PRAYER PARTNERS

EZEKIEL 18:4 (CEB)
All lives are mine...

1 TIMOTHY 2:1 (CEV)
First of all, I ask you to pray for everyone. Ask God to help and bless them all, and tell God how thankful you are for each of them.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
Because all lives matter to God, include all people in your prayers.

DAILY FODDER
How important is it to know all the details about the lives and situations of those for whom you pray?

PRAYER
God, it is a privilege to partner with you in praying for people. There is no shortage of people to include. Expand my prayer list so that I'm not just praying for the people most like me. Amen. 

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.

Give us enough food for today.

Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you would protect us from all forms of evil. Amen! 

COMPREHENSIVE HEALING

The 16th Sunday after Pentecost

ISAIAH 33:24 (CEV)
The Lord will forgive your sins,
and none of you will say,
“I feel sick.”

REVELATION 1:17-18 (MSG)
Jesus said, "Don’t fear: I am First, I am Last, I’m Alive. I died, but I came to life, and my life is now forever. See these keys in my hand? They open and lock Death’s doors, they open and lock Hell’s gates."

SUMMARY SENTENCE
Jesus brings comprehensive healing.

DAILY FODDER
If Jesus' long-term goal is to intiate a new order of creation characterized by comprehensive wholness and health, what does that suggest about our mission as his witnesses? 

PRAYER
Jesus, you are the beginning and the end. That should calm our fears and fill us with new confidence. Forgive me for worrying over the future. Help me to lean into your forgiveness, healing, and comprehensive reconciliation so that death has no influence over how I think and live. Amen. 

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.

Give us enough food for today.

Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you would protect us from all forms of evil. Amen! 

GOD THE DEFENDER

LAMENTATIONS 3:58 (NLT)
Lord, you have come to my defense;
you have redeemed my life.

1 PETER 2:21. 23 (CEB)
...Christ suffered on your behalf. He left you an example so that you might follow in his footsteps... When he was insulted, he did not reply with insults. When he suffered, he did not threaten revenge. Instead, he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
For a better outcome, leave justice in the hands of God the defender.

DAILY FODDER
If God is such a great defender, why do we feel the need to create our own version of justice for ourselves?

PRAYER
Defender God, the world is full of injustice and I've experienced some of it. Forgive me for trying to make justice happen in my own way. Help me to follow in the steps of Jesus who exhibits the highest form of justice there is. And give me a heart for those who need justice more than I, along with the restraint to let you work out the details. I'm not in charge of my own destiny for I have a Savior. Amen.  

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.

Give us enough food for today.

Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you would protect us from all forms of evil. Amen! 

SURPRISE!

HOSEA 11:8-9 (NRSV)
My heart recoils within me;
   my compassion grows warm and tender.
I will not execute my fierce anger...
   for I am God and no mortal,
   the Holy One in your midst...

JOHN 12:47 (CEV)
I came to save the people of this world, not to be their judge.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
God comes to reside with us as he dispenses mercy and compassion.

DAILY FODDER
What kind of a God is primarily looking for ways to hang out with rebellious people and to dispense mercy?

PRAYER
Gracious God, you are full of surprises. We so deserve your wrath but instead of raging on about our failures you come even closer so that we can better hear your words of mercy and compassion. We've destroyed things but you're all about savings things — including us and our relationship. Forgive my misdeeds and help me to embrace your extreme forgiveness as a way of life. Amen.  

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.

Give us enough food for today.

Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you would protect us from all forms of evil. Amen!