O God, you will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are fixed on you; for
in returning and rest we shall be saved; in quietness and trust shall be our strength.
God
grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to
change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
Living one
day at a time;
enjoying one moment at a time;
accepting hardships as the
pathway to peace;
taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as
I would have it;
trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender
to His Will;
that I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely
happy with Him
forever in the next.
Amen.
--- Reinhold Niebuhr
(1892-1971)
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
The 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
forever.
--- Psalms 23: 1-6
An Internet Prayer For Peace
O God, you are the source of life
and peace.
Praised be your name forever.
We know it is you who turn our
minds to thoughts of peace.
Hear our prayer in this time of crisis.
Your
power changes hearts.
Muslims, Christians and Jews remember, and profoundly
affirm,
that they are followers of the one God,
Children of Abraham, brothers
and sisters;
enemies begin to speak to one another;
those who were estranged
join hands in friendship;
nations seek the way of peace together.
Strengthen our resolve to give witness to these
truths by the way we live.
Give to us:
Understanding that puts an end to strife;
Mercy that quenches
hatred, and
Forgiveness that overcomes vengeance.
Empower all people to
live in your law of love
Amen.
--- Source: Pax Christi
Grant
Us Your Salvation
Show us your mercy, O Lord;
And grant us your
salvation.
Clothe your ministers with righteousness;
Let your people sing
with joy.
Give peace, O Lord, in all the world;
For only in you can we
live in safety.
Lord, keep this nation under your care;
And guide us in
the way of justice and truth.
Let your way be known upon earth;
Your saving
health among all nations.
Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten;
Nor
the hope of the poor be taken away.
Create in us clean hearts, O God;
And sustain us by your Holy Spirit.
--- Book of Common Prayer 1979
Grant Us Your Peace
O Lord, my God,
grant us your peace; already,
indeed, you have made us rich in all things!
Give us that peace of being at
rest,
that sabbath peace,
the peace which knows no end.
--- St.
Augustine
Make Me An Instrument of Your Peace
Lord, make
me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love,
Where there is injury, pardon
Where there is doubt, faith,
Where there
is despair, hope,
Where there is darkness, light,
Where there is sadness,
joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
seek to be consoled
as to console,
not so much to be understood as to understand,
not so much
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in
pardoning that we are pardoned,
it is in dying that we awake to eternal life.
--- St. Francis of Assisi
Prayer For Peace Among Nations
O Almighty God,
the Father of all humanity,
turn, we pray, the hearts
of all peoples and their rulers,
that by the power of your Holy Spirit
peace may be established among the nations
on the foundation of justice, righteousness
and truth;
through him who was lifted up on the cross
to draw all people
to himself,
your Son 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.
