Five-step Traditional Prayer

Five-step Traditional Prayer by Randall Lawrence

My Lord and God, the Eternal Christ, Emmanuel, Prince of Peace, Lord of Lords, King of Kings, my Savior, my Redeemer, Lord from the manger, the Cross-bearer, Risen Lord of the open tomb, Son of Man, God of Spilled Blood and Broken Body, our Christ of Communion, our Hope of Glory, Ancient of Days, and Returning Messiah:

Your creation knows no end. Living Word that spoke and formed worlds without end, Holy God of Israel who took a babe in a basket, Egyptian prince-turned-murderer, and led him to become shepherd and then deliverer of an enslaved people. This is a type and shadow of your Restoration work of creation and for all kindreds, tongues, peoples, and tribes. The God of Deliverance, Manna, and Promised Land became the God of Temple, Wisdom, and Shekhinah Glory, and further became God of the grove, Restoration in the latter days, God of continuing Revelation, Temple of the Peace of Christ, and God of gathering of peoples, records, and endowing Grace.

God, mindful of the life of the sparrow and hairs on my head, You have created this vast cosmos of planets, sun, stars, galaxies, and unfathomable distances. Jehovah-God, You sustain this spinning blue-green globe of life in this vast and wonderfully created universe. We barely touch the mysteries of outer space and inner microscopic space let alone the mysteries of Heaven. You created mankind in Your Image and Likeness and for the purpose of dwelling in Your Presence and Your company and in community with You, Creator God, You, Sacrificial Son and Savior, You, Loving Great Spirit. This is my calling and Your calling on me and all.

Words cannot express my thanksgiving for my life, the air I breathe moment to moment, water to drink, shelter in the form of divine-blessed home, food to be thankful for, family and friends of faith and love---like Nephi, being born of goodly and Godly parents. Lord and God, above this, I thank you for Ruach/Pneuma—Breathe of the Spirit, Living Water supplied by You like the woman at the well (John 4), sacred “homes” of your Temples, your congregations of disciples, my family and friends of support, inspiration, and Your Divine Providence.

Forgive my trespasses and debts. Forgive my procrastination, worry, fears, complaints, and lack of stewardship. Forgive my negative attitude at times and self-centeredness. Forgive my stumbling and clumsy discipleship walk. Forgive my attempts to run ahead, do things my way and not in Your Way, and forgive me for believing I know better than You, Lord and God. Forgive my impatience, my hypocrisy of profession and going through motions without a broken heart and contrite spirit. Forgive my arrogance, pettiness, unreliability, putting myself above others. Forgive me for taking Your Broken Body and Spilled Blood for granted. Forgive my short-sightedness and hesitancy in listening to Your Still, Small Voice. Forgive my stubbornness used for my ends instead of used to continually pray, thank, walk, talk, share, and most of all, love You, Lord and God. Let me not take Your forgiveness for granted breath by breath, minute by minute, moment by moment, day by day, month by month, year by year, and person by person, and event by event.

Lord and God, I lift my family and friends up for Your Presence, Healing, and Blessing. Thank You for Your Promises to always be with us. Thank You for angelic protection, guidance, and their ongoing presence(s) in our lives like the ongoing Presence of Ruach, Pneuma, Spirit of Wind and Fire, Gentle and Mightly Breeze of Healing, Flame of Gospel Gifts and Prophecy. Lord, I lift up my neighbors, my community, and City on a Hill, my state of Centerplace, my country of the New Jerusalem, the world in need of Zion and Zionic communities of Christ. Be with and bless these local, state, country and other national leaders and officials and workers. Bless them with wisdom, revelation, knowledge, and discernment found in You, Your Life, Your Ministry, Death on the cross, and in Your Resurrection to New Life. Lord and God, I pray blessings and strength for the homeless, for the children, for First Nations and indigenous peoples, for the sick and infirm, for the outcast and marginalized, for women and families, for the jailed and prisoners of state, for the persecuted, for the faithful and the unfaithful, for the abused and abusers, for the unlovely and unloved, for the orphan, widow, widower, and alien, for immigrant, refugee, and citizen, for the poor and rich, for the minorities and for those in power and majority. I lift Your children, white, black, brown, yellow, red—all shades and colors, all races, ethnicities, and nationalities, all religions, creeds, churchs and organizations.

Lord and God, thank you for this time and season in my life—40 years of faith and doubt, blessing and heartbreak, Spirit-ful highs and lonely lows, for being with me and blessing me throughout all these years showing me birth and death, sickness and healing, love and affection, faithfulness and unfaithfulness—mine and others, betrayal and depression, joy and destiny. Thank you for honoring prayers and dreams 15-20 years ago—priesthood and part of a zionic community near Your Holy Temple and more. Thank you for giving me more dreams along with my health, wealth, my calling, my priesthood, and my church.

Lord and God, I am nothing without You but have everything I need and more with You. I desire to consecrate and “steward” my whole life—my finances, my time, my present and presence, my goals and dreams, my future and ambitions—to Your yoke and Your Will. You heal, bless, give, and honor me even when I attempt to run ahead, get in the way rather than in the Way, and think I know best. I desire a direct testimony of the Book of Mormon and know it will come in Your Way at just the right time. Thank you for the trip to Mexico and testimonies of the Hill Cumorah Expedition Team and their mission and goals and journey which I’ve been blessed to be a part of—Thank You! I desire to see like Nephi, the Brother of Jared, Enoch, Moses, Earl Curry, and others—to see the big picture of the Fullness of the Gospel and Your Plan for this world. I thank you for my blessings and my calling regarding the School of the Prophets. Lead me, I pray, and teach me to follow like John the Beloved and the 3 Nephites. They remain nameless but faithfully carry Your Name and Gospel. I thank You for my cross to bear, teach me to bear it, my race to run, teach me to run it humbly, courageously, and lovingly. I thank You for my trials, tribulations, and heartbreaks. Through my mistakes and wrong paths, Lord and God, You have taught me courage, persistence, prayer for enemies and adversaries, toughness and stubbornness, and Your faithfulness to always be with me even to the end. “Well done, good and faithful servant!” is the pronouncement and goal of my heart and my life.

I pray all this through Your Holy Name, Jesus, through Your Broken Body and Spilled Blood, my Redeemer and Savior, Judge and Bridegroom, Lord of Zion and whole world, and God of worlds without end, my Eternal Christ. Amen.