Showing posts with label Moses. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Moses. Show all posts

May 14, 2020

Praying for mercy


We often equate mercy with clemency and compassion, but God’s mercy offers much more. His mercy offers us forgiveness, redemption, and peaceThat’s true for us individually and also for God's family. 

We’re all in this together! So let’s pray to receive God’s mercy over us and our country. Let's do all we can to be at peace with God, each other, and ourselves.

Deuteronomy 21:8-9 – a prayer of Moses
from the King James Version of the Bible

Be merciful, O Lord, unto thy people Israel,
whom thou hast redeemed,
and lay not innocent blood
unto thy people of Israel's charge.
And the blood shall be forgiven them.

So shalt thou put away the guilt
of innocent blood from among you,
when thou shalt do that which is right
in the sight of the Lord.

From the Book of KJV Prayers - actual prayers from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) collected by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019 

Deuteronomy 21:8 – a prayer of Moses
paraphrased into everyday language

Lord, You freed us!
Now please
make peace with us.

Don’t let the guilt
of unsolved offenses
reside with Your people.

Give us peace, Lord.
Give us peace.

From the Book of Bible Prayers – actual prayers of the Bible collected from a variety of translations and paraphrased into everyday English by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019


April 14, 2020

Praying for God to redeem


This Bible prayer of Moses speaks for us, too, as we seek God’s protection and redemption from all ills, including COVID-19.

Deuteronomy 9:26-29 – a prayer of Moses
as translated in the King James Version 

I prayed therefore unto the Lord, and said,
O Lord God, destroy not thy people
and thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed
through thy greatness, which thou hast brought forth
out of Egypt with a mighty hand.

 Remember thy servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob;
look not unto the stubbornness of this people,
nor to their wickedness, nor to their sin:
Lest the land whence thou broughtest us out say,
Because the Lord was not able to bring them
into the land which he promised them,
and because he hated them, he hath brought them out
to slay them in the wilderness.

Yet they are thy people and thine inheritance,
which thou broughtest out by thy mighty power
and by thy stretched out arm.

From the Book of KJV Prayers - actual prayers from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) collected by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019 


Deuteronomy 9:26-29 – a prayer of Moses
paraphrased into everyday English

O Lord God, You have redeemed Your people.

Your mighty hand has released us from all that
enslaved us, so please don’t do away with us now!

Think about Your faithful servants who came before us
and forget about the stubbornness – the wickedness
so obvious at this moment. Otherwise, people will say
You weren’t able to help or give us what You promised.

They’ll say You hate us and brought us to this place
to die. But, Lord, we are Your people, Your family –
the ones You rescued with Your enormous power
and open arms.

From the Book of Bible Prayersactual prayers of the Bible collected from a variety of translations and paraphrased into everyday English by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019


April 1, 2020

Praying for pardon


We’ve heard about the “sins of the fathers” being “revisited upon the children,” but God said – whether child or parent – each of us carries responsibility for own actions. That’s true, of course, since God said so! But it primarily refers to punishment such as fines or jail time.

Bad decisions and unhealthy lifestyles today can, and most likely will, affect even a great-grandchild. For example, they might eat the nutrition-less foods they had growing up. Or they might do drugs because their grandmother did. They might not be taught social skills or the godly standards expressed in God’s word.  

As one generation passes poor choices onto another generation who doesn’t know they even have choices, the chain continues – unless we seek God’s power in our lives and those of our ancestors and offspring for generations gone and to come.

That’s what Moses did. As the mediator between God and God’s people who had been enslaved for hundreds of years, Moses pleaded for this visitation of sin to cease.


Numbers 14:17-19 – a prayer of Moses

And now, I beseech thee,
let the power of my lord be great,
according as thou hast spoken, saying,

The Lord is longsuffering,
and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity
and transgression, and by no means
clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity
of the fathers upon the children
unto the third and fourth generation.

Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity
of this people according unto the greatness
of thy mercy, and as thou hast
forgiven this people, from Egypt
even until now.

