Prayer

‘And lead us not into temptation

But deliver us from the evil one.’

This is our Lenten prayer

A cry at every crossroads

‘Christ, lead us the way you would walk.’

A wary recognition that an enemy stalks

That we need your grace to choose the right path

And we need it yet more when we choose the wrong one.

You refused to turn stones to bread.

Jesus, keep us safe from believing

That if only we had our fill of this or that

We would truly live.

‘Man does not live on bread alone

But on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’

Let your word be our daily satisfaction

Fill us full each time we choose

To hear God.

You refused to take the devil’s dare,

You would not jump for a proof text.

Jesus, keep us safe from believing

That God should be tested

Before He is trusted.

When crossroads lead to unknown places

May our confidence be in your faultless faithfulness

On roads already travelled

May it be enough for us

To trust God.

You refused to bow the knee to Satan

For the promise of an easier glory.

Jesus, keep us safe from believing

In counterfeit kingdoms

In empires that belong to us

In allowable compromises of devotion or ethics.

When the accuser spins fantasies

Of the comfortable and shiny

Let what you shouted loud and clear

Ring true in every faithful ear

‘Away from me, Satan!’

Let our lives and choices truly display

A heart exclusively devoted

To worship God.

Weak and needy we falter

We do not live out your perfection

But defiantly we choose against temptation

Lead us not that way, but the other

We hope in your grace at the cross that tells us:

We live in your perfection.

Help us, Lord Jesus.

In your name, Amen

Based on Matthew 4:1-11