Day 8 Why should we pray for them?

Day 8

1 Timothy 2:1 First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers, intercessions, and thanks be offered on behalf of all people, 2 even for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

“First of all”

” First of all, prayers. No matter what the work, no matter what the need. The Church’s strength starts with prayer. How much of the load is taken off someone’s back, because of; another’s prayer? Only the Lord knows. Paul’s message here is clear though. At the Church beginning there was this need for prayer. As it has continued on, there is still a need for prayer.

” v. 2 that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life…”

The best part of leading peaceful and quiet lives isn’t that we get to relax. It’s not that we’re free to fallow all or dreams or have our choice in careers. It’s not, never having our freedoms of speech and religion, challenged. It’s not so we can sleep soundly without the threat of war. Not that any of these are wrong. They’re all good things and God wants to use them to further His Church. Still, they aren’t the focus, they aren’t the reason to live quite peaceable lives. Jesus didn’t die so we could all just have easy, prosperous and safe lives. He died to save the world from sin. The reason for quiet and peaceable lives, is so we can focus on spreading the gospel, building the Church freely and financially. Not our own kingdoms but His.

When, we are not hindered by governments. When we are not having to defend our religious liberties, when we’re able to make a living. Live without the threat of war.  It’s not so we can take it easy. It’s so we aren’t  hindered in spreading  the gospel. This is why we are to pray for “kings and all those in authority…”.

Unfortunately what happens often times is, a nation or group having been living peaceably and quite due to prayers. Then begins to take it all for granted. Forgetting the importance of prayer. God will use these circumstances to bring people back to their knees. Still, it would’ve been better to have stayed on them in the first place.

Let’s look at the next verses. 3 “Such prayer for all is good and welcomed before God our Savior,”… Here we see that it is something God wants us to pray for, here’s why; “4 since He wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one intermediary between God and humanity, Christ Jesus, himself human, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, revealing God’s purpose at his appointed time.”It’s all about the Gospel. It’s always about the Gospel.

The most important thing, ”First of all” to ensure that we can freely spread the gospel and live out our Christianity is as Paul instructed, is Prayer.  

So, pray today for all of our officials, no matter what office they hold. Pray first for thier salvation. Then pray that they would do thier jobs wisely and justly. That we will live peaceable and quite lives in order to focus on spreading the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ!

💜Kelly ClayWoo

Day 5 Mostly they ask for our prayers.

Day 5

2 Cor. 11 Also, you help us because you join together to pray for us. Many people pray for us. And God will answer what they pray. He will be good to us. And so, many people will thank him on our behalf.

Oh how special and important prayer is! Paul was delighted that so many were praying for him and his fellow workers. They had a hard job. It wasn’t always comfortable and sometimes very dangerous. They went to preach the gospel out of obedience and love for their Lord and their fellow man. Sometimes their fellow man didn’t love them back. They also didn’t always have a nice place to lay thier heads. Paul didn’t complain to the churches he wrote to, or compare his life day to day theirs. He talked to them about all faith issues.  We’re not getting into all those issues, right now.  What I want to talk about , how he was delighted that they prayed for him. He was also seeing the results of thier prayers!

Not all of us are called to be missionaries. Most of us, especially in America will sleep in nice warm beds. Have our choice of foods and can preach without the threat of the law. Many missionaries don’t always have these things. Yet most missionaries don’t talk about discomforts. They usually talk about how God has put such love in their hearts for they people He’s sent them to. They don’t talk about all they give up that we don’t. Mostly they ask for our prayers. Like Paul, they knew thier work can’t be done without it.

Is the job of the person asked to pray for the missionary any less important than the missionary’s? Paul didn’t seem to think so. In fact he was incredibly thankful for it.

Here’s our delimia:
Tell me if this sounds familiar to you. A missionary comes to your church. Everyone is moved by the stories of conversations and churches being built. All of which couldn’t have happened without prayer. You shake their hand on the way out and you’re definitely going to pray for them. They gave  out fridge magnets (or something like it) for people to see and be reminded to pray. That night you pray for the missionary whose stories touched your heart. Their magnet is already on your fridge. For a while every time you see that magnet. You say a little prayer. Then after a while, you’ve gotten so used to the magnet it’s become part of the scenery as much as your toaster or coffee maker.

