10 Things I'm Praying for My Church
1. I pray for my own preaching of the gospel. I pray that I preach (and teach and live) faithfully. I pray that I am accurate and clear when I preach. That I am creative and practical. I pray that I never bore people with the gospel, AND that I never sacrifice the gospel to entertain.
2. I pray for the increasing maturity of the congregation. I am thankful for Intl Church. I am thankful for the mature Christian leaders that God has put around me here. I am thankful for the lack of conflict and unity about who we are and what we are trying to do. I pray that our testimony about God be pure and attractive to Christians and non-Christians alike.
3. I pray that people will be converted and that the church will be built up. I pray that everyone who comes into contact with our church would be moved into a closer and more authentic relationship with God.
4. I pray for opportunities to talk to people about God. I pray especially for opportunities to talk to people who I don't see eye-to-eye with and I pray that I would really listen to them and they would really listen to me and that God would reveal himself to both of us.
5. I pray for our ministry partners. Each month our church supports (prayer, money, volunteers) a different ministry somewhere in Thailand. Generally those ministries are doing work with some of the poorest and most vulnerable people in Thailand. I pray for them. I pray that they have enough resources (money and people) to not have to turn people in need away. I pray that those who work for and with them have strength because sometimes they work in hard conditions. I pray for the folks they serve (orphans, people with disabilities, trafficked persons, etc...)
6. I pray for our children. We have lots of kids at Intl Church. I pray that they meet and fall in love with Jesus. I pray that they are safe. I pray that we have enough teachers in our Sunday school program who love them and give their best to teach them. And I thank God for the wonderful teachers and kids we have now!
7. I pray for our music program. I pray for more musicians and singers in our church who worship and serve God by using their musical skills. I pray for our Sunday morning choir and for our Sunday evening teams and leaders. I pray for joy and enthusiasm in our music program. And I thank God for the people who serve in music leadership now.
8. I pray for greater financial resources. God has blessed Intl Church over the last few years. In the six years I have been pastor we've run substantial surpluses of income vs expenses every year except one. We've built a nice cushion of savings. I pray that the abundance of money would continue and that those (of us) who live with a mentality of fear about money resources would have the confidence to spend the resources God gives us rather than horde them. And I pray that we'd spend freely and faithfully.
9. I pray for wisdom as needs are brought to my attention. I pray for those in our congregation who do not know where they are getting their next meal from and are living a nightmare. I pray for their dignity. I pray that Thailand and other countries would begin to treat refugees more humanely.
10. I pray for guidance and inspiration in all I do. And I pray for forgiveness when it becomes clear to me that either I've not listened to God or that I've not had the courage to do what I clearly heard God saying do.
This is not EVERYTHING I pray, but it is a list of some of the things I pray regularly.
How do you pray? For your church? For your family? For your neighbors?
