Prayer When Going to Church.
Almighty God, Heavenly Father, because of Thy great mercy I will go to
Thy house and worship Thee in Thy temple in Thy fear. Lord, lead me in
the paths of righteousness, and make Thy way straight before my face.
Guide me on the paths of Thy commandments, for Thou art my God, and the
Lord of my salvation. I delight in Thy sanctuary and rejoice in the
congregation of Thy saints, who confess and glorify Thee. How amiable are
Thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for
the courts of the Lord. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel
before the Lord our maker. For He is our God; and we are the people of
His pasture, and the sheep of His hand. Magnify the Lord our God, adore
at His footstool; for He is holy. I worship Thee, O God, in the accepted
time through Thy great mercy. Hear me according to Thy grace. Amen.
Prayer for Sincere Repentance.
Merciful and Gracious God, Thou art slow to anger and plenteous in mercy!
Thou callest us daily through the gracious preaching of Thy word to
devout conversion, and in Thy name causest repentance and remission of
sins to be preached. And Thou showest Thy forbearance with us through Thy
long suffering and inexpressible mercy, and dost not suddenly come upon
sinners in the midst of their evil deeds with Thy righteous wrath and
judgment to punish them, but giveth place and time for repentance, so
that no one can justly charge or accuse Thee. For Thou art not willing
that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance and have
everlasting life. O dear God, Thou knowest the sluggishness of our flesh
and the hardness of our hearts, that we through inherited sin are thus
far deranged and so deeply sunk in sin, that of our own accord we can not
rise or return. Therefore, for the sake of the wounds of Jesus Christ, my
Lord, I beseech Thee, convert Thou me, and I am converted. For Thou art
my God, and where I am converted I will truly repent. Save Thou me, O
Lord, and I am saved. Help me, and I am helped. Behold, I am like an
erring and lost sheep. Seek Thou Thy servant, that I forget not Thy
commandments. Circumcise the foreskin of my heart. Purge me, and I shall
be clean. Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Create in me a clean
heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from
Thy presence; and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me. O dear God, look upon
me, as Thou didst look upon Mary Magdalene, the repentant sinner, as she
lay at Thy feet and wept over her transgressions; and the publican in the
temple, as he smote his breast and besought Thy grace. Vouchsafe unto me
sincere sorrow and contrition over my sin, and a true faith with firm
confidence in Thy grace, and also worthy fruits of repentance. Let me
discern the day of Thy visitation, and not despise the riches of Thy
mercy, so that I may not neglect the accepted time, and the day of Thy
salvation, and not fail to turn to Thee, my Lord and God. May I not
postpone my repentance from one day to another, nor yet to the last hour,
but rather turn to Thee this day and repent. Amen.
Prayer for the Forgiveness of Sins.
Merciful Father, Eternal God, my sins are grievous, many and great my
transgressions, and mine iniquities are innumerable, for the imaginations
of my heart are evil from my youth. O Lord, who can understand his
errors? Behold, I acknowledge my transgressions: my sin is ever before
me. Against Thee only have I sinned, and done evil in Thy sight: that
Thou mightest be justified when Thou speakest, and be clear when Thou
judgest. I beseech Thine infinite mercy, enter not into judgment with Thy
servant: for in Thy sight shall no living man be justified. If Thou,
Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? Behold, if Thou
contendest with man, he can not answer Thee one of a thousand, for all
our righteousness before Thee is as the filthy rag. Have mercy upon me, O
God, according to Thy loving kindness: according to the multitude of Thy
tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from mine
iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin for Thy name's sake. Lord, have
mercy upon me, save my soul, for, alas! I have sinned against Thee.
