Three Prayers Inspired by Jesus and the Woman at the Well, John 4

Woman at the Well by Wayne Forte

Jesus answered her, “Those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.” – John 4:14-15

You Answer by Lisa Degrenia
We are dry
Brittle
Crusty
Empty

Parched with a thirst we cannot appease
Tongues heavy and stuck
No words escaping
We are too poor
Too broken
Too desolate

You alone answer our silent screams
You, the Lord God

You fill and flood and quench
A wild river on the barren peaks
An ancient fountain in the deep wasteland
A still pool for resting and rooting
A spring of water gushing up to eternal life

You, answer
You, the Lord God, will never forsake

Fill us by Lisa Degrenia
God of the Wilderness, God of the Well
Your unseen work is real and near and constant
like a deep, clear spring

Fill us. Fill us now.
Fill us with truth
the truth of you, the truth of who we are in you
the truth of who we can become

Fill us with boldness to witness and testify
to your victory, your companionship, your call

Fill us with strength and skills far beyond us
Fill us with courage to do hard, holy things
to break down dividing walls
to seek and question
to embrace our belovedness and place in your plan

Fill us with passion
Fill us with hope
Fill us with joy

Fill us till our cups runneth over

Fill us with You

Pause in silence to receive

Spirit and Truth by Lisa Degrenia
Jesus said, “But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him.” – John 4:23

People of God, Rejoice!
Our Eternal and Beautiful God is near
The One who meets us as we are
The One who names us beloved
The One who delights in our very existence
Come and worship in spirit and truth

Holy Spirit, Holy One
Holy Spirit, Descending Dove
Alight on me that I may know your presence
Anoint me that I may know your call
Fill me that I may know your power
Guide me that I may know your path
Name me that I may know, that I know, that I know who I am
And live your truth
Amen

CLICK HERE for an opening prayer, prayer of confession, and pardon inspired by the story of Jesus and the woman at the well. 

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I’ll be posting prayers based on the Gospel of John throughout Lent this year as part of our Lenten Reading Plan. Here’s your invitation to join us for this reading plan.  

Three Prayers Inspired by Jesus and the Woman at the Well © 2023 Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia. You are welcome to use this work in a worship setting without asking permission. It’s always a treat to hear from you if you’re using it. Leave a comment for information and permission to publish this work in a book, blog, etc.

Prayers Inspired by Jesus and the Woman at the Well, John 4.5-42

Olivewood sculpture from the Holy Land

Opening Prayer
We remember the woman at the well –
     her questions, her truth, her witness.
Pour out your Holy Spirit upon us, so like her
     we may ask candidly,
     reveal ourselves deeply, and
     share your Good News freely.
Pour out your Holy Spirit upon us,
     so we may worship you in spirit and truth.
Amen.

Prayer of Confession
Jesus, we thirst
We thirst for love and belonging
We thirst for security and provision
We thirst for truth and hope
We thirst for healing for our wounds
We thirst for mercy for our sin, our guilt, our shame

Time of silent confession

Assurance of Pardon
Jesus, you pour yourself out for us and the world
     so we may be born again of water and the Spirit,
     so we may never thirst again

We thank you and praise you for your eternal blessing and forgiveness.
Help us lead others to the well of your saving love.
Amen

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John 4:5-42 is read on the 3rd Sunday of Lent, Year A

Prayers Inspired by Jesus and the Woman at the Well © 2023 Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia
You are welcome to use this work in a worship setting with proper attribution.
Leave a comment for information and permission to publish this work in any form.

Come, Sup with God- a prayer poem

bread wine salami

Image by Mandy Fontana from Pixabay

A prayer/poem/lyric based on Matthew 22:1-14, The Parable of the Wedding Banquet. It also includes themes from John 6.

Come Sup With God
by Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia
Meter 88.88 (LM)
Suggested tunes:
HURSLEY (United Methodist Hymnal #339) or
GIFT OF LOVE (United Methodist Hymnal #408)

*I’d be very interested in working with a composer to set this to music

Come, sup with God all you who thirst
All you who hunger be the first
Feast on Christ’s Body and his Blood
O taste and see this meal of Love

Come, children, elders, blind, and spent
Come, foolish, able, indigent
Confess, repent, and then receive
Forgiveness flows abundantly

Come often, friend, for here is grace
made manifest in time and place
Christ’s mercy floods our brokenness
with healing balm and righteousness

Come to be changed. Come to be fed.
Come savor Christ, the Life, the Bread.
Drink deep the gift of healing poured
and leave a vessel of our Lord.

