PRAYING WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS AROUND THE WORLD

It’s Sunday and we get to pray with our local church families and with friends around the world. 

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.  Hebrews 4:16

Heavenly Father, we thank you for the confidence we can have to come to You knowing that we will find love we don’t even deserve, and generous blessing for whatever needs we are experiencing.   Thank You for Jesus whose death and resurrection has won us this place where we can stand in Your holy presence. 

Your word reminds us today: 

You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.  1 Peter 2:9

It’s wonderful how You’ve rescued us from meaningless lives to become Your chosen ones and how You are making us into a holy people as we walk in Your marvelous light.  But even more than that we know Lord that You’ve done all this in us so many others can also experience this forgiveness and deliverance from darkness.  We remember what You told Paul in the Bible:

I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you … to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’  Acts 26:16-18

Nothing solid that we have today has come to us outside of the Lord Jesus and so we set our hope in Him today.  Please open the eyes of our hearts that we may know you, and give effective witness to Your goodness to those who don’t yet know You. 

Who are You sending to us today to lift up, to encourage, to speak of Your love and comfort, to let them know that You are ready to forgive them and enter into a life-giving relationship with them? 

Give us favour in the hearing of those with whom we speak.  Let this be a day where someone we know comes to faith in Jesus Christ because we were there to remind them of Your saving love.

We acknowledge that there are still many challenges and sorrows and burdens that people carry and so in the middle of all that we come to You with our needs, You who are our help and our provider.

Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.  Psalm 124:8

We bring our loved ones and friends to You.  You know their needs physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  Please bless them. You know who’s sensitive to what You want to do right now.  Help them also to call out to You in faith knowing that You will provide for them all that is good for this day.

O Lord, you alone are able to do all these things and things far better than these for us. We thank You and praise You and pray all this in Jesus’ name.  Amen

Help us.  Help us today to hear Your voice and to follow Your heart.  Amen