Remember, O Lord, Thy tender mercies and Thy loving kindnesses; for they
have been ever as of old. Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my
transgressions: according to Thy mercy remember Thou me for Thy goodness'
sake, O Lord. Remember that we are flesh, as the wind which bloweth and
doth not return, and cease in Thy anger and wrath against us. O merciful
God, I acknowledge that my virtues and my deeds can never blot out my
sins, nor yet merit Thy grace. Only the innocent suffering and death of
Jesus Christ, the Lamb without spot or blemish, is the true offering for
our iniquities, and His blood, shed for the remission of our sins, is the
cleansing and purification of our souls. In such confidence and hope I
supplicate Thee: forgive Thou the transgressions of Thy people. Cover our
sins. Impute not our iniquities, for Thou art merciful. Cleanse Thou me
from secret fault. Let my sorrowing soul and my vexed bones again
rejoice, for with Thee there is mercy and plenteous redemption. O Lord,
hear the voice of my supplication, and despise not the groanings of my
heart, for Christ's sake. Amen.
Prayer for True Faith.
Lord, Almighty God, Thou Father of lights, with whom there is no
variableness, neither shadow of turning, from whom every good and perfect
gift cometh, I pray Thee, since all men have not faith: implant and
maintain in my heart through the workings of Thy Holy Spirit the true
knowledge of Thy dear Son Jesus Christ, and increase it from day to day,
so that I, too, may be filled with the knowledge of Thy will in all
wisdom and spiritual understanding, that I may walk worthy of Thee unto
all pleasing, being faithful in every good work, and increase in such
knowledge according to Thy glorious power in all patience and long
suffering with joy. Grant unto me, according to the riches of Thy glory,
that I may be strengthened with might by Thy Spirit in the inner man,
that Christ may dwell in my heart by faith. O dear God, since no man
knoweth the Son but Thou, O Father, and no man knoweth Thee, the Father,
but only the same Thy Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal Thee, I
pray Thee, draw Thou me unto Thee. Grant me the knowledge of salvation,
which is the forgiveness of sins. Strengthen my weak faith, which is
small as the mustard seed, so that it may increase, and I be rooted and
grounded in Thee, and may stand steadfast and unmoveable. Gracious God,
Thou hast kindled the spark of faith in my heart and has begun this good
work in me, I cry to Thee, perfect it until the end, that we may ever
increase in knowledge and understanding, and be sincere and without
offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of
righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of
God. Preserve what Thou hast begun, that we might war a good warfare,
holding faith and a good conscience, and not waver or succumb in trial
and temptation and make shipwreck concerning faith. Therefore protect me,
my God, that I am not led astray among the errors, schisms, and heresies
of the world. Preserve me from superstitions and all false doctrine, that
I may neither err nor doubt in any article of faith. And vouchsafe unto
me Thy grace, that my faith be not lifeless, inactive, or without good
fruits, but active and energetic, serving in love, so that I, too, may
carry off the end of faith, which is the soul's salvation. Amen.
Prayer Before Confession.
Lord Jesus Christ, Thou my Redeemer, Thou hast given unto Thy dear Church
on earth and its faithful servants the sacred office of the keys, and
invested it with the promise, that whatsoever by virtue of the same they
shall loose or bind on earth shall also be loosed or bound in heaven: I
thank Thee, and eternally praise and glorify Thee, for such Thy gracious
gift. And, since I a poor and bound sinner need this blessed key which
looseth, so that I may not be kept under the bonds of the infernal
jailer, I beseech Thine infinite mercy, that I may receive its comfort
through my spiritual father, my pastor, and for the sake of Thy holy,
precious blood and Thy innocent offering and death be loosed from all my
sins. Grant me Thy Holy Spirit, so that I may grasp this holy absolution
in heartfelt contrition and undoubting trust, firm resolve, brotherly
love and gratitude, and inherit the eternal life. Amen.
Thanksgiving After Absolution.
O Blessed, Merciful, and Gracious God! I thank and praise Thee from all
my heart, that through Thy servant Thou hast again forgiven me, a poor
sinner, all my sins, again received me in grace, and promised me eternal
life. I earnestly pray Thee, vouchsafe unto me Thy Holy Spirit, and
create in me a pure heart, so that I may joyously trust that all my sins
are forgiven me through Jesus Christ. As an earnest and surety of this
blessed fact, I will now eat and drink the true body and blood of Thy
dear Son Jesus Christ, under the bread and wine, to my soul's salvation.
