Tag Archives: Prayer

Writings and reflections on prayer. The prayers section at prayerscapes features over 100 original contemporary prayers.

Prayer for Pentecost 2020

It is so important to nurture the presence of God’s Spirit within us. The Holy Spirit is our comforter, the one who wraps wings of protection around us when we are vulnerable. He is our teacher, illuminating truth so that we can see and understand his beautiful ways. And He is our healer, binding our wounds and covering us in His restorative power. As we become in tune with the ways in which He is moving, we learn, we grow, we rest, and we see more clearly. As Jesus said “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, who will stay with you forever. He is the Spirit, who reveals the truth about God.” (John 14:16-17)

Receiving the Holy Spirit Is a life transforming moment yet walking in spirit and truth is a conscious choice we make each day. Our mission in life is to find out where the Spirit is at work, and to join in! Let our passion be to create landing space in the world around us for Him to minister the grace and peace of Christ. As we do this we become the very hands and feet, the voice and touch of Jesus to a needy world. What a remarkable invitation God offers each of us! May your celebration of Pentecost this year be a beautiful reminder that we go not in our own strength but empowered by the very one who sent us. As we invite the Holy Spirit afresh into our lives and hearts, may we fan into flame the gift of God which longs to be at work within each of us.

Come Living Lord

Come living Lord, live within our hearts,
For you are welcome here.
Come like a gentle dove, settle us with your grace and peace.
We welcome your Spirit’s presence to calm us.
Come like a mighty wind, roaring with power from on high.
We welcome your Spirit’s freedom to move deeply in us.
Come like an untamed fire, raging with holiness.
We welcome your Spirit’s beauty to burn brightly through us.
Come living Lord. Come this day, this hour, this moment
For you are welcome here.
Come living Lord. Come this day, this hour, this moment
For you are truly welcome here.

An Easter Prayer

This is a very different Easter time for many of us across the world. Just like Jesus’s disciples after they had witnessed his death, we face uncertainty, fear and sorrow. Yet as we take time to pause and reflect, we shall unearth new treasures of Kingdom value. They will hold a fresh message, anointing and significance for us all. Everything changed the day when Jesus rose from death to eternal life. The same Spirit that released Christ from the grave is now available as a free gift to us all!

This Easter prayer film seeks to capture that truth, that miracle, and that promise. We hope that faith will arise within your hearts and God will hold you safe in your sorrows and lift your eyes unto heaven. We ask for unity to strengthen us all at this time and create new ground for God’s Kingdom to flow in fresh and amazing ways:

It’s possible to download this film in HD for a small sum by following this link.

Here are the words to the prayer in this film:

Easter Prayer

Loving Lord, today we remember

the veil of darkness

transforming to the brightest light.

The most dreadful end

becoming the most beautiful beginning.

We remember with trembling hearts

the depths of despair

fading to reveal hope everlasting.

The curse of death

defeated by eternal life.

Today we remember with thankfulness

your willingness to be pierced for our sins.

We sing with abounding joy,

of your miraculous rise,

from death’s tomb to resplendent life.

Thank you for the promise of heaven

and your generous invitation of eternal life for all.

Amen.

Prayer for Peace and Comfort

Peace is so important to our hearts, our minds and our bodies, so coming before God will always bring more peace into our lives. It’s important that we take time with our prayers, because God knows that we need to slow down, we need to still our minds, we need to our rest hearts, and then we’ll enter into the inner sanctuary of His love. So let’s prayer together now:

Short prayer for peace and protection

Dear Father, we come before you our Lord, Saviour and friend. We journey with you through every season of our lives. Thank you that you hear every prayer and petition of our hearts. We lay out before you the great trouble we feel, the stresses we are under, the losses we have endured, the burdens we carry and the doubts and fears that can consume us. You hold each of us in your care. You remain, you abide with us and within us. We are always safe in your care. Amen.

Prayer for peace and comfort

Come dress us Lord in comfort. Give us new shoes, so that our feet might tread steadily across this difficult life terrain. Give us new clothes, so that our vulnerabilities are covered and our souls protected at this turbulent time. Give us a new crown, perfect to our size, unique and real, one that reminds us of who we are in this season.

