Tag Archives: prayer poem

Prayer for Fasting During Lent

Jesus teaches us to begin with ourselves, not to become weary by judging others but to create rivers of truth, hope, peace, joy and love that flow through our own beings (John 7:38). During Lent we seek to pull aside from the tides of work, family, community and the world that push and pull us and kick away the props that merely get us through each day. We come just as we are – fully human – and encounter the divinity of the living God. This is where transformation begins, where we receive from and follow the example of Jesus. From his very holistic teaching, and outworking of grace, we learn to spend time alone with the Father, engage in Spirit led giving, sleep, rest and social time with friends. It is from this place that we use our gifts to bring God’s kingdom to earth. All these things flow from the centre…our centre filled with the Holy Spirit, alive in us and through us.

As you draw aside during this time of Lent, may renewal, healing, growth and peace be yours. Here is a new prayer I have recently written that hopefully will inspire and lead you as you seek God and turn from the props that this world offers us:-

Prayer for Fasting During Lent

I shall lay aside the pressure I feel, and retreat into your space,
Away from distractions, I’ll seek you face to face.
I shall lean into you Lord, where the weight of the world
Falls away from my shoulders, let your freedom unfold.

I shall burrow so deeply, in you I’m covered and safe,
Lift my eyes up to linger on the love in you gaze.
I shall shelter, encircled by the depth of your care,
Where your majesty leads me, I await you in prayer.

I shall whisper my worries, here I’ll open my fears
And lay here unfolded, in a river of tears.
I shall rest my soul gently and nestle into your hope,
Seeking only to dwell here, in your peace I will soak.

Harvest Prayer

Our lives go through many seasons, and there are times when it is natural and easy to be thankful at harvest time. So, if you are in a relaxed place and able to drink in the goodness of God and his provision, it is a joyful and special time to give thanks! However, as Christians we all face times where it is harder to be overflowing with praise. Our heavenly Father knows us, and loves us just as we are in the valleys as well as on the hilltops, so allow yourself the grace to engage with this festival in the truth of your own circumstance and feelings.

What is amazing about the seeds of peace, hope and love that God plants by his Holy Spirit into our lives is that it is often in the hardest and darkest times that we reap the fruits of these seeds. For to grieve daily yet to still love is a beautiful fruit, to be hurt and broken yet to still forgive is an abundant reaping and to struggle with pain or ill health yet still to engage with others and enter into the hope in Christ is a remarkable harvest. These are kingdom blessings that shine so brightly to all around you.

Wherever you find yourself this harvest time, we hope this prayer will help you connect with your heavenly Father: –

Harvest Prayer

Father, as we celebrate this season of thanksgiving, we give thanks for the blessings of food, provision and nourishment.

Please grow in us a harvest for the world. Come sow a seed of hope within our souls Lord, that we might yield goodness, patience and kindness in abundance.

Sow a seed of peace in our lives Lord, that we might bear the fruits of forgiveness, compassion and righteousness.

Come sow a seed of love in our hearts Lord, that others would reap the blessings of family, friendship and community.

May each seed of hope, peace and love grow within us into a harvest that can be feasted on by all.

Amen.

(Prayer by Julie Palmer)

You can download and keep this film in HD for a small sum by following this link.

Leaning into God this Lent

Lent is an opportunity to lean in, to abandon yourself to intimacy with a living God, and to taste the refreshing water of God’s love and grace. When Jesus went into the desert for forty days he learnt what it meant to lean into his Father and remind himself of God’s promises. It was in that dry, hot, barren place that the enemy attacked him when he was physically most vulnerable.

in a slightly different way we as humans all have “desert” areas, places that are dry and harsh, places where we choose to shut God out of. Sometimes we can do many things to cover our own arid lands. We distract ourselves with purchasing things, chase achievements, hide in a fictional tale, mask our feelings with comfort eating, find a media fast fix or drink away our sorrow with a latte or beer! All these things are not wrong in themselves, but they can become like a plaster on a wound, preventing the air of God’s Spirit from circulating, they can stop the rain of God’s love touching us, or just cover the hurt so well that others do not realize our pain.

Sometimes it is important to strip these things back a little and see what lies underneath. Leaning into God is an active thing. It requires trust that a strong arm will hold you, courage that you won’t be rejected, it requires forgiveness when you have been hurt and hope to push through disappointments and engage with life again. God really cares about the desert areas of our lives! His heart breaks for the lost possibility of softness and healing, the intense pain of midday sun moments, and the sadness of the barren land holding no new nurture or growth. The good news is this – leaning into God is not as complex as it may seem. In the rivers of grace opened by Jesus’s death, small things can create huge restoration! It’s true – so just choosing once to leave the chocolate bar in the cupboard and remain before God can bring light into a dark place of disillusionment. This light is not only an opening for confession, it can become a peephole for deep renewal.