Grant me also, O faithful God, that henceforth I may earnestly avoid all
sin and better my life. This Thou wouldest graciously grant me for Thy
name's sake. Amen.
A Morning Prayer for Communion Day.
Arise, my soul, this is the day which the Lord hath made. We will rejoice
and be glad in it. Give thanks unto the gracious and merciful God for His
blessings and say:
Almighty and Merciful God and Father, I thank Thee from all my heart for
the protection of this night, for the refreshing rest, and for the joyous
morning, which Thou hast granted unto me. I praise Thee with all my soul
for Thy wonderful mercy which blesses me with the forgiveness of my sins.
Praised be Thy grace, which is new each morn, and which on this day also
bids me to Thy house, and calls and invites me to Thy altar.
O Lord, since I, too, would come to Thy Supper with the throngs which
celebrate, do Thou Thyself make me ready. As Thou wouldest find a pure
residence in me, do Thou cleanse and consecrate my body and soul. Guide
me with Thine eye, and lead me with Thy hand to the riches of Thy mercy.
Comfort me with Thy countenance, and do not forsake me. As the hart
panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God.
And, that my sacred resolve may not be hampered, I commend to Thee my
body and soul, reason, senses, and thoughts, whatever I do or leave
undone, my coming in and going out, my walking, standing, sitting, and
resting, my imaginations and aspirations, my faith and confession, and
whatever internally or externally I may be or do. O God, preserve in me a
devout spirit, and hinder whatever might disturb or hamper me. Receive me
into the especial care of Thy grace, and increase in me the work that is
now begun. Perfect and complete it according to Thy power and grace to
Thy glory and my salvation. Keep me from evil thoughts, from idle
imaginations, from all uncleanliness, so that in Thy fear I may begin a
consecrated life and continue therein. May the light of my faith shine
before men. May I give offense to none, but rather in Christian conduct
edify the brethren and direct them to all virtue.
Holy Jesus, do Thou unite with my body and soul on this day. Nourish me
with Thy flesh and refresh me with Thy blood, so that my weak faith be
strengthened, and receive the assurance of Thy grace, the remission of my
sin, and eternal salvation. Invest me with the pure silk of Thy
righteousness. Clothe me in the true wedding garment, that I may appear
at Thy heavenly board a worthy guest.
Now, Lord God and Father, be my help and my protection! Lord Jesus Christ
be my bread, my light, and life! And Thou, O Holy Ghost, illumine and
preserve me in the true sanctification, so that in that estate, into
which I again am permitted to enter, I may remain for the course of my
life. Let me be enveloped in Thee. Without Thee there is only grief. O
dear Savior, let me ever be with Thee. Amen.
Prayer Before Holy Communion.
Lord Jesus Christ, Eternal Son of God, I am not worthy to open my lips
and receive the most precious sacrament of Thy body and blood. For I am a
sin-stained man, but Thou art the Lord whom the heavens can not
encompass. How then can a human being who is but dust and ashes be worthy
to receive Thy most holy body and precious blood! I well know and
acknowledge that my sins are many and that for that reason I am an
unworthy guest at Thy table. But I also sincerely believe and confess it
with my lips that by Thy grace Thou canst render me worthy. For Thou art
omnipotent and gracious. Thou only canst cleanse and make holy whatever
took rise in unclean seed. Thou canst transform sinners into true and
holy men, when by Thy grace Thou forgivest sin and renewest us with Thy
Holy Spirit. Therefore I pray Thee, by Thy power and love grant me grace,
that I may worthily approach Thy altar, and not become guilty of Thy body
and blood by unworthy eating and drinking, so that I may not receive
death in place of life. Grant me grace, that I may know and test myself
as a poor sinner, my heart filled with sorrow over mine iniquity, and may
properly discern Thy tender and noble body, and Thy holy, precious blood.
