Saturday, March 12, 2011

Seeking God for power to forsake falsehood.

Today’s post is going up on Sunday….and is an unplanned example to you, the reader, that we are under grace and not law as we pursue prayer using this book as a resource.

Disguise: To modify the manner or appearance of ___ in order to prevent recognition…to conceal or obscure, a false show, misrepresent.

Dalliance:  Another word for “flirtation” or frivolous spending of time.

As I read/prayed the Old Testament prayer for today, I was both sad and joyful at the same time. 

Sad? I was remembering the times before I had surrendered to Christ. The times that I sinned – made a mistake – fell short – slipped up – let people down and I tried to disguise the situation (worthless attempt to ‘hide’ my sin) to look good.  Oh the stress, worry and anxiety of someone finding out and condemning me…walking away from me…never talking to me…making fun of me.

Joy? Oh the knowledge of turning my life over to Jesus and knowing He would NEVER leave me nor forsake me…that nothing could separate me from His love.  I meet so many people that are walking around Linn County with disguises.  I have no condemnation for them for I was once one of them and the Father, Son and Holy Spirit did not condemn me!

We all come by it honestly.  “And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the cool of the day and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.” Genesis 3:8

I can remember attempting to partition off my life and justify living one way on Sunday/Wednesday and another way the rest of the week!   It never worked before and it will not work today…for anyone.  There was/is something in me just as there is in every single person on the planet that desires an open/transparent relationship with the God! We were made by the Father in our mother’s womb.  We were fashioned for a purpose by the God whose very being defines the word purpose.  He is the designer and each one of us is a design masterpiece.

May I encourage each one of you to return to the New Testament prayer for today and pray the two bullet points with passion for specific people!  Name them in your prayer.  When you pray for them in this manner you are fulfilling your mandate in 2 Corinthians 5:17-21…for them to be reconciled to God, He and us not counting their trespasses against them, but entreating them in prayer while loving them in humility.

Integrity:

1. Steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code.

2. The state of being unimpaired; soundness.

3. The quality or condition of being whole or undivided; completeness.

Pray with me:

Father God, we do pray for each person that is called by Your name, that they may be steadfast and immoveable in their love for You.  May Thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven into, all around, in front and behind each one of them.  Your Word tells us that we have been given a sound mind. You have made us whole beings.  You have taken our divided minds and given us a sound mind.  You have made us complete human beings that are seated with You in heavenly places right now.  Such is the mystery of the Kingdom.  It is beyond our own reason.  Thank you Father God for loving us.  We accept that You are sending us into this world to pray for, care for and share with them who You are and the indescribable freedom that can be found in You.  Amen.

Charles Daugherty

Serve The City

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Last night for youth group I had the students create masks because masks are what we use to hide our true selves.  We hide our sin.  We hide our shortcoming.  Basically, we hide anything that we do not want others to see.  That takes care of the inside, but what about the outside?  That is where our masks really come in handy.  With our masks on, we can pick and choose exactly what we want others to see.  This led to the following instructions for the students; on the outside they put words representing how others see them.  On the inside they put their fears, doubts and shortcomings.  When they finished, they put their masks aside and we discussed Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness using a video from your tube based on “40” by Si Smith with the song “How He Loves” by John Mark McMillan.

Today’s New Testament prayer mentions how we are still “sometimes paralyzed in fear.”  That is when we put the masks on.  We want to hide our pain from everyone, even God, but God does not want that for us.  He wants us to be honest with ourselves and with Him.  God wants us to share those fears, shortcomings and doubts.

God know we struggle and face temptations.  Jesus struggled and faced temptations in the desert when the devil tempted Him.  Jesus showed us that we can get past those struggles and temptations by relying on God.  We ended youth group by turning off the lights, the room lit by a single candle.  In silent prayer each student came forward and placed their masks with all the fears, doubts and shortcomings at the foot of the Cross.  They placed it in God’s hands.  Won’t you?

Father, I pray that we can truly “rise up” and “follow You fearlessly.”  Go not let us fall prey to ways of the world, but instead help us to get up and not be afraid.

Amen.

Terry Van Wyk

Saturday, March 20 – Day 32

Seeking His Righteousness In Our Communities

Seek God....For the city to experience God’s righteousness.

In and of our own strength we can’t make more than a temporary impact in our communities. When we attempt to conquer the city for God on our own initiative, we see the black storm of life churning, the winds of injustice blowing and the raging waves of indifference crashing around us. When this happens we begin sinking into the dark waters of despair. It’s when we come to the end of ourselves, when there’s nothing left and we cry out to Jesus, that He takes our hand and lifts us up to kneel before Him, where the true power lies. And when His power is unleashed, people are changed!

