Opening Prayers/Prayers of Adoration on Restoration
Almighty and everlasting God, who has restored all things in your well-beloved Son, the King and Lord of all: Mercifully grant that all peoples and nations, divided and wounded by sin, may be brought under the gentle yoke of his most loving rule; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, ever one God, world without end.
Sarum Breviary, Language adapted for Modern Worship by Stuart Strachan Jr.
God our Father, Savior and Sustainer—
You are the God who knows our name,
and the God who revealed Your name as “I Am Who I Am”
and shows us Your face in the face of Jesus.
You are known to us … and we are known to You.
You know what brings us joy,
what makes us laugh,
what we celebrate and are most grateful for—
the birth of a child,
the healing of a loved one,
the restoration of a relationship,
a new job,
a wedding anniversary …
and You rejoice with us.
Heavenly Father:
You know all about us – our weakness, our failing, our sin;
And you still love us enough to give your Son to redeem us.
Hear the cries of our hearts today.
There’s someone for whom it was hard to get out of bed today.
They’re tired, discouraged or stressed out.
It was an effort just to get here.
Give them hope today:
a light in the darkness, a whisper in the silence.
There’s one for whom everything they touch comes apart:
She’s having a hard time holding the marriage together;
His project at work is going poorly;
There’s a divide between him and his son,
between her and her daughter;
Everything he touches turns to sawdust;
And no matter what she does, she can’t get well.
Come, Lord Jesus, come.
Come and redeem the relationship.
Take the lessons learned in failure and build a new life.
Use the pain to create compassion.
Create something delightful out of what feels like disaster.
Restore what the devil has stolen;
turn what was meant for evil to good.
We pray on behalf of those who can’t pray for themselves.
We pray for those afflicted in body or soul, who need your healing.
Put your hand on them.
Touch a mind that’s tormented;
a body that’s ill or injured. a heart that’s broken.
Restore them all.