May my reason, senses, and intellect be ever submissive to Thy word, and
may I be earnestly resolved to better and improve my life with Thy help,
so that in this precious sacrament, I may not only with my mouth receive
Thy body and blood, but also in true faith accept Thee, my Savior and
Redeemer, enthrone Thee in my heart, and find in Thee my life and
blessedness. For Thou art the living bread which cometh down from heaven
and bringeth life to men. Whoever cometh to Thee shall nevermore hunger,
and he that believeth on Thee shall nevermore thirst. Whoever eateth Thy
flesh and drinketh Thy blood dwelleth in Thee and Thou in him, and shall
never die. O beloved Lord, my spirit and my mind yearn for Thee. As the
hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O
God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and
appear before God? Fill me with Thy grace. Amen.
A Sigh When About to Receive the Sacred Body of Christ.
Lord Jesus Christ, Thy holy body strengthen and preserve me in the true
faith unto eternal life. Amen.
A Sigh When About to Receive the Sacred Blood of Christ.
Lord Jesus Christ, Thy holy blood strengthen and preserve me in the true
faith unto eternal life. Amen.
Prayer After the Holy Supper.
Lord Jesus Christ, with all my heart I thank and glorify Thee, that Thou
hast again cleansed me, a poor sinner, from all my sin, and as an earnest
of such cleansing and forgiveness of my sin, hast nourished me with Thy
body and blood, and like an unclean child, after such purification, hast
received me into the fatherly arms of Thy grace and mercy, and put me
pure, reproachless, and without blemish before Thy Father.
I earnestly pray Thee with all my power, in addition to such blessing,
grant me Thy grace through the workings of Thy Holy Ghost, so that I may
sufficiently understand such blessing and grace, gratefully accept it,
and glorify and praise Thee with all my heart. Grant me strength from
above by Thy Holy Spirit, that I may heartily forgive my neighbor
wherever he hath sinned against me, even as Thou hast fully and richly
forgiven me my great and manifold transgressions, yes, entirely blotted
them out and wilt never remember them. Help me to love my neighbor and
gladly show him every good, as Thou hast done unto me, and hast shown me
more than I can ever sufficiently thank Thee for. Praise and glory be to
Thee, O faithful God, together with the Father and the Holy Ghost, world
without end. Amen.
Prayer for a Pious Life.
O my dear Lord Jesus, illumine me today and evermore, that I may shape
the course of my Christian life and direct it toward the eternal
Jerusalem, my eternal home. And as Thou yearnest for me, may I also have
all my delight and thirst in Thee, seek Thee early, yearn for Thee, and
make of Thee, the bread of life, the companion of all my ways. Keep me, O
unchangeable, everlasting God, from the inconstancy of the children of
this world, that I may not fall into hypocrisy as they do, but today and
always, in all my calling, prove myself constant in godliness, so that my
life may decrease in vice and increase in virtue. May I always faithfully
serve Thee, my Lord, disdain the worldly, be exalted in Thee, experience
Thy grace and protection, and eternally thank Thee, for Christ's sake.
Amen.
Prayer for Faithful Teachers and Preachers.
The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few; pray ye,
therefore, the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth laborers into
His harvest.
Merciful God, who hast commanded us through Thy only begotten Son to pray
Thee for laborers in Thy harvest: I earnestly beseech Thee, grant us, Thy
sheep, pastors according to Thy heart, to feed us with doctrine and
wisdom. Put learned bishops, Christian pastors, pious teachers over Thy
congregation, faithfully to show the true way to eternal life. Fill them
plenteously with Thy Holy Spirit, so that they may fruitfully proclaim
the holy and precious word of the gospel, and sincerely perfect Thy work.
Grant them a courageous heart, that without fear or favor they may lift
up their voices and put the adversaries to silence. Open the door for
their word, that they may be blessed and go from strength to strength.
May they also be shining examples for the flocks entrusted to their care.