Come shower us Lord with peace. Cleanse us with grace, may it fall softly upon each moment, bringing restoration in these harsh days. Come shower us Lord with peace. Refresh us with hope, may clean dew pour into every shadow of despair that we endure. Come shower us Lord with peace. Refill us with faith, may it overflow in our souls and rise high in our hearts.

Lord, thank you that you are our comfort and our peace. Amen.

Prayer for Comfort in Difficult Times

God, I am crying out for help in this difficult time.
Help me to find some light in this darkness.
Lift my eyes to see even the faintest glimmer of hope
And hold tight to you.

Lord, you are beside me, stay close today.
Surround me with your love.
Help me to remember your goodness and trust in your saving grace.
May my tears turn to joy
And may your light flood this soul.
For surely you are my saviour,
My friend, and my guide. Amen.

Prayer for Peace and Comfort

Lord God, You promise the peace of a still lake
Even in the midst of a storm.
You promise the peace of a slumbering child
Even in the middle of tension and disagreement.
You promise the peace of a poppy field
Even in the place of heartbreak and devastation.
Your promise is a peace that surpasses our human understanding.
So I choose to rest by the still waters, to lie down and rest amongst the poppies.
Your resurrection declared peace over trauma, power over death, and life everlasting. I trust in you.

It’s been a real privilege to join with you in prayer. Please do leave your prayers in the comments below so that others can join with you. There are many more films and prayers on this site about receiving God’s peace. Here’s one you can watch now:

And until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hands.

(Lead image photo by Neil Thomas on Unsplash).

Prayer for Protection at Work

When we work, we serve God. No matter what our occupation we contribute daily to the ongoing work of His Spirit. It can be daunting when we feel the stress of responsibility, the fatigue of physical tiredness or the fear of the unknown and yet God longs to journey with us, to help us through our daily working lives.

Here is a list of prayers to help when we need protection at work:

Short Prayer for Protection in the Workplace

Abba Father, you are the author and creator of life. It is all held within your care, from beginning to end. We thank you for Your presence, for the strength it brings and the protection it gives us. We pray now as we anticipate our working day. We give you our concerns, our anxieties and responsibilities. Please come and bring reassurance into our hearts, minds and souls. Amen.

Prayer for Protection at Work

Lord God, come be our protector as we work today. Enfold us with wisdom as we seek to serve. Cover us with gentleness as we engage with each situation we face. Fill us with courage to solve the problems and negotiate the difficulties. Shower us with hope, that we might go boldly in your strength, knowing you are behind us and before us. Lord, come and walk ever closer by our side. Thank you that you are our guardian and protector. Amen.

Short Prayer before Starting Work

O Lord, meet me today in the ordinary rhythms of my working life. I invite you to come and breathe your life into mine. Come, may your love fill this heart and may it overflow into the lives of others. May your hope well up inside me and bring new vision for my life. And may your truth light up my reactions and decisions. May this ordinary day become extraordinary because of you. Amen.

Prayer for Peace and Comfort

Lord God, you promise the peace of a still lake even in the midst of a storm. You promise the peace of a slumbering child even in the middle of tension and disagreement. You promise the peace of a poppy field even in the place of heartbreak and devastation. Your promise is a peace that surpasses our human understanding. So I choose to rest by the still waters, to lie down and rest amongst the poppies. Your resurrection declared peace over trauma, power over death, and life everlasting. I trust in you.

It’s been great to join together in prayer with you today. I know that God would want to say “thank you” for the work that you are about to do. Here is another film which you might want to watch before you begin work:

If you’ve not subscribed to Prayerscapes, then please do! But until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hands.

Lead photo by Marten Bjork on Unsplash.

