Wednesday Prayer #7

Good evening, and thanking you for coming to the Wednesday night prayer meeting. I look forward each week to our time together as we gather to seek the Lord.

Tonight, we are going to do things a little bit differently. Instead of jumping into a devotional, we are going to begin by praying for some specific needs in our church.

First, I want to pray for protection over our church family.

The fact of the matter is, over the past few months, as we’ve sought the empowerment of the Spirit, the enemy has been at work as well. I know for Denise and I, we have experienced a greater level of spiritual attack in our lives, and I know from talking to some of you that you’ve experienced it as well.

So in the midst of our church seeking a greater move of God and outpouring of His Spirit, I think it would be appropriate as well that we pray for some specific challenges that I see surfacing in the church as well as some future direction for the church.

So, to begin with I want to take some time and pray for protection over our church family. Protection against the enemy as he works to destroy what God wants to do in and through our church. And please hear me, when I say that, I’m not saying that the devil is responsible for every challenge and problem in our lives. The truth is, sometimes God allows trials in order to change us, grow us, and make us more dependent on Him.

But the truth is, there are some challenges and trials that are the result of attack.

That begin the case, I want to pray for two specific areas of protection where I think the enemy will and often does attack.

First, I want to pray for protection over our children. It goes without saying that one of the ways the enemy tries to attack us is through our kids. If he can get to them, or he can create some kind of crisis in their lives, or he can tempt them to make poor choices, then he knows he will be able to distract and discourage us.

As a parent I’ve experienced that many times. I’ve watched as the enemy tried to infiltrate my home by getting to my kids. And what is true for me will be true for all of you. The fact is, anybody serious about being “All In” for Jesus has just painted a target on their back. But it’s a target that extends to your family.

And I don’t say that to scare you, it’s just a fact. We won’t take the time to go into the story, but the story of Job illustrates this. Because from what the Bible tells us, Job was a righteous man. Listen to what scripture tells us:

Job 1:8 ESV

8 And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?”

The Bible says Job was one of those guys that was “All In”. Somebody Satan had a hard time getting to.

So, when Satan couldn’t get Job to bend, he went after his children. Listen to what the Bible tells us:

Job 1:13–21 ESV

13 Now there was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 14 and there came a messenger to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys feeding beside them, 15 and the Sabeans fell upon them and took them and struck down the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 16 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants and consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 17 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “The Chaldeans formed three groups and made a raid on the camels and took them and struck down the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 18 While he was yet speaking, there came another and said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 19 and behold, a great wind came across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 20 Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. 21 And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”

Again, there’s a lot happening there we could talk about, but what I want you to notice is because of Job’s stance, his kids became a target.

And again, I don’t share this to scare you, but it should. It should cause you to realize that there is a real spiritual battle going on. The Apostle Paul writes:

Ephesians 6:12 ESV

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

First, I want to pray for protection over our church family.

Paul says our battle is of a spiritual nature. And the fact of the matter is, the only way to battle the spiritual is through prayer. Again, we know this to be true because of what the Bible tells us. We see it in the book of Daniel as Daniel is praying and seeking God and angel appears to him. Listen to what the angel tells him:

Daniel 10:10–14 ESV

10 And behold, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. 11 And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly loved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for now I have been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling. 12 Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words. 13 The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia, 14 and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people in the latter days. For the vision is for days yet to come.”

From this story we learn that when we pray, God hears our words and the enemy does everything he can to prevent a response. The battle is spiritual.

That being the case, we need to pray for protection over our kids. That the Lord would protect them and give us wisdom when it comes to situations that may arise. The Psalmist puts it like this:

And so we need to pray for protection over our kids. That the Lord would protect them and give us wisdom when it comes to situations that may arise. The Psalmist puts it like this:

Psalm 25:1–5 ESV

1 To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. 2 O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me. 3 Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous. 4 Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. 5 Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.

Pslam 25:1-5

The Psalmist looks to God for protection but also asks the Lord to give him wisdom and show him truth.

And isn’t it true that’s what we so often need when it comes to our kids. As the enemy works to detour them, we need God to give us wisdom to keep them on track. So, part of praying for protection over our children is praying that the Lord will give us supernatural insight, wisdom, and guidance.

So, tonight, we are going to pray for protection over our children.

Second, I want to pray for protection over the marriages in our church. Again, the enemy knows if he can divide a home and destroy a family, then he may disrupt God’s plan for that couple.

I can personally attest to that. Many of you know Denise and I’s story. In 1992 when we got married, neither one of us were serving the Lord. As a result, by 1994 we were divorced.

But God had a plan for Denise and I, and through our divorce both Denise and I put our faith in Jesus. And our decision not only saved us, it saved our marriage.

Because by 1996 we were remarried to one another again and pursuing God’s plan for our life. Looking back on what happened, I believe the enemy was well aware that God had a plan for us, and he tried to do everything he could to stop and destroy it. But the good news of the gospel is that Jesus defeated the enemy. And if we put our hope in Jesus, He can restore what the enemy is trying to destroy. Jesus can reconcile what has been broken.

Unfortunately, I am aware of several couples in our church who are struggling, some even on the brink of divorce. Couples that I believe God has a plan for. Couples that the enemy would love nothing more than to break up, and not only destroy their family, but destroy God’s plan for their life.

But we serve a God who can overcome the enemies plans. We serve a God who can use the enemies plan against him. Because what the enemy meant for evil, God meant for good.

