NEW! the Book of Bible Prayers

After decades of researching what the Bible has to say about prayer and buying a bunch of prayer books that weren’t quite what I wanted, I felt led to collect the actual prayers in the Bible then prayer-a-phrase (prayerfully paraphrase) them into THE prayer book I personally want and need. If you do, too, you’ll be happy to know the Book of Bible Prayers is now available on Amazon.

With the gathering of these prayers, I saw things I’d never before noticed. As the Foreword notes, for example, “The prayers in the Hebrew scriptures (aka Old Testament) are frequently pleas, praise, thanksgiving, complaints, and petitions, but in the New Testament such requests or responses are less likely to occur. Instead, Paul and other apostles typically ask believers in Christ to pray for them. Or, more often, they offer parental blessings over the Christian communities they’re addressing. Similar to the priestly blessing of Aaron in Numbers 6, these New Testament blessings are directed toward the people rather than God, but I felt I would be remiss to exclude all of them, so a few of those blessings have been prayer-a-phrased as prayers."

An exception is the prayer of Melchizedek, which remains the blessing given over Abraham and now over us!

“May you be blessed by God most High,

maker of heaven and earth.

May you be blessed by God most High,

Who has delivered you from the hands

of those who wish you harm,”

Genesis 14:19-20.

That blessing also brought another surprise: i.e., It’s the first prayer-blessing recorded. Prior to that, we had God’s blessings over all creation in Genesis, and by the time of Adam and Eve’s grandson, we hear how “All people began to call on the Name of the Lord.” But it’s the actual prayers spoken to God that bring us this prayer book.

Lord willing, I’ll post a prayer from the book with some regularity on this site with the hope and prayer the Book of Bible Prayers will bring unity to the Body of Christ and more power to your prayer life and mine.

MaryHarwell Sayler, ©2019

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Praying God's promises through a storm

As Hurricane Dorian approaches the United States, fear can sweep over us like a tidal wave! God knows this and has already given us comfort in these words:

Proverbs 3:24-26, Contemporary English Version (CEV)

…you will rest without a worry
and sleep soundly.
So don’t be afraid
of sudden disasters
or storms that strike
those who are evil.
You can be sure
that the Lord
will protect you from harm.

As you read and re-read those comforting words from God’s Word, what words would you use to claim that promise in prayer? For example:

Heavenly Father, no matter how scary things seem, we claim Your protection for we truly believe You want only good for us and not harm. Thank You for letting us know we have nothing to fear as we rest in the strength of Your love. Praise You, Lord, for protecting me and my home, church, community, and loved ones in Jesus’ Name, amen.

Mary Sayler, ©2019

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Praying Bible prayers and Bible promises

For several years, the Bible Prayers blog has focused on actual prayers in the Bible – prayers that have been prayer-a-phrased (prayerfully paraphrased) into contemporary language after comparing many of the translations found in my home and also on the Bible Gateway website.

If you’ve followed this blog (thank you very much and God bless you!) you’ve probably noticed long gaps between posts, which I pray will be only temporary.

Meanwhile, I’ve been collecting and paraphrasing Bible prayers for a book, which, Lord willing, will soon be available because I believe so strongly in its importance – first as a means of providing an up-to-date version of actual Bible prayers in one easy-to-read book - and also because praying those prayers means we automatically have prayer partners from the past, present, or future, who agree with us in prayer as two or more of us gather in Jesus’ Name.

In addition to that goal, a thought recently came to remind me that powerful, timeless, and relevant prayers are also available as we appropriately claim God’s promises in the Bible. Lord willing, this blog will soon include those prayers too.

For example, consider Psalm 119:165 in the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible: “Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.” Or, according to the Amplified Bible (AMP), “Those who love Your law have great peace; Nothing makes them stumble.” Or, the Contemporary English Version (CEV) says, “You give peace of mind to all who love your Law. Nothing can make them fall.”

With those translations and others in mind, a prayer that claims this biblical promise might go like this:

Oh, Lord, we praise You for Your encouraging Word to us through scripture. Thank You for promising to give us great peace of mind if we take Your will to heart, mind, and spirit. Thank You for showing us Your will in the instructions and commandments You’ve given us in the Bible. Praise You for the guidance of Your Holy Spirit, for the strength of Your Word, and for Jesus Christ, Who keeps us from falling away from You. In His Name we pray, amen.

Mary Sayler, ©2019

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Last prayer in the Bible

Revelation 22:20-21

Marana tha—

Our Lord, come!

May the grace

of our Lord Jesus Christ

be with you all.

Amen.

prayer-a-phrased by Mary Harwell Sayler, (c) 2019

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Nehemiah’s Prayer is surely ours

“Great Lord, God of heaven,
Who inspires us to awe,

You always keep Your Word,
Your love, Your promises
with mercy shown
to those who love and obey You.

So now I ask You to open Your eyes,
Your ears to this prayer as I pray -
night and day - for Your servants,
Your children.

Lord, I confess we have sinned
against You,
and so have those before us.

How greatly we have wronged You!

We have failed to obey
Your commandments and laws given
to us through Your servant Moses.
But, Lord, do You remember what
You told us back then? You said,

‘If you are not faithful to Me,
I will scatter you among the nations.

But if you return to Me
and obey My commands - even
if you are as far away as you can go -

I will come and get you.

I will bring you to the place I have chosen
for My Name’.”

Nehemiah 1:5-9

as prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler after reading various translations on Bible Gateway

©2018

Praying for Christ to be glorified in you!

And so, with the Apostle Paul:

we’re always praying
for God to make you worthy of His calling,
fulfilling every good purpose
and every work of faith
by His power.

And then, the Name
of Jesus Christ our Lord
will be glorified in you –
and you in Him,
by the grace of God and Christ Jesus.


Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2018, prayer-a-phrased 2 Thessalonians 11-12 using scriptures from various translations provided by Bible Gateway.

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Praying triumphantly with Psalm 20

May the Lord answer us
in times of trouble and distress.

May the Name of the God of Jacob
protect us.

May the Lord send help from His holy place
and sustain us from on high.

May the Lord remember
and graciously accept
all we have to offer.

May He give us the desires of our heart
and fulfill our plans and life purpose.

Let’s sing a song of triumph
and raise our flag in the name of our God!

May the Lord fulfill our requests.

Now this is what we can know for sure:
the Lord gives victory to His anointed.
The Lord answers from a place of holiness
with success in hand.

Some depend on war machines
and others on horses,
but we rely on the Name of the Lord our God.
They collapse and fall,
but we rise and firmly stand.

Give success to our leaders, O Lord.
Answer us on the day we call.

Mary Harwell Sayler, ©2018, prayer-a-phrased today’s Psalm reading in the ecumenical Revised Common Lectionary, with the help of many translations on Bible Gateway.

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