From the Book of KJV Prayers - actual prayers from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) collected by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019 

Numbers 14:17-19 – a prayer of Moses

Lord, I need evidence of Your power!

You said You’re slow to anger
and filled with unfailing love,
forgiving all sorts of sin and rebellion,
yet not excusing the guilty.

Indeed, when parents sin, their choices
and actions affect other people–
even a great-great-grandchild!

But please pardon us, Lord!
Please keep on parenting us
with Your glorious love.

From the Book of Bible Prayersactual prayers of the Bible collected from a variety of translations and paraphrased into everyday English by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019


May God forgive us our sins and break any chains of bad inheritance, traumas suffered, or “bad blood” between us and others affecting us, our families, and our countries in Jesus’ Name.



March 18, 2020

Moses prayed for family healing


For forty years, Moses lived in Pharaoh’s palace while his siblings, Miriam and Aaron, lived in the home of their parents, who were Hebrew slaves.

One day Moses saw an Egyptian cruelly mistreating a Hebrew, so he killed the man to defend the slave. When word got around, Moses fled the country and spent the next forty years among the Cushites, tending livestock and marrying the daughter of the local priest for whom he worked.

Moses’ third round of forty years began with the Exodus as God called him to lead the Hebrew people out of Egypt. Miriam and Aaron came too, but they did not like his being married to a Cushite (Ethiopian) woman. Maybe they were intolerant of people with darker skin. Maybe they got jealous of their younger brother’s position of authority. Regardless, they spoke against Moses – the man whom God Himself had appointed, which was like speaking against the wisdom of God.

Numbers 12:8 records God’s response from a cloud: “Why weren’t you afraid to speak against my servant?” As the cloud lifted, they saw Miriam’s skin turning stark white with leprosy.

Immediately, Moses prayed:

Numbers 12:13 – King James Version

And Moses cried
unto the Lord,
saying,

Heal her now,
O God, I beseech thee.

From the Book of KJV Prayers actual prayers from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) collected by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019 

Numbers 12:13 – paraphrased

I’m crying out to You
as loud as Moses:

Lord God, please
heal my family!

From the Book of Bible Prayers actual prayers of the Bible collected from a variety of translations and paraphrased into everyday English by MaryHarwell Sayler, ©2019

In response to Moses’ prayer, God said, “Let her be shut outside the camp for seven days, and afterwards, let her be received again,” (Numbers 12:14.)


May the people quarantined in this country and around the world turn to God, pray, and be healed.





March 9, 2020

Moses intercedes for God’s people


During the season of Lent, God’s people often take time to draw closer to the Lord through personal confession and prayer for forgiveness. However, Moses confessed for the hundreds of thousands whom God had asked him to lead out of slavery.

As soon as their leader was out of sight, the people committed the most offensive act against the very God Who had rescued them! When Moses saw what was going on, he mediated for them, confessed their wrong-doing, pleaded with the Lord God on their behalf, and even put his own life on the line, knowing God could be trusted to do what was right.

Exodus 32:31-32 – a prayer of Moses

And Moses returned unto the Lord,
and said, Oh, this people have sinned
a great sin, and have made them gods of gold.

Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin;
and if not, blot me, I pray thee,
out of thy book which thou hast written.

From the Book of KJV Prayers - actual prayers from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) collected by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019 

Exodus 32:31-32 – a prayer of Moses

(Now I see)

what terrible sins
these people have committed!

They have fashioned themselves
gods of gold!

Oh, Lord, please forgive them!

And, if that just is not possible,
please take me off Your list!

From the Book of Bible Prayersactual prayers of the Bible collected from a variety of translations and paraphrased into everyday English by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019


Today, praise God, we have Jesus Christ to intercede for us and reconcile us to our Heavenly Father and His.




March 2, 2020

Moses confronts God in prayer


As the Lenten season leads us to Easter, our times of seeking God can lead us to repentance. But undoubtedly we mean our need to repent, not God’s!

