Thanksgiving prayers are special. They are born deep in the heart of a believer. Such a prayer does not only say words of gratitude to the Holy Pleasures or to the Lord himself. It inspires the believer, fills his soul with peace, and thoughts with righteousness. Such prayer serves as the basis for strengthening the faith of others.
A prayer of thanks to God for help is especially encouraging, because it is much easier for a person to experience, and for others to understand this feeling, if it was born in response to the attention and support of the Almighty. However, the concept of gratitude in Christianity is much broader than appreciation.
What is gratitude?
Gratitude is the foundation of a creed; it is no less important than humility or non-resistance. This feeling leaves no room in the soul for grievances, sorrows, envy, anger, hatred and other vices eating a person from the inside.
Gratitude is not only the feeling that is born in the heart after helping in worldly concerns and deeds. In relation to the Almighty, she is constantly present in the thoughts of the believer. This is the state of mind of a person in which he resides every moment.
What to thank for?
To thank for what is initially not quite the right approach to prayer. Orthodox prayers of thanks, like Catholic or Protestant ones, are said not only for something, but also in spite of something. In fact, this is a daily gratitude to the Almighty for everything - a new day, rain or sun, food on the table, shelter, clothes and shoes, the health of children and neighbors, peace in the country and much more. The only true answer to the question of why you need to thank the Lord is: “For all.” For all that is. For all that is not. For what happened, and, most importantly, for what did not happen.
Faith, like prayers of thanks, does not imply specificity; it is irrational from the very beginning and is based on something much more than logic and understanding of the nature of things. But, unfortunately, the person is not perfect and such an ability to be grateful is initially understandable and not for everyone. However, any feeling is given to every person from birth, he only needs to be found in himself and allowed to develop. The thankful prayers that are uttered daily and those that express gratitude to the Holy Pleasures and the Almighty for help in worldly cares and cares can help in this.
It is not necessary to order prayers in temples. To begin with, you can try to thank the Lord for yourself for the food sent, or for each day you live.
What are such prayers?
Thanksgiving prayers in Russian, as in any other, are very diverse and do not have a clear subdivision according to the points.
The Almighty and the Holy Pleasures are addressed both in personal prayer and when ordering a special service. A prayer service is not at all a way for the church to earn money; it is a chance given to a believer to express the fullness of his overwhelming feelings. It is not necessary to order prayers; this is done at the inner call, the command of the heart. That is, when a person wants to do this, it is to order a prayer service, and not to stand at the icon with a candle. To come to the temple and order a thanksgiving prayer only because it is so customary, necessary, appropriate, should not.
There are prayers read daily. These are thanksgiving prayers for Holy Communion, and appeals to the Holy Pleasures and Intercessors, and to the Lord Himself, and to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Although their texts are ready-made, this does not mean at all that words should be memorized and repeated, like a poem in a school exam. Prayer must pass through the heart, even everyday, which, when brought up in faith, becomes a habit just like the word "hello."
However, when an adult comes to the Lord, the finished texts are more likely to help him than are the axioms of prayers. Not everyone can express in their own words, even to themselves, in their thoughts, what they want. In these cases, ready prayers come in handy.
What is a prayer service?
This is a special kind of worship in temples. The most common, that is, in demand among parishioners, it is considered to be:
- water sanctified;
- with an akathist;
- thanks;
- petitioners.
Prayers with an akathist include reading the glorifications of the Holy Pleasures, any religious holiday or the Mother of God, or the Most High Himself in a special sequence.
Thanksgiving prayers are read in turn after the completion of the liturgy.
Is there any order in reading prayers?
When a clergyman reads a prayer ordered by a parishioner, a certain traditional sequence is observed. At its core, this sequence briefly reflects the same list of readings that make up the entire service. Prayer service includes:
- canon or conception;
- troparia;
- litany;
- reading texts from the gospel;
- a prayer.
