Prayers for Revival
Revival means quite literally, “to come to life again.” If there is anything more desperately needed in our individual lives, relationships, communities, nations, the Church or the world, it is the life-giving, life-renewing, life-regenerating presence of God – the God who spoke all created life into existence, breathed the breath of life into human beings, resurrected Jesus the Messiah from the dead, and thus destroyed the power of death; gave the Spirit of Life to the Church, and is even now renewing the face of the earth by the same gracious nearness that will one day make all things new.
In accordance with my conviction that (1) prayer is the primary means through which such a resurrection of life will happen; and (2) pre-written prayers are of great value for the life of prayer, I have set my hand to writing prayers for revival. My intention is over the weeks and months, to post prayers that draw from Scriptural concepts and images as well as incorporate the theology of the Holy Spirit, inaugurated eschatology, new creation, and Trinitarian relationality that I have been developing here and elsewhere. They will in general be modeled after a long standing 4 part format used for brief prayers over the centuries in Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican traditions: (1) an address to God, giving a description of his nature or actions; (2) a request; (3) the reason or purpose for the request; (4) an ending, frequently Trinitarian.
If these prayers help you pray in a more focused way for a greater experience and expression of God’s life-giving presence in the Church and the world, I will be more than thoroughly pleased.
This first prayer draws imagery from Ezekiel 37 and concepts from 2 Corinthians amongst other sources:
O God whose zeal is not deterred when Your Church seems more like a valley of dry bones than a living witness to the resurrection of Jesus: Breathe the breath of life into your people once again. Renew us by your power and love. Cause us to remember the redemptive purpose for which you called the Church into being, that we might again be your people for the world; agents of reconciliation and resurrection life, through Jesus the Messiah your Son, our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Related posts
« Does Prayer Actually Do Anything??? (Part 1)
Prayers for Revival – The Spirit of Prayer »
Comments
Comment from Valery
Time: September 27, 2009, 11:23 am
Richard, this prayer is definitely one that I will be adding to the collects that I pray through. It definitely provides me with a framework to continue praying for revival in a way that is Biblically-based. I look forward to other prayers you may post in the future.
Also, thank you for the clear breakdown of the “parts” of these types of prayers. It inspires me to try my hand at writing some to add to my times of prayer as well.
Comment from Richard
Time: September 27, 2009, 4:54 pm
Valery – glad you appreciated the breakdown of the collect structure. When you get to writing some, feel free to post some of your prayers in the comments in this series – I’d love to see what you write.
Comment from Jordan Noto
Time: September 26, 2009, 10:20 pm
That is a beautiful prayer. I hope to one day write prayers like this one.