Category Archives: Prayer

400 Verses

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Over the weekend blog readers have asked questions about Friday’s post and the 400 Scripture passages I mentioned that our women’s prayer group uses each week. Several people have asked for the references, so I typed them into one document, planning to post them on this site. But before I do, a few caveats:

  1. Although we use the verses listed, all of Scripture is valuable and could be incorporated into prayer. By choosing the verses we did, we didn’t mean to diminish the importance of any others.
  2. The 20 topics we chose are just a small part of the help the Bible offers. For example, additional subjects could be grace, comfort, understanding, mercy, and many more.
  3. As we chose verses, no one translation was preferred over another. We just used the one that seemed to “say it best” at the time.
  4. Any biblical concordance, whether in the back of a hard-copy Bible or online, can provide verses relating to a chosen topic.
  5. In seeking scriptural counsel about the topic of healing, we found something very interesting. Other than descriptions of the healings Jesus did, healing is not widely addressed in the Bible. So our category of healing has only 8 passages listed.
  6. We decided to use verses from both the topic of redemption and salvation. Our redemption verses are those that can be applied to “redeeming a situation” while the salvation ones refer to “being saved from sin.”
  7. A handful of verses are re-used in several categories, and sometimes two references might be the same but that verse is divided into two parts (marked “a” and “b”) since it touches on two topics.
  8. Verses aren’t necessarily alphabetical by book or in order of appearance in the Bible. Sorry about that! At least the categories are alphabetical.

“So shall My word be that goes out from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)

Discernment:

  • Phil. 1:9-11
  • 1 Kings 3:11-12a
  • 1 Kings 3:12b
  • Job 34:4
  • Ps. 119:124-125
  • Ps. 139:3-4
  • Prov. 1:5
  • Prov. 8:8-10
  • Prov. 10:13-14
  • Prov. 14:6-7
  • Prov. 14:32-33
  • Prov. 15:14-15
  • Prov. 16:20-21
  • Prov. 17:23-24
  • Prov. 17:27-28
  • Prov. 18:15
  • Prov. 28:11-12
  • Dan. 2:21
  • Hos. 14:9
  • 1 Cor. 11:30-32

Faithfulness:

  • Ps. 108:4
  • Prov. 11:13
  • 1 Tim. 3:11
  • Jer. 23:28
  • Lk. 16:10
  • Prov. 28:20
  • Ex. 34:6-7
  • Deut. 32:4
  • 1 Sam. 12:24
  • 1 Sam. 26:23
  • Ps. 31:23
  • Prov. 3:3-4
  • Lam. 3:22-23
  • Matt. 25:23
  • Gal. 5:22
  • Heb. 10:23
  • 1 Pet. 4:10
  • Rev. 2:10
  • Prov. 12:22
  • Rom. 1:17
  • Ps. 86:2-3

Forgiveness:

  • Acts 10:43
  • Acts 26:17
  • 2 Cor. 2:5-8
  • 2 Cor. 2:10-11
  • Eph. 1:7
  • Col. 3:13a
  • Col. 3:13b
  • Heb. 8:12
  • Heb. 10:16-18
  • 1 John 1:9
  • 1 John 1:7
  • Mark 2:10
  • Mark 11:25
  • Lk. 6:37
  • Lk. 11:4
  • Lk. 17:3
  • Matt. 6:14-15
  • 2 Chron. 7:14
  • Ps. 25:11
  • Ps. 130:3-4

Gratitude

  • Col. 3:16
  • Ps. 69:30,33
  • Ps. 100:4-5
  • 2 Cor. 4:15
  • Phil. 4:6-7
  • 2 Thess. 1:3
  • 1 Tim. 2:1-3
  • 1 Tim. 4:4-5
  • Col. 2:6-7
  • Col. 3:15
  • Col. 4:2
  • Heb. 12:28
  • Ps. 9:1-2
  • 1 Cor. 15:57
  • 2 Cor. 9:13,15
  • Eph. 5:19-20
  • Col. 3:17
  • 1 Thess. 5:16-18
  • Rev. 7:12
  • Rev. 11:17

Healing:

  • Prov. 12:18
  • Prov. 16:24
  • Mal. 4:2
  • Lk. 6:19
  • Acts 10:38
  • Rev. 22:2
  • Acts 4:30
  • 3 John 1:2

Hope:

  • Ps. 33:18
  • Ps. 42:5-6
  • Ps. 62:5-6
  • Ps. 71:14-15
  • Ps. 130:5-6
  • Ps. 130:7
  • Ps. 146:5-6
  • Ps. 147:10-11
  • Prov. 23:17-18
  • Prov. 24:14
  • Isa. 40:31
  • Jer. 29:11
  • Lam. 3:24-26
  • Mic. 7:7
  • Acts 2:25-27
  • Rom. 5:1-2
  • Rom. 5:5
  • Rom. 12:12
  • Rom. 15:13
  • Eph. 1:18-19
  • 1 Pet. 1:3-4