The difference of thanksgiving prayers is not very significant, these services are carried out in accordance with all the rules. The only difference is that their thank-you prayer to the Lord God, the Holy Pleasures or Our Lady ends with a mention of what the parishioner is grateful for. The clergy readily read such prayers, as they are a good example of what is given to everyone according to his faith, and not just according to deeds. That is, this is a kind of demonstration for those who do not have a strong faith, who are tormented by doubts, or for parishioners who pray earnestly, but without a soul, just because it is necessary.
How often do they pray?
Most often, believers pronounce words of appreciation:
- Jesus Christ
- The Blessed Virgin Mary;
- Nicholas the Wonderworker;
- Blessed old woman Matrona of Moscow;
- to my Guardian Angel.
Quite often prayers for Holy Communion are also heard in temples. However, this is very conditional, since there is no possibility to take into account the thoughts of people facing the icons, they are only known to God.
Prayer to the Lord Jesus
Prayer to Jesus Christ, thanksgiving or any other, most demanded by both parishioners and clergy. It is not surprising that there are much more varieties of precisely such prayers than texts addressing the Saints, Angels, or the Blessed Virgin.
Indeed, to whom does even an unbelieving atheist turn to with great despair? To the Lord Jesus. God needs to pray as the heart dictates. It is not necessary to memorize the words of prayers by heart, moreover, they are not sent down from above, but are composed by church officials. However, prayer is a support for the soul. And the finished prayer is the first step in faith, a support on the path to peace of mind and harmony for a person. Therefore, it is simply impossible to deny them either.
A prayer of thanks to the Lord God, uttered daily, may be as follows:
“Lord Almighty, thank you for the day. I ask you to fill it with light and mercy, to give happy good feelings to my soul and to cleanse my thoughts from filth. I thank you, Lord Almighty, for your mercy and pray to direct me on the true path, to protect me from the evil one and his machinations. I thank you, Lord Almighty, for daily bread, shelter and water, for the light and cares of the day that you have been granted. Amen".
A prayer to Jesus Christ, grateful and glorifying the Lord, may be:
“Lord Jesus, I thank you for your well-being and do not complain more, but rejoice. I thank you, Lord, for pacifying my passions and peace in the house. I praise you, Lord Jesus, now and forever and ever. I will glorify you, for you gave me good friends, opened my soul to people, and pacified pride. I praise you, Lord, for you gave me a piece of bread and shelter, sent in life, and filled your heart with joy. Thank you, Lord, and praise you. Amen".
How do they pray at Holy Communion?
Such thanksgiving prayers are part of the ministry in the temple and have a certain sequence. The order of this type of prayer is as follows:
- glorification of the Lord;
- thanksgiving to jesus;
- prayer of St. Basil the Great;
- reading the petition of Simeon Metafrast;
- appeal to the Almighty “for the remission of sins”;
- words to the Blessed Virgin Mary;
- commemoration of the Trinity;
- troparion (to whom the liturgy was held, as a rule, to John Chrysostom);
- Communion of parishioners.
That is, such prayers are not performed on their own. However, being present at the service, you need to understand what exactly is happening in the temple, so you need to know what is included in the prayer for the Sacrament.
How do they pray to the Virgin?
A prayer of thanks to the Most Holy Theotokos differs little from a similar appeal to the Lord. The Blessed Virgin is thanked both everyday and in a fit of gratitude for helping to recover, resolve problems, and get rid of misfortunes. You can pray in your own words, and with the help of ready-made texts. Orthodoxy, unlike Catholicism and the Protestant branch of Christianity, is loyal to its own understanding and re-praying of ready-made prayers, as this testifies to the parishioner's understanding of the words of the text.
A prayer of thanks to the Blessed Virgin Mary can be this:
“Blessed Mother of God, I thank and praise you for your mercy and intercession before the throne of the Lord. For filling the soul with joy and satisfying sorrows and sorrows. For the health of my children and parents. For warmth in the house and peace in my land. For the satiety of my stomach and well-being. I thank and praise you, Blessed Mother of God, for delivering my family from blasphemous thoughts, for saving you from the filth and misfortunes sent by the crafty ones. I thank and praise you, Blessed Mother of God, for your protection from sin and evil deeds, for diverting greed from my mind, for the purity of my thoughts and aspirations. For the charitable deeds of my children and the piety of my parents. I thank and praise you, Blessed Mother of God. Amen".
