Be our light in the darkness, O Lord, and in your great mercy defend
us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of your only Son, our
Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
--- Book of Common Prayer 1979
An
Evening Family Prayer
Lord, behold our family here assembled.
We thank you for this place in which we dwell, for the love that unites us,
for the peace accorded to us this day, for the hope with which we expect the
morrow; for the health, the work, the food and the bright skies that
make our lives delightful; for our friends in all parts of the earth. Amen.
--- Robert Louis Stevenson
Twenty-Third Psalm
The
Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul. He leads me in right
paths for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff--they comfort
me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you
anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall
follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the
Lord my whole life long.
--- Psalms 23: 1-6
A
Prayer for Comfort and Hope
Grant unto us, Almighty God, in all time
of sore distress, the comfort of the forgiveness of our sins. In time of darkness
give us blessed hope, in time of sickness of body give us quiet courage; and when
the heart is bowed down, and the soul is very heavy, and life is a burden, and
pleasure a weariness, and the sun is too bright, and life too mirthful, then may
that Spirit, the Spirit of the Comforter, come upon us, and after our darkness
may there be the clear shining of the heavenly light; that so, being uplifted
again by Thy mercy, we may pass on through this our mortal life with quiet courage,
patient hope, and unshaken trust, hoping through Thy loving-kindness and tender
mercy to be delivered from death into the large life of the eternal years. Hear
us of Thy mercy, through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen.
--- George
Dawson
God Is Our Hope
God is our hope and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore will we not fear, though the
earth be moved, and though the hills be carried into the midst of the sea;
Though the waters thereof rage and swell, and though the mountains shake
at the tempest of the same.
There is a river, the streams whereof make
glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High.
--- Psalms 46: 1-4
Prayer for Trust in Jesus
O Christ
Jesus, when all is darkness and we feel our weakness and helplessness,
give us the sense of Your presence, Your love, and Your strength. Help
us to have perfect trust in Your protecting love and strengthening power,
so that nothing may frighten or worry us, for, living close to You, we
shall see Your hand, Your purpose, Your will through all things.
---
St. Ignatius of Loyola
For Those Searching for God
O Lord
my God, Teach my heart this day where and how to see you, Where and how
to find you. You have made me and remade me, And you have bestowed on
me All the good things I possess, And still I do not know you. I have
not yet done that For which I was made. Teach me to seek you, For
I cannot seek you Unless you teach me, Or find you Unless you show
yourself to me. Let me seek you in my desire, Let me desire you in my
seeking. Let me find you by loving you, Let me love you when I find you.
--- St. Anselm
Prayer for Healing
And God shall wipe
away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither
sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former
things are passed away. --- Revelation 21:4
For Times of
Fear
Almighty God, the Refuge of all that are distressed, grant unto
us that, in all trouble of this our mortal life, we may flee to the knowledge
of Thy lovingkindness and tender mercy; that so, sheltering ourselves therein,
the storms of life may pass over us, and not shake the peace of God that is within
us. Whatsoever this life may bring us, grant that it may never take from us the
full faith that Thou art our Father. Grant us Thy light, that we may have life,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Books About Prayer and/or Meditation
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The Rev. Charles P. Henderson is a Presbyterian minister and
Executive Director of CrossCurrents.
He is the author of God and Science (John Knox Press, 1986).
A revised and expanded version of the book is appearing here. God and Science (Hypertext Edition,
2005).
He is also editor of a new book, featuring articles by world class scientists and theologians, and illustrating the leading views on the relationship between science and religion: Faith, Science and the Future (CrossCurrents Press, 2007).
Charles also tracks the boundry between the virtual and the real at his blog: Next World Design, focusing on the mediation of art, science and spirituality in the metaverse.