'The Lord said:
I heard your prayer and what you asked me to do'
(1 Kings 9:3)
If we are going to be creative in our prayer time then I do not feel that
there should be too many hard and fast rules about the format and content.
We are all individuals with our own thoughts about style and content,
and this 'individuality ' can bring a freshness and vitality into a time
spent talking and listening to God.
A structured prayer time is a more familiar in some denominations than
others, who perhaps prefer extemporary prayer or an element of congregational
participation by way of a time of 'open prayer'. Both are equally valid.
However, within the context of our collective worship there are certain
elements that it would seem right to include, in order that our prayers
are not seen to be too narrow in their aspirations.
These can be represented by the acronym A.C.T.S.
(i) ADORATION: Our prayer of adoration is one that is centred entirely
on God. It is our expression of praise for all that God is - His holiness,
majesty, love and greatness.
It's that mountaintop experience of being in the presence of the Creator
of all that you see around you, or sitting through a truly wonderful performance
of a sacred work which has transported your soul to another plain. Perhaps
you see what I'm trying to explain?
Adoration comes from the heart, from our emotions; it's an expression
of our inmost feelings.
(ii) CONFESSION: An awareness of God's presence within our worship naturally
leads on to a feeling of our own unworthiness. In confession we acknowledge
what we are and ask for forgiveness.
If these prayers are part of an act of public worship then it is appropriate
to express the Christian conviction that we all share in the sin of humankind.
Any prayer of confession should properly express our belief that God offers
the promise of forgiveness.
(iii) THANKSGIVING: Often lost within the package of prayer offered within
worship is thanksgiving. It gets confused with adoration or simply ignored
as prayers focus on intercession.
It is only right and proper that we should thank God for all that he has
done. For the beauty of this world which he created, for the birth, life,
death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the promise of the Holy Spirit,
his continuing creativity in the world today and for the Church - his
body here on earth.
(iv) SILENCE: Silence is important, in that it allows us time to digest
all that has been said through prayer. It gives us precious time within
worship to let our hearts talk and our mouths stay silent.
As David Adam says 'It is not an empty time but a God-filled time when
we open ourselves up to him.
A time of silence enables those worshipping to 'own' the prayers and make
them their own. It also allows for active participation for those who
would not feel able to contribute vocally.
Within the context of an act of worship there is often time set aside
for intercessory prayer, and this naturally arises as a response to the
hearing of God's word.
When we pray for others, we are adding our pleas to Christ's perfect prayer
for the whole world.
'Christ Jesus
is at the right hand of God and is also interceding
for us'
©John Birch · Prayers written by the author may be copied freely for worship. If reproduced elsewhere please acknowledge author/website
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