Joy:

  • Isa. 29:19
  • Ps. 5:11
  • Ps. 16:11
  • Ps. 27:6
  • Ps. 30:11
  • Ps. 35:27
  • Ps. 51:12
  • Ps. 63:5-7
  • Ps. 68:3
  • Ps. 71:23
  • Ps. 126:5-6
  • Eccl. 7:14
  • John 15:10-11
  • John 16:23-24
  • 2 Cor. 8:2
  • Col. 1:11-12
  • Heb.1:9
  • 1 Pet. 1:8
  • James 1:2-3
  • Jude 1:24

 

 Love:

  • Ex. 34:6-7
  • Ps. 25:10
  • Ps. 33:22
  • Ps. 40:16
  • Ps. 91:14
  • Ps. 145:8
  • Mk. 12:32-33
  • John 15:9-10
  • Rom. 8:28
  • Rom. 12:9-10
  • 1 Cor. 8:1
  • 1 Cor. 8:3
  • 1 Cor. 13:4
  • 1 Cor. 13:7
  • 2 Cor. 13:14
  • Gal. 5:13
  • Eph. 3:17-19
  • Eph. 5:1-2
  • Heb. 6:10
  • 1 Pet. 4:8

Obedience:

  • Deut. 5:33
  • Deut. 8:6
  • Jer. 7:23
  • Rom. 5:19
  • Rom. 16:19
  • Heb. 5:7-8
  • 2 John 1:6
  • Ps. 119:66-67
  • Ps. 119:4-5
  • Ps. 119:34
  • Ps. 119:101
  • Isa. 50:10
  • Lk. 11:28
  • John 14:23
  • Rom. 2:13
  • 1 Pet. 1:22
  • 1 John 2:5-6
  • 1 John 3:24
  • Gal. 6:2
  • Phil. 2:12-13

Patience:

  • Ps. 40:1-2
  • Ps. 37:7
  • Prov. 16:32
  • Eccl. 7:8-9
  • Isa. 40:30-31
  • Lk. 8:15
  • Rom. 8:25-26
  • Rom. 12:12
  • Rom. 15:4
  • Rom. 15:5
  • 1 Cor. 13:4
  • Eph. 4:2
  • Col. 1:10-11
  • 1 Thess. 5:14
  • Heb. 6:12
  • Heb. 12:1-2
  • James 1:2-3
  • James 5:10-11
  • 1 Pet. 2:20
  • 2 Pet. 3:9

Peace:

  • 2 Cor. 13:11
  • Rom. 5:1
  • John 16:33
  • Col. 3:15
  • Eccl. 3:1,8
  • 1 Cor. 4:33
  • Num. 6:24-26
  • John 14:27
  • Isa. 26:4,3
  • Ps. 4:8
  • Isa. 48:17-18
  • Isa. 9:6
  • Phil. 4:7
  • Matt. 5:9
  • Rom. 14:17-18
  • 1 Thess. 5:23
  • Heb. 13:20-21
  • 2 Pet. 1:2
  • Ps. 37:37
  • Ps. 119:165

Perseverance:

  • Ps. 27:13-14
  • 1 Cor. 16:13-14
  • 1 Tim. 6:11-12
  • James 1:2-3
  • Ps. 31:23-24
  • Josh. 1:9
  • Rom. 5:3-4
  • 2 Thess. 3:5
  • Heb. 12:1-2
  • James 1:4
  • James 5:11
  • Rom. 15:5-6
  • 1 Thess. 1:3
  • Col. 1:10-11
  • 2 Pet. 3:17-18
  • Acts. 14:22
  • 2 Cor. 6:4
  • 2 Cor. 12:10
  • Heb. 12:7
  • Rev. 2:2-3

Protection:

  • Ps. 5:11
  • Eccl. 7:12
  • Isa. 27:5
  • Deut. 33:12
  • Job 5:11
  • Ps. 4:8
  • Ps. 20:1
  • Ps. 41:1-2
  • Ps. 59:1-2
  • Ps. 68:5
  • Ps. 91:14-15
  • 1 John 5:18
  • Lk. 4:10-11
  • John 17:12
  • 2 Thess. 3:3
  • 2 Tim. 1:12
  • Isa. 19:20
  • Ps. 18:2
  • Ps. 18:30
  • Ps. 28:7
  • Ps. 33:30-31
  • Ps. 91:4-5

