If we could ask the Lord for two things in the Kids Quest Ministry, what would they be? What would we consider the most valuable to us, to our children? Proverbs 30:7-9 gives us a great example of a prayer to pray for ourselves and our children in Kids Quest:
Two things I ask of you, Lord; do not refuse me before I die: Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, "Who is the Lord?" or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God. There is much we can pray for our children but for this week let's take this passage and pray the following specifically: Dear Lord, thank You for not refusing us or our children. This week we come before You and ask of You two things for our children in Kids Quest. Each child is Your precious creation. Unfortunately, each was also born with a sinful nature as we have been also. We lift up our children and we lift up ourselves to You, O Lord. Keep them and keep us from speaking lies and being deceitful, may our lips be filled with only Your truth and may they be like cold water to weary souls. Season our hearts and our words with Your good news. We are coming upon the holidays, a time to remember You, Lord, Your faithfulness, and the gift of Your Son. However, we become tempted to seek riches instead of seeking You. Help us and help our children to never have so much or so little that they (nor we) disown You or dishonor You. Make us always aware of our Great Need for You. Thank you, Lord, for Your provisions for us each day. Please provide for the poor their needs and help us this season to be sensitive to the poverty and brokenness around us, for Your Word is quite clear, "Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered." May we never shut our ears to the poor! Help us and help our children to always be sensitive to Your people and their needs above our own. And when we fail, Jesus, and we will, forgive us and guide us back on the right track. In Your Holy Name, Amen.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Comfort and Enlarge Us
A very familiar prayer in the Bible, yet one that we must not forget to pray in our own lives is the Prayer of Jabez. Found in 1 Chronicles 4:9-10, Jabez was a man who was greatly respected, even more than anyone in his family. His name is a bit puzzling, as it means "affliction." How often is affliction the mark of our lives? How often do we see affliction torment the children and families of today? The good news is that there is hope for them; hope that can be found in our prayers for them.
Jabez prayed the following to the God of Israel, "Oh that Thou wouldst bless me indeed, and enlarge my border, and that Thy hand might be with me, and that Thou wouldst keep me from harm, that it may not pain me!"
Notice the "it" in the prayer. He is praying that God would enlarge his territory, but he prayed that this blessing would not pain him. I do not know Jabez's story or his affliction, but I do know that God answers prayers and is indeed in the midst of our pain and is able to comfort us, bless us, and help us prosper in this land where so much turmoil and hurt abide. Sometimes that blessing can come at first in the form of pain. But pain often times is the entrance to His Light in our life. Without pain, we often times cannot change for growth brings change and change can be painful. But we can pray that God makes this transition to His blessing quick with glimpses of His assurance that eases the pain.
God granted Jabez's prayer and He can and will grant us our prayers. We must beleive that God is Who He says He is and that He can do what He says He can do. Pray with me the following for our Kids Quest Families and Ministry:
God You are the granter and giver of good things. You know and understand our deep afflictions. Many families today in our church and in our communities are hurting for all sorts of reasons. We pray and ask you, Lord, to meet each family where they hurt, where they suffer, and help them find strength in Your Spirit and Hope in Your plans for their life. Give them a glimpse of Your faithfulness in the godly people that love them, and in the classrooms we offer to their children each Sunday. And God, we pray that You will enlarge our ministry to children, families and volunteers. We also pray that you will enlarge our ministry to more territory like the building next to ours. We pray that You will mightily move us to ownership of this building so that our Children's Ministry can grow physically and spiritually! We trust You in this prayer that You will answer like you did for Jabez. In Jesus Name, Amen.
Jabez prayed the following to the God of Israel, "Oh that Thou wouldst bless me indeed, and enlarge my border, and that Thy hand might be with me, and that Thou wouldst keep me from harm, that it may not pain me!"
Notice the "it" in the prayer. He is praying that God would enlarge his territory, but he prayed that this blessing would not pain him. I do not know Jabez's story or his affliction, but I do know that God answers prayers and is indeed in the midst of our pain and is able to comfort us, bless us, and help us prosper in this land where so much turmoil and hurt abide. Sometimes that blessing can come at first in the form of pain. But pain often times is the entrance to His Light in our life. Without pain, we often times cannot change for growth brings change and change can be painful. But we can pray that God makes this transition to His blessing quick with glimpses of His assurance that eases the pain.
