Pray For the World

In praying for GBC, we can forget the rest of the world. I htought this prayer was important today.

We pray for the world in its beauty and wonder
We pray for the world in the bright jewelled sky
We pray for the world for a new life’s beginning
For the hope of a brand new day, we pray for the world
We pray for the world, for the beaten and battered
For orphans who cry for parents they need
For children who play where landmines are scattered, oh Lord
For the hope of a brand new day, we pray for the world

Pray for GBC and the world today.

Pray With Expectation

Matt 7:8-11 - "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it shall be opened. "Or what man is there among you, when his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone? "Or if he shall ask for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!

Do you pray like this is true? Do you have the confidence in God that you had in your parents? Try it, especially when praying for GBC.

Confessional Prayer

Found this prayer at a site I cannot recommend, but the prayer was good.

Forgive me my sins, O Lord,
forgive me the sins of my youth and the sins of mine age,
the sins of my soul, and the sins of my body,
my secret and whispering sins,
my presumptuous and my crying sins,
the sins that I have done to please myself,
and the sins that I have done to please others.
Forgive me those sins which I know,
and those sins which I know not.

Start your prayers this way today. You can count on God to grant the forgiveness you seek and from there your prayers for GBC and whatever else will be far more effective.

Pray For Help With Prayer

This is just hard:

1Thes 5:18 - in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Sometimes all we can do in prayer is ask God to help us pray. Let's do that today. Ask God how to pray -- ask Him to do what is best for GBC today.

Genuine Obedience

Oswald Chambers said"

The counterfeit of obedience is a state of mind in which you create your own opportunities to sacrifice yourself, and your zeal and enthusiasm are mistaken for discernment. It is easier to sacrifice yourself than to fulfill your spiritual destiny, which is stated in Romans 12:1-2 . It is much better to fulfill the purpose of God in your life by discerning His will than it is to perform great acts of self-sacrifice. "Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice . . ." ( 1 Samuel 15:22 ). Beware of paying attention or going back to what you once were, when God wants you to be something that you have never been. "If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know . . ." ( John 7:17 ).

Pray that all associated with GBC have this kind of obedience.

Hide

I love this passage:

Psalm 32:3-7

3 When I kept silent about my sin my body wasted away through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night Thy hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. Selah.
5 I acknowledged my sin to Thee, and my iniquity I did not hide; I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD"; and Thou didst forgive the guilt of my sin. Selah.
6 Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to Thee in a time when Thou mayest be found; surely in a flood of great waters they shall not reach him.
7 Thou art my hiding place; Thou dost preserve me from trouble; Thou dost surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.

We can hide from God or we can hide in God. Prayer is, in large part, about moving from one place to the other. Once we are hiding in God, all other issues come into proper perspective and are resolved. As you pray today, move to a place where you are hiding in God. The lift up GBC and rest assured all will be well.

Pray for Vocation

Blogging is a "young" activity. This prayer from a Catholic prayer site seemed appropriate:

O Holy Spirit, Spirit of wisdom and divine love, impart Your knowledge, understanding, and counsel to youth that they may know the vocation wherein they can best serve God. Give them courage and strength to follow God's holy will. Guide their uncertain steps, strengthen their resolutions, shield their chastity, fashion their minds, conquer their hearts, and lead them to the vineyards where they will labor in God's holy service.
Amen.

Remember the first GBC in this way today.