Grant me and all listeners a grateful heart, that we may communicate in
all good things unto them that teach us the word, rejoice in them,
forsake them not, so that we may be blessed of Thee according to Thy
promise in all the works of our hands. Preserve us from hirelings,
time-servers, unfaithful laborers, and hypocrites, who falsely deceive
the hearts of the righteous, whom Thou hast never grieved, and fortify
the hands of the wicked, that they will not turn from their evil ways.
Let us never be robbed of our faithful preachers for the sake of our
ingratitude, but rather look upon the glory of Thy holy name, yea, behold
the Kingdom of Thine Anointed, that it may prevail among us to the end of
the world. Amen.
Prayer for the Kingdom of God.
(Meeting of the Congregation)
Gracious and Blessed God, who hast taught, and commanded us above all
things and first to seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness: I pray
Thee, grant us grace, that Thy holy word may be preached in all the world
in all its truth and purity, and we submit our reason to the obedience of
faith, and live holy lives according to it as behooves the children of
God to Thy pleasing, so that Thy kingdom may come to us, and increase,
and many of them, who do not yet believe in the word, be won through a
Christian conduct. Help us, dear God, who are delivered from the power of
darkness and are translated into the kingdom of Thy dear Son Jesus
Christ, in whom we have redemption through His blood, even the
forgiveness of sin, that we may remain in His kingdom, faithfully
continue in the wholesome doctrine, and live worthily as children of
light in all piety and godliness. And since the kingdom of God cometh not
with outward shew, neither consists of mere words, but is power and
spirit: grant us grace, that we may be born again from above through Thy
saving word and Thy Holy Spirit, co-heirs of life, so that with our
hearts we may dwell above where Christ sitteth, and constantly seek the
inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, that fadeth not away. Enable us
to be poor in the spirit and humble, and such who sorrow over their sins.
Let us be anhungered and athirst, and heartily yearn after righteousness.
May we ever be meek, and suffer and overcome whatsoever of persecution
and tribulation may assail us, and revilings and undeserved malignings
with patience and longsuffering. Keep us from all offenses, whereby Thy
holy name is blasphemed and outraged, Thy kingdom hindered and weakened.
Grant us grace to practice our faith in works of love and mercy, feeding,
clothing, harboring, visiting, comforting the poor and distressed of this
world, so that when that great day dawns we may hear the blessed and
joyous voice of Thy dear Son: Come ye blessed of My Father, inherit the
kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Amen.
Prayer for Missions.
I pray Thee, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Thy dear Son, our
Lord, have mercy upon the unbelievers, whoever and wherever they are, who
still walk in darkness, and do not yet possess the light of Thy gospel.
They are stricken with blindness by the evil one. Their foolish heart is
darkened. They are alienated from the life that is of Thee, through their
native ignorance, carried away to the dumb idols, even as they are led,
and in their blindness curse and blaspheme Thy dear Son, Jesus Christ,
the mercy seat. For that reason, O faithful God, take away the veil,
which is upon the heart of the Jews, who stumble at the stone of
stumbling and the rock of offense. Illumine their eyes that they may know
the true Messiah, the Savior of the world. Gather the heathen and all
unbelievers, who look upon Thy word as foolishness, into the true fold
and the true assembly of Christians, the congregation of saints, so that
with us and all the faithful they may honor, glorify, and worship Thee,
the Father in the Son, and the Son with the Father and the Holy Ghost,
ever one God and Lord. Open the understanding of all men, who do not put
their salvation and their confidence solely and alone on the true
fundament and cornerstone, even Jesus Christ, so that they know Him, whom
Thou hast sent, and in the true faith and a sincere trust of their hearts
may acknowledge and accept Him as their Savior and Redeemer, who through
His obedience and fulfillment of the law, and through His bitter death,
hath merited an eternal salvation. We pray Thee also, to return to the
truth of Thy word all of them who have defected from the Christian faith,
or err in sundry other things and are cumbered with false doctrines. Thou
God of grace, have mercy upon those, who are not of the true faith, who
dwell in the shadow of death, and in the darkness of their minds walk on
uneven paths. Seek the lost, lead aright the erring, illumine the blinded
and infatuated, open the ears of the deaf, unloose the tongues of the
dumb, who do not confess Thee, raise the fallen, bring back the corrupt,
assemble the dispersed, lead aright the erring and seduced, for Thy
mercy's sake. Amen.
