Becoming

What if...?

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Thu, 03 May 2012 21:05:00 +0000

When our back is against the wall (individually or corporately) it seems that 99% of our attempts to relieve the pressure or escape the situation are rooted in fear. What if they don't like the decision I make? What if they don't like ME? What if I lose their respect? What if...? Interestingly, we never find Jesus resorting to those kind of questions when his back was against the wall. Conflict, pain, loss, and abandonment were regular occurrences for him, and through it all he seemed to be asking a different What if...? question, one rooted in love: WHAT IF MY FATHER HAD HIS WAY WITH THIS RELATIONSHIP OR SITUATION? Jesus' M.O. was one of seeking the will of his Father (because he LOVED him!) even when the going got tough, which seemed to be most of the time. This posture of loving obedience led Jesus into times of solitude - to pray for his Father's will to be done even when it would cost him his life - and it also led him into intense conflicts where grace and truth needed to be lovingly proclaimed (in both word and deed). From this it seems that Jesus' courage came from knowing that it wasn't his own will that he was carrying out, rather it was his Father's will. So, what situations or relationships are adding weight to your soul? What do you sense your loving Father's will is for them? How does his will differ from your own will and what desires, attitudes, or even beliefs do you need to repent of in order to align yourself with his will? As you live in the ebb and flow of relationships and organizations, may God's desire for you and those you connect with become your desire as well.

Prayer for transformation

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 05:14:00 +0000

Father, we are in desperate need of transformation, as people, as churches, as communities, and as nations. Our sins are becoming too heavy to carry. Our divisions are too numerous to count. Our arrogance continues to blind us from seeing and hearing you. By the power of your Spirit, free us from the sins, temptations, fears, and systems that distract us from the life you created us to live. We humbly surrender ourselves to you today, and profess with our hearts, minds, and lungs that we are unable to change on our own. Guide us toward a posture of repentance so that we may once again turn to face you and gratefully receive your gift of life.

Missional Prayer: Loose Grip

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 15:13:00 +0000

God, we confess that at times we have held on too tightly to our traditions and have missed out on the fuller life you invite us into. Gently pry our fingers back so that we hold onto our programs, our structures, and our strategies with a loose grip and instill in us a desire to grab hold of your dreams for our neighborhoods, cities, nations, and world. As we seek your will, inspire us with your creative spirit to develop fresh and meaningful habits and practices for our shared journey with you.

Missional Giving

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 16:35:00 +0000

With so many churches and leaders attempting to be "missional" by way of stepping outside their buildings and serving the "least of these" (a very good thing indeed) I want us to be mindful of Jesus' warning found in the beginning of Matthew 6:

"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' in front of others, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly, I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let you your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be done in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."

May you, as you grow in generosity, give in secret and keep the stories of your good deeds offline and out of the media. There's a greater reward awaiting you.

Prayer for all Believers - adapted from John 17:20-21

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 19:56:00 +0000

Father, we pray that those who profess to believe in your Son Jesus will demonstrate our oneness by finding ourselves in you and by actively living out your purposes together. We ask that you illuminate what we have in common and dissolve our destructive and useless differences. May our capacity for forgiveness increase! Capture our hearts and minds with your dreams for your creation. Turn our desires into your desires. Change our thinking about what is important to reflect what is important to you and equip us with whatever you deem necessary for us to courageously join you in your mission.

Prayer for Desire

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 15:19:00 +0000

God, we confess that our desires have not always been in line with what you desire. Search our hearts and reveal any desires in us that, if satisfied, will not lead us to a deeper love for you or a greater surrender to your mission in the world. Reveal to us a deeper knowledge of who you are and what your heart desires. Fill us with desires for things that are good, pure, beautiful, truthful, lovely, and just. Lead us by your Spirit into activities that demonstrate your heart for the world, and in doing so, may our hearts become like yours.

Praying for Civility

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 13:47:00 +0000

In a recent interview on the controversy kicked up by Rob Bell's new book, Love Wins, Eugene Peterson offers a challenge to all who feel the need to inject their two cents:

"There’s so much polarization in the evangelical church that it’s a true scandal. We’ve got to learn how to talk to each other and listen to each other in a civil way."

Father, search our hearts and reveal any pride or overly-judgmental attitudes in us. Shine your light on the deeper relational issues we have as a Church and heal us by your gentle and merciful Spirit. Remind us again that we are called to be like you and that our interactions with one another are putting you on display to the world around us. Forgive us, God, for our immature actions, attitudes, and words. Continue to work in us and among us, and give us eyes and ears to know how you are inviting us to grow next. Thank you for your faithfulness to us in the midst of our distractions and disagreements.

Prayer for Urgency

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 03:49:00 +0000

Father, we surrender our desires and agendas and seek to take on your desires and your agenda, what some call your mission in, to, and for the world. For those of us who have lost our sense of urgency to join you in your mission, we pray for a desire to desire once again the journey you have called us to.

Prayer for better leadership

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 15:48:00 +0000

In one of my first leadership development classes in college we were asked to memorize the following Chinese proverb:

Go to the people,
Live among them,
Learn from them,
Love them.
Start with what they know,
Build on what they have.
But of the best leaders,
When their work is done,
The people will proclaim,
"We have done it ourselves!"

Over the years this proverb has served as a good reminder for how effective leaders generate change through humble, sometimes unnoticed efforts. It also serves as a critique for why many people strive for positions of leadership (power?). If your goal of being a leader is fueled by a desire for fame you run the risk of ceasing to lead when the crowd's attention is turned elsewhere, which may be precisely the moment in time when good leadership is most necessary.

May you go and be the Light of Christ in the darkest corners of the world, even if no one else is watching.

