet to come.

We sing of sorrows and laugh at mistakes; we dance in the rain and laugh at the wind; we dream of things yet to come and believe the things we hope for, the evidence of thing unseen.

When our faith falters and our hopes crash upon the craggy rocks of ambition, renew our strength; let us be caught into your loving arms when we faint and lifted up as we struggle to rise above circumstances that seek our demise. You are a great and mighty God who helps us to live above our circumstances.

It is in the name of Gratitude we pray, Amen.

VMM

Strength For Today

Let us pray together:

O Lord, in this time of change and promise, strengthen us. You are our strength and our shield; You are our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. We know, Gracious God that your eyes go to and fro throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts long for you. We often grow weary, but our hope is in you to renew our strength, courage and vision. We do not fear, for you are with us. We are not dismayed or overwhelmed, for you are our God. We know you will strengthen us and help us; that you will uphold us with your righteous hand. We abide in your comfort. In the matchless name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Dr. Lance Watson

St. Paul Baptist Church

Richmond, Virginia

Prayer Quote

"Prayer catapults us onto the frontier of the spiritual life. Of all the Spiritual Disciplines prayer is the most central because it ushers us into perpetual communion with the Father. Meditation introduces us to the inner life, fasting is an accompanying means. Study transforms our minds, but it is the Discipline of prayer that brings us into the deepest and highest work o the human spirit. Real Prayer is life creating and life changing."

Richard J. Foster

Late In The Season

Tucked away in the corner of my backyard is a small square of earth called my Salad Garden. Lettuce, zucchini, and tomatoes were neatly planted in a place where it could get sunshine all day long. The harvest was delectable!

The other day, I went to my Salad Garden to prepare the ground for winter. There among the yellowing lanky plants was one last green tomato. It hung by itself. It hadn’t ripened yet and the cooler mornings and cold evening had damaged it.

Just like my last rose of summer, which is still a brilliant red by the way, it was hanging on late in the growing season. There was still a chance it may ripen before the first frost.

Let us pray:

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.”

John 15: 1

Dear Lord,

Help those of us who take a little longer to reach full maturity in the things of God. Protect us from the elements in life that can stunt our growth. Surround us with a love that will keep us until we are ready for the next level of faith.

You are the vinedresser and apart from you we can do nothing. Even when there is a change in the atmosphere, grant us a grace to hang on a little while longer. Prune away the dead growth to make way for the new. Resource us so that even if it is late in the season, we can bear much fruit. In Jesus name, Amen.

VMM

Dance the Day

Merciful God, awaken my soul as another week begins! Grant me a williness to live in covenant with you even while the surprises of the day unfolds. Lift me to dance and sing your praises today so that all who see me will see the joy you bring to my life. Empower me to dance with a joy that sends darkness running and suffering into submission.

Grant me a seeking heart so that among all the options, I may still seek you in everyone, in everyplace and in everything. In Jesus name, Amen.

VMM

"God with us" explodes the myth that God is distant and uncaring . He is with us in our worst, working for something better.

C. Neil Strait

The Last Rose of Summer

Just as dawn’s early light spilled over the horizon, my eye caught site of the last rose of summer just outside my kitchen window. It was a bright brilliant red. The flower was acting like it didn’t know that the air was chilled and summer was over. All the other blossoms had faded and fallen. Yet this rose bloomed on.

Every now and then seasons change in our lives. The expectation is that we must pack it in, call it quits or retreat until a better day. But something inside us won’t let go. In spite of the forecast we bloom even if we have to bloom all by ourselves.

Dear Lord,

There is nothing that we can do to deserve the gift of eternal life. You gave it freely to all who accept it and it allows us to be light in dark places. Your gift helps us to bloom like the last rose of summer in spite of the forecast of change.

Thank you for giving the roses among the thorns the power to bloom another day in spite of the conditions that can hinder it or make it difficult to bloom.

Thank you for the anointing to bloom in difficult places and in difficult times. Thank you for your favor that continually creates favorable circumstances in uncertain seasons.

In Jesus name, Amen.

VMM