How do they pray to Nicholas the Wonderworker?
This saint is the most revered and beloved among the people, not only in Russia, but throughout the world. There are a lot of prayers to him, however, as a rule, in every church next to his icon-painting you can always hear a whisper or a quiet speech that does not follow any instructions and comes straight from the heart of a person.
A prayer of thanks to Nicholas the Wonderworker, pronounced at the beginning of the last century in churches, sounded like this:
“Nikolai Ugodnik, father. Nikolai the Miracle Worker, father. Thank you earthly, bow low. For your great help, for the attention given. Thy name be glorified. The path of the afflicted, who are in your mercy, will not heal to you. Thank you, the great intercessor, Nikolai Ugodnik, father. Amen".
A prayer of thanks to Nicholas the Wonderworker can be this:
“Our good shepherd, intercessor in the eyes of the Lord, merciful mentor, Saint Nicholas. I beg you to hear my thanksgiving, servant of God (name). Just as you heard my prayer for help and responded to it. I thank you, Holy Patron, for your great care, a blessing bestowed and invaluable help. I thank you for your good life and the resolution of serious worries, getting rid of bad thoughts and saving you from misfortunes. I thank you, St. Nicholas, for the gift and I pray not to leave me, the servant of God (them) with my mercy and attention. I pray you with gratitude for the intercession before the Lord and the cleansing of my path and thoughts. Thank you, Saint Nicholas, now and forever. Amen".
How do they pray to the guardian angel?
A prayer of thanks to the guardian angel is somewhat different from similar appeals to the Lord, the Mother of God and the Holy Pleasures. The difference lies in the fact that before pronouncing thank-you words it is customary to praise and express gratitude to God, and after that, turn to your heavenly intercessor and patron.
A prayer of thanks to a guardian angel might be:
“I appeal to you, a servant of God (name), in a fervent prayer with gratitude for the great help and mercy. I thank you, warrior of Christ, for your concern and attention to the troubles of the earth and worldly misfortunes. I thank you for deliverance from sorrows and troubles, for health and permission from the heavy burden of worries that have blackened my sinful thoughts. Glorify your name now and forever. Amen".
How do old Matron pray?
The Matrona of Moscow is a blessed old woman, a saint with glory, who has stepped not only beyond Moscow, but also beyond the borders of Russia. Prayers to her ascend from the coast of the Arctic to the Mediterranean, from the East to the lands of Western Europe. Of course, in the West, the old woman is prayed by immigrants from Russia.
A prayer of thanks to Matrona may be:
“Blessed Matronushka, marked by the Lord. Hear and accept my prayer, servant of God (name). I appeal to you, the All-Seeing and All-Hearing, with great gratitude and light in my soul, with pure thoughts and good in my heart. I thank you for the deliverance of my Lord God from my sorrows and sufferings, through the intercession of your great and merciful. I thank you, Holy Matronushka, for strengthening my faith and getting rid of doubts, healing my unhealthy body and cleansing my soul of the filth of demons. I thank you, the Holy Seer for the great help, for preventing me, the servant of God (name), from getting bogged down in worldly vanity and forgetting about the spiritual light. I pray you to preserve the purity of my thoughts, to direct me, the servant of God (name), along the path of charitable deeds, averting the misfortune and deprivation of demons from my house and children. Amen".
When praying to St. Matron, one must not forget that all the power of the blessed old woman came from the Lord God. Blind from birth, Matrona never engaged in traditional healing or medicine, did not know a single weed and was completely helpless in everyday life. However, the miracles she performed were comparable only with the power possessed by life-giving icons. The matron lifted the bedridden patients to their feet and healed the sick people exclusively by the power of prayer to the Lord God. The faith of this woman worked miracles that made her Holy, and not psychic abilities or something like that.
That is why, praying to Matron, you need to ask her not for help, but for intercession before the Lord. It is not the old woman herself who helps the afflicted, but the Lord who hears the great faith of the Moscow Saint. The same applies to all other prayers to other pleasers, both pleading and grateful.