Reconciliation:

  • Matt. 5:7
  • Matt. 7:12
  • James 2:12-13
  • 2 Cor. 5:18-19
  • 2 Cor. 5:20
  • 2 Cor. 13:11
  • Rom. 12:18
  • 1 Pet. 5:10
  • 1 Pet. 5:6-7
  • 1 Pet:5:5
  • Col. 1:19-20
  • Col. 1:21-23
  • 1 Thess. 5:9-11
  • 1 Thess. 5:13-14
  • 1 Thess. 5:15
  • 1 Thess. 5:22-23
  • 1 Cor. 3:16-17
  • Eph. 4:3
  • Eph. 4:1-2
  • Eph. 4:22-24
  • Rom. 15:5-6

 

 Redemption:

  • Ps. 51:12
  • Isa. 12:2
  • Ps. 70:4
  • Ps. 20:5
  • 2 Sam. 22:3
  • Ps. 27:1
  • 1 Thess. 5:8
  • 2 Cor. 6:2
  • Titus 2:11-12
  • Heb. 5:7-9
  • Ezek. 36:25-26
  • Isa. 33:6
  • Isa. 51:6
  • Isa. 61:10
  • Ps. 119:41-42
  • Ps. 111:1,9
  • Ps. 130:7-8
  • Isa. 59:21
  • Isa. 63:7-9
  • 1 Cor. 1:30

Salvation:

  • 1 Tim. 1:15
  • Acts 4:11-12
  • Rom. 1:16
  • 2 Cor. 7:10
  • 1 Thess. 5:9
  • Titus 2:11-12
  • Heb. 5:7-9
  • Isa. 61:10
  • Rom. 3:23-25
  • Eph. 1:7-8
  • Col. 1:21-22
  • Col. 1:13-14
  • Heb. 9:12
  • Heb. 9:14
  • Lk. 1:77-78
  • 2 Cor. 6:2
  • Eph. 1:13-14
  • Eph. 1:18
  • Titus 2:14
  • Rom. 5:6,8

Servanthood

  • Zeph. 3:9
  • John 12:25
  • John 12:26
  • Ps. 116:16-17
  • Col. 3:23,24a
  • Col. 3:24b
  • 1 Pet. 2:20-21
  • Ps. 119:125
  • Deut. 10:20-21
  • Josh. 24:14-15
  • Ps. 143:11-12
  • 1 Chron. 28:9
  • Ps. 4:3
  • Ps. 34:22
  • Matt. 4:10
  • Matt. 6:24
  • Matt. 20:27-28
  • Rom. 7:6
  • Gal. 5:13
  • 1 Tim. 3:13
  • 1 Pet. 4:10
  • 1 Pet. 4:11

Strength:

  • Phil. 4:13
  • Ps. 29:11
  • Col. 1:10-11
  • 2 Thess. 3:3
  • Ex. 15:13
  • Ps. 18:31-32
  • Ps. 22:19
  • Ps. 28:7
  • Ps. 46:1
  • Ps. 68:28
  • Ps. 68:35
  • Ps. 73:26
  • Ps. 84:5,7
  • Ps. 105:3-4
  • Ps. 119:28
  • Isa. 35:3-4
  • Isa. 40:29
  • Isa. 40:31
  • Isa. 41:10
  • Col. 2:6-7

Trust:

  • Ps. 9:10
  • Ps. 20:7
  • Ps. 25:2
  • Ps. 28:7
  • Ps. 32:10
  • Ps. 62:8
  • Ps. 86:2-3
  • Ps. 112:7
  • Ps. 143:8-9
  • Ps. 145:13
  • Prov. 3:5-6
  • Isa. 8:17
  • Isa. 12:2
  • Isa. 26:3
  • Isa. 50:10
  • Dan. 6:23
  • Nahum 1:7
  • Rom. 15:13
  • 1 Tim. 3:11
  • 1 Pet. 2:6

Wisdom:

  • Ps. 111:10
  • Ps. 90:12
  • Prov. 2:1-2,5
  • Prov. 2:6-7
  • Prov. 2:3-4,9-10
  • Prov. 3:13-15
  • Prov. 3:17-18
  • Prov. 3:21-22
  • Prov. 3:21,24
  • Prov. 4:6
  • Prov. 4:11-12
  • Prov. 4:23,26-27
  • Prov. 8:12,17
  • Prov. 9:11-12
  • Prov. 10:23
  • Prov. 13:10
  • Prov. 21:30
  • Rom. 11:33
  • 1 Cor. 1:25
  • Eph. 1:17
  • James 1:5
  • James 3:13
  • James 3:17

God’s Wish List

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Every Tuesday morning I meet with several other women for a scheduled prayer time around what we call an altar. Actually it’s just a Formica-topped table, but to us it represents a place where God is present in powerful ways.

