Pastoral Prayer | April 19, 2026

Eternal God, our Father in heaven,
with joyful reverence we bow our heads
and we bow our souls
before your throne of mercy and grace.

In light of the countless, undeserved mercies we’ve received
from the nail-pierced hands
of your infinitely precious Son,
we present our bodies as living sacrifices to you,
for you alone, our Lord and God,
are worthy to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will and good pleasure,
they exist and were created.

O God, our hearts are restless
until they find their rest in you.

We praise you with joyful lips,
mindful and aware that, like Isaiah,
we are a people of unclean lips,
but also mindful and aware that like Isaiah,
our lips have been cleansed,
our guilt has been taken away,
and our sin has been atoned for
by the all-sufficient, all-consuming, ever-burning coal
of our Savior’s bloody death
and glorious resurrection from the dead.

We praise you for the gracious and effective work
of the Holy Spirit,
whom you poured out on us richly
through Jesus Christ our Savior.

You are the God who picked up all our ashes
and planted beautiful flowers in their place;
the God who took our hell
and gave us heaven in exchange.

We thank you for all You’ve done to save us,
for the way you loved us first.

When we were lost and hiding,
you sought us and you found us.

When we were spiritually naked, destitute, and impoverished,
you clothed us in the radiant robe
of your righteousness.

When we had no heart to love you,
no mind to understand you,
no eyes to see you,
no will to seek you,
no strength to stretch out our hands to you,
no voice to cry out to you,
and no hunger, thirst, or appetite
for your all-satisfying presence,
you passed by in all of your royal beauty,
abundant goodness, and unspeakable mercy,
you said to us in our helplessness, “Live!”
and we were made alive!

The majestic voice that spoke the universe into existence,
the voice that breaks the cedars of Lebanon,
the voice that shakes the wilderness of Kadesh,
and the voice that calls into existence
the things that do not exist
called us by name
and breathed life into our deadness!

You made us new.
You welcomed us in.
You declared us to be yours,
and yours alone.

You have covered us with mercy,
so that we can come just as we are,
and in sweet surrender,
throw ourselves completely in your hands.

We give you our hearts
as those who are fully yours and set apart,
for this is all you’ve ever wanted from the start.

As we open your word, speak O Lord!

May our hearts be encouraged
and knit together in love.

May Christ dwell in our hearts through faith.
May repentance flood our hearts!
May the peace of Christ rule in our hearts.

May the eyes of our hearts be enlightened,
that we might know what is the hope
to which you have called us,
what are the riches
of your glorious inheritance in the saints,
and what is the immeasurable greatness
of your power towards us who believe.

May you establish our hearts blameless in holiness before you,
our God and Father,
both now and at the coming of our Lord Jesus
with all his saints.

Teach us, compel us, and empower us, by your word,
to flee youthful passions
and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace,
along with those who call on Christ
from a pure heart.

And may you—by your Spirit, and through your word—
direct each of our hearts
to the love of God
and to the steadfastness of Christ, our Savior and King,
in whose cross we boast,
in whose righteousness we stand,
in whose resurrection we live,
and in whose name we pray.

Amen.