From Andrew Murray's book "Holy in Christ"
O Lord! the alone Holy One, Thou hast called us to be holy, even as Thou art holy. Lord! how can we, unless Thou reveal to us Thy Holiness. Show us, we pray Thee, how Thou art holy, how holy Thou art, what Thy holiness is, that we may know how we are to be holy, how holy we are to be. And when the sight of Thy Holiness only shows us the more how unholy we are, teach us that Thou makest partakers of Thy own Holiness those who come to Thee for it.
O God! We come to Thee, the Holy One. It is in knowing and finding and having Thyself, that the soul finds Holiness. We do beseech Thee, as we now come to Thee, establish it in the thoughts of our heart, that the one object of Thy calling us, and of our coming to Thee, is Holiness. Thou wouldst have us like Thyself, partakers of Thy Holiness.
If ever our heart becomes afraid, as if it were too high, or rests content with a salvation less than Holiness, Blessed God! let us hear Thy voice calling again, Be holy, I am holy. Let that call be our motive and our strength, because faithful is He that calleth, who also will do it. Let that call mark our standard and our path; oh! let our life be such as Thou art able to make it.
Holy Father! I bow in lowly worship and silence before Thee. Let now Thine own voice sound in the depths of my heart calling me, Be holy, as I am holy.
Amen.
Prayer for Holiness
Short Opening Prayer at the Beginning of a Service
Lord God, who by your love has brought us here today, make your presence known in us and amongst us. Speak to our hearts in ever new and transforming ways, full of power and grace. We stand before you, ready to be filled with your Holy Spirit, ready to be used as vessels for your work, each in our own unique way. We bring before you ourselves, with all we are and all we have, use us for the glory of your name and the coming of your kingdom. We ask you this in Jesus' name.
Amen
Prayer for Grace
Father God,
We thirst and hunger for grace, yet so many times our words, actions and attitudes are anything but gracious. We live in the age of grace, yet we are surrounded by news of violence, lack of caring and unforgiveness.
So often we find it hard to break the vicious circles of ungrace we get caught in. We prefer to follow the way of this world rather than your way. Forgive us, Father.
We come to you as to our only source of hope and light in a world so full of darkness and despair. Help us to live gracious lives. Help us to be an example to those who don't know you and an instrument of your love.
We surrender to you our hearts and minds, all we have and do and all we are, let your Holy Spirit live in us and carry on the revolution of grace started on this earth by your son Jesus Christ.
And let your blessings be with us today, and with all those we love, and all those in need of your love.
In Jesus' name we pray.
Amen
Prayer for Spiritual Clarity
(From Kierkegaard's Prayers)
Father in heaven, awaken conscience within us. Teach us to open our spiritual ears to your voice and to pay attention to what you say, so that your will may sound purely and clearly for us as it does in heaven, unadulterated by worldly cunning, undeadened by the voice of passions. Keep us vigilant in fear and trembling to work out our salvation. But also–when the law speaks loudest, when its demands terrify us, when it thunders from Sinai–let there be a soft voice which whispers to us that we are your children, so that we may cry out with joy: Abba, Father.
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Law vs. Grace
Law can control people, but it can't change their hearts. Grace can. Therefore grace is a much greater force than the law.
Justice pays evil for evil, "an eye for an eye". But to pay evil for evil means to increase evil (it's simple mathematics). To go "an eye for an eye" means to lose two eyes instead of one, therefore to increase the darkness.
To pay good for evil is to increase the good. To forgive is to open someone's eyes to the reality of grace, therefore to bring in more light.
To punish a guilty man is to identify him with his guilt. To forgive him is to reveal to him that he is more than his guilt. In the first case you set limitations. In the second case, you remove limitations.
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Prayer for becoming an answer to a prayer
Lord God, enable us to pray in a way that is pleasing to you. Not only by speaking, but also by listening. Not only by making demands, but also by opening our hearts to what you demand from us. Not only by asking for answers, but also by offering ourselves to become an answer, so that you can work through us to bring comfort and healing to a broken world.
We are all, in our own way, broken vessels. Only you can take the shattered pieces and put them back together. Only you can make the vessel whole and fit to hold the water of life, so that others can drink from it and quench their thirst. Use our brokenness to heal the brokenness of others, and in this process, heal our own brokenness too.
Help us find help in the help we offer and comfort in the comfort we bring, with you guiding us all along the way. Teach us a way of giving that doesn't leave us poorer, but enriches us and makes us grow, which doesn't leave us empty, but fills us with the very things we give. For every gift that comes from you is a perfect gift, one that is not diminished, but increased by sharing, as it flows from your infinite resources of love. Enable us to have access to those resources and to make them available to others through the powerful work of your Holy Spirit in us, and for the sake of your beloved Son Jesus Christ.
Amen
Short Prayer for Compassion
Lord, let us never forget that true joy is hidden in compassion. Help us share our wounds and our brokenness with one another. Open our hearts and our minds to the fact that we are all your children and we belong to the same family. Help us rejoice in our shared humanity and deepen our sense of fellowship together. In the name of your beloved son Jesus. Amen
