For Vision in The Church

Jesus, you gave us a vision for your Church when you said, "Go, therefore, and make disciples." Cultivate that vision in our congregation today. In planning our future, move us to consider what avenues of preaching, teaching and reaching out to people would do the most good in spreading the Gospel message to the world around us and letting it flourish. Father God, send Your Holy Spirit to dwell in us, giving us an unquenchable thirst for Your Word and a hunger for seeking Your face in all we do. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Let us bring our prayers for our fellow believers and for all people to our heavenly Father’s throne of grace, trusting His promise to answer in the way He knows to be best.

Gracious Father, we confess that without Your Son we are dead in our trespasses, overpowered by Satan, and overcome by our own sinful desires. O God, be merciful to us sinners. Grant to us a repentant faith so that we never cease believing that because of Christ Jesus You have raised us from death to life and given us heaven instead of hell. By Your Holy Spirit enable us to accomplish the good works that You have created us in Christ Jesus to do.

Lord in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Father, fill us with a hatred for our sinfulness and a desire to please You. Make us humble as little children, just as Your Son, the greatest in Your kingdom, humbled Himself for us and for our salvation. Because You desire that none of Your little ones should perish and because sin is constantly crouching at our door, we beg You to call us back to Yourself when we are tempted to stray, deliver us from temptation and keep us in faith.

Lord in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Father, we pray for all the little ones who believe in You. Keep us and everyone else from leading them into sin. Through their parents, their pastors, and their teachers, teach them Your truth and Your ways so that they grow up trusting Christ’s forgiveness and living as Your children.

Lord in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Father, form in us a love that cares so fervently about each other that we are willing to confront unrepented sin and joyfully speak Your forgiveness to those who confess. Make us a Church that is willing to excommunicate when necessary and that always desires and rejoices over each sinner who is restored to You.

Lord in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Father, we believe You when You tell us that our governing authorities receive their authority from You. So teach us to obey You by obeying them. Provide us with rulers who are not a terror to good conduct but to bad. Endow those who lead our nation with wisdom as they make, administer, and judge our laws.

Lord in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Father teach us to bring our gifts to You in humble gratitude for all the ways You lovingly provide for us. We ask You to provide honest and fruitful laborers in our land. Be with those who are unemployed or underemployed. Use us and others to provide for their needs, and lead them to opportunities where they may earn a living and serve You.

Lord in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Father, as You marked Cain and gave him Your protection even though he was a sinner, we thank You that You have marked us in Holy Baptism and protect us from spiritual harm even though we are sinners. We praise You for washing away the sins of each of us. Deliver us when sin and Satan attack us, and renew us in faith and life.

Lord in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Father, because You have made us our brother’s keeper, fill us with care for the members of our earthly families and for our brothers and sisters in Christ. By Your promises and by Your Son’s body and blood, forgive our sins and strengthen us to live so that we owe no one anything except to love one other.

Lord in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

These prayers we bring before You, gracious Father, by the guiding of Your Spirit and in the name of Jesus, Amen.

GS Youth in Joplin, MO

We thank and praise You, Lord Jesus, for giving us the ultimate holy example in realizing our relationship with our Father God ... even in the most menial task: "Jesus, knowing ... that He had come from God and was going to God, ... took a towel ... and began to wash the disciples' feet ..." (John 13:3-5)

Thank You, heavenly Father, for the opportunity to show Your love, the love of Jesus, to some people that have lost every material thing they have. Thank you for guiding and protecting the vehicles and their precious occupants during the long drive to Joplin on Saturday. Please continue to send Your holy angels to keep them safe and out of harm's way as they do the work You've set before them this week.

As these youth and adults work, Lord, we implore You to give them everything they need to really be the hands and feet of Jesus to everyone they serve. Holy Spirit, fill their hearts with the servant's heart of Jesus ... fill them with discernment and wisdom and love ... and guide their words and actions so that everything they say and do points people to know, love, and follow our savior, Jesus Christ.

Father God, You are in control of everything and we are trusting You to control the weather and ask for Your protection from extreme heat and other conditions that could hamper efforts and weaken human strength. In all things fill up the people serving and the people being served with with Your strength and Your energy and Your peace.

We ask all this and so much more in the mighty name of Jesus, our best friend. Amen.

Our Interim Pastor

Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Your Holy Spirit to live in each of us so that we can believe Christ Jesus is our Lord and Savior!

Precious Jesus, thank you for being exactly who You say You are ... redeemer, sustainer, life giver, wonderful counselor, savior, ultimate lover of our souls!

We praise You, God, for Pastor Mackowiak and all the experience, wisdom, and Holy Spirit-filled discernment You have given him ... for such a time as this. Thank you with blessing us with his presence at Good Shepherd! We are trusting You, Lord, to do big things at Good Shepherd to build and strengthen the body of Christ in our members and to those outside our doors who do not yet know You as their awesome, loving God!