It happens, our lives happen. Magnets become scenery, we don’t see these missionaries often. Out of sight out of mind.

When we do stop to think of all the missionaries out there plugging away without our prayers. It compelles us to want to pray right? We have the love of Christ and it’s the right thing to do.

The problems:
How are we going to keep this commitment to pray from becoming just like our past ones?
What exactly should we be praying? We might’ve known their exact prayer request at one time but again life happens.

The solution I want to give you is two folds. The first almost seems like a repeat of the past but hang in there with me. First Commit to it, and put what I’m about to give you in a good place. Maybe next to your bed, so you can use it before you go to sleep. Maybe in your Bible or  on your desk where you sit for devotions. Perhaps up on your computer screen somewhere. Anywhere you not only see it on a regular basis but will be able to take a moment, a non preoccupied moment.
The difference between what I’m going to give you and the fridge magnet is that it’s not just a reminder. It’s a list of specific prayer request. I got this list from an actual group of missionaries. So we know these are things missionaries are actually requesting. I recommend going over one request a day. Or once a week or however this will work for you. Got can check them off or Again what works for you. The fact that they’re not just the same general prayer, I believe will keep you from getting to that point of just reciting your prayer. When, your mind is focused on a particular need it is more likely to be a heart felt prayer. Of course  let the Holy Spirit lead you in this. If it’s on your heart tip pray for attional needs on any given day, please do so. All the needs on the list are Biblical,so we know these are things we ought to keep in prayer.

Pray for all missionaries or ones  in particular, God has given you.

I Also I want to add, that these things aren’t do not only apply to missionaries. Again as the Holy Spirit leads, feel free to apply these requests to anyone else as well.
Praise be to God as He leads you.
If you try this, please let me know how it works for you. ❤

❤Your prayers count ❤
From the Taylors, American missionaries to Belgium.

Love for God
Overworked missionaries can become service-oriented rather than love-oriented. Pray that your missionaries’ lube for the Lord will deepen, and that that love for Him will be their prime motivation for service.

Love for others
Yes, Missionaries are human, and just like you, sometimes they have trouble showing lube and respect to those “difficult to love” people – either thier missionary coworkers or nationals. Pray that the Lord will make your missionaries love ” … increase and abound in lube one toward another; and toward all men, … ” (Thes. 3:12

A deeper relationship with God
Missionaries’ schedules can become so packed that they might skip on thier thine with the Lord. Pray that your missionaries world fallow Jesus’ example. It’s hard to imagine any missionary having a busier life than He did, yet He consistently sought out time alone to commune with His Father.

Spirit-controlled lives
Just like the rest of us, sometimes missionaries have a tendency to do the Lord’s work in the energy and ingenuity of the flesh. Pray that all be under the control and by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The fruit of the Spirit
As you pray that your missionaries will be under the control of the Holy Spirit, the very beauty of Jesus will be manifest in thier lives.

Wisdom and knowledge
Strong-willed missionaries often cube into conflict when two or more of them have opposing view-points. Pray that missionaries will have wisdom of God, which James describes as” … first pure, then peaceable, genital, easy to be treated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and workout hypocrisy’. (James 3:17)

Courage
Imagine your missionaries making the same prayer request Paul did in Ephesians 6:19: “And got me, today utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,”

Receptive hearts
Pray for divine providence, that the Lord will lead your missionaries to people whose hearts will be open to hearing and receiving the gospel message.

Disciples
Pray that your missionaries will experience the joy of losing others to salvation, and “Teaching them to observe all things I have commanded you…” Matt. 28:20

Strong faith
The apostles one made a direct request of Jesus: … Increase our faith.” (Lk. 17:5) Pray that your missionaries will have faith that will lead them to ask great things of the Lord.