The Serenity Prayer Meaning

This week we’re going to be looking at one of the most famous and inspiring prayers of the 20^th Century – “The Serenity Prayer”, and I’m going to be exploring what the full version of this prayer means and how we can use it in our lives. Often known by its first line “God grant me the serenity”, this inspirational writing has guided so many on their journey towards drinking in the peace of Christ. In an age full of self-help, mindfulness and searching for inner peace, these words carry a message that has resonated with many, particularly those who are caught in addictions or who are in a difficult place in life , especially through the work of AA (Alcoholics Anonymous). There are of course some very practical ways to feel at peace. For example, the tranquility of a restful day, the practice of meditation, the comfort of a massage, aromatherapy or exercise, or the wisdom of self-care. Yet this prayer poem highlights the gift of peace given to us by the Holy Spirit. And this is a special peace that is only found in Him.

To begin with, let’s think about the meaning of first words “Grant me”. God is the source, the very beginning of peace and the giver of peace. This peace is granted to us by the sacrifice, death and resurrection of Jesus. So the words “Grant me” preface the other lines here, “grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change”! I see it as the “wall of the fall”, for we are all fallen, and this causes a huge barrier in our lives. I can’t change my age, I can’t change my family set up, I can’t change my physical body, my humanity, my humanness! But God can grant us the serenity we need to handle these things. This is an endless process of confession to God of the feelings around this “wall of the fall”, and an endless outpouring of the Holy Spirit who brings love, peace, joy and hope into our souls!

Secondly, we find that the third line also has the prefix of “grant me” the courage to change the things I can! The Holy Spirit gives us the “keys of change and renewal”. I can change, how I feel about my age…. I can change my family relationships and dynamics…I can change my feelings about my physical body and care for it well and I can change my human responses. How? By constantly walking with Jesus, allowing the Holy Spirit to lead, to renew and to restore. And then “grant me” the wisdom to know the difference between those things I can’t change and those that I can! This is also a gift of the Spirit. It’s about stepping in time with the Spirit and being prompted by the Spirit to pray. Sometimes we can start accepting things that God would want us to change, and other times we can seek change in an area that requires deep acceptance. In an ever-changing confusing world, it is often hard to see these things, which is why we need the Holy Spirit to guide us.

Thirdly, let’s focus on that word “time”, living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time. This line carries an important meaning for us in an age of career ambitions and achievements and with increasing leisure time and medical science extending life expectancy. Look for a moment at your watch or clock and just watch those hands turn. Allow God to highlight your time concerns. “Grant me” is the gift we receive so that we are really pausing, really resting, really allowing peace to reign! We rest in the timeless connection to heaven. It is only by connecting with eternity that we master time rather than being overwhelmed with “saving time”, “holding back time”, making sure that I’m “not wasting time”! You see as children of the living God we have an eternal purpose, a destiny and a home where time is not relevant…. only the present which continues…. so again, the words prefacing this prayer “grant me” leads us to receive the ability to live with “time”. it’s a gift!

And finally, Jesus came to earth and walked here. God Incarnate through the rubbish of anger, hate, bloodshed, abuse, robbery, sickness and pain. Yet he had the “wonder of heaven” in his heart! How did he endure the pain, the shame, the suffering? Was it not the knowledge of eternity that he carried, knowing the love of the Father and the presence of this divine love in His life? This is what carried him onwards! And so again the words “Grant me”, suggest we will need help from the Holy Spirit to accept hardships as the pathway to peace, taking as he did this sinful world as it is, not as we would have it and trusting that he will make all things right. So again, “Grant me”, “the love I need to walk through the rubbish”. What we need is the love of the Father, His divine gift of love and vision. It is imparted to us through the Holy Spirit into our very souls, so that we might be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with him forever and ever in the next.

When we call out deep within for God’s help with these four areas of the serenity prayer, the Holy Spirit living within us will be our help! It is a moment by moment prayer, powerful in every way because we are not alone, Jesus is with us by the power of his Holy Spirit. That is good news!

We have a short meditation on the Serenity prayer which you can watch below. Do subscribe to Prayerscapes if you are enjoying these reflections on prayer, and until next time, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

The Serenity Prayer (full version)

(attributed to Reinhold Neibuhr)

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;

So that I may be reasonably happy in this life

And supremely happy with Him

Forever and ever in the next.

Amen.

Praying when Life is Desperate

Today I want to ask a tough question. What happens when life throws us a curved ball and we find we can’t cope anymore? How do we find God, how do we connect with him, when life is desperate?