No corruption, no indifference, nothing at all, can stand in the way when God moves. But it all starts with us in our most powerful position: on our knees before God Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth!

As we willingly submit our meager strength before the Throne of Grace, He enables us to accomplish the tasks He has set out for us since before the beginning. His power works through willing and submitted hearts to win eternal victory in our communities.

“Gracious God,

Grant us eyes to see our weakness and our inability to effect change in our own strength. Enable our hearts to willingly submit to You and Your plan; and as we submit, work through us that the city might be brought into Your righteousness. For Yours is the kingdom, and power, and glory forever!”

In Jesus name we pray,

Amen

Greg Larson

Faith Bible

Friday, March 19 – Day 31

Seeking His Righteousness In Our Communities

Seek God….to establish righteous leaders.

1 Timothy 2:1-2 indicates that a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty is the result of Christians praying on the behalf of all who are in authority. If we walk after the flesh we fall into criticism of those in authority, but if we walk after the spirit we will intercede on behalf of those in authority. We affect what type of society we will find ourselves living in. If we are not leading a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty, we need to examine our prayer life. God has given us a clear path to follow. The hearts of those in authority are in God’s hands - he’s waiting to hear from us.

TE

Jordan’s Grove Baptist

Friday, March 12 – Day 24

Seeking His Glory in Evangelizing All Peoples
Seek God…that many would know and follow Him.

People matter!!!

As I read and reflected on today’s reading of …that many would know and follow Him…I was reminded that everyone I see today, everyone that I come in contact with, will spend eternity somewhere.

Heaven is real!

Hell is real!

And people really do go to one or the other.

I remember reading once a quote by CS Lewis who said that we have never seen a mere mortal…that if we saw people as they one day would be that we would either be tempted to worship them or realize what horrors a person without Christ will experience.

What I read helped me realize that every single person I come into contact today really matters to God and therefore they should matter to us. And if God cared enough about them to send His Son…then we owe it to Him, and them, to share the good news.

People matter to God – they should matter to us.

May the Spirit of God help us to seek to know Jesus and make Him known!

Robin Tyner
Stonebridge Church

Wednesday, March 10 – Day 22

Seeking His Glory in Evangelizing All Peoples
Seek God…to be recognized and honored by leaders.
Seek God On Behalf of Government Leaders

As Christians we are to serve and honor our Lord in all we do, and seek to glorify Him. Our thoughts and behaviors in the political and governmental realm are included in that. How easy it is to jump on the media bandwagon – conservative or liberal – and use our voices to tear down politicians whose views don’t agree with ours. How many emails do you receive each week, forwarding a cartoon, column or essay berating a politician or the government? And how many times do we forward this type of material along to others! I can only imagine how my heart and mind would be transformed if I spent the time I waste on watching political television programs or listening to radio talking heads, praying for those government officials instead! And I mean truly caring about and praying for their salvation! And for Christians in government, praying that their hearts would always make decisions that line up with Scripture and that they would be infused with the power of the Holy Spirit to be Godly leaders in their public and private lives. When I wonder just how involved believers should be in government – and the opinions are vast – I know that prayer is the type of involvement that the Lord always views as right!

Kathryne Oates
Isaac Newton Christian Academy

Monday, March 8 – Day 20

Seeking His Glory in Evangelizing All Peoples
Seek God....that His people would reflect His great name.

In his classic book The Pursuit of God, A. W. Tozer states that when God created our world he first created things. Then, he created mankind. The things became very important to man. These things became so important to our first parents that they denied God and sought things. They sinned against God and brought death as a penalty on us all.

In the cover letter for the Seek GOD for the CITY 2010 booklet states the same thing. “Prayers focused on needs [things] can gradually shrink to selfish wish-lists concerning our own circumstances.” Let’s pray that we do not concentrate on the needs [things] of others in the world, but on the spread of God’s grace and life to all. In these trying times, it is very easy to dwell on things instead of true spiritual needs.

It says in the Bible that God so loved the world that he gave His only son to die for us. It does not say he died for us to give us things.

Pastor John Bailey

Family of Faith Community

Monday, March 8 – Day 20

Seeking His Glory in Evangelizing All Peoples
Seek God....that His people would reflect His great name.

What makes people NOT want to glorify God? It is “mind boggling” to me that anyone would want to “slip away” from God – yet didn’t I 30 years ago? Didn’t I accept Jesus in my heart at the age of 20 and then turn away?

