Tag Archives: church

Forty Days of Praying the Word of God: Day 39

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 1:8

Lord, we need Your Spirit to come upon us today. I pray for a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit over, in, and through Your Church in this generation. I pray we will stop being witnesses to what the world is doing around us, and will instead become Your witnesses, in our own nation and to the ends of the earth. I pray that we will stop talking about what politicians are doing and begin to speak of what You are doing in the earth right now. I pray for those of us who feel powerless, to receive afresh the power of the Holy Spirit to proclaim Your truth.

I pray that as Your Church seeks You in this hour, You will begin to shake the room and fill us afresh with Your Spirit, Lord. And I pray we will then have courage and boldness to proclaim Your name to the nations. That we will speak Your truth, and tell of Your awesome power and Your wonderous deeds. I pray that, under the power of Your Spirit, Your Word will go forth, running swiftly through the streets of our nation, compelling hearts to turn from darkness to light.

Father, I pray for the power of Your Holy Spirit to fill our pulpits and our homes. I pray that every crooked place would be made straight, everything hidden will be brought to light, and that Your Church would walk and talk as those baptized into Your death, and raised up to Your life, holy and clothed in the righteousness of Christ.

Lord Jesus, I am asking that You breath upon Your Church again, filling us with Your Holy Spirit and power. Renew us, refresh us, and fill our cups again. Holy Spirit, teach us, remind us, and point us toward home, toward the throne of our Father.

Empty us of ourselves, and fill us with Yourself.

In the Name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

Forty Days of Praying the Word of God: Day 38

“ Do not be yoked together with those who do not believe. For what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? What agreement does Christ have with Belial? For what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?” 

2 Corinthians 6:14-15

Lord, I pray for an increase in our obedience to Your whole word, including in the area of our alliances, partnerships, and marriages.

I pray that we will stop seeking common ground, and yoking ourselves with unbelievers. May we stop trying to partner righteousness with unrighteousness. I pray that we will be a people who set themselves apart, not as better than, but as different from. May every relationship we have with those in the world be redemptive, and gospel driven.

I pray we will be in the world, but not of it. That we will not allow ourselves to become conformed to the systems and ideologies of this world, but will continually seek transformation through the renewing of our minds by Your word. (Romans 12)

I pray that we will not compromise in order to keep from being hated by this world, but that we will rejoice in being identified with our Savior, who was hated first. May the love of God being poured out through us have priority over the approval of man being poured out on us. (Matthew 5; John 15)

I pray that nothing the world offers us will entice us, but that we will find all we need in You. May we find life and joy in You alone. (Psalm 16; John 10)

I pray that more and more, You will have a set apart people for Your own, a holy people that You have called out of the world, rescued from the dominion of darkness and brought into the Kingdom of Your Son. A people who love You and who love the people of this world as You do, but who have come out from among them. And from that love, may we go back out into the world to give them the good news of Your love and redemption.

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

Forty Days of Praying the Word of God: Day 32

“Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience…”

Colossians 3:12

Father, You have chosen me, made me holy, and loved me, and I’m forever grateful. I pray for myself now, as well as for all of Your children, and I ask that You would teach us to put on compassion. I pray that we would turn from our outrage, from our suspicions, and from our side-taking ways, and begin to let compassion flow from us. Compassion for victims and families and all who are touched by the violence that is raging right now. When we could choose blame, let us choose compassion. Rather than assumptions, may we give compassion. Lord, make us the voice of compassion in the crowds of hate filled rhetoric, blame, and accusation.

As easy as it is to join the fray and raise our fists and exercise our outrage, I pray we will choose instead to look for Your footprints. I pray we will do the harder task of dying to our own opinions and choose to be like You, to have Your mind and Your heart.

Bring me, bring us, to a place repentance, so that we can rise up to kindness and humility. Gentle us Lord, gentle our attitudes and our voices. And may we wait, with patience, for You to cause everything to conform to Your purposes. I pray we will speak to injustice and give the voiceless a voice, but with compassion, with kindness, and with our ear leaned toward You, listening for Your heart, not to the many voices calling for our agreement down here.