Leaning into God this Lent can also be an active choice for something. Deciding on a Saturday afternoon to go for a walk out onto the hills instead of the browsing the usual shops could be the beginning of a new wave of hope that breaks across the desolation of grief, or the rejection of a broken relationship, or a complex health issue. Seize the moments you have in Lent to lean in. Give everything to God, hold nothing back. And in those times, read the word of God, engage with the beauty of the earth, listen to inspiring music, phone a trusted friend, stop to pray, or just curl up and rest! Push away the props. Allow the light of Christ to illuminate your path, the rain of God’s spirit to soften your way, and you will discover new seeds of hope have taken root in your life.

I wrote a short prayer this month which carries these thoughts to God. You may like to pray it now as you lean into Him during this time:

I Will Turn

Lord, I will turn,
Turn my face towards you.
I will lay before you the desert areas I hide
And turn to soak in your refreshing words of life.
I will cast aside the barren, selfish pursuits
And turn to rest in the tranquil warmth of your love.
I will draw back from the harsh pull of media
And turn to bathe in the gentle power of your Spirit.
Lord, today I turn my face towards you.

I will turn
To soak in your words of life,
To rest in the warmth of your love,
And to bathe in the power of your Spirit.

Here is a short film meditation we have created featuring the words of this prayer: –

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

Dwell – the new prayerscapes album

We’re super-excited to announce the release of our new album “Dwell”, now available globally via iTunes, Amazon and on our site at prayerscapes.com.

Some of the material on “Dwell” is taken from the videos that you may already have seen at prayerscapes. The album weaves inspirational poetry, foundational scripture and song ministry together with filmatic soundtracks.

Here’s what others are saying about “Dwell”:-

“If you are looking for a recording all about Biblical meditation and reflection you won’t find anything better than the prayerscapes albums. We’ve used them for years at our creative prayer workshops. Yet again Neil & Julie prove that they have a God given talent by producing this unique new album.”

Ishmael & Irene Smale

(Ishmael – singer/songwriter – writer of “Father God, I wonder” and numerous children’s albums.)

Much of the material on the new album has been born out of some of our life experiences over the last few years. “May the Road Rise Up to Meet You” came out of praying for Julie, soon after our second child was born. I stumbled over this ancient Celtic blessing and found myself praying/singing it for her. It became a gentle reminder that whatever stresses we face (and these were plentiful with a small baby & a six year old child!) God holds us in the palm of His hand, and His faithfulness and love will never let us go:-

Other tracks have emerged from flashes of inspiration and creativity. The words to the track “Prayer Connects” came to Julie as one continuous stream of ideas – she scribbled the words down with the aid of a torch during the middle of the night! The poem is about God’s amazing gift of prayer, and charts the many different ways in which we encounter prayer in our lives:-

Other tracks simply invite us to return to our maker, and dwell on His goodness and provision. “This I Know” takes the form of a gentle lullaby, reminding us that whatever befalls us, we have a refuge, a safe place, a sanctuary we can abide in and find freedom:-

Dwelling is about finding a home, about connection with our Eternal Creator, pushing our roots deep into God’s Kingdom. To find “home“ we need to settle, unpack, relax and feel welcome. ”Dwell” is an open door leading us to moments that crystallize our beliefs, shelter our troubled hearts and inspire us to connect, to rest and to seek after the love of Christ.

It’s possible to explore the album further by visiting this page and clicking on the samples from the tracks on “Dwell”. Clicking on the track titles will take you to the lyrics, scriptures and poems that are on the album. Here you can also buy the album, either as mp3s or as a good old physical CD!

Prayer for Easter

Love overcame,
Emerging from a cold tomb.
All the truth, majesty and creativity of a living God,
Transforming a broken heart.
Making a quiet return, in a still and sorrowful garden.
The grave stone rolled away, to release redemptive love.
Jesus resurrected and restored.
Comforts a weeping woman.
Speaks with travellers on a journey.
Meets with his faithful friends,
And they bow down before Christ alive,
And acknowledged that the saviour has arrived,
That the word of God has come alive,
And that the extraordinary transformation of heaven and earth
Is complete

This is the second poem of a triptych I have written. The first one “Love Came“, is about the birth of Christ. “Love Overcame” is about the death and resurrection of Christ, and the third (which I am currently working on, entitled “Freedom Reigns”) is about Pentecost.

I like the imagery of three – three cords in a marriage, the three persons of the Trinity. So I was drawn to the idea of there being three distinctive ways in which God’s love is revealed to us:-

Love born in the human form of Jesus.
Love overcoming the fall in the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Love being set free, given into the hearts of men and women in the coming of the Holy Spirit.

These are all extraordinary events that have changed the course of history forever. And they are all as dramatic as they are unexpected. These are moments that inspire us and propel us forwards:-

To follow in the footsteps of Christ.
To live in grace and redemptive love.
To carry a piece of this revelation to those who are around us.

This Easter time, join with me in celebrating this wonderful love, as we pray together:-

Father, thank you that your son has stepped into history, and redeemed us. Thank you that you are with us right now by the power of your Holy Spirit. May all people taste and see this unending goodness. Amen.

Here is the film we have created based on “Love Overcame”:-

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