Prayer Warriors!

Calling all Prayer Warriors!

This morning I feel compelled (obligated, duty-bound) to call on all who will to pray for the church and for your pastors and leaders. According to Scripture:

1 Peter 5:8-9 - 8 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith,

The devil is out there and wants nothing more than to devour the Church! Part of standing firm is to stay in prayer together. Pray that the devil not be given even a foothold in our lives and in the church. As Scripture says;

Ephesians 4:25-28 - 25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26 "In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.

I urge you than to pray for the following and more as the Spirit leads:

1. Pray for your pastors and leaders to stand firm in their faith with Jesus.

2. Pray for a spirit of harmony in the church – it is not necessary for us to always agree, we can even see some things differently – but we must be in harmony with the Word of God and with the essential purposes of the church. In order to reach the unchurched the church needs to present a harmonious tune in the Spirit! No one will want to join a church that is making terrible noise (we aren’t as a whole but could go there if we don’t stand firm in our faith)!

3. Pray against a spirit of bickering (internal strife). The battle is not against each other folks, it is against powers and principalities of evil. We should not shoot our own wounded, but rather love each other in spite of our shortcomings.

4. Pray against a spirit of pickiness. Some have been in negative mode for such a long season that it seems almost natural to look at what is wrong rather than what is right with the church or pastor. We should not let issues go unaddressed for sure but should handle them in love and not in attack mode!

5. Pray for the next few months. The honeymoon is ending (I can see the handwriting on the wall). We have seen an initial growth period associated with the new pastor. Attendance in worship is way up and a spirit of change is at hand. The next few months will determine the course of our church in future years. As we discern a 3-5-10 year plan and begin to get beyond the personality and newness of new leadership and into the day to day life of the church, where God leads us and where we will follow is so significant.

6. Pray for the church’s daily devotion to Christ!

Thank you for your faithful prayers for the church called Mt. Oak or the church you attend.