Father, the worst of our culture has brought out the worst in us, and I pray it will stop. I pray that we will come to our senses as the people of God, and begin to walk in Your Spirit, against our own flesh. I pray for a holy restraint to come upon the Church – not a restraint of truth, but a restraint of our harsh words, our opinions stated as facts, and a restraint of our unkindness toward one another.

Jesus, call us again to ‘come, follow’ You, as You act with compassion for the world You died to save.

In Your name I pray. Amen.

Forty Days of Praying the Word of God: Day 30

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted…”

“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…”

Matthew 5:10; 2 Timothy 3:12; Matthew 5:44

Father, I pray for the persecuted Christians around the world, and I ask that Your presence would be so near to them, so tangible to them. I pray they will be strengthened in mind, body, and spirit by the Holy Spirit as they endure. I pray that You will encourage their hearts and be their continual comfort. I pray they will have the courage to speak truth, to preach the gospel, and to love those who are persecuting them. I pray that they will see the salvation of their persecutors! I pray that in the midst of persecution, Your Church will increase and be strengthened.

I pray for us, those who are not currently enduring serious persecution. Urge our hearts to pray for our brothers and sisters in the persecuted Church, Lord. Open our eyes to see them, and open our mouths to cry out on their behalf.

Father, I pray for an increased desire in Your people to live godly lives, even if it brings persecution. I pray that our souls will not yield to fear, will not yield to culture, will not yield to opinion, but will yield only to You. I pray we will steadfastly walk in Your ways, speak Your truth, and long for Your return. Strengthen us, and give us courage to walk contrary to the world around us, and to endure any persecution that comes from it. I pray that we will take the gospel You have entrusted to us into every place You send us, regardless of where that is. I pray that the gospel will go forth in increasing measure in the earth, especially in the western world. I pray for an increase in our witness here in the United States. May we see an increase in the sharing of the gospel in our neighborhoods, our grocery stores, our schools, and our workplaces. May we be willing to cross man made boundaries with Your life saving truth. I pray You will give us Your eyes to see the lost around us, and Your heart to see them saved. I pray, Father, that Your people will sense the urgency of the hour, and respond to Your Spirit.

I pray that You will teach us to pray for our enemies. May we be found praying for those who hurt us, reject us, and threaten us. Fill our hearts with Your love that we might actually, truly, love those who come against us. And in the days to come, in our hour of persecution, I pray that the Church in the west will rise up to be Your witnesses, not our own.

Prepare us, God, I pray. Prepare us to endure to the end. Prepare us to overcome by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of our testimony. Prepare us to love not our lives, even unto death.

“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”

Revelation 12:11

Increase our longing for You, Jesus. Increase our desire to walk as You walked, to partake of Your suffering, as well as Your joy. Let the pull of this earth lose its strength over us, as the pull of heaven draws us to fix our eyes on You. May we, for the joy set before us, take up our own cross and follow You.

In Your Name I pray. Amen.

Forty Days of Praying the Word of God: Day 28

“Speak up for those who have no voice, for the justice of all who are dispossessed. Speak up, judge righteously, and defend the cause of the oppressed and needy.”

Proverbs 31:8-9

Father, I pray that You will give the Church her voice in this hour, and teach us to use it in righteousness. I pray that we will speak Your truth over and over again. I pray that we will cry out on behalf of the voiceless among us.

I pray we will see injustice and with one voice we would cry out against it. I pray we will not excuse it, but will speak truth to it. I also pray that we will not call injustice what the world calls injustice, but will seek Your heart and Your Word, so as to judge righteously.

Father, may Your Church lead out in this hour on behalf of the oppressed. May we counter our current culture with wisdom and mercy and compassion. Would we be the ones who rush in to love the victims of injustice and oppression with Your love. Would we see open doors for the gospel and boldly walk through them.

I pray that You will go through our land Lord, and stem the tide of racial divide and hatred. Come and do what we cannot do, Lord – cleanse the hearts and minds of this nation and heal her wounds. I pray for truth to be revealed wherever there has been deception and lies. I pray for humility where pride and all things “self” have led the day. I pray for conviction of our sins on every side.

I pray for courage for Your people. Courage to speak up and to be silent. Courage to act and to wait upon You. Courage to pray that Your perfect will would be done in this nation and in Your Church, no matter what. The courage to pray that You will do whatever it takes to turn our hearts back to You.

