Prayers of the People -  Friday Evening, May 22nd

Pause at the end of each day. Enjoy communion with the living God: Creator, Redeemer, Holy Spirit. Listen for the voice of God in the scriptures. 

Read 

Psalm 42 - Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him. For the help of His presence.

Judges 15 - Samson’s marriage annulled, his revenge taken on Philistine crops and soldiers.

Romans 16.1-16 - Phoebe and Greetings of Love

Meditate 

The words of the Lord are spirit and life, a light to the wise path. Sit with your questions, write down your observations and tensions.

Pray 

Bring your meditations to this time of prayer and let them guide you, or use the prayer we’ve offered here: Lord, hear the prayers of your people.

Lord, your people thirst for you in times of trouble. Our tears have been our food day and night,

While people say to us all day long, “Where is your God?” we wonder… When shall we come and appear before God? These things I remember, and I pour out my soul within me.

Like Phoebe, we long to carry a message from you to your people waiting, to your children in hiding. And like your people, longing to hear from you, we long to receive the witness who carry your letters to the saints. We pray for all of the Phoebes preparing to bring your words this weekend: That we receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and that we help her in whatever matter she may have need of; for she herself has also been a helper of many.

Yet we wrestle every day, with the powers of our day. The principalities of the air, the enemies of goodwill and freedom, the scarcity of sanity. Lord, your people are feeble and frail, our eyes are dry from long days we can no longer name. And many of us sit under the ridicule and ridiculousness of a wicked ruler. His word vomit is causing sickness and death. We need deliverance. 

Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?”As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries revile me,While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? 

Hope in God, for I shall yet praise, the help of my countenance and my God.

Contemplate

In silence 

Through song “The Battle is the Lord’s” Yolanda Adams

Seek God’s face

“My heart said - seek God’s face. Lord, your face will I seek” Psalm 27.8

Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls; All Your breakers and Your waves have rolled over me. The Lord will command lovingkindness in the daytime; And God’s song will be with me in the night, a prayer to the God of my life.

Lord, hear the prayers of your people. Amen

Artwork: Prayer for Nurses // Annie Lee

To access the full prayer guide from Daily Prayer Project, join the Faith for Justice mailing list on our home page, or subscribe at dailyprayerproject.org