Ministry:  The Lord’s Office-place

(Author’s Note:  Written many years ago for Saturday Night Prayer at Suncoast Cathedral, this prayer retains its power today.  Whether traditional or contemporary, the Sanctuary is the place of worship where the Love of God meets the Needs of people.  It is not a concert hall, a theatre of entertainment, or a town hall for political deliberations.  It is a worship hall, holy and set apart for the work of our King for He has promised to be enthroned upon the worship of the Church.  It is a healing place for the Lord has promised to dwell in the worship of the Church.  God can and does work anywhere He wants, but He hsa chosen to visit us in power when we gather in the Spirit.  The address in any city, town, or country landscape is the same:  The Corner of Spirit and Truth. Steve Phifer)

A Prayer for the Sanctuary

O Sovereign Lord, grant that our Sanctuary would be a place where

• praises go up and grace comes down,
• proud hearts are humbled and
• searching souls are redeemed,
• broken hearts are mended and
• shattered minds are renewed.

Let this be the place where

• the truth rises on shouts as well as songs,
• the glory falls on hungry hearts,
• the voice of the Spirit, the call of God, is heard once more,
• the anointing flows in fullness, and
• the Word of God is proclaimed with authority.

Let this hallowed room be the place where

• the Holy Spirit rules in power,
• Jesus, the Savior-Healer-Baptizer, walks among us, and
• the loving Heavenly Father embraces the prodigal.

Let it be a place where

• relationships are formed and maintained as
• forgiveness flows to us as we let it flow to others,
• healing flows as a mighty river;
• revelation dawns and
• attitudes are changed.

Here,

• may the plow of worship break up the fallow ground of the hardest heart,
• may tears water the seed of the Word sown therein and
• may discipline, in the Father’s strong and loving hands, steady us.

In this Worship Hall,

• let the talented serve and may only the servant shine.
• Let the music of the highest heaven shake the foundations of the lowest hell and heaven’s sweetest harmonies soothe the clamor of a fallen creation.
• May Sabbath rest blanket the weary soul.

Here, O Sovereign Lord, in this Your Dwelling Place,

• children laugh and God smiles;
• men kneel and God gives strength;
• women travail and God gives new life.

In the Mighty Name of Jesus, the Sovereign Lord, We all agree. Amen!

(from The Book of Daily Prayer)

Scriptures:
Psalm 22:3 NKJV, KJV
But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel.
But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.

Matthew 18:19-20 NKJV
“Again I say* to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”

Luke 4:16-22 NKJV
So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”

Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Song of the Sanctuary
He Is Here
Composer: Jamie Owens Collins

He is here. He is here. He is moving among us.
He is here. He is here as we gather in His name.
He is here. He is here and He wants to work a wonder,
He is here as we gather in His name.

He is Lord. He is Lord. Let us worship before Him.
He is Lord. He is Lord, as we gather in His name.
He is Lord. He is Lord. Let us praise and adore Him.
Yesterday and today and forevermore the same.

Semper Reformanda!
Stephen Phifer

© 2016 Stephen R. Phifer All Rights Reserved