‹ €ÿ Short Offertory Prayers for Offering Gifts & Tithes
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Offertory Prayer


This page has two short prayers to use when blessing gifts and tithes to God in church services, and examples of prayers for offering oneself to God in worship. There is also an informative article which looks at what the characteristics of Christian giving are, and an inspiring film to show whilst the collection is being taken:-


An Offertory Prayer


Lord, we thank for Your faithfulness.
Thank you that we can always trust in You.
You are an abundant God and out of Your great mercy you have given us so much.

We give you this offering today.
With it we worship You and give our whole selves to You.
Please now take it and use it for Your kingdom and Your glory.
Extend and multiple its reach and influence we pray.
May it be a great blessing to many.
We ask all this in the powerful name of Jesus.
Amen.

(a short offering prayer suitable to use as a prayer for blessing the gifts of money during a service, from www.lords-prayer-words.com)



Quote about God's dwelling place

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Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

Luke 6:38, (NIV)



Short Offering Prayer

Father,
As we lay before you our financial offering, we give you all that we are and everything that you have entrusted to us. Come bless these gifts for the sake of your Kingdom and glory.

Amen.

(a prayer for blessing the giving from www.lords-prayer-words.com)




Offering Prayer

This is a short (two minute) film suitable for showing whilst the offertory is being taken during a church service:-


Catholic Prayer

(A morning offering prayer by Saint Therese of Lisieux.)


O my God ! I offer Thee all my actions of this day for the intentions and for the glory of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I desire to sanctify every beat of my heart, my every thought, my simplest works, by uniting them to Its infinite merits ; and I wish to make reparation for my sins by casting them into the furnace of Its Merciful Love.

O my God! I ask thee for myself and for those whom I hold dear, the grace to fulfill perfectly Thy Holy Will, to accept for love of Thee the joys and sorrows of this passing life, so that we may one day be united together in Heaven for all Eternity. Amen.


Quote about about giving from the bible

Act of Oblation

The words to this prayer:-

Lord Jesus, I unite myself to your perpetual, unceasing, universal sacrifice.
I offer myself to you every day of my life and every moment of every day, according to your most holy and adorable will.
You have been the victim of my salvation, I wish to be the victim of your love.
Accept my desire, take my offering, graciously hear my prayer:
let me live for love of you,
let me die for love of you,
let my last heartbeat be an act of perfect love.


A Simple Prayer of Thanks

good giving flows out of a heart full of gratitude to God:-
thanksgiving prayer of gratitude to God

What Are the Characteristics of Good Christian Giving?

What we give to God is always more than just our money or our finances. It demands our whole selves - our whole beings and everything that we do and say. There are many ways in which we can give of our money, time and energy to God, whether this be to serve the church or to work outside of it.

We should also consider Jesus words about the widows mite (Mark 12:41-44). What is important here is element of personal sacrifice that is involved in the giving, not the amount that was given. Here Jesus discerned that the widow gave of everything that she had. Her offering was also "put in" and not thrown in (unlike the rich givers) suggesting that she had carefully considered how much to give. This attitude parallels the words of the Apostle Paul, when he wrote to the believers in Corinth:-

"Remember: A stingy planter gets a stingy crop; a lavish planter gets a lavish crop. I want each of you to take plenty of time to think it over, and make up your own mind what you will give. That will protect you against sob stories and arm-twisting. God loves it when the giver delights in the giving."

(2 Cor 9:6-7, The Message)


"It's not how much we give but how much love we put into giving"

Mother Teresa (1910-1997)



For further reading
A large collection of offertory prayers exists here by GBOD (The General Board of Discipleship) an agency of The United Methodist Church:-
Discipleship Ministries prayers

The Burma website has a thought-provoking article about the drop in real-term giving to Churches in the USA The article cites five different reasons why this may be happening and also suggests possible ways of addressing this challenge:-
Burma website

Christian writer Mary Fairchild takes an in-depth look at questions such as how much should I give, is it right to tithe or not, and some general good principles behind Christian giving here:-
Mary Fairchild on giving



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