Sing Praise to Christ our Host and meal
Whose saving work provides the seal
for us once bound, now freed from death
to live for Christ with every breath

_________________________

Come, Sup with God © 2000 Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia
You are welcome to use this work in a worship setting with proper attribution.
Please leave a comment for information and permission to publish this work in any form.

I Thirst- Prayer Prompts for Good Friday

Jesus knows the gift of water

The refreshment of being spoken in the beginning
as waters were separated from waters

Of guiding a rudderless ark on the vastness of the ocean
and a rudderless people through two seas and on to freedom

The warm waters of his birth and the obedient waters of his baptism

He knows the feel of spittle on his hands
while making mud so a blind man may see
and the feel of spittle on his face from those who mock him

Only a short time before,
Jesus talks with a man seeking answers in the night
Be born again of water and the Spirit

Only a short time before,
Jesus talks with a cast down woman at a public well
Drink the water I give you and never thirst again

Now, Jesus cries out in the midst of the festival
Let anyone who is thirsty come to me
Let the one who believes in me drink
Streams of living water will flow from within you

Soon he pours himself out for the world… I thirst

I thirst for you
because you cannot drink the bitter cup I must drink
I thirst for you
because I desire that none should be lost
I thirst for you
so that you may drink of me, the living water

Drink deeply
I become in you and all who believe a spring of water gushing up to eternal life

Holy Jesus, my Lord and my God,
I thirst for____________
Refresh ___________
Sustain ___________
I drink deeply so that ____________

Finish the sentence again and again…
Leave your prayer below

© 2021
You are welcome to use this work in a worship setting with proper attribution. (by Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia, http://www.revlisad.com) Please leave a comment for information and permission to publish this work in any form.

Two Prayers Based on John 18-19

Summer in the Scriptures John (16)Prayer Based on John 18
Jesus is arrested and sentenced to death

Psalm 46:1, NRSV
God is our refuge and our strength,
a very present help in times of trouble

God our Refuge, calm our hearts when evil abounds
They run to lonesome places, screaming an alarm
Calm our hearts so we can find you above the fear

God our Strength, calm our hearts when evil abounds
They race to revenge, pounding with anger
Calm our hearts so we can hear you above the hammering

God our Help, calm our hearts when evil abounds
They rush to human strength, grasping for control
Calm our hearts so we can hold
to your way, your truth, and your life

Calm our hearts so they may beat in unison with yours
So healing may flow into all brokenness
So hope may fill all devastation
So compassion and peace and unity may rise up among all people

God our Refuge, our Strength, our Help
We trust you with our lives
We follow you into your saving work
Amen

Summer in the Scriptures John (17)
John 19:14b-16
Pilate said to the Jews, “Here is your King!” They cried out, “Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!” Pilate asked them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but the emperor.” Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.

Reign and Rain down, Glorious One
Salvation flows from your side
Living water to our desert
to our frail clay
to our dust

Creation flows from you
New life springing up
Hope and wholeness
Budding and blooming in our wasteland

Let all the earth drink of you
The fullness of your unfailing love
Flood us and fill us
So we may carry your great grace
as it carries us

______________

For the next few months, I’m reading a chapter from the Gospels each day. This is part of the Summer in the Scriptures reading plan sponsored by the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church. Click Here for the reading plan.

You’re most welcome to read along and to join the Facebook discussion group, Summer in the Scriptures. You don’t need to be a Methodist or attend a Methodist church. All are welcome and all means all.

As part of the Facebook group, I’ve been supplying prayers based on the day’s reading. Feel free to post your prayers and observations based on the readings here or there as well.

May the grace of the Gospels, the challenge, and the call, inspire us to great faith and great good works in Jesus’ name. – Lisa <

Refuge, Strength, Help © 2020 Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia
Reign and Rain Down © 2000 Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia
You are welcome to use this work in a worship setting with proper attribution.
Please leave a comment for information and permission to publish this work in any form.