The cold, dreary months of winter are slowly fading away and spring is just around the corner. The promise of warmth and new life lifts our spirits, and we find our souls singing as they long for renewal, change and awakening, alongside the earth.
One way we can invite spiritual renewal and change this spring is through prayer, asking God, who is always at work in our lives (Philippians 2:13), to wake up areas that need a reset.
Here are eight prayers to guide you through a season of renewal, inspiration, and joy as you grow closer in your walk with the Lord.
1. Spiritual Spring Cleaning
Lord, as I clean my house and prepare it for the long summer days ahead, help me to take inventory of those things in my soul, heart, mind, and life that need a good refreshing. Remind me of the dust of sin that still lingers that I have not dealt with over the past few months, a sin that I must repent of and that must be wiped away with your forgiveness and grace. Restore my soul, Father, and bring healing. In the name of Jesus, amen.
2. Recognition for creation
Father of Creation, Ruler of all nature, I delight in the beauty of refreshing rain, blooming flowers, budding trees, birdsong, fresh grass, rushing waters, and the birth of new creatures great and small. You bring forth new life and give good gifts to man and beast. How wonderful your works are! In the name of Jesus, amen.
Continue reading Psalm 104: A song of praise for God’s creation:
Praise the Lord, my soul.
Lord my God, you are very great;
you are clothed in splendor and majesty.
The Lord wraps himself in light like a garment;
he stretches out the heavens like a tent
and he places the beams of his upper chambers on their waters.
He makes clouds his chariot
and rides the wings of the wind.
He makes the winds his messengers,
flames of fire his servants.
He laid the earth on its foundations;
it can never be moved.
You covered him with the depths of the water as with a garment;
the waters rose above the mountains.
But at your rebuke the waters fled,
at the sound of your thunder, they fled;
they flowed over the mountains,
they went down into the valleys,
to the location you assigned them.
You set a limit that they cannot cross;
never again will they cover the earth.
It brings forth springs which pour water into the ravines;
it flows between the mountains.
They give water to all the beasts of the field;
wild donkeys quench their thirst.
The birds of the air nest at the edge of the waters;
they sing among the branches.
He waters the mountains from his upper rooms;
the earth is satisfied with the fruit of its labor.
He makes grass grow for the cattle,
and plants that people can grow—
bring food out of the earth:
a wine that gladdens human hearts,
oil to make their faces shine,
and bread that sustains their hearts.
The trees of the Lord are well watered,
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
There, the birds make their nests;
the stork has his home in the juniper trees.
The high mountains belong to the wild goats;
the rocks are a refuge for the hyrax.
He made the moon to mark the seasons,
and the sun knows when to set.
You bring darkness, it becomes night,
and all the beasts of the forest roam.
Lions roar after their prey
and seek their nourishment from God.
The sun rises and they flee;
they return and lie down in their dens.
Then people go to work,
at their work until the evening.
How many are your works, Lord!
In wisdom you created them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
There is the sea, vast and spacious,
teeming with countless creatures—
living beings, large and small.
There the ships come and go,
and Leviathan, whom you formed to frolic there.
All the creatures are looking at you
to give them their food at the right time.
When you give it to them,
they gather it;
when you open your hand,
they are satisfied with good things.
When you hide your face,
they are terrified;
when you take their breath away,
they die and return to dust.
When you send your Spirit,
they are created,
and you renew the face of the ground.
May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
may the Lord rejoice in his works—
he who looks at the earth and it trembles,
which touches the mountains, and they smoke.
I will sing to the Lord all my life;
I will sing to my God as long as I live.
May my meditation be pleasing to him,
as I rejoice in the Lord.
But let sinners disappear from the earth
and the wicked will be no more.
Praise the Lord, my soul.
Praise the Lord.
3. Prayer to slow down and eliminate
Lord God, this is a good time to set a new pace for the rest of this year, a slower pace. I want to take the time to Really see and admire what surrounds me. Help me to stop struggling in my occupations and to make more room for you. Help me recalibrate my calendar so that I can spend more time in prayer, be in union with You, see You more and be seen by You.
In this process, show me those activities, such as excessive scrolling on social media, listening to lots of podcasts, or watching too much television, that are distracting and detrimental to my relationship with You. Help me “eliminate” all the unnecessary noises and voices that prevent me from hearing You more clearly. In the name of Jesus, amen.
4. Blessings for others
Lord, I ask that you bless my family and friends, my pastor and my church in this season. I know that you are “able to bless [them] abundantly, so that in all things and at all times, having all this [they] need, [they] will abound in every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8). Bless their lives, their work, their ministries. Make them successful in everything they do. Flood them with Your grace and love and give them strength and peace for each new day. In the name of Jesus, amen.
5. Spring prayer for farmers
Lord, I am grateful for the food you provide through hardworking farmers and ranchers around the world. Farming and ranching are not easy jobs, nor is there certainty about the weather conditions for growing crops and grass for livestock. But we know that You are the Lord of the harvest, and we pray Zechariah 10:1“Ask rain from the Lord in the time of spring rains, from the Lord who makes storm clouds, and he will give them showers of rain, to every one the vegetation of the field.” In the name of Jesus, amen.
6. Prayer for renewed minds and purpose
Precious Lord, my soul is tired of the “winter blues.” My mood mimics the gray sky above. I feel spiritually lethargic and lack motivation. I feel like I’ve lost my purpose. I long for spiritual renewal and renewed purpose, Father, and I know You can provide both. In the following weeks, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation; and support me with a willing spirit” (Psalm 51:12). Also, open my heart and mind to what you would like me to do for you the rest of this year. I surrender to You this season as I wait for Your guidance and direction. In the name of Jesus, amen.
7. “A Prayer in Spring,” by Robert Frost (1874 –1963)
Oh, give us pleasure in flowers today;
And give us not to think so far
Like the uncertain harvest; keep us here
Quite simply in the spring of the year.
Oh, give us pleasure in the white orchard,
Like nothing else by day, like ghosts by night;
And make us happy in happy bees,
The swarm expands around the perfect trees.
And make us happy in the soaring bird
That suddenly we hear above the bees,
The meteor that sinks with its needle-like beak,
And a flower in the air remains still.
For this is love and nothing else is love,
The one reserved for God above
To sanctify as far as he wishes,
But we just need to fill it.
8. A prayer for abundant love
Father, help me to love more deeply and forgive more easily. Let me be full of love. Let me shower those around me, even my enemies, with kindness and compassion. Since you are love, Father, allow me to demonstrate this love to others. In the name of Jesus, amen.
Photo credit: ©Pixabay/jplenio