Firstly, if you are in this place my heart goes out to you. I truly believe that our heavenly Father responds directly to the distress of his children, so in an instant God is with you. He will understand by his Holy Spirit that your distress has frozen your responses, he does not need you to pray, but if you find the strength to cry out to him, he longs to listen. It breaks his heart to see you in such trauma, so much so that he has already covered and restored that very hurt, through the death and resurrection of his son Jesus. Always try to remember that God is outside our time frame, he sees the beginning and the end, he sees your future and inheritance in Christ and your place in eternity.

I can think of a few times in my life when I believe God has literally carried me through moments of extreme brokenness and suffering. He has, I believe, at these times held me together and taken all my weight upon himself to carry me. You may ask “how do I know Jesus carried me”? because I am here writing this today. The Holy Spirit is at work in us, around us and ahead of us so no matter how dark life feels. The Lord of love, truth and hope is with us. I’m going to share with you three times in my life when I know this to have been true.

The first was a time of trauma suffered as a child. I did not pray, no one else knew to pray, so I just reacted and responded in a disjointed frozen way which became embedded in my soul. Yet I can testify that the Holy Spirit led me through many dark times and placed so many people ahead of me that I eventually engaged in counselling and found freedom in my thirties. God uses us all to lead others through such darkness into light. I am so thankful for the faithfulness of those who helped me through this journey.
The second time was at the birth of my first child. Things were not going well for me or the baby during the labour and my husband and I were too distressed to pray. The Holy Spirit woke an old friend of mine at that precise time who did not know I was in labour and told her to pray. She prayed that I would have the strength to deliver the baby. I did, and he was OK, much to the surprise of the doctors and nurses.
Lastly, I had suffered a complication after childbirth that meant many years of pain, three procedures and one operation. I was anticipating a second operation hoping for healing, when I was prayed for by a gentle elderly lady at a church meeting and was healed instantly. I have had no pain for many years. I give this testimony tentatively as for six years I was prayed for but wasn’t healed. I know many of you will find yourselves in a similar place, but I can see the ways in which God saw me through that dark time. He will carry you, and we are told we should never stop asking for healing, and I trust you will know this hope.

By the grace of God, I pray that all those in a desperate place can feel loved and cared for by God, by friends and family and by their brothers and sisters in Christ. If you do feel alone in your suffering do seek out someone to speak with. Don’t suffer alone, the church is the very hands and feet of Jesus. Seek out the help you need. I thought I would share the following film “Tomorrow came”. It is my song of testimony that I wrote with my husband. There are times when we feel that tomorrow won’t come for us, but as you watch and draw near to God, as you seek out his people, there is new life and everlasting hope for you. I promise.

Thanks for connecting with us today at Prayerscapes. Do you have any encouraging stories of finding God in dark times? If so, please do write them down below. We’d love to hear them. And until next time, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

How to Bless A House

How can I pray for my home? Perhaps you have just moved into a new property and want to give this new chapter of your life to God, or home life is currently very stressful and you would appreciate some ideas on how to pray into this.

Our homes are significant places of sanctuary and shelter, growth and provision! Praying for our homes is not just about the physical bricks, mortar, clay or wood, but about the relationships, peace, comfort, adventure and community that happen within them. I thought I would give you three creative ideas of ways in which I have prayed for the homes I have lived in. Hopefully these might inspire your own prayers:-