Table

During our time together we claim his promise to hear our prayers and then one-by-one hand him 200+ requests, each one with a name and situation connected to it. After everything has been covered, nearly 3 hours has passed.

Faithful prayer can be hard work.

But God steadily rewards that work with glimpses of the wonders he’s performing, some the culmination of years of prayer, others a total surprise party. We’ve watched him heal terminal diseases, reconcile warring spouses, save lost souls, rearrange careers, shelter refugees, sell houses, and much, much more.

All of us have mental wish lists of what we’d like to see happen within our families, our schools, our friendships, the government, and our world. We want harmony in relationships, financial security, satisfying careers, and global peace…. for starters.

None of us has trouble knowing what we want, but what does God want? Sometimes we have trouble being sure of that. Although he invites us to bring our concerns, he puts restrictions on which ones he’ll answer in the affirmative.

Scripture says, “This is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” (1 John 5:14-15)

Big “if”.

He’s saying, “If you ask according to God’s will, you’ll get what you ask for. Outside of that, no guarantees.”

For example, we can pray for a raise at work, but God doesn’t promise a yes. It’s possible he will give it, but he might prefer instead to produce spiritual riches through the experience of financial hardship.

As our little band of praying women thought about all this, we decided the only way to be sure we weren’t wasting time on Tuesday mornings was to pray “according to his will,” and thankfully Scripture lets us know what that is.

20 topics

So we chose 400 verses from the Bible, 20 for each of 20 different topics, each one in accordance with God’s will for all people. We put them on cards stored in mugs, ready for pulling during prayer times. Based on the needs, we ask for:

  • Perseverance
  • Discernment
  • Faithfulness
  • Gratitude
  • Hope
  • Reconciliation
  • Obedience
  • Forgiveness
  • Redemption
  • Love
  • Patience
  • Healing
  • Peace
  • Wisdom
  • Strength
  • Protection
  • Salvation
  • Joy
  • Servant-hood
  • Trust

And because God wants to develop these things in all of us, he faithfully says yes.

“The Lord said…. I am watching over my word to perform it.” (Jeremiah 1:12)

Illuminating Gifts

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We own a spectacular flashlight that came to us in an unusual way. It’s made of aerospace-grade materials and is impact and water-resistant. Should it be dropped, it has a spongy, rubberized sheath around the vulnerable bulb-end, and it’s a foot long. The words “Coleman Graphite” are printed along the side.

Super-flashlight

If I was forced to look at the powerful bulb, my eyes would hurt for days, but the generous swath of light it puts forth is almost like a car’s headlights on high beam. I’ve checked online, and an equivalent flashlight would cost about $50, a far cry from the dime-store variety of our other flashlights.

Back in 2005, when Nate and I put our suburban home on the market after living there nearly 30 years, we never dreamed it would take 4 years to sell it, especially since the real estate market was still on a rapidly-rising bubble.

When we finally got the offer that “stuck,” our potential buyers asked for an asbestos inspection, and wouldn’t you know, the attic insulation contained microscopic bits of it. The buyers insisted we have it cleaned out, and after the 3-day process I climbed a ladder to peek at how the attic looked. Without insulation (and with a new white sealant on walls and floor joists), it looked pretty good.

As I stood on the ladder half-in and half-out of the attic, I noticed a big flashlight across the room. Climbing through the opening and crawling over the joists to retrieve it, I saw what good quality it was and figured it belonged to the asbestos team. Later I called them.

“No,” they said, “it isn’t ours.” I pressed the point, so one of the workers came by to look at it, but he was sure it wasn’t theirs. After that we asked people who came and went, but when we finally moved, we figured it was ours.

Coming into a high-quality flashlight isn’t any big deal, but the unexplainable way it came to us can be an object lesson for the way God does things. For example, maybe we need something specific or even just have a wish for it. We tell God about it in prayer, and one day, after we’ve forgotten we asked, there it is.

When God gives us the desire of our hearts (an un-sinful desire), he often brings it by a circuitous, improbable route. Why? Because he wants us to recognize that it’s him. If the way the gift arrived makes no logical sense and occurs against the odds, then I think we can rightly credit the Lord.

So, when I use our Coleman flashlight, it’s not the asbestos company that comes to mind. It’s God, and his sometimes unusual, often unexpected, but always welcome gifts.

“If you only look at us, you might well miss the brightness. We carry this precious Message around in the unadorned clay pots of our ordinary lives. That’s to prevent anyone from confusing God’s incomparable power with us.” (2 Corinthians 4:7)