Guide on Composing the Opening/Closing Prayer

Shalom Class!

Beginning next week, you will begin to take turns in leading the Opening and Closing Prayers during our class meetings. Remember that this forms part of your Prayer Service Grade and you have to come up with a well-prepared and meaningful prayer:

1. Choose 1-3 verses from the Wisdom books of the Old Testament particularly the Psalms, Proverbs and the Book of Wisdom.
2. Read the verses in class and pause for a short while so everyone can briefly reflect.
3. Then, conclude with a prayer that you composed based on or drawing from the verses you have chosen. You might want to end with the phrase "through Christ our Lord" or "you live and reign forever and ever" to better alert your classmates when they have to respond "Amen."

For example:

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; fools despise knowledge and instruction .-- Proverbs 1:7

To have a loving fear of you, O Lord,
to avoid offending you
and to do all that pleases you,
because you deserve all our love,
is the best and surest way for us to really learn
the most important things in life.

Help us to be truly wise
and to seek knowledge and instruction
not only out of fear
but out of love
through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Your prayer should fall within our 1-2 minutes time frame.
Submit a copy, typewritten or handwritten (but if it is handwritten it has to be really neat and presentable) to me on the day you lead the prayer.

WARNING: If you do not have a prepared prayer, you will automatically get zero for that particular grade component.