July and August 2014
Pray Continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
Summer
is a great time to continue or establish new habits – perhaps of prayer? Here’s a guide to take you through July and
August.
And
why not try to fast every Tuesday,
allowing your physical hunger to stimulate a spiritual hunger for God?
1:
Pray for church across Stafford in their mission for Jesus, and our unity
together under Christ. Pray especially
for Church Lane and St. Mary’s both seeking new ministers for the future. Pray these churches may ‘have confidence in
your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as
those who give an account’, and those called to lead them would find their work
a ‘joy, not a burden’ (Hebrews 13:17).
Pray for John Marshall and Father Graham as they retire. Perhaps join the monthly churches-together
prayer meeting at 7.30-8.30m at Sandon Road?
2: List ten things you are thankful for – big
and small. Thank God for them. ‘I will praise God’s name in song and glorify
him with thanksgiving’ (Psalm 69:13)
3: Pray
for three Christians you know as they live out Jesus on their frontline of
home, work or leisure that we may be ‘Christ’s ambassadors, as though God was
making his appeal through us’ (2 Corinthians 5:20)
4:
Pray for national and local leaders.
Remembering ‘In the Lord’s hands the king’s heart is a stream of water
that he channels towards all who please him.’ (Proverbs 21:1)
5: Pray
for your role personally and for the church as a whole in bringing justice and righteousness
into the world. ‘Speak up for those who
cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights
of the poor and needy.’ (Proverbs 31:8-9)
Pray for the work of House of Bread.
6: Pray for growing courage and readiness to
risk for Jesus as reflected in our value of being ‘courageous in mission’. ‘Therefore go and make disciples of all
nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And
surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’ (Mathew 28:19) What would be a courageous step for you?
7: Think of three people you know who are not
yet Christians. Pray that the ‘God who said
‘let light shine out of darkness’ would make his light shine in their hearts to
give them the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of
Christ’ (2 Corinthians 4:6)
8: Pray for Smile orphanage in Nepal and the
Anusuran Centre in India, both of whom we support. ‘Religion that God our Father accepts as pure
and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress…’
(James 1:27)
9: Remind yourself of some places in our world
in need for prayer for peace, stability, provision or resources. Pray for them.
10: Pray for some of our partner organisations
and associations we work within as a church.
For example Baptist Union of Great Britian, BMSWorld Mission, Heart of
England Baptist Association.
11:
Think of three people you know in the church
- pray they ‘may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may
have the full riches of complete understanding.’ (Colossians 2:2)
12: Pray for a growing readiness to love everyone
and help all people find God as their Father, Jesus as their Lord, and the
church as their family. Our value of
‘loving people’. ‘I keep asking that the
God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of
wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.’ (Ephesians 1:17)
13:
Pray for men. Pray for three men you
know. Pray for responsibilities they may
have – friends, colleagues, husbands, fathers, grandfathers, etc. Pray that in all these roles and more ‘men
everywhere would pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing’ (1
Timothy 2:8)
14: We all make
mistakes. Think and pray about: ‘Have
mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great
compassion blot out my transgressions.
Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.’ (Psalm 51:1-2)
15: Pray by name for leaders in the church. ‘Since an overseer
manages God’s household, he must be blameless – not overbearing, not
quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest
gain. Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is
self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. He must hold firmly to the
trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by
sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.’ (Titus 1:7-9)
16:
Pray for the good stewardship and fruitful
use of our buildings. Pray for the
re-development of Sandon Road – the logistics and practicalities, and also the
mission opportunities that will flow from it.
Pray for the Beacon International Centre, and especially the purposeful
use of the new floor space we are trailing.
17:
Pray for the various ways we are able to serve and reach other organisations in
the town – such as through chaplaincy at the Police HQ, MOD and University, and
through serving in local schools.
18: Pray for women. Think of three women you know. Pray for responsibilities they may have –
friends, colleagues, wives, mothers, grandmothers, etc. Pray in all these areas they may live as
‘women who profess to worship God’ (1 Timothy 2:10)
19: List ten things you are thankful for - thank
God for them. ‘Cry out, ‘Save us, God
our Saviour…that we may give thanks to your holy name, and glory in your
praise.’ (1 Chronicles 16:35)
20:
Pray for the re-development process at Sandon
Road involving the various agencies and organisations. That the process and the final product might
speak clearly of Jesus. Pray for energy
and creativity in mission that could be catalysed from the re-development of
the Sandon Road buildings. Pray for the
financial provision for the phase 2 build we would love to see happen in
2015/2016. Pray for the first thoughts
toward a families-friendly new service at Sandon Road that would suit the
myriad of mid-week users involved in the life of the building. Pray ‘that God may open a door for our
message, so we may proclaim the mystery of Christ…’ (Colossians 3:3)
21:
Pray for the centrality of the Bible in your personal life and our corporate
church life. Pray for those responsible
to teach or preach it in all sorts of contexts.
Pray that we might be ‘a pillar and buttress of truth’ and therefore a
‘living church’. (1 Timothy 3:15)
22:
Pray for our Chinese Church congregation
meeting each Thursday evening at the Beacon, and for our various ‘lifegroups’.
Pray using this description of a church gathering: ‘Let the peace of Christ
rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you are called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell in you richly
as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom…’ (Colossians 3:15-16)
23:
Pray for Mid-Week Connect, meeting most
Wednesday lunchtimes and serving the Technology Park. ‘I pray that out of his glorious riches he
may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that
Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being
rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s
holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of
Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled
to the measure of all the fullness of God.’ (Ephesians 3:16-19)
24:
As we gather as a church in our main meetings
pray ‘May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for
everyone else…’ (1 Thessalonians 3:12)
25:
Pray for how we operate our mid-week Bistro
and conferencing facilities used by thousands of people each month as we seek
to serve the Technology Park. We seek to
be an ‘above expected experience’ giving people a taste of what Jesus is like
over their lunch time. ‘Taste and see
that the Lord is good…’ (Psalm 34:8) Pray
for the Beacon Strategy Group of leaders who are responsible for helping us be
good stewards of our Beacon building.
Pray they may ‘do it diligently.’
(Romans 12:8)
26: Pray for a growing reliance and dependence on
God’s Spirit as an individual and in our life as a church. Our value of ‘Spirit dependent’. ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy,
peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and
self-control.’ (Galatians 5:22-23)
27:
Pray for our Tuesday Group parent-toddler
group serving the community and building relationships to explain Jesus
through. Pray for our pre-school that
runs throughout the week at Sandon Road.
For children (44 attend), staff (8 plus some volunteers & trainees),
and parents. ‘And Jesus took the
children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them.’ (Mark 10:16)
28:
Pray for our finances as we seek to be good
and wise stewards with the resources God has made us responsible for. Pray we may ‘excel in the grace of giving’ (1
Corinthians 8:9)
29: Pray you would ‘be careful, then, how you
live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity…’
(Ephesians 5:15) Pray for yourself, and
for five other people who come to mind: ‘Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.’
(Ephesians 5:14) How could you
verbally or practically encourage a couple of those people you are praying for
today?
30:
Pray for the big new development of Marston
Grange, slightly further along the Beaconside Road and our responsibility to
serve and reach that community for Jesus.
‘It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was
not known…’ (Romans 15:20)
31: Pray for clarity or creativity in your own
life as to decisions you need to make.
How are you using your life?
‘Show me O Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know
how fleeting my life is.’ (Psalm 39:4)
Are there any changes you need to make?
Pray about these.
No comments:
Post a Comment