A closing prayer is a great way to bring to a close a meeting or church service in prayer. Thanking the Lord for continuing to inspire and protect us is just one way to express our thanks. Here is a listing to some closing prayers for meetings that will help get you started.
Prayer #1
Thank you, Lord, for your presence with us this day. As we depart from this space now, we ask you to bless us throughout the remainder of the day and guide us safely home. Do not let the learning and conversations of this gathering die, but, instead, may they continue to ruminate within us and bear fruit in our ministries throughout the year, until we find ourselves together again. We ask this in the name of Jesus, and in the power of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Prayer #2
In closing a meeting or church service in prayer, we can thank God for the way that He has been with us during meeting, and ask Him to continue to inspire and protect us as we leave.
Gathered together on this page are a number of short prayers drawn from the Episcopal, Methodist, Celtic & Catholic traditions, as well as two modern prayers for closing bible studies and meetings.
Prayer #3
Father, thank you that you have revealed Your love to us today.
We invite You to send us out from here in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Fan into flame the gifts that you have given us,
Come reveal Your grace and truth to us each day.
For Yours is the Kingdom, the power and the glory,
Forever and ever.
Amen.
Prayer #4
Lord, your word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.
Thank you that we can live in Your light and walk in Your truth.
May the things that you have revealed and thoughts that we have shared
dwell in our hearts and stir us to action.
We ask all this in the precious name of Jesus.
Amen.
Prayer #5
Glory be to the father,
and to the son,
and to the holy spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now,
and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
Prayer #6
Lord, as we gather today at this meeting we ask that You will be in our midst. Help us to make decisions that will be pleasing to You. Help us to be able to discuss the matters at hand in a reasonable way, and to be willing to give up having our own way.
God let this meeting be productive and, as should be the case in all areas of our lives, help us to keep You at the forefront of our minds
as we do the work set before us.
Amen.
Prayer #7
Jesus as we gather together to learn about You, may You meet us here. Help all of the teachers to be able to answer the questions posed, and help all of the children listen and retain what they hear.
Help the students to be attentive, and the teachers to be patient. May the lessons that are taught help to instill righteousness in these children, and may the seeds planted here continue to guide them throughout their lives.
Amen.
Prayer #8
You, O God, are my strength, my patience, my light and my counsel. It is you who make responsive to me the students confided to my care. Abandon me not to myself for one moment.
For my own conduct and for that of my students, grant me the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of knowledge and piety, the spirit of holy fear of you, and an ardent zeal to procure your glory.
I unite my efforts to those of Jesus Christ, the master teacher, and I beg all saints in Heaven to assist me in the exercise of my teaching ministry.
Amen
Here is one example of a closing prayer from Spring Harvest. These beautiful images and faithful words will inspire you.
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“Make every effort to preserve the unity the Spirit has already created, with peace binding you together.” (Ephesians 4:3)
Here is a wonderful prayer to use to close a meeting, church service, or any type of gathering! Use your departure as a time to thank God and ask for His protection and blessings.
Father, praise You for the gift of unity that the Spirit creates in our relationships! You place others perfectly in our lives, and inspire us as Christians to work together with the gifts that we have been blessed with. When we look at this meeting through Your eyes, we see Your gifts fostered in us to further Your plans.
Forgive us, Father, for the control and the credit that we grasp for in these meetings while planning and accomplishing projects together. We confess that honoring You through our work is not always at the forefront of our minds as we strive for end goals. In the spaces of our hearts that harbor envy and ambition, we prayerfully ask You to make room for humility and shared credit.
The church doesn’t stand on any one person’s’ shoulders. Not one of us can further Your plans on our own. But together, we can complement each other’s strengths and cancel out our weaknesses. As a team, a unified body focused on the gospel of Christ, we can do great things in Your honor as we were purposed to do.
Thank You for the ideas that You spoke life into here today, and for the courage of each voice that stood to be heard. In each one of us lies a puzzle piece. One by one, as we stand and speak and work, we see our individual pieces moving into place. We continue to strive for Your will, piece by piece, until You call us home.
