A brother in Christ of mine sent this to me, this morning, which I believe is a very good reminder for all the churches of Christ in the world! In Jim Cymbala's book, Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire, prayer in the church is like an engine in the car. Without an engine, the car (body) will NOT run; powerless. Without prayer (engine) in the church (body), the church is POWERLESS! So thanks to this brother for sharing this message with us. Let's pray before we proceed:
Father, You are our true and loving God! Despite of all the incidences, problems, successes and failures, these are necessary to show that we're merely less-than-perfect human beings in need of Your help! In prayer and in trust, we depend on You for Your strength to endure our struggles in this life. We want to praise You for them. It is my prayer that each and every Christian develop a spirit of humility and respect. Pray for our leaders (in the spiritual world). Pray for Your servants and they may serve You with an undying devotion. And we thank You for your patience with us as we continue to take one step at a time growing toward spiritual maturity. In Jesus' Name, Amen!
Thank you for serving God's church through prayer. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ called to serve the body in unity. God has given us His Holy Spirit and has placed within us one of the highest calling of the Christian faith praying for the needs of the body and others. Prayer team members are to encourage and left up the church.
Pray at home first. Make sure you are spending quality time alone with God daily in your own personal time of worship, prayer and fasting.. Do not allow the Church Prayer Meeting times to be your only time of prayer. Jesus warned us many times about those who love to stand before men and let their prayers be heard. Jesus called them hypocrites.
Enter the prayer room with good thoughts. Words of encouragements. Hope. Faith. Build up each other. Grumbling and complaining can set a bad tone for the entire evening.
Less Talking, More Praying. A prayer gathering is just a time to join together and pray. We have come together in a group to pray. Shared a few God stories filled with thanksgiving and praises. We enter the prayer's room with worship. Thanksgiving and praises. We cannot rush into the room waving our list of requests.
Make the Prayer Meeting a safe place. Do not make anyone others feel compelled to pray. The prayer meeting needs to be a safe place for beginners. Let beginners learn by listening to others. Listening and being still is ok. Never feel anxious about prayer or compeled to pray.
Allow the Holy Spirit to lead. Learn to listen. Learn to ask God to show you what to pray for.
Pray short and sweet. Most recorded prayers of Jesus were very short. If you pray many topics at once, it makes it difficult for others to focus your prayers. That way everyone has a chance to pray along with you.
Simple prayers are fine. Jesus taught us to come to God as little children. God knows our hearts. He wants us to talk to Him as a child would speak to his father.
Pray from your heart. With reverance.
Keep Prayers in confidence. Personal prayers are shared in prayer room. They trust the prayer team members will not share with others. We are free to share with others only if those we have prayed for give us permission to share.
"If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religious is worthless." James 1:26
Pray with Love. Make sure your heart motivation is pure as you pray.
Pray without judgment. Do not judge others. Jesus is the judge.
Pray in faith. Faith is believing God for things we have not seen. We must pray with faith.
Pray for God's will to be done. Not your will. Stay in His word.
Ask God to grow a strong Prayer Ministry in the Lord's church. Ask God to teach you how to pray. Ask God to show you His glory. Ask God to make Fairfax a House of Prayer.
Dear Lord,
I praise you that You are the God who hears and answer our prayers.Thank you that You long to be with us. Thank you for allowing us to come to You in prayer.
In Jesus name we pray,
Amen
1 comment:
Prayer is the most important component in our daily lives. Without God's power, our labor will be in vain. Often in the Bible, God's people fasted and prayed immediately before a major victory, miracle, or answer to prayer. It prepared them for a blessing!
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