Sunday, June 27, 2010

Prayer for the Afflicted

Tim Challies blogged about this prayer, drawn from the Canadian and American Reformed Church web site. I am taking the liberty to change the first person plural to singular, as he suggested.  It makes it much more personal.
Merciful God and Father, You give eternal hope and salvation to the living and eternal life to the dying. You alone have life and death in Your hands, and Christ alone has the keys of death and of the grave. All things are in Your power so that neither health nor sickness, good nor evil, life nor death can happen to me without Your will. I also know that by Your power and direction all things must serve my salvation. Gracious Father, I implore You to grant me the grace of Your Holy Spirit, that He may teach me truly to know my misery and to bear patiently with Your chastisements. If You, O Lord, kept a record of my sins these chastisements should have been ten thousand times more severe. I believe that they are not evidence of Your wrath but of Your fatherly love towards me, that I might not be condemned with the world.

Lord, strengthen my faith by Your Holy Spirit, so that I become more and more united with Christ my Head, since it is Your good pleasure to unite me to Him in both suffering and glory. Enable me to bear what is brought upon me by Your fatherly wisdom. I submit myself entirely to Your will, whether You leave me on earth or whether You take me home unto Yourself. I trust that with body and soul, both in life and in death, I belong to Christ, whose resurrection is the guarantee of my blessed resurrection.

Grant that I may experience the comfort of the forgiveness of sins through Jesus Christ. May His innocent blood wash away the dirt of my sins and may His righteousness cover my unrighteousness in Your sight. Arm me with faith and hope, so that I may overcome the assaults of Satan and not be put to shame by any fear of death. When my eyes grow dim, let Your eyes be open toward me. When You take away from me the ability to speak will You then hear the sighing of my heart. When my hands have lost their strength, continue to support and carry me on Your everlasting arms.

Father, I commit my spirit into Your hands. Deal with me according to Your promise. Never forsake me, but always be with me, even in the hour of death.

Hear and answer me for the sake of Christ, my dear Saviour. Amen.

1 comment:

Remember that you will give an account for every word. Respond with wisdom and grace, please.