God granted Jabez's prayer and He can and will grant us our prayers. We must beleive that God is Who He says He is and that He can do what He says He can do. Pray with me the following for our Kids Quest Families and Ministry:
God You are the granter and giver of good things. You know and understand our deep afflictions. Many families today in our church and in our communities are hurting for all sorts of reasons. We pray and ask you, Lord, to meet each family where they hurt, where they suffer, and help them find strength in Your Spirit and Hope in Your plans for their life. Give them a glimpse of Your faithfulness in the godly people that love them, and in the classrooms we offer to their children each Sunday. And God, we pray that You will enlarge our ministry to children, families and volunteers. We also pray that you will enlarge our ministry to more territory like the building next to ours. We pray that You will mightily move us to ownership of this building so that our Children's Ministry can grow physically and spiritually! We trust You in this prayer that You will answer like you did for Jabez. In Jesus Name, Amen.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Praying Wholeheartedly
A king named Hezekiah was a good and faithful king under God. Hezekiah became quite ill, so ill that he was at the brink if death. He turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, "Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes." Hezekiah wept bitterly.
Why do you suppose Hezekiah wept bitterly as he prayed? Do you think he feared death? Or did he value life? Was he concerned for himself? Or for the people of God? I would imagine that a death of a great king could cause chaos for a kingdom. This would create a surplus of opportunity for Judah to be distracted and even possibly ambushed by their enemy: Assyria. I beleive that Hezekiah was concerned about the people of Judah. I beleive that he valued the life God gave him, because he valued the mission to rule God's people with a righteous heart. It was tears for God's people and leaving the mission unfinished that gave Hezekiah great concern.
Word came from the Lord to Hezekiah, "I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord. I will add fifteen years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David." (2 Kings 20:1-8)
Like Hezekiah, let us value the life of each child in our care and the mission to serve them Sunday mornings. Not only does each child have a purpose in God's Kingdom, we do, too. We do not want to ever take lightly the life of this ministry to children or our life's purpose in it. Pray with me the following prayer for the Kids Quest Ministry at River Club:
Lord God in heaven. You alone are the God of our children and You love them even more than we. Please turn your face toward us and empower us as your servants to serve the children with your love, grace, mercy, and wisdom. Make ready the heart of every child to be tender to your word, your gospel, and your presence. Make us like King Hezekiah, wholehearted, faithful and devoted to Your mission and your ways. Grant us Your heart, God; allow us to see and experience life change in each child at River Club. In Jesus Holy Name, Amen.
Why do you suppose Hezekiah wept bitterly as he prayed? Do you think he feared death? Or did he value life? Was he concerned for himself? Or for the people of God? I would imagine that a death of a great king could cause chaos for a kingdom. This would create a surplus of opportunity for Judah to be distracted and even possibly ambushed by their enemy: Assyria. I beleive that Hezekiah was concerned about the people of Judah. I beleive that he valued the life God gave him, because he valued the mission to rule God's people with a righteous heart. It was tears for God's people and leaving the mission unfinished that gave Hezekiah great concern.
Word came from the Lord to Hezekiah, "I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord. I will add fifteen years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David." (2 Kings 20:1-8)
Like Hezekiah, let us value the life of each child in our care and the mission to serve them Sunday mornings. Not only does each child have a purpose in God's Kingdom, we do, too. We do not want to ever take lightly the life of this ministry to children or our life's purpose in it. Pray with me the following prayer for the Kids Quest Ministry at River Club:
Lord God in heaven. You alone are the God of our children and You love them even more than we. Please turn your face toward us and empower us as your servants to serve the children with your love, grace, mercy, and wisdom. Make ready the heart of every child to be tender to your word, your gospel, and your presence. Make us like King Hezekiah, wholehearted, faithful and devoted to Your mission and your ways. Grant us Your heart, God; allow us to see and experience life change in each child at River Club. In Jesus Holy Name, Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)