Are you like me? Have
you made and already blown your New Year’s Resolutions? One of my resolutions was to develop a more
consistent prayer time. If you are like
me, you are having a hard time being consistent in praying for your friends,
loved ones and for yourself. Recently, a
friend of mine sent me the following guide which has helped me tremendously in
organizing my prayer life and being more consistent. You might want to make copies for each person
for whom you pray. For example, I have
divided all the names and designated a day of the week to pray for each one,
although, some I pray for daily. I added
names and personal pronouns where applicable.
PRAYING THE
SCRIPTURE
(Put name of spouse, children,
friend,those in need in blanks)
1.
The Lord
bless_______________and keep______________. The Lord make His face to shine
upon ______________and be gracious to _______________. The Lord turn His face
toward______________and give ______________peace. Numbers 6:24-26
2.
So do
not fear for I AM with______________. Do not be dismayed, for I
AM______________God. I will strengthen______________and help______________. I
will uphold______________with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10
3.
May the
words of______________mouth and the meditations of______________heart be
pleasing in Your sight, O Lord my Rock and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14
4.
Create
in______________a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit
within______________. Psalm 51:10
5.
I have
not stopped praying for______________and asking God to fill______________with
the knowledge of His will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And
we pray this in order that______________may live a life worthy of the Lord and
may please Him in every way; bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the
knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to His glorious
might so that______________may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully
giving thanks to the father, who has qualified______________to share in the
inheritance of the saints in the Kingdom of Light. Colossians 1:9-12
6.
Let the
peace of Christ dwell in______________heart.
Colossians 3:15
7.
______________can
do all things thru Christ who strengthens him/her. Philippians 4:13
8.
I pray
that out of His glorious riches, He may strengthen______________with power
through the Holy Spirit in______________inner being, so that Christ may dwell
in______________heart through faith. And saints, to grasp how wide and long and
high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpassed
knowledge, that______________may be filled to the measure of all the fullness
of God. Ephesians 3:16-19
The Lord
Himself goes before______________and will be with______________; He will never
leave______________nor forsake______________. Do not be afraid or
discouraged. Deuteronomy 31:8; Hebrews 13:5
10.
Deliver______________from
the evil one. Matthew 6:13
11.
To Him
who is able to keep______________from falling and to
present______________before His glorious presence without fault and with great
joy; to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through
Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore.Jude 24
I hope
this helps you. It can be a springboard to praying more specifically for the
person about whom you care. We all pretty much know the importance of prayer.
We appreciate it when people tell us they are praying for us. Sometimes, we
casually tell a person we will pray for them and promptly forget to do it. I
try not to do that anymore. Either I ask
the person if I can pray at that moment if the situation allows it or I write
it in the note app on my phone.
I hope I
have not come across as "having it altogether" now because I am a
long way from that. In fact, last Saturday I forgot to even look at my list to
see whom I was supposed to pray for that day!
Someone once said that if you do something for twenty-one straight days
it can become a habit.
NET WORK
NEWS AND NEEDS:
The
Friday Morning Group has been meeting together now for seventeen years and is
still going strong. We are re-visiting an old favorite "The Man In The
Mirror."
Members
of our group have been instrumental in helping The House Of Hope ministry in
Guatemala, which we support, develop a professional business plan for a
subsidiary ministry, "Sewing Into The Kingdom", which trains some of
the mothers of children in the House of Hope feeding and educational ministry
to operate commercial sewing machines. The men have also provided some of the
funding, which has enabled this endeavor to begin with the hiring and training
of four women. Mike Robertson, the Director of House of Hope Ministry has
secured contract work from the Central American subsidiary of a major American
sporting goods company.
We have
been counseling individual men with their marriage and employment issues.
We
officiated a funeral for a childhood friend's mother.
I would
ask that you start one of those prayer pages for Net Work Ministries and me! We need
your prayers and financial support.