Bless all of us in this meeting today. Each of us have a life outside of these walls. There are very real hurts that some are coping with, and needs of others that we ache to help with and meet. Take that stirring of love that we feel for each other and guide our steps to be faithful friends and extensions of Your love to those that You have seated beside pf and across from us today. As we bow our heads and lift up our plans to You, we pray that You bless our hearts and minds to know we have done well in Your eyes. We pray for your assurance that we are operating within Your will.
Lord, we believe that You will provide for us. We look forward to the ways that You will surprise and amaze us with Your faithfulness. The lives that You will touch and the people in this room You will use to brighten dark spaces and lift sad hearts. Our passion for discussion today is fueled by You, our Father, who with the same note of passion created us to be light to the world… color to dullness… life to dead places… and love to lost faces. Bless our work and our time. Guide our steps and our progress. Grant us the power of Your Holy Spirit to work together because it’s impossible to see past our human stubbornness without You.
Bless us Lord, as we leave here today, to take Your passion with us. Fan its flame after we part and inspire our best contributions. Remind us always of Your love, as we see our plans unfold and accomplish the goals we set here today.
Through the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells in us through our belief in Jesus, our Lord and Savior, inspire our hearts to seek You in Your Word daily. Grow us both individually and together, as we seek the peace of Your presence. Help us to walk faithfully and fiercely after Christ, reflecting His love. May we always lift our progress up to You, who holds the honor and glory for who we are and what we do. Use our lives, Lord, to reach those who desperately need to know You love them. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Meg Bucher writes about everyday life within the love of Christ on her blog, “Mom” is the most important calling on her life, next to encouraging others to seek Him first… authentically. A dance mom, occasional substitute teacher, and youth worship leader, she can often be found having some kind of an adventure in the small little lake town she resides in with her husband of ten years, two daughters, and their doodle-dog.
Photo credit: ©Thinkstock/vadimguzhva
This article is part of our larger Prayers resource meant to inspire and encourage your prayer life when you face uncertain times. Visit our most popular prayers if you are wondering how to pray or what to pray. Remember, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us and God knows your heart even if you can’t find the words to pray.
Prayer for Healing
Prayer for the SickMiracle PrayerPrayer for StrengthPrayer for ProtectionMorning PrayersGood Night PrayersShort PrayersThe Lord’s PrayerSerenity PrayerA Birthday PrayerPrayer for ForgivenessPrayer for Guidance
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Does this scenario sound familiar?
You sit down to do study the Bible and you see:
Half full coffee cup, open Bible, and beautifully hand-penned notes… and you think, “Photo opt!” You take your picture, perfect it, share it, and then carry on with your day.
And you never think about finishing the Bible study.
As a work at home mom of two little boys, I find myself ending Bible studies with a diaper change, by starting another pot of coffee, or the photo opt like I mentioned above. It is time to be more intentional.
We live in a fast paced age, and when we don’t live on purpose, important things fall to the wayside. How do we do be intentional with our Bible study time? We begin with the expectation of ending by closing in prayer.
Whenever you have set aside time to get into the word of God (in the morning, your lunch hour, or cozy bedtime), you need to prepare. Follow this checklist:
- Turn your phone on airplane mode
- Set a timer
- Take a deep breath and say, “Thank you God for this time.”
You don’t have to say that verbatim but be sure to greet God. He loves you, don’t just throw your “gimme” list at Him.
Try eliminating all distractions by studying in a spot where no one can bother you. A secluded area of the lunchroom, the library, or the bathroom will work; yes, Jesus will meet you in the bathroom.
Once your timer goes off, or your attention is needed somewhere immediately, take a deep breath, especially if you were abruptly interrupted, and use one of the following 5 closing prayers for Bible studies:
(if the house is on fire, I would skip the deep breath, these examples, and shout “Sweet Jesus, put out the fire!”)
- God, thank you for this time. Thank you for your word. I pray for these words to be written on my heart and to echo in my mind for the rest of the day (or while I sleep). Amen.
- Holy Spirit, thank you for leading me into truth. Please bring these words to my remembrance when I need them, so I can walk the way Jesus walked. Amen.
- Jesus, thank you for dying for me. Teach me to obey these words so that I honor your sacrifice and walk in a way that people will want what I’ve found in You. Amen.
