The prayers of others

One of the things I find most inspiring when thinking about prayer is praying the prayers of others.

We recently prayed one of my favorites from St. Patrick:

May the strength of God pilot us,
May the power of God preserve us,
May the wisdom of God instruct us,
May the way of God direct us,
May the shield of God defend us,
May the host of God guard us against the snares of evil
and the temptations of the world.

Michael Counsell's book 2000 Years of Prayer is an excellent guide not only to the history of prayer, but to some of the best-known and often-quoted prayers of the centuries. It begins with prayers from the Bible and ends with prayers from contemporary people like John Stott and Billy Graham. Men and women, saints and sinners, Americans and world wide believers, liturgical and prayers of the uneducated are all included.

Another of my favorites to pray:

God be in my head and in my understanding;
God be in my eyes and in my looking;
God be in my mouth and in my speaking;
God be in my heart and in my thinking;
God be in my ending and in my departing.

From one of the "Books of Hours"