For the preachers, here’s a small batch of Collects for you to pray before your preaching or sermon preparation. These are certainly not my own, but unfortunately I cannot remember when or where I gathered these:
To be prayed before preaching:
Jesus, King of Righteousness, Son of God and Son of Man!
Send us your light and your truth!
Jesus, Light of the World, Son of God and Son of Man!
We desire to sit at your feet and to receive your word in our heart and mind!
Jesus, King of Righteousness, Son of God and Son of Man!
Send us your light and your truth!Lord, open our hearts and minds by the power of your Holy Spirit, that, as the Scriptures are read and your Word proclaimed, we may hear with joy what you say to us today. Amen.
May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. (Ps. 19:14).Prepare our hearts, oh Lord, to receive your word. Silence every voice in us but your own, so that we may hear your word, and then obey it.
Father, we honor you,
we adore and bless your name.
For this is the chief end of man,
that we may glorify you
and enjoy you all the days of our lives.
And so we join our voices
with the unending hymn of praise
that is sung by angels and archangels,
principalities, powers,
thrones, dominions,
the many-eyed cherubim, and the six-winged seraphim
who, covering their faces and feet, flying to one another,
singing and declaring that you are holy,
the heavens and the earth are filled with your glory.
And so we cry ‘Hosanna in the highest!’
We’ve come to give glory to your glory,to exalt, to extol,
to magnify, and to bless your most holy name.
We’ve come to worship you.
And as a secondary consequence of our worship,
speak to us.
Speak to us, not as though we were babes,
but as though we were mature enough to deal with the weight of thy word.
Speak to us, not from the outer court, but from the holy of holies.
Father, you have commissioned us not to preach milk, but to preach meat.
We are hungry for thy word.
The entrance of thy word brings light.
Give me clarity of thought and precision of speech.
Chrismate me with the same oil that you poured on your son Jesus
so that the words that I speak will not be mine own,
but they will be yours for the edifying of this thy people.
We pray this in the name of your only begotten son
Our lord and savior Jesus Christ,
Through your consubstantial spirit.
Amen+
To be prayed before sermon preparation:
Holy Jesus, Model of Preachers,
You who delighted those who heard you
With Your simple stories and profound insights,
Come to my aid as I prepare to create this homily.
My personal gifts for such a work seem limited,
But I believe profoundly
That if I but empty my heart of my self
That You will flood my heart
With words that you want spoken.
May the sacred words of ScriptureFall like seeds upon my spirit
To be nourished by the flesh and blood
Of my own sufferings and struggles to be holy.
Help me, Lord, to speak only what I believe,
and to will to live what I shall proclaimso that my whole life may be my homily.
May I experience this time of preparation as prayer.
May my efforts to re-shape the message of the Gospelsto fit this age and to touch those persons
who seek you in the midst of their daily lives
be truly prayerful.
Send for your Spirit and touch my heartAs I now begin this prayer
In the name of the Father,
And of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit
Amen +
Not a preacher but certainly a lover of prayer. Thanks for these.
"the heavens and the earth are filled with your glory.
And so we cry ‘Hosanna in the highest!’"