- Father, teach me how you want me to apply Your word in my life. Show me where I need to specifically change so that I look more like Jesus. Amen.
- Thank you for this time God, I’m never going to say amen. I will keep talking to you throughout the rest of my day.
These closing prayers for Bible studies are pretty simple, right?
It isn’t a magical formula that you have to do “Just Right” or God will be mad at you. The act of being intentional is what will please God, not wordy prayers. Jesus actually encouraged people to pray in secret and to not have lengthy, hollow prayers (Matthew 6:6-7).
Feel free to alter these however you would like. You could thank God because your eyes were opened to something new (revelation) or the verses spoke to your heart.
God’s word is living and active (Hebrews 4:12), it is meant to be taken in bite size chunks AND in chapter form. Balance your Bible study time between meditating on a few verses for depth or by reading a chapter (or possibly a whole book) for the big picture.
Whatever you choose: be intentional, invest all of your focus, and pick one of the 5 closing prayers for your Bible study time.
Tags: Bible Study, how to close a bible study
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prayers for study groups
We’ve found the following suggestions helpful for leading prayers for study groups. Does your Bible study have a special prayer tradition or use an opening or closing prayer that you especially like? Let us know if you’d like to share it here with other Catholic study groups.
Turning to God’s Word takes advantage of a number of avenues to provide high-quality Bible study materials to individuals and parish groups. Our free online resources include a daily Scripture reflection and inspirational quote about Scripture on our home page, how to start individual or group Bible study, online study directories with access to videos and other resources, and our weekly e-column, Lost in Translation. Our printed full-length Catholic Bible studies can be purchased from our website shop, and we also offer occasional short seasonal Bible studies free online, as well as other helpful Bible study resources.
how to compose prayers based on Scripture
Here are four simple steps to aid in composing a prayer related to a section of the Bible that you’ve been reading and about which you’ve been meditating. The process may be used for group or private prayer based on biblical reflection:
1. Address God by one of his many titles, preferably one that relates to the Scripture passage you’ve been studying.
2. Tell God something about himself related to the Scripture passage.
3. Present a personal petition related to your meditation of the same Scripture passage.
4. Close your prayer through Jesus Christ.
Here’s a sample prayer based on the seventh chapter of the Gospel According to John.
Heavenly Father and all-seeing God,
you sent your Son as a light to shine in our darkness. Help us to listen to what Jesus is saying to us, and to act on your Word so that rivers of living waters might flow from our hearts. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
opening prayer suggestions
Lord Jesus, You promised to send your Holy Spirit to teach us all things.
As we read and study your word today, allow it truly to touch our hearts and to change our lives. Amen.
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful
and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit, and they shall be created,
and you shall renew the face of the earth. Let us pray.
O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy his consolations. Through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
Heavenly Father, send forth your Spirit to enlighten our minds
and dispose our hearts to accept your truth. Help us to listen to one another with openness and honesty, eager to learn from the talents and intuitions that you have given each of us. Never let differences of opinion diminish our mutual esteem and love. May we leave this meeting with more knowledge and love for you and your Son. In the unity of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
intercessory prayer
Participants in the Bible study place their written prayer intentions in a prayer box. Paper and pens are kept by the box. Before closing, the group says the following prayer, and afterward one member takes the prayers and puts them by the altar in the chapel with other prayers that people attending daily Mass pray over each morning.
Lord, we ask that you hear the prayers unspoken in our hearts
and those written and placed in our prayer box. We pray especially for peace and reconciliation in the hearts of those in conflict . . . Lord, hear our prayer. For healing and strength for those who are in need of your mercy . . . Lord, hear our prayer. For the repose of the souls of our loved ones . . . Lord, hear our prayer. For courage and guidance . . . Lord, hear our prayer. Surround our family and friends with your love and help them to grow closer to you. . . . Lord, hear our prayer. And for all those who have no one to prayer for them . . . Lord, hear our prayer. We thank you for answered prayers and for graces received. Fill us with your presence and help us to be faithful bearers of your light. We ask this through the compassion of Jesus your Son, our Lord and Teacher. Amen.
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