Prayer Against False Doctrines and Sects.
Gracious God! Thou hast warned us, that we should beware of false
prophets who come in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves.
And since in these latter days, in which we now live, evil times will
come, in which Satan clothes himself in the livery of heaven, and false
teachers and fraudulent laborers dissemble as though they were the
apostles of Christ, who have the form of godliness but deny the power
thereof; and since the defection from the pure doctrine, and the man of
sin, the son of perdition, who opposeth and exalteth himself above all
that is called God shall be made manifest, help us, eternal God, that we
may be filled with the love for truth, and avoid the spirit of lies and
all falsehoods and errors, abstain and flee from all appearance of evil,
so that we may not be moved from the true faith, nor yet beguiled from
our reward, but may continue steadfast by Thy word unto the end. May we
never be led astray, neither through deceiving powers, signs, and
miracles, nor through any temptation to unrighteousness, so that we be
not tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by
the slight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to
deceive. Preserve Thy elect in this evil world, O God, that they may not
be led into error. Shorten the days in these evil times. Destroy the
Antichrist, the wicked child of perdition and temptation, through the
spirit of Thy mouth. Put an end to his days through the appearance of Thy
dear Son. Preserve us also from unruly spirits and schisms, from the
ravenous wolves who have no mercy for the flocks, from men who speak
perverse doctrines and draw the disciples to themselves, from men of
corrupt minds who sow offense and bring about separation, from the tares
which the enemy scatters, from thieves and murderers of the soul. Let us
only hear Thy voice, and follow it from our hearts in true faith and
upright obedience, so that your word may be our only rule and norm,
according to which we measure all doctrine, flee the evil teaching, and
all unrighteousness. Then will we, too, have boldness and be not brought
to naught on that day when Jesus Christ, our Savior, shall appear. Amen.
Prayer Against the Enemies of Christendom.
O Lord God, why do the wicked rage without cause? and the mighty set
themselves and take counsel against Thee and Thy Son, Thine Anointed? O
Lord, how numerous are Thine enemies, and great the number of those who
conspire against Thy word to destroy it, and put their own evil idolatry
in its place and introduce false doctrines into Thy Church. They invent
secret artifices and practices, to destroy the confessors of Thy word.
They counsel what is evil, pregnant with calamity. They lie in wait for
us like the lion seeking his prey. Thus they waylay our souls. They open
wide their jaws, like a gaping sepulchre, to devour us. O Lord God,
commit us not to their will, for behold, the wicked mob speaks in its
heart, Thou, O Lord, hast forgotten us. Thou hast concealed Thy
countenance. Arise, therefore, O Lord. Lift up Thy hand, forget not the
distressed. Awaken, O Lord, why sleepest Thou! Awake, and do not quite
reject us. Why dost Thou hide Thy face, and forget our misery and
distress? Arise, and help us, and deliver us for Thy mercy sake, that the
enemy may not injure us, nor the children of Belial harm us. Save us from
the hands of aliens, whose teaching is useless, and their works evil. For
they will not be guided to do good. They will not regard Thee, the Lord
of hosts, nor yet the works of Thy hands. Thou wilt destroy and not build
them. O Lord God Sabaoth, militate Thou against our assailants. Give
victory to our Christian government, and conquer the enemies of Thy name.
For victory cometh from heaven, and is not brought about by the great
multitude. Thou canst as readily help through the few as through the
many. Therefore destroy the arm of the wicked. Make their counsels of no
account, that they can not accomplish them, but must be brought to naught
with shame. They must return, who hate Thee, and seek to annihilate Thy
holy word. They must be as chaff before the wind. Thy holy angel brush
them aside, that they may not boast against Thee and say our hand hath
done this. Therefore safeguard Thy honor among men, and help us for Thy
name's sake, that it may not be desecrated and blasphemed. Amen.