In the Name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Forty Days of Praying the Word of God: Day 27

“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.”

Psalm 127:3

Lord, today I pray for our children, and I hardly know where to begin. My heart is grieving, as must Yours be.

Father, I pray for repentance to sweep this nation for the blood of the innocent we have spilled through abortion. I pray that You will turn the tide that we cannot turn, Lord, and You will put an end to the abomination of killing our unborn. I pray that You would move, by Your Spirit, upon every woman contemplating an abortion right now, changing her heart and her mind. I pray that the demand for abortions would be eliminated, so that the suppliers will fall away. And I lift up to You all who have had abortions, and I pray salvation, mercy and healing over them. Would You pour out Your grace upon the mothers and the fathers, and lead them to their own surrender.

I come against the schemes of the enemy against our children through transgenderism, and I pray for Your truth to reign victorious in this battle. Lord, protect this generation from the mutilation being done to them. I pray again for repentance to come – to parents, to doctors, to all who advocate for evil, thinking it is good. I pray that You would lift the veil of deception and expose the works of the devil.

I pray for our children living in neglect and abuse and I ask that You would cover them. I pray that You will be their great Defender, their Comforter, and their Deliverer.

I pray for the children living with hunger and ask that You would open Your hand to them and satisfy their physical hunger, emotional hunger, and spiritual hunger.

I pray for those who are struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts, and I ask that You would intervene on their behalf. I pray You will send forth Your light, and lead them out of darkness, and into Your presence. I pray for healing for mental illnesses, for physical disease, and for the emotional trauma that our children are suffering.

Father, would You surround our children, and shield them from what the enemy has planned for them. I declare that You are a God of generations, and that You have a destiny for every child. Would You set a guard over each of those destinies, and would You turn this war for our children back on the enemy.

And I pray that all of this would be accomplished through Your great power, working in and through Your Church. May we continue to step up to the front lines and speak Your truth, and be Your hands and feet, and Your heart of love for these broken ones. Empower Your people to become a force against the darkness that wants to destroy a generation.

In the mighty Name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

Forty Days of Praying the Word of God: Day 21

“And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.”

Acts 4:31

Father, we are in need of a filling – a place shaking filling of Your Holy Spirit. Fill us up, I pray, and send us out to speak Your word, to be light in the dark. I pray that in every corner of the earth, Your Church will begin to fill up with Holy Spirit power!

I pray that You will pour out Your Spirit, stirring dreams and visions and prophecies in Your people. I pray that we will be led by Your Spirit, that we will walk in Your Spirit, and that Your Church will be visible fruit-bearers of Your Spirit, walking in greater and greater measures of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

I pray that our homes, our marriages, our families, our workplaces – in every place and in every relationship – we will bear evidence of Your Spirit within us.

I pray for a fresh move of Your Spirit, a fresh outpouring, to bring both power and conviction to the Body of Christ. May Your Spirit not be quenched in Your people, Lord, but may we instead match the very rhythm of our steps to the steps of the Spirit of God. I pray that we will once again walk in the healing, delivering, power of Your Spirit – healing the sick, breaking off oppression, lifting the downcast, setting captives free. Rid us of our programs designed to entertain. Strip us of our need for the attention and approval of men. Reduce us again to be lovers and followers of Jesus who pray for the boldness to do what You call us to do. May we be emptied of wise and persuasive words, and filled with the power of Your Spirit.

Father, I pray that You will begin to move through our congregations with the power of Your Spirit, cleansing us of what makes us lethargic and lukewarm, and breathing on the flame within us so that a passion for Your truth and Your ways will burn in us again. May we abandon all that is not of You, everything we have invented to make us feel religious, everything that pacifies our flesh while quenching Your Spirit. Come like fire, and burn the hay and stubble of fruitless works, works done by us and for us. Wake us from our slumber, Lord, by the shaking of Your Holy Spirit.

Empty us of us, and fill us with You, Lord God.

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

Joel 2:28; Acts 2:17; John 6:63; 1 Thessalonians 5:19; Acts 13:52; Galatians 5:22-23; Galatians 5:25; 1 Corinthians 3:12-15; 1 Corinthians 2:4