Lord
Heavenly Father,
We come to you
today to worship You. We are grateful that we can have this house of worship
where we can praise You openly, without reservation, with all our hearts.
We come to You in
prayer as you have commanded us in 1 Timothy “that petitions, prayers, intercession
and thanksgiving be made for all people”.
We want to continue
to pray for the events in Middle East, especially with regards to the attacks
by ISIS. We pray for peace in those areas, but also specifically for the safety
and well-being of the Christians who were kidnapped in Syrian farming villages.
We know that you have warned us in Matthew 16 of the suffering/hardship to be a
follower of Christ so we want to pray for the their safe return to their
families
Here at home, we
want to pray for the revised Health and Physical Education curriculum that will
be implemented in Ontario classrooms. In 1 Corinthians 16, you have asked us to “Be on your guard;
stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. Do everything in love.” As Christians, let
us continue to be informed about the changes, ask respectful questions about
how this curriculum will be taught in classrooms and respond to it by
supplementing it and reinforcing Your teachings in the home.
Locally, we know
that it has been a very cold winter, so we are grateful that weather is warming
up and that spring will be soon upon us. In Leviticus 25, You have commanded
us to show kindness in supporting our brothers and sisters. Whether it’s
welcoming the guests to our church for the Out of the Cold Program, or looking
out for those in our own church, we pray that our hearts are stirred to
providing to those who are in physical, emotional and spiritual need.
We pray for the
students--especially those in university--as they finish their term and exams.
We also want to keep those who are seeking out jobs in our prayers. We know that these things can be
challenging and stressful, but in Psalm 62, we know that our soul can find rest
in You. You are our rock and our salvation.
We also want pray
for the relationships that we build at home, with our friends or at work. In 2
Timothy 1, You have told us not to be “ashamed of the testimony about our Lord”. Let us find
the right opportunities to share the gospel of love and hope, whether it’s in
word or deed.
We pray for the
rest of this worship time. Let it be a time where we can let go of all our
other thoughts & burdens and instead focus on You. Let it be heart-filled
and spirit-led.
Lord, You are the
God of Wisdom. We pray for Mary as You use her to share Your words and
teachings. Let our hearts be open to hearing and learning so that we can grow
as together as men and women of God. We also pray that beyond today’s service,
we can continue to share and encourage one another with what You've taught us.
We lift this time
to you.
In Jesus name,
Amen