Father, embolden your people, particularly those in leadership positions, to serve those around them with humility and to empower others out of a deeper trust in you and your Spirit's activity in and through them.

Prayer for New Life

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 13:01:00 +0000

Father, as we enter into this season of Lent we pray for a loosening of our grip on our old life - the one we control - and a tighter embrace of the satisfying life you offer us in your son Jesus Christ. Stir our hearts to more fully desire you and your life. Prompt our minds to recognize the thoughts, attitudes and behaviors of our old life and lead us into a time of repentance, of turning around, of putting to death the ways and things of our former life. While it is still weeks away, we are desperate for a wider embrace of the new life that can only be found in the resurrected Christ.

Prayer for One-ness

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 15:01:00 +0000

Father, we pray for all those who believe in, love, and follow Jesus, and ask for a stronger, deeper spirit of one-ness to reside among us. As we find our one-ness in your one-ness may those around us come to see, believe in, love, and follow Jesus as well. Turn our hearts and attention to the world you love including those who have yet to hear and see Jesus' message of repentance and redemption.

Prayer for Churches and Leaders

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 16:52:00 +0000

Click HERE for a good word from our brother John along with a prayer for our churches and leaders.

Grace and peace to you as you prepare yourself for the upcoming Lenten season.

Prayer of Openness

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 17:01:00 +0000

Father, we open our entire selves to you and surrender all that we are and have and do to you. Whatever you return to us by way of sustenance, skills, dreams and relationships, we receive them as gracious gifts from you. We open ourselves to your presence, nourishment, and guidance today. Thank you God!

Prayer of Thanksgiving

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 15:02:00 +0000

Father, we thank you for the work you began in us and are carrying on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Come Lord Jesus.

Prayer of Repentance

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 12:20:00 +0000

Father, we confess we have not lived as we were created to live. Forgive us. We repent of our actions, attitudes, and words that have been motivated by fear, anxiety, and pride. By the power of your Spirit at work in us, we ask that you renew our minds, restore our souls, and reactivate our hands and feet to live as the agents of reconciliation and redemption that you have called us to be. Grant us wisdom in the midst of uncertainty and patience in the midst of chaos. Shape us to become more like your Son, Jesus, for the sake of the world.

Prayer for Awareness

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 19:52:00 +0000

Father, open our eyes to your Kingdom reality that is all around us. Give us new eyes to see what you see. When we look at our neighbors, may we see human beings created in your image who are filled with tremendous potential for good. When we engage with the Church, may we see fellow travelers called to partner with you in your work of redeeming and restoring the world. When we see creation, prompt us to acknowledge and appreciate its inherent beauty. And when we encounter despair, give us eyes to see hope. Awaken us to your presence in every moment of the day.

Prayer for churches Part 4

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 01:32:00 +0000

Father, we pray for a spirit of repentance to well up in your church and in our nations. We confess we have taken shortcuts, made wrong turns, and even dragged our feet in our journey of following and obeying Jesus. We turn our eyes, our hearts, and our feet to face you just as we are, with all our baggage and shortcomings, and we ask for your forgiveness. Forgive us, we pray.

Prayer for churches Part 3

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:45:00 +0000

Father, we pray for the truth and hope of Jesus to be proclaimed clearly and boldly in churches around the world. We trust that as the good news of Jesus is proclaimed the people who hear it and see it will experience freedom, healing, repentance, and an overwhelming encounter of love. May those who find the good news complicated embrace the easiness and simplicity of the yoke of Jesus.

Prayer for churches Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 14:52:00 +0000

Father, we pray for our brothers and sisters who are impoverished and afflicted. Clothe them with patience and endurance for the difficult journey ahead, and in the midst of their suffering may they experience the deepest of all joys, of knowing you are present. Encourage them through the stirring of your Spirit within them.

Prayer for churches Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 15:59:00 +0000

Father, we confess that our hearts have been captivated by the temporary trappings of your church rather than the sustaining presence of Christ, the head of your church. Forgive us for forsaking our first love. We ask that you redirect the desires of our hearts toward your Son, Jesus, by the power of your Spirit at work in us.

Pray

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 05:12:00 +0000

If you do just one thing today, just one, make it an act of prayer.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 12:56:00 +0000

From Paul's letter roughly 1950 years ago to the community of believers in Thessalonica:

"We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers. We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ."

Who are you thankful for today? Let them know.

Prayer of Anticipation

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 20:34:00 +0000

Father, as the northern hemisphere warms the southern hemisphere cools, we anticipate a new season of the year. Teach us to hold on to the successes and failures of last season very loosely so as to grab hold of the future you are drawing us into. May we create space in our lives and schedules to stop and listen to you. May our eyes stay focused on you and your activity in this world. Awaken us to your presence within and around us, and inspire us with your loving Spirit to tangibly share the good news of salvation that resides in your Son, the Christ. With whom are you inviting us to love and bless and share this news with?

A modern day proverb

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 15:04:00 +0000

This from Fr. Richard Rohr:

“Those who really know don’t talk too easily. Those who talk too easily don’t really know.”

Choose your words - and their timing - carefully today.

Peace!

Prayer for the Middle East

noreply@blogger.com (Jon Van Bruggen) — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 19:05:00 +0000

Father, as protests erupt throughout the Middle East, we pray for peaceful demonstrations and interactions. We ask that those involved (protesters and governments) will be protected from destructive actions and attitudes, and we pray for the emergence of political systems that put Kingdom values on display - those focused on compassion, generosity, and justice. May those involved in present and future conversations be overcome with humility. Turn their attention away from their own preservation and shift their hearts toward plans that will be for the betterment of their nation as a whole as well as surrounding world.