We are here, Lord, to serve You. Settle in us a deep longing to be in Your Word and to come to You, Father God, in unceasing prayer. As we get to know Pastor Mackowiak, please guide our thoughts and words that they may be acceptable and pleasing in Your sight, O God. Encourage us to lay our crowns at Your feet, casting aside our pride, and our narrow and comfortable thinking that is not Yours, Lord. Move us out of the way so Your Way is the only one that everyone sees and accepts. Bless us with wisdom and discernment so that in all we do we are seeking Your face, Your will, Your desire for our hearts ... that everything we do is done to bring glory to You, Lord.

Teach us Your ways, O Lord. Fill us with everything that is good and perfect, everything that is Christ Jesus, in whose name we pray and whose feet we lay our crowns before. Amen.

Praying for GS Haiti Mission Team

Some of the team has what Michelle is calling "travelers' flu," an intestinal flu. They have had non-stop rain for days now, with no breaks, so they are wet, tired, and some are sick.

Many only took a few clothes along in order to make more room for medical and other supplies, because always before we were able to wash and hang dry clothing...that hasn't been possible on this trip. There are now clothes hanging under the porch at one house, and as long as the rain keeps coming down vertically, they may dry some.
As you can see, there are lots of reasons that spirits may be discouraged, so we need to pray about that, too!
The good news is that this flu is responding to Cipro antibiotics; but it's leaving them weak as they recover. They need to travel all day on Monday, so they need strength and for no one else to get sick, if possible.
Also, Leonie is still not feeling well, so some prayers for her and prayers for wisdom as they discuss whether she might want, or need, to travel to the U.S. to see a doctor.

Mighty, merciful Father God, You know all things and are in control of everything! We thank and praise You for that! We are so grateful that You are our loving, sovereign King and that You always have our best interests in mind! Holy Spirit, abide in us and keep our thoughts on trusting You for all our needs.

We come before You, Lord, asking for Your healing hand to be upon our team in Haiti, that You would clear away all illness from their bodies as they try to work and enjoy these last couple of days there. We want them to feel good, to be strong and able to serve, and to have energy to attend worship tomorrow. God, You are in control and You will make it all happen just as it should! We are trusting You to accomplish all that You have planned!

Lord God, King of Your universe, we ask that, if it is Your will, that You make the rain stop for a while. From what the photos show of Les Cayes, there is flooding, Lord. Again, Father God, You are in control and You know and will do what is best. May our wants and needs be in line with what Your good and perfect will is for us and the people of Haiti.

Our hearts go our to our friends, family, and all Your children, Father God. Please continue to keep them all in Your loving arms. Guide, protect, comfort and strengthen them all. Give them wisdom and discernment to know and do what You would have them do. Bless their time and travel for those who will be leaving on Monday to return to their Michigan homes. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray all these things and everything else that is on our minds, trusting You to take care of all that is needed and in line with Your perfect will. Amen.

Praying Without Ceasing

The beginning of this post is copied directly from utmost.org
My Utmost For His Highest Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers

Our thinking about prayer, whether right or wrong, is based on our own mental conception of it. The correct concept is to think of prayer as the breath in our lungs and the blood from our hearts. Our blood flows and our breathing continues “without ceasing”; we are not even conscious of it, but it never stops. And we are not always conscious of Jesus keeping us in perfect oneness with God, but if we are obeying Him, He always is. Prayer is not an exercise, it is the life of the saint. Beware of anything that stops the offering up of prayer. “Pray without ceasing . . .”— maintain the childlike habit of offering up prayer in your heart to God all the time.

Jesus never mentioned unanswered prayer. He had the unlimited certainty of knowing that prayer is always answered. Do we have through the Spirit of God that inexpressible certainty that Jesus had about prayer, or do we think of the times when it seemed that God did not answer our prayer? Jesus said, “. . . everyone who asks receives . . .” (Matthew 7:8). Yet we say, “But . . . , but . . . .” God answers prayer in the best way— not just sometimes, but every time. However, the evidence of the answer in the area we want it may not always immediately follow. Do we expect God to answer prayer?

The danger we have is that we want to water down what Jesus said to make it mean something that aligns with our common sense. But if it were only common sense, what He said would not even be worthwhile. The things Jesus taught about prayer are supernatural truths He reveals to us.

http://utmost.org/thinking-of-prayer-as-jesus-taught/

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for teaching us to pray. Thank you, Father God, for sending Your Holy Spirit to dwell within us. Thank you for Your Word, which keeps us strong, gives us comfort, settles our souls, and keeps us focused on what really matters ...
Romans 8
Life Through the Spirit
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.

9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.

12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.

14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Present Suffering and Future Glory
18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that[h] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.
22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

More Than Conquerors
31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered."

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Praying for our Catechumens

As Sunday approaches and the Catechumens become Confirmands, we pray . . .

Lord God,
Renew the strength of the young so that they shall rise up with wings like eagles.

We pray,
remember not the sins of their youth,
forgive any squandering of their early years,
pardon juvenile neglect of duty.

Grant them
the faith of young Isaac,
the vision of young Joseph,
the obedience of young Samuel,
the vitality of young David,
the tenderness of young Jonathan,
the wisdom of young Solomon,
the courage of young Daniel,
the zeal of young Timothy.

Deliver them from the temptations of youth,
from unbelief,
from forgetting their baptism,
from losing the gift of Your Spirit.

Hear us for the sake of Your own Son,
who redeemed us by His grace.
Amen.