Prayer Service (6)

Good evening, Church!

Since we are starting a new Wed evening kids program and not really knowing what that might look like just yet, as far as visitors coming and so on, we have decided to move our monthly prayer service to the first Sunday night of the month, instead of the first Wed night of the month.

So tonight is our monthly prayer service.

We are going to do things a little differently tonight. Instead of breaking up into groups and praying with one another, I think there would be something special about just staying to ourselves and praying privately, or maybe with our spouses.

So if you guys want to get up and spread out, now would be the time to do that. We can use the whole the room, so find you a place with a little distance from others so that you can pray privately or with your bestie.

Tonight we are going to use this prayer time to think very specifically about some things. On Sunday mornings, we are leaning into this new thought of being Strangers in this world. We are in the world, but we are not of the world. So I want us to think about a few things under that umbrella, if you will.

Before we jump straight in, I want to share a few verses with you from the book of John. We are going to use these verses to guide us through the service tonight.

John 17:14–18 NKJV

14 I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. 18 As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.

In these verses, Jesus is praying to the Father concerning His disciples. He is praying for them. And He mentions some very specific things about them that I want us to see.

“Make Us Holy”

Jesus asks of the Father, “Sanctify them by Your truth.”

Set them apart, He says. Make them different. Make them fit for the Kingdom of God.

This is our first thought tonight. We all want to make a difference. We all want to be a positive example on other peoples lives. We all want to make an impact for the cause of Christ.

So tonight, I want us to take just a few minutes and pray for that specifically. Let’s:

Personal Repentance

Spiritual Disciplines

Victory Over Compromise

The Stirring of Our Hearts

“Keep Us Faithful”

In this text, Jesus also says, “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.”

Though we all have the desire to live faithfully before God, we all also need all the help we can get to do so. So in this next section, let’s take a moment to ask God for help to remain faithful.

Church Members

Children & Teenagers

Marriages and families

Christians in the workplaces and schools.

“Send Us Into The World”

In this prayer, Jesus says, “As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.” Each and every day, we are sent by God out into the world to shine the light of God into someone else’s life.

Jesus prays that we will be successful in this. He asks God to bless us in this. Let’s pray:

Lost Family Members

Community

Missionaries

Evangelistic Opportunities

“Make Us One”

Lastly, Jesus says, “They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.”

Like Christ, this is not our home. If we are truly children of God, then we will never truly be satisfied here, and there will always be a longing towards home, towards heaven.

The greatest desire of our hearts should be to know God as closely, as intimately as we can. That we might be one with Him. Let’s pray:

Unity

Spiritual Growth

Leadership

The future of the church