Gathering together with friends, family or church community to pray around your new home is a great idea! This is the first and most obvious thing to do – try to do this soon after you have moved in. It might be it’s your first home adventure, a new home brought about by growth or change, or a new season that sparks a change of location or downsizing in later years. You can download a resource sheet on how to hold a house gathering blessing by clicking here. To begin with, ask those who are living in the new home to share their vision for this place. Ask them about their hopes and dreams for it and any concerns or anxieties they or their family may have about the move. The top priority is always to be real and vulnerable. I suggest if there are number of you then lay a sheet of paper in each room, split into two or three groups and move around the house praying in God’s provision and presence into each room you encounter. The paper can be used to write specific blessings and to note scriptures or pictures that God gives you. It is always lovely to have prayers written down to look back on at later times. Then gather together at the end, share the prayer sheets with the group and pray into anything that has come out of this as you feel led.
The second way of praying is by using oil or water to anoint various parts of the new home. This way of praying is often used when the homeowners are going through a hard situation or time. It could be a neighbourly dispute, trauma in the home, the homeowner experiencing fear or nightmares, or family conflict. A suggestion for this type of prayer is to take some oil and then move around the house praying and making the sign of the cross on the doorways and windows and the entrances and exits. As you enter each room ask the Holy Spirit how you should pray. You could place a visual blessing. For example, stand a picture in the room, or a vase of flowers or a blessing that is written up on the wall, or even written down and stored like a treasure in a secret place. A lovely idea if you are renovating a home is to tuck written blessings and messages of blessing into little places like under floorboards, or to write blessings on the walls beneath wallpaper. You are blessing the fabric of the building and leaving blessings for others to discover in future generations! The truth is that we stand on holy ground as children of the living God. Our homes will be blessed and our boundaries will be protected as we welcome the reign and love of God into these places.
The third way of praying is helpful if your life is quite transient due to studies, jobs, family or finances. Sometimes “home” is in multiple places and we need to carry God’s blessing freely from place to place. I went through times like this as a student. Here it can help to have a “house blessing prayer” that is spoken out, and then placed within each residence, be it a hotel room, digs, lodgings, guest homes or in different countries or locations. Try to develop a routine of carrying this prayer with you and laying it faithfully out as a blessing every time you lay your head down.

So that’s it! There are three ways that you can bless the place that you live – invite others round to share and pray for your new home, take some oil and bless the room and have a prayer written out in a visible place.

It’s great to share these thoughts with you – maybe you have some creative ways of praying for your dwelling? If so, please do leave them in the comments below and share them with the world. If you haven’t already, do take a moment to subscribe to Prayerscapes, and until next time, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

How to Pray for Friends

Hi, today we’re going to be looking at different creative ways that we can pray for our friends and loved ones. If you know someone at the moment that is going through a difficult time you might find these tips especially useful.

Praying for friends or loved ones is a powerful way of releasing blessing. The spaces between the children of the living God are sacred. No matter how far I am away from my brother physically I am connected to them spiritually. It is important to remember God is outside of this dimension/time frame/distance, he sees the whole of creation from beginning to end. He is the author of love and when we love, we commune with God and breathe out his kingdom of heaven upon the earth. Our prayers are powerful because the Holy Spirit was released into the world when Jesus rose back to life from death. It’s like the Holy Spirit is everywhere…… the same Spirit. It’s mind blowing and world changing! Through him our prayer is everywhere, moving outside us, inside us and through us! I say this because sometimes we can feel it is a ‘cop out’ to say ’I’ll pray’! So today I am going to give you four ways and suggestions on how we can pray for our loved ones.

The first one is to imagine a circle around your friend, a circle of Gods provision and protection. Then pray into that circle light, love and healing, and speak out your specific prayers for them. Name the circumstances/troubles or dreams for their lives. Then imagine that same circle and pray out of the circle, fear, shame, pain, hurt, rejection, disappointment, disillusionment and name and pray out all the specific things that you know are hard for them to hold. (If you find a visual way helpful you can draw a circle then write things in or out of the circle.) Then just entrust these things to God, you may find that the Holy Spirit helps you to discern and intercede for them in new ways as you pray in this way.

The second way I call “target prayers”. Begin by taking a blank sheet of paper and writing down the name of each person you are thinking of praying for. Alongside each name just write a word which sums up what you hope for that person. At times it is helpful to distil our prayer in this way, like hitting the centre of a dartboard, all our faith is aimed at one word! You can even go back over these short prayers daily! Even hourly! I find that this way helps if you have many friends or family who are facing hard times, because sometimes we can be overwhelmed by the needs of others around us. Remember our prayers intertwine with the prayers of others, with the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit and praying something is always better than praying nothing! God is more than able to work through our prayers no matter how simple they are.