It took me 20 some years to turn back to God. In those years of being selfish, self-centered, condemning and sinful how did I turn back? It was POWER of PRAYER! I had a wonderful Aunt who prayed for me for those years. I had a Mother, who knew that I was lost, but had to turn me over to God because she didn’t know what to do. Then one day this woman came up to me and asked me if she could pray for me! Yes, a complete stranger who saw that I needed prayer. That night I knew that I needed a Savior. God worked in my life that day, but of course many times in those lost years He was working, but I was so blind.

So, for anyone who knows a person who is back sliding, a person that is NOT giving God glory – STOP right there and pray for that person. Go to that person if possible and ask them if you can pray for them. You may be that “saint” that God is using for HIS GLORY.

A. O.
Valley View

Sunday, March 7 – Day 19

Seeking His Light to Awaken the Lost
Seek God… for His Renown Among all Peoples
Seek God…on Behalf of Business People

Bill, a Wisconsin dairy farmer, told me, he had the conviction God called him to his job to provide his world with milk. May our business men and women accept their position as God’s calling to serve our world.

Dale, an electric salesman in Rochester, was being asked by his employer to be involved in a shady action; Dale said, “I won’t do it”; his employer’s response, “You may leave!” His competing business hired Dale the second week; many of his former customers, switched with him, because they appreciated his honesty, doubling Dale’s contacts. May business people guard themselves carefully, so their honesty and integrity will be their exemplary badge to their unbelieving fellow business persons, drawing them to Himself.

Ken, a Minnesota logger, was treated deceptively by a DNR inspector, who laid his testing equipment down on the treated logs, making it register a condemning result; Ken took his “correction” patiently, and survived. God, give Your business personnel wisdom to work with the stiffening government regulations, and use them redemptively.

Ron, in woodworking, cabinet making, at Fairfield, prospered in his shop until he was using computer designed production pieces for many customers. May initiative, inspired by You, give Your men & women success, mindful that only a prolific business can provide jobs for needy neighbors.

Garth Betry

Saturday, March 6 – Day 18

Seeking His Light to Awaken the Lost
Seek God…for God’s light to bring abundant life.
Seek God on behalf of Mothers

How precious is Your loving kindness, O God! And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They drink their fill of the abundance of Your house; and you give them to drink of the river of your delights. For with You is the fountain of life. In your light we see light. – Psalm 36:7-9

Life’s precious but often painful journey does not begin with a first step but at the point of conception. Often times a Mother first inkling we exist is a feeling of sickness and fatigue. We were brought into being and developed by our Mothers who endured the physical pain of delivery and the emotional pain of watching us make the very mistakes she warned us against. The pain is never gone but only subsides from time to time as we stumble through live returning to our Mothers for the MILK of life (Mothers Invested Loving Kindness). Today’s prayer is inspired by John 10: 11-18 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep”. Jesus is drawing the analogy between shepherding and His being our protector. Mothers care for their offspring to the dying end, instinctively and aggressively protecting their children from harm.

Mothers are a Blessing to us all. Lord Bless the Mothers

• Bless you for Loving us as we develop in your wombs.
• Bless you for all the Loving pain you went through to deliver us.
• Bless you for all the weary long days that you held us and stayed with us when we were ill.
• Bless you for the comforting words and encouragement when our hearts are troubled and our eyes were wet with tears.
• Bless you for having the patience & a forgiving heart as you watched us walk in the way of the world and not by your words of wisdom.
• Bless you for teaching us we are Children of God and that Christ’s Eternal Love is for us.

Lord God you are the wellspring of Life, we offer this day to your Glory and ask that you would protect, heal and strengthen our Mothers. Bless them with an abundance of the Fruit of the Spirit and Lord teach us to be vocally Thankful for their Loving Kindness. In Jesus Mighty and Powerful Name—Amen.

Leo & Janet Bonifazi
Neighborhood Church

Thursday, March 4 – Day 16

Seeking His Light to Awaken the Lost
Seek God....to rescue people from spiritual darkness

It occurred to me that those in greatest need of release from their bondage are those who are blinded to that bondage. They think they are okay and that others are trapped in barren life styles. The Word clearly shows that unless we are slaves to righteousness we are slaves, prisoners, to sin. My prayer is that those in darkness would have the light of truth penetrate their lives through us. I pray that our lives would mirror the freedom of Christ, freedom from guilt, bitterness, unforgiveness, hatred, jealousy, covetousness, and unbelief. I pray that our lives would visibly show kindness, goodness faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, peace, patience, joy and love – independent of the environment we find ourselves in so that they may see hope and lives changed to the glory of God. I pray that the hardness of their hearts might be broken and made ready for the seed of the Word of God to penetrate deep and bring forth life.