Steadfastness
Pray that your missionaries will follow Paul’s advice. ” … new steadfast, in three work of the Lord, forasmuch as you know that your labor is not in vain inn the Lord.” ( Col. 15:58)

A Strong family
Cross-cultural living can magnify even small family conflicts. Push that members of missionary families will be drawn together, not torn apart, by living in a new culture.

Protection
Missionaries are pine targets of the enemy. Join Jesus in praying to the Father: “I pray not that you should take them out of the world, but that you would keep them from all evil.” (Jn. 17:5)

Material needs
Missionaries often face harsh living conditions, and May have to struggle to meet basic physical needs. Pray that the Lord will supply all thier financial and material needs ” … may Food supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:19)

Health and strength
In a violent world, missionaries face not only sickness, but may also be victims of crime, or even get caught in the mist of civil war. Pray that the Lord will grant the measure of health and strength that will bring His greatest glory and greatest good for His missionaries.

Much 💜 in the Savior Christ Jesus, Kelly ClayWoo

 

1. Trust He understands you…”I bow my knees to the Father…that He would grant you…to be strengthened with the might of the Spirit.”(What to pray for and how)

 

I bow my knees to the Father…that He would grant  you…to be strengthened with the might of the Spirit. Eph. 3:13,16

Why are we able to pray for the Holy Spirit to do this?

And there came a fire out from before the LORD, and consumed  the altar the burnt offering and the fat: and when all the people saw it they gave a loud cry, falling down on their faces. Lev. 9:24

After the sacrifice was made for the people’s sin, the Spirit of God came down and the people worshiped seeing this awesome power! People are sinful and God is Holy so He cannot be with them. Sin’s Punishment being death, there must be death to atone for us. I remind you of this because we must always keep in mind that we can only approach God because of what Jesus did for us on the cross.

By this which we are sanctified(made holy) through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Heb.10:10.

When we pray for the Holy Spirit to strengthen one another as  Paul was for the Ephesians, we can ask because Jesus made atonement once and for all. We know God freely gives His spirit to the saints.

We’re praying with the power of the Holy Spirit!

Likewise the God’s Spirit also helps us because we are weak. We do not know how  we ought to pray. But God’s Spirit Himself prays on our behalf. He cries to God on our Behalf in a way that nobody could say with words. Rom. 8:26

SO AWESOME!

The Bible tells us things we should pray for, but much of how prayer even works can be a mystery. However God”s Spirit, the Holy Spirit knows. Living with in us, even though our feeble minds cannot fully grasp it. Even when our feelings but cannot be put it into words God knows. Don’t talk to the LORD as if he’s someone you have to explain things perfectly to. I know some Prayer “Experts” like to tell you there’s  certain words you must pray in order to be effective. As if God is unable a to misunderstand you. As if He might even misunderstand you. How could this be?!  God knows everything in our hearts. Psalm 44:21 would God have discovered it, since He knows the hearts?

God knows everything!  He is not capable of misunderstanding.

When  our heart is right and our words are wrong, He knows our weakness and hears our heart instead. Don’t let anyone intimate you out of praying! Many pray out of pride and sound wonderful, again God knows their heart as well.“They have received their reward” Matt.6:5

Back to our title verse: I bow my knees to the Father…that He would grant you…to be strengthened with the might of the Spirit. Eph. 3:13,16

Pray for the Spirit of God to strengthen all members of the church. That they would be living in the might of His Spirit. Not for themselves but for His Glory. Pray for areas of weakness you  see in the church or in yourself. Pray that everything we do is in His might and brings glory to His name. Pray relaying on the fact that His cross has brought you to the presence of God to pray, and that God Himself now lives within you and prays though you, even when your lost for words. All this is possible because of His sacrifice for you, we must keep that ever present in our minds. Know as you pray that words might fail you but God hears your heart as you pray for your fellow believers and yourself. Be aware careful of any pride that may be guiding your prayer life.Remember He hears that too. Keep in mind His glory and not your own. When you find yourself being prideful confess and receive His forgiveness . Turn your focus again to bringing Him glory.

To Christ be the glory…