Moses had other thoughts. His honesty, faith, and daring placed him face-to-face with God – a position which can also lead to confrontation!

Exodus 32:11-13 – King James Version

And Moses besought the Lord his God,
and said, Lord, why doth thy wrath wax hot
against thy people, which thou hast
brought forth out of the land of Egypt
with great power, and with a mighty hand?

Wherefore should the Egyptians speak,
and say, For mischief did he bring them out,
to slay them in the mountains, and to consume
them from the face of the earth?

Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent
of this evil against thy people.

Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel,
thy servants, to whom thou swarest
by thine own self, and saidst unto them,
I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven,
and all this land that I have spoken of will I give
unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever.

From the Book of KJV Prayers - actual prayers from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) collected by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019 


Exodus 32:11-13 – paraphrased

O, Lord, why are You so angry
with Your people – the very ones
You rescued with such great power?

After displaying Your mighty force,
do You really want everyone
to think You brought us here 
to strike us dead?

Please do not bring disaster!
Remember Your faithful servants
who have gone before us –
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob –
and how You promised them
countless descendants
more numerous than stars.

From the Book of Bible Prayersactual prayers of the Bible collected from a variety of translations and paraphrased by nullMary Harwell Sayler, ©2019

As Christians, we’re also to be honest with God and express our faith, knowing Jesus is beside us, ready to help.

“For there is one God, and there is one Mediator for all people – Jesus Christ,” 1 Timothy 2:5.

“Jesus Christ has negotiated a new covenant between God and us,” Hebrews 9:15.

Throughout Lent and beyond, may we always feel free to approach the Lord with what troubles us – no matter what!



February 19, 2020

The prayer-song of Miriam


Until the Exodus from Egypt, the only life Moses’ sister Miriam had known was as a slave. Once she and the Hebrew people had safely crossed the Red Sea, Miriam not only burst into a song of prayer and praise, she encouraged God’s innumerable people to do the same.

Exodus 15:21 – a prayer-song of Miriam

Sing ye to the Lord,
for he hath triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his rider
hath he thrown into the sea.

From the Book of KJV Prayers - actual prayers from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) collected by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019 

Exodus 15:21 – a prayer of Miriam

We sing to You, Lord
for You are to be exalted!

How gloriously You
have triumphed!

From the Book of Bible Prayersactual prayers of the Bible collected from a variety of translations and paraphrased by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019


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February 1, 2020

Moses’ prayer of praise


Crossing the Red Sea (or Sea of Reeds), Moses witnessed the power of God as the Lord rescued His people from Pharaoh’s grip and over four-hundred years of slavery in Egypt. In awe and wonder, Moses burst into this praise-filled prayer:


Exodus 15:6, 11, 13, 17-18 – a prayer of Moses

Thy right hand, O Lord, is become glorious in power:
thy right hand, O Lord, hath dashed in pieces the enemy.

Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods?
who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful
in praises, doing wonders?

Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people
which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them
in thy strength unto thy holy habitation.

Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them
in the mountain of thine inheritance,
in the place, O Lord, which thou hast made
for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O Lord,
which thy hands have established.

The Lord shall reign for ever and ever.

From the Book of KJV Prayers - actual prayers from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) collected by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019


Exodus 15:6, 11, 13, 17-18 – a prayer of Moses

How glorious and powerful is Your hand, O Lord!
Your right hand holds back the enemy.
 
No god among them is like You, Lord,
for You alone are gloriously pure, 
praise-worthy, and able to perform wonders.

You guide Your people whom You have
redeemed by Your faithful love;
With strength, You lead us to holy places.
 
You bring us to the land You possess
and settle us in the place You prepared
for us to dwell.

Lord, Your hands create a sanctuary,
and You will reign forever and ever!

From the Book of Bible Prayersactual prayers of the Bible collected from a variety of translations and paraphrased by Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2019




A joyful prayer of Habakkuk

  Habakkuk 3:17-19   Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and no grapes huddle together on the vines…. Even though olive crop...