J. O.
Valley View

Wednesday, March 3 - Day 15

Thanking God for the Seek God For The City prayer guide!

The 40 days of prayer is off to a GREAT start!

Here at church the adults have given overwhelming support to pray, in weekly groups, in individual settings at home, at home groups and other ways!

The Spanish speaking people were thrilled when presented with their Spanish version. The office here did a great job of downloading the Spanish version of WAYMAKERS!

The children’s version got a warm welcome in their Sunday school class. Again the downloading off of WAYMAKERS worked well!

It is great to see prayer increase, we can be sure that Jesus is pleased!!

Love in Jesus
DM
River Of Life Ministries

Wednesday, March 3 – Day 15

Seeking His Light to Awaken the Lost
Seek God for the city… for revelation leading to repentance

“For those who have heard about You but remain stone-cold to You… Vindicate Your reputation by disclosing Your mighty mercy… that their stony hearts melt in view of how determined You are to love them. Cause them to behold Jesus…”

Encountering the “stone-cold” is a challenging experience in the life of a believer. Alive with the fire and passion given to us by Christ, it is sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes maddening to witness others walking in firm rejection of God. If you are like me, you may approach the hard-hearted like a special project. If we just have the right words, the right program, the right strategy, we can break through and “win one for Jesus.”

Facing an apparent failure to break through, sometimes we turn defensive. These “rejecters of God” become the enemy. We may give them several labels… secular humanists, faces of the culture of death, nazi-feminists, godless liberals… I think sometimes we hide behind the labels and battle lines out of fear of what it would cost us to be the Church who reveals the God who is determined to love the stone-cold.

Ezekiel 36:26 “And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.”

Let us have a fresh perspective today of seeing the stone-cold not as enemies whom we need to organize against but as an incredible testimony that God is writing. Let us approach those who would oppose or slander the work of the Kingdom determined to love them. May our approach to vindicating God’s reputation not be in our protests, our petitions, or our carefully crafted talking points but in disclosing the mighty mercy of the Father through radical love. My prayer is that as we collectively love them, in us they would behold Jesus.

Katie Sandquist
Aid to Women

Friday, February 26 - Day 10

Day 10: Seek God … for God to unite His people.
[Psalm 133:1,3; John 17:22-23]

The “unity” or “being one” of these verses does not mean “let’s be one big happy denomination”! These statements point out a “relationship” desired by God of His followers. This is not just a relationship with God, but it is a relationship with fellow believers that glorifies God!

Think of it like this: The Body of Christ is a Family. The various Church congregations are like brothers and sisters in this Family. Each “child” has his or her own unique qualities and character. That does not make one “child” better than the other. Each is loved by the Father; each will accomplish its purpose. But the Family is still one!

Now, consider these verses from this perspective: “How good and pleasant it is when the various Church congregations get along together! … For there the Lord bestows His blessing, even life forever more.” (Psa. 133:1,3). And think of the prayer of Jesus in John 17 when He prays (vv. 22-23), “The glory which You have given Me I have given to those who are true followers but belong to different church congregations, that they may be of one purpose in bringing glory to My Name, so that the world may know that You have sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.”

It’s like what I’ve told my church family, “We don’t have a corner on truth, but we do have the Truth on the corner of 29^th and D Avenue NE. Know it; believe it; live it; and share it!”

Lord: Renew our appreciation of Your desire for all of Your followers to be united in purpose; forgive us where we have wandered away for our own selfish preferences; give us a new heart of love for each other, even as You have for us, and let it be all for Your glory! Thank you! Amen.

[Pastor Gary Austin, Cedar Rapids Grace Church, Cedar Rapids, IA]

Wednesday, February 24 - Day 8

Wow! What else could I say to express how powerful the words are that the Psalmist uses in Psalm 51:7, 10? Powerful words like “purify me”, “wash me”, “create in me”, and “renew… within me” in order that I “shall be clean”, “whiter than snow”, possessing a “clean heart” and a “steadfast spirit”. These are words that require transparency and expect transformation. Maybe the honest question for us is whether we’re ready for either.

We’re in the eighth day of our 40 days of prayer and the call to pure hearts has to be embraced or ignored. Ignoring the call is like saying, “Jesus, I know this is what you want but there is only so far I’ll go in following you.” Embracing the call requires of us a bold action like I find with David in the 139^th Psalm. In this Psalm it is as though we get to step into David’s personal chambers and listen to him think out loud about God.

