Praying through the Bible with Lindsey - Luke 1:1-24

Read the Bible passage, then see the following prayer to take inspiration on how you might pray through this Scripture.

 

Luke 1:1-24

(English Standard Version)

 

Dedication to Theophilus

Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, ² just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, ³ it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, ⁴ that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

Birth of John the Baptist Foretold

⁵ In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah,^[a] of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. ⁶ And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. ⁷ But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

⁸ Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, ⁹ according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. ¹⁰ And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. ¹¹ And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. ¹² And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. ¹³ But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. ¹⁴ And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, ¹⁵ for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. ¹⁶ And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, ¹⁷ and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

¹⁸ And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” ¹⁹ And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. ²⁰ And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.” ²¹ And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. ²² And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute. ²³ And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

²⁴ After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, ²⁵ “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”

 

Prayer for Luke 1:1-24

Heavenly Father,

1-4) Thank You for Your Words of truth. Thank You for capturing all of Your works so that we may believe and understand all of who You are. We are weak humans, and we always need convincing of how good You are. What a mercy You’ve given us. You put up with our doubts and provide us evidence of Your works time and time again. You give us certainty. Thank You, Lord.

5-7) You keep track of our lives, God. Your Word says “[You] know the ways of the righteous” (Psalm 1). Your eyes see straight into our hearts. We are not forgotten in a sea of millions of other people. You see our hearts if we are righteous or not, but You also see our perceived failures, our deepest desires, our lack, our physical ailments.

8-24) Is there anything You don’t do for us?! No! You line up our lives for our good. You bring us to just the right place in time to fulfill Your perfect will in Your perfect timing. You bring people into our lives to pray for us. Why?! Why are you mindful of us?! Thank You ! You desire so much that we hear You, You’ve given us messengers that we can be certain of Your Words. We can be certain that You’ve heard our plea. Help us to believe Your Word. Why is it so hard to believe You when You’ve given us everything we could ever need? We don’t need more proof, but You give it in Your mercy, anyway. Thank You for the consequences that teach us and draw us closer to You. I pray I won’t need them, but I humble myself and acknowledge I’ll mess up. You gave the gift of answered prayers for Zechariah and Elizabeth. You reminded them You hear our deepest cries. You also heard the cries of Your people. You hear and see our need for clean hearts and wisdom. Let me rejoice in that, Lord! You give us the chance to listen to You, to hear Your voice that we may repent of our worldly loves and find You. You make our deepest desires known to us. May my deepest desire be You and not the cares of this world. Thank You for calling me to You. Thank You for changing my heart and turning me away from my rebellion. You are kind to me, Lord. You take away my disgrace. May I share it with the world! Help me prepare the way for people you are calling to You.

 

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