The third suggestion is one of open blessing. Imagine your friend in your own mind and your heart and allow the Holy Spirit to give you a song! it might be a song that you sing at church, it might be a song that you remember from childhood, it might be a song from a more contemporary setting or if you’re very creative it might be a few words and melody that you spontaneously sing. Sing it softly, sing it loudly and sing it over and over as you think of that person. You may find you change the tense to create a blessing. For example, “Jesus, be her centre, be her hope, be her song Jesus”. God has put us in relationship for a reason. We are the body of Christ, and the body works in unison! When one part of that body is poorly the other parts of the body shift and change to accommodate, when one limb has a limp the other parts take more weight. When you are hard of hearing your ability to lip read increases. It is said that it’s impossible for two parts of the body to feel pain at the same time, and in a similar way thinking of others draws our focus from our own pain. Let’s be aware of each other, pray for one another, look after one another. When we pray, God will answer those prayers and there will be this flow of blessing, love, promise and hope between us as we become brothers and sisters united with our Father in heaven.

Lastly there are times when our concern and feelings for someone we love are overwhelming. There are no words, we run deep with feeling but dry in how to pray. I suggest you find something that represents that person, allow the Holy Spirit to lead you…a stone from the beach, a favourite toy, an item like a clock or clothing or a photo. Then use this as your prayer. Sit and lift you heart to God and hold out the object that represents that person. God loves to talk with us but understands sometimes there are no words. When my son was going through a hard time, I found I would start to pray but end up just worrying about him. Prayer stirred up a lot of concerns but left me tired and more confused! So a friend recommended another way. I found a stone. I was drawn to it because it was heavy and an awkward shape to hold. Every time I felt overwhelmed with grief or worry I would pick it up, and hold it before God. I would cry at times, and that’s OK too! Sometimes I would kneel, other times I would feel peace immediately as I presented my prayer to God. Silence in prayer allows our hearts to rest, to have peace. We can take our troubles quietly to the foot of the cross and trust in the redeeming power of Christ!

Some final thoughts

Well I hope that these suggestions are helpful. So here’s these four different ways of praying for your friends again – pray a circle prayer by praying in the good stuff and out the bad. Try praying target prayers. Thirdly, sing a blessing song for them and finally try holding a physical representation of prayer before God. The other thing just to mention is how powerful it can be to let others know we are praying. It could be a card, a gift of flowers, a text, or an offer to visit and pray with them. At times I have even recorded prayers and sent them to others, so they can hear that prayer over and over. So, as we care for friends let’s be creative, encircling them not just in spoken prayer but with prayer gifts, prayer songs, prayer pictures, prayer company!

Thank you so much for all the comments that you’ve been leaving us about our prayer films. We love to read them. Maybe there are ways which you pray for your friends that I haven’t mentioned? If so, do leave them below. And until next time, may God hold you in the palm of his hand.

An Inspirational Blessing Prayer

Hi, having spent many years crafting prayers, songs and films for Prayerscapes, it feels like the right time to open up and get closer to those of you who have always responded to our creative offerings. So, in these short films, we will share with you some of our journey, prayer ideas, inspiration and wisdom we have found as we have sought to reveal the love and light of Christ. If you have not yet subscribed to our Youtube channel do take a moment to do so, as there are many more inspirational videos in the pipeline that we would love you to see and experience.

When we wrote and recorded ‘May The Road Rise Up to Meet You’, we could not have imagined the ways in which it would have been received, used and cherished by others. We’ve been overwhelmed by the emails and messages we’ve had about how this song has touched people, whether it be at baby dedications, or marriages, or as a blessing at funeral of a loved one. All this made me think – why has this simple Celtic Blessing been so powerful in effecting so many people?

I think one of the reasons is that proclaiming this blessing over another is a very powerful and releasing thing! We bless others with the authority that Christ gave us as children. Blessings change, they renew, and they create security and sanctuary. In a world filled with comparison, judgement, jealousy, competition, criticism and envy, it is a wonderfully unexpected thing! This simple prayer is such an inspiring blessing which rolls out like a beautiful and holy land, ahead of loved ones, soft grace soil on which to tread.

