Formulary Friday: Praying for the impossible?

O Lord our heavenly Father, Almighty and everlasting God, who hast safely brought us to the beginning of this day: Defend us in the same with thy mighty power; and grant that this day we fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger; but that all our doings may be ordered by thy governance, to do always that is righteous in thy sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Why do I like this prayer? A number of reasons: I like the juxtaposition of ‘heavenly Father’, and ‘Almighty and everlasting God’ – a reminder that the God we know intimately as Father is also Sovereign over all things, and for all time. I like being reminded that I have been safely brought to the beginning of a new day – there was indeed one watching over me as I slept. And I like this prayer because as a piece of liturgy it seems to have a strange ability to bring me back from any wandering thoughts into which I may have strayed.

But I have often puzzled over it as well. When we pray ‘grant that this day we fall into no sin….but that all our doings may be ordered by thy governance’, are we praying for the impossible? When I get to the end of any given day on which I prayed this prayer, can I ever look back and say, ‘yep, that one was answered’?

I have mentally tied myself up in knots as I have thought about this. My reasoning has gone like this: Does God hear our prayers? – yes, always. Does He answer our prayers? – yes, always, though not necessarily as we expect. When He answers our prayers, does He give us the best possible answer? – yes, though in His wisdom, not ours. So what of this prayer? – is it better that I will sin today, that my doings will not be ordered by His governance? Thus I find myself stuck, and answering ‘Amen’ to a prayer for the Queen’s Majesty to which I have not paid attention.

However, three thoughts offer some resolution to my problem. First, it is good for me to pray this prayer. This sentiment is exactly what I should want as a Christian – to spend the day serving my Father, and doing things according to His will. It is good for me to pray this in the moment I pray it because it refocuses my mind, and realigns my direction of travel for the day.

Second, it is good for my hope. There will be a day when I will not need to pray this prayer because my heart will be free from sin, and wholly devoted to the glory of our great God. Much as I find hope in praying ‘Lord have mercy upon us, and incline our hearts to keep this law’ during the communion service, so too here. I long for the day when this prayer is unnecessary, when my heart will always be so inclined to honour God. This is the ‘not yet’ aspect to the prayer – but is there a ‘now’ aspect as well?

I think there is, and this is my third thought: this prayer is good for reminding me of the good news of justification. The sins which I will commit even after praying this prayer have been paid for by my Saviour’s death, and in Him, I am clothed in His righteousness. The answer to this prayer is that at the end of the day, as at the beginning, I am in Christ, and so the verdict on the day is: He did not fall into sin, His doings were ordered by my governance.

Amen!