Good Morning Worshipers, Warriors, Watchmen (and Women), and Workers! That is a prayer I have been praying over St. Matts for years. Praying for God to raise up worshipers, prayer warriors, watchman (and women) on the wall and harvest workers bringing the prayers to life. It's happening! PTL! Can you see it? All four of these are vital roles and assignments for our Good News Delivery Co. too. How is God assigning you and using you in these?
Today as I was re-reading our John 16 passage for this week I was reminded of Jesus teaching about praying in His name. (Next week we read Jesus' prayers in John 17) In the Old Covenant, people needed to go to God through a priest but in the New Covenant we are all priests of the Lord and as such have full access to God ourselves. How blessed we are! And what a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer! Amen! Check out our devos below for more on prayer, your part and some things to pray about.
Everything of value in God's Kingdom and every good and sustainable work is birthed, informed and sustained in prayer. Thank you for your faithfulness in prayer! God has some awesome plans for you and us awaiting being released in prayer. Some things are awaiting direction, informing, provision, correction that comes through prayer and processing with others. All things and workers need a prayer covering too. It can be hard but very rewarding and profitable work to be a prayer warrior and watchman in prayer. Then we get to worship, celebrate and thank God for glorifying His name and prospering His works as a result of our prayers! Keep plowing those fields in prayer and sharing what you are hearing!
Each of us and our fellowship is a work in process. We are directed in prayer and perfected through accountability and processing in small groups. Pray for God to raise up some more small groups in the new year, for some leaders to arise, and to help us help each other to hear God, process and even correct in love as needed. He has great plans awaiting releasing and empowering through prayer and processing and enacting through small groups. GO TEAM!!! Every time I think of you all and the prayers and workers and love, I thank God! He is leading us to some awesome fruit! Keep investing time, talent and treasure as God leads. It's time to sow lavishly in prayer, choices, actions and love! Day light's burning, Lighthouses! The harvest IS plentiful. PTL! Pray for the Lord of the harvest to send more workers in to the fields and PTL for the harvest He is growing and preparing! What's your role in that? Some have been delineated here. Talk to Abba about that and process with some others! Then Go, love, harvest and make disciples of Jesus!
Here's some prayer starters for today:
"Praise God for the good gifts He gives to those who ask Him (Mt.7:11). Give thanks, even in the midst of pain all around, that God's gifts are good. Confess your lack of quality time with God in prayer (Rom. 8:26). Commit yourself to modeling Jesus' example of praying in solitary places (Mk. 1:35). Ask God to give you a real devotion to prayer--being watchful and thankful, making the most of every opportunity (Col. 4:2-5). Pray that your church members will give generously of their time and money so that pleas for more will not be necessary (2Cor. 9:6-7). [Pray for our members to bolster our general fund with year end giving] Pray that God will instill in Christians around the world the desire to pray fervently and faithfully (Prov. 15:8; 29). Ask God to use emergency or crisis situations in the lives of unsaved people to bring them to the foot of the cross. Pray for eyes to see how you can help in such situations." [Thank God for answered prayers and for all our prayer warriors] Amen!
TWFYT:
Charles Stanley:
UR: Work in Progress
He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. - Philippians 1:6 (NIV)
One day I was walking down the street and passed a building site full of rubble. A sign at the site announced, “Work in progress.” The builders continued working according to the plan given by the architect, and eventually the building was completed. A couple of months later, I passed the building again. This time I was amazed by its beauty and marveled at the finished product.
We are also works in progress. We are God’s masterpieces; the Holy Spirit is shaping us according to the Lord’s design. At times we may appear unfinished from the outside, but the Holy Spirit is at work in us day by day. Ultimately, God, through the life-giving Holy Spirit, will bring to completion the good work that God has already begun in us. Keep believing and trusting that God will finish that work in us.
TODAY'S PRAYER
Loving God, thank you for sending Jesus into the world. Through your life-giving Holy Spirit, inspire us to be Christlike in character and mind. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.ODB:
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He did many things well, but there was a problem. Everyone saw it. Yet because he was so effective in accomplishing most of his role, his anger issue wasn’t adequately addressed. He was never truly confronted. Sadly, this resulted in many people being hurt over the years. And, in the end, it led to the premature close of a career that could have been something so much more for this brother in Christ. If only I’d chosen to confront him in love long ago.
In Genesis 4, God provides the perfect picture of what it means to confront someone’s sin in love. Cain was infuriated. Being a farmer, he’d presented “some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord” (v. 3). But God made it clear that what he brought Him wasn’t acceptable. Cain’s offering was rejected, and he was “very angry, and his face was downcast” (v. 5). So, God confronted him and said, “Why are you angry?” (v. 6). He then told Cain to turn from his sin and pursue what was good and right. Sadly, Cain ignored God’s words and committed a horrific act (v. 8).
While we can’t force others to turn from sinful behaviors, we can compassionately confront them. We can “speak the truth in love” so that we both become “more and more like Christ” (Ephesians 4:15 nlt). And, as God gives us ears to listen, we can also receive hard words of truth from others.
By Tom Felten
REFLECT & PRAY
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Why is it vital for us to confront others in love? How do you receive hard but helpful words?
Father, help me to have the courage to confront others in love and to receive hard but true words with grace.
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SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
The Bible has much to say about anger. God warned Cain that anger is a response that must be reined in quickly (Genesis 4:7). The psalmist David warned, “Stop being angry! . . . It only leads to harm” (Psalm 37:8 nlt). Solomon, the wisest man on earth, likewise said that an angry man will do foolish things (Proverbs 14:17, 29). The New Testament warns, “Don’t sin by letting anger control you . . . for anger gives a foothold to the devil” (Ephesians 4:26–27 nlt) and “human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires” (James 1:20 nlt).
K. T. Sim |
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