In all the insight we are privileged to gleam from David nothing may be as important to us during these 40 days of prayer as verses 23 and 24 of Psalm 139. It is in these verses that David, as it were, gives God permission to, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” When I use the word “permission” some of us cringed because we know that God can do whatever he chooses. But we also know that God is a gentleman and he doesn’t force himself on us. So, after David revels in the wonders of God’s consuming presence, and gets excited about the potential he has with God he gives God permission to examine his life and if necessary realign it with His.

I wonder if in these 40 days of prayer if what we may need to do is give God permission to search us and know our hearts; to test us and know our anxious thoughts. To see if there is any offensive way in us so that He can purify our hearts and lead us in the way everlasting? So, does God really have permission to do that in your life?

Pastor Tim Carter, First Church Of The Nazarene

Monday, February 22 - Day 6

As I pray for the countries listed on the bottom of the page, it’s easy for them to become just a list of names—foreign sounding places I’ve never seen and probably never will visit. 

But today’s list includes Haiti.  I just returned from Haiti, and so it is easy to pray for this country.  I see the faces of children without parents.  I see people with broken bodies and empty stomachs.  I hear the noise of the crowds looking for help.  Haiti has become real to me because I have been there myself. 

Yet each of these countries is filled with people who are loved by God.  He knows their names.  He sees their faces.  He hears their prayers.  Each country has people who cry out to God; each country has people who shut God out of their lives.

As we pray for God to impart his life-giving spirit wherever it is needed, try not to read through the names of countries as if they are some impersonal list.  Try to imagine what it must be like for those who live in these countries.  God loves these people every bit as much as he loves you and I. 

And who knows…someday we may meet them as we gather around the throne of God. 

Father, may your Spirit bring life to the many around the world who are spiritually dead.  

Terry Seufferlein

Central Church of Christ

Friday, February 19 – Day 3

In Exodus 33 and 34, Moses asks God to show him His name and God responds that He will show His glory. God then revealed seven characteristics of His glory: compassion, grace, patience, abundant lovingkindness, truth, forgiveness, and justice. Some argue that God's purpose in creation was to display His glory, these seven characteristics, to the universe.

Habakkuk 2:14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.

The very first two requests in the Lord's Prayer are that God's name, his glory, be hallowed and that God's kingdom come. Today's prayer asks God to keep on changing us so that we will reflect His love and His glory, so that many will behold glory in our land. There can be no higher prayer.

As Christians, our every action will be measured against this standard: Does it demonstrate the glory of God? Does it advance God's kingdom or does it advance mine? Will the world see God or will it see me?

Jesus told us in Matthew 5, “You are the light of the world.” and "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

Lord, give me your Holy Spirit so that that I may be a light to the world, showing your glory to a lost generation.

Mike Pearson, New Covenant Bible – also serving His Hands Free Medical Clinic and Serve The City

Thursday, February 18 – Day 2

How much does God really love me?  I know that Jesus Christ sacrificed His life so that I can live.  Do I always consider what that really means?  Many times in my actions and thoughts I know I don't reflect the awesomeness and power of God's love.  I pray that I would feel and know the presence of the Holy Spirit and acknowledge God's love in my life.  It is evident that He loves me in the creation all around me. 

Father God, help me to recognize your love in my life and reflect your love to others around me.

MB

Thursday, February 18 - Day 2

I think the word ‘love’ is overused and has been watered down in today’s culture.  With Valentine’s Day just past, we see how ‘love’ is marketed and commercialized.  The tagline for a truck commercial several years ago stated America ‘loves’ baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolets.  So, to find the true meaning of love, we have to turn to the source: God.  God is love.  Love in the Bible has a much richer meaning, particularly when applied to God's feeling toward His people.  The Bible describes a kind of love that goes far beyond what we can even grasp as humans.  It is abundant, faithful, steadfast, patient and unfailing.  Read these passages out loud and listen to God’s heart.

The LORD watches over those who fear him, those who rely on his unfailing love. We depend on the LORD alone to save us. Only he can help us, protecting us like a shield.  Psalm 33:18, 20

"I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself."  Jeremiah 31:1

Many sorrows come to the wicked, but unfailing love surrounds those who trust the LORD . So rejoice in the LORD and be glad, all you who obey him! Shout for joy, all you whose hearts are pure!  Psalm 32:10-11

The Word became human and lived here on earth among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father.  John 1:14

God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.  And since we have been made right in God's sight by the blood of Christ, He will certainly save us from God's judgment.  For since we were restored to friendship with God by the death of His Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be delivered from eternal punishment by His life. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God -- all because of what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us in making us friends of God.

Today, I hope you seek the love that only God can provide.  May you be revived, restored and refreshed by His Spirit.

God bless,

Brent Schulte, Antioch Christian Church