Church Family,
I hope you are having a great start to 2022! As we begin this new year, let’s commit to being serious about prayer! Below is a devotion from Charles Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening on prayer:
Morning and Evening by Spurgeon, January 2
Colossians 4:2 Continue in prayer.
It is interesting to remark how large a portion of Sacred Writ is occupied with the subject of prayer, either in furnishing examples, enforcing precepts, or pronouncing promises. We scarcely open the Bible before we read, “Then began men to call upon the name of the Lord;” and just as we are about to close the volume, the “Amen” of an earnest supplication meets our ear. Instances are plentiful. Here we find a wrestling Jacob–there a Daniel who prayed three times a day–and a David who with all his heart called upon his God. On the mountain we see Elias; in the dungeon Paul and Silas. We have multitudes of commands, and myriads of promises. What does this teach us, but the sacred importance and necessity of prayer? We may be certain that whatever God has made prominent in His Word, He intended to be conspicuous in our lives. If He has said much about prayer, it is because He knows we have much need of it. So deep are our necessities, that until we are in heaven we must not cease to pray. Dost thou want nothing? Then, I fear thou dost not know thy poverty. Hast thou no mercy to ask of God? Then, may the Lord’s mercy show thee thy misery! A prayerless soul is a Christless soul. Prayer is the lisping of the believing infant, the shout of the fighting believer, the requiem of the dying saint falling asleep in Jesus. It is the breath, the watchword, the comfort, the strength, the honor of a Christian. If thou be a child of God, thou wilt seek thy Father’s face, and live in thy Father’s love. Pray that this year thou mayst be holy, humble, zealous, and patient; have closer communion with Christ, and enter oftener into the banqueting-house of His love. Pray that thou mayst be an example and a blessing unto others, and that thou mayst live more to the glory of thy Master. The motto for this year must be, “Continue in prayer.”
As we start a new year, I want to encourage you to make prayer a priority. Like this challenge from Spurgeon, we want to be a church that continues in prayer!
In particular, I want to invite you to be a part of our Prayer Warriors ministry. When you join this ministry, you will receive monthly devotions encouraging you in prayer and also giving you specific requests around our church that you can be taking to the throne of God. In addition, you will be part of our prayer team one Sunday a month. On that Sunday, you commit to be praying for our services.
If you are interested in being a part of our Prayer Warriors ministry, please contact the church office or Larry Condra, the leader of this ministry. We would love to have you join this vital ministry and make prayer a priority in 2022!
In Him,
Pastor Zach