My husband wrote this little blessing song for me when my second son was a baby. For those of you who have lived through a similar season, you’ll know it’s messy! At the time I was often walking out very early in the morning with a crying baby, so as not to wake the rest of the household! It was just one of those seasons where I felt vulnerable, I felt ashamed to be pacing the streets in the dark mornings, not to have the answers, not to be the perfect family. I often felt myself welling up with tears as I pushed my baby boy around. I just trudged on as we all do sometimes. I remember I did cry as he sang me the song and its words did hold and keep me through that time.

So, if you are in this hard place, through illness, anxiety, grief, trial or loss, I sing this to you…. allow this little song to lay a soft blessing under your feet. And then go ahead of someone else and lay this blessing for them. It will become for them a lullaby, soothing and gracious. It might be that the Holy Spirit leads you to physically be this blessing to soften someone’s walk with service, understanding or generosity. And why not say the blessing in unexpected ways? Say it behind another, soaking your thoughts and feelings for them in love. Receive this blessing, give this blessing, be this blessing, live this blessing!

Thanks for connecting with us today. And as I said earlier, we’ve lots on new videos coming soon, so if you haven’t already, do subscribe at Youtube, and we look forwards to seeing you real soon in our next film!

A Birthday Blessing

The way we celebrate each individual on the day they were born into this world is a beautiful thing. Some of the most magical birthdays I can recall are the early birthdays of my children. When a child is one or two years old there is no past for them to worry over, no future for hopes or fears to enter, no anticipation, expectation or disappointment. The overwhelming feeling of wonder for them is enormous. The candles, the gifts, it is all received in great joy! Then maybe tears…. but great joy again! I guess this is the way God would like birthdays to remain for us all, and how he loves to bless us on our special day.

Sadly, I think that the fallen world and our fallen feelings and thoughts tend to ebb away some of this jubilant emotion. If we are honest, it is much easier to celebrate other people’s birthdays than it is our own. This starts quite young. Even young children start to feel the slide. Sometimes it is a toy that’s advertised to be the best thing ever that is a let-down or the party girl who sees another friend’s dress to be prettier than hers, or the lad whose friend had a puppy for his birthday. Suddenly the Scalextric is second best! It is not long before comparison kicks in. By our teens it has morphed into self-rejection, and the feeling of not matching up. As we reach adulthood it will probably have grown up into a more rounded awareness of one’s own failings, mixed with a pinch of regret, and a bucket full of anxieties about finance, relationships, health or world affairs!

So how do we reclaim the birthday feeling our Abba father intended for us? Here are three suggestions that may help you:

Firstly, let’s include Him from the moment we wake, then take time to open our bible and hear His voice in scripture. Allow God your Father to fill your mind with hope and truth and light. Do this in the way that is most natural for you. Also, remember to take care of yourself! For some of us, sometimes the traditions of gathering together with family and friends, receiving gifts, birthday cake and surprises can feel like an onslaught. If this is hard for you, focus on how much others like to give to you, and try to enjoy it for their sakes.

Secondly, build in something into the day that is a moment just for you. It needs to be tailored uniquely around your preferences, whatever they are – a walk in the country, playing your favourite song etc. – a blessing that is just for you.

Lastly, there will always be four loved ones present with you on your birthday, no matter how lonely your circumstances have become. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit will be celebrating the day you were born! Open your heart up to them. Allow them to guide you and have your own little celebration. The truth is, you are worth celebrating, for you are unique. There will only be one of you who walks on the earth and there is a place for you in heaven that only you can fill. That is good news!

If you have a friend or loved one that is about to have a birthday, you might like to consider sending this blessing to them. You can even receive these words for yourself when your special day comes round!

Here are the words in this film:-

A Birthday Blessing

May happiness and love encircle this day,
And every blessing from heaven come your way.
May the warmth of loved ones lift your heart,
And your cup overflow with the love they impart.

May fond memories bring you great joy and peace,
And hope fill your sails with the promise you seek.
But most of all, may you truly know,
How you’re treasured and loved wherever you go.