Review Your Prayer List
Per my usual communique, I encourage you to grab last weeks prayer list and update it. If you do not have one from last week, well, sit down and make one. Keep a running prayer list in the notes on your phone. Use the tool for its purpose. When a request occurs to you type it in. However, I would suggest you stop and ask, “For who and for what SHOULD I be praying?” at least once per week. It takes intentionality to watch and pray, so be intentional. Sunday evenings and Monday mornings are great times to make your prayer list for the week. A fixed, disciplined practice will help keep you from aimless wandering and forgetful praying. So if Sunday or Monday don’t work, find a regular time that can.
Congregational Prayer List
Beginning this Sunday we will have a paper Congregational Prayer List available for you to scribble your requests on. I’ll add them to our digital version and make a future quick link available in each week’s Monday email. We will use our Congregational Prayer List @ our Wednesday evening Catechism Lesson and Prayer meetings.
Praying Scripture
You can add variety to your prayer life by learning to prayer Scripture. It can take a little practice. I have found, however, that when it comes to praying for yourself that praying Scripture is best and safest. Remember that old line about how some of God’s greatest gifts to us are the prayers he left unanswered, or said a flat no to. If we look back with a little circumspection I think we can all admit that some of the prayers we have prayed for ourselves in the past were selfish. James says it like this. “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions (James 4:3). Therefore, learning to pray Scripture can help us pray according to God’s will for ourselves, and keep us from self-centered praying. We are so sinful that we can turn the means of grace into a means of sin.
How To Pray Scripture
If we pray Scripture we are generally safe. Anything can be abused and misused. It is the sinfulness of sin that makes it so. However, if you want to praise God, then find a text of praise from a Psalm and use it. Let me provide an example. You might read say, Psalm 95:1-2 aloud.
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! 3 For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods (Psalm 95:1-2).
Father I enter into Your Presence with thanksgiving in my heart. I come this morning to sing a song in joy to You Who gives me life and breath and being. Then stop and actually sing a chorus, a Psalm, or a hymn to God. Choose one with joy as a theme. May be “Joy to the World” is all you can think of. That’s ok. Make a joyful noise unto Him. Perhaps the old Baptist standard “Revive Us Again” finds itself on the tongue with its famous opening line, “We praise Thee O God, for the Son of Thy Love…” Consider the words as you sing them and sing with joy. Conclude with a declaration of praise, something like, “The Lord is God and He has made Christ King above all kings, over all nations, over all Heaven and Earth and everything under the earth. At His Name every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God. In Jesus Name Amen.
Praying Scripture For The Occasion
You can pray over certain sins using texts where they are mentioned. Pray through the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5 and ask the Lord to give you each one of the virtues. You can dress yourself in prayer using the Armor of God from Ephesians 6. Ask God to mold you into the Beattitudes from the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5. Repent before the the Law of God in Exodus 20. You can pray through texts on lust or the tongue or money or your thought life. Finally, you can pray with confidence when you pray the Word of God that you are praying the will of God.
Yes, Midweek Worship
6:15 Pizza @ Smyrna Senior Center
7:00 Catechism Lesson and Prayer
Prayer Book
Marriage & Family: February 9th-March 8th
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Blessings and have a great week!
Pastor Jeremy
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