And so tonight, I want to pray for the marriages of our church. That God would protect, that God would restore, that God would bring peace, and that God would reconcile broken relationships. I want us to pray as the Psalmist prays in :

Psalm 46 ESV

To the choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A Song. 1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. 5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. 6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. 7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah 8 Come, behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth. 9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. 10 “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” 11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

In this Psalm, the Psalmist says the Lord is the one who brings help and hope in the midst of trouble.

The reality is, there are some marriages in our church that need help and hope tonight. They need the God of refuge and strength to bring hope into their relationship.

The Psalmist also says the Lord is the one who makes wars cease, who breaks the bow, shatters the spear, and burns the chariots.

Again, there are some marriages in our church full of warfare. Full of fighting. Full of insults. Full of harsh words. Full of threats. Full of hate. Full of abuse. And tonight we are going to pray the Lord brings peace to those homes. That he shatters the bow, shatters the spear, and burns the chariot.

Tonight we are going to pray that God builds a fortress around our marriages.

So, to pray for these things, here’s what I want to do.

First, regardless of how old they are, I want each of us to spend a few moments praying for our own children. For each one of them one by one. And If you’re married and your spouse is with you, then I want you to pray together for them. And I want you to pray for two things.

First, pray for their protection. That God would protect them from harm. That he would protect them from temptation. That He would protect them from unhealthy friendships. Pray that God would go before your children and be with them when you’re not. That he would be their shield.

Second, pray that God would give you wisdom as a parent. Pray for supernatural insight into your child’s heart. Pray that God would give you supernatural wisdom to address behavioral or discipline issues. Pray the Lord would provide you with supernatural discernment to make the right decisions and choices for your children as you guide them in a path that leads them to life.

Maybe you’d say, “Ok, that’s great pastor, but I don’t have kids”. Then I would encourage you to pray for somebody else's kids. Pray for your sisters kids or your brothers kids. Pray for your friends kids. If we all think about it we know somebody we care about who has children.

I would also say, if you’re a grandparent, pray for your grandkids. Pray for protection over them. Pray your children will have the wisdom and discernment they need to raise their children.

So, let’s life up our kids in prayer, and in a few moments, I’ll come back and lead us in a cooperate prayer for over all of our kids.

Next...

I want to pray for the marriages in our church.

First, I want you to pray for your own marriage, and if your spouse is here, pray together. Maybe you’ve never done that. I can tell you right now, the couple that prays together stays together.

So, if your spouse is here, come together and pray. Pray the Lord will protect your marriage from the enemy. Pray he will put a hedge of protection around your home. Pray He will bring help and hope in the midst of discouragement and fear. Pray that he will bring peace between you and your spouse. Pray that He will soften your heart towards one another and restore what the enemy is trying to destroy.

If your spouse isn’t here, that’s ok, mines not either. Denise had to work tonight. But we can still pray for our marriages.

Second, I want you to pray for the marriages in our church.

Maybe you’re aware of another couple in our church that is struggling. Maybe you have a neighbor whose marriage is falling apart. Maybe you have a family member whose marriage is in trouble. Pray for protection over them. Pray God would bring peace into that relationship.

Maybe you’d say, “Ok, that’s great pastor, but I’ not married. What do I pray for?” If thats’ you, I would encourage you to pray for a couple of things.

First, if your desire is to get married someday, pray that God would bring a godly man or woman into your life. Pray that it would be a person who loves Jesus more than they love you. Pray it would be somebody who desires to know God like you do. Pray that God would go before you and lead you to that person.

If you’re dating someone, pray for that relationship. Pray that it would be wholesome. Pray that God would become the foundation you build upon. Pray that the Lord would give you wisdom as to wether this is the relationship He wants for you.

Second, if you’re single, pray for the marriages of your church family. Pray for your friends marriage. Pray for your brother or sisters marriage. Pray that God would protect the marriages of the people you care most about.

So, let’s lift our marriages and the marriages of our church up to the Lord, and I’ll come back in a few moments I’m going to have Darrel come up and pray a prayer of protection and blessing over the marriages of our church.

One More thing:

There’s one more thing I want us to pray for corporately tonight, and then we are going to split into our prayer gangs.

But before I share what I want to pray for, I want to preface it with this.

One of the things you’re going to learn about the prayer meeting, is in this setting I’m going to share things and ask you to pray for some things that I’m not going to mention on Sunday morning or in any other corporate setting.

What that means then is, there is going to be stuff I share with you that I’m not going to share in other circles. And that doesn’t mean I don’t trust other circles or I’m trying to keep secrets from other people, it’s just that some information is meant for certain environments. And in this case, the environment for this information is an environment of prayer.

That being the case, there are going to be things I share with you in this setting that I’d rather you not take out of this room. Stuff I don’t want to see on Facebook. Things I don’t want you to text others about as soon as you get out of the prayer meeting. Items of prayer that I’m trusting you to keep in this room and covet with me in prayer for.

We all on the same page with that. All that to say, what I’m about to share with you is one of those prayer items. Something I’m asking you to keep in this room and covet to pray with me about in the coming weeks.

And to be honest, I went back and forth on whether to share it, but I feel it’s important enough that more than just the board and myself should be praying about it.

Share about Concordia:

Pray that the Lord gives Pastor Terry and I the words to say.

Pray the Lord will guide and direct the Concordia Board.

Pray that God will give us wisdom and discernment.

Pray for the Lord’s will to be done in this situation.

So, let’s pray, and in a moment I’m going to have Korene Wapp, one of our board members come up and lead us in prayer for this.

Prayer Gangs:

Find your gang. If you don’t have a gang, let’s form some new gangs.

Pray for your kids and marriages. Great place to ask for prayer in these areas.

Thanks For Coming! See you on Sunday!