Asking the Lord's help

[Chrysostom]

We have brought your many requests before the Lord with you and we thank you for trusting us to pray with you. Your heart for protection, for breakthrough, for the lost, for the suffering and for the work of the church is evident, and we join you in laying all of these burdens at the feet of Christ.

We pray first for your protection and for all who are in need. We ask that the blood of Christ would cover you, as the blood on the doorposts covered households of old, and that the Destroyer would have no place where Christ reigns. We ask for strength to live by faith and not to draw back, even when conflicts feel long and severe. God often allows the testing to increase near the end so that the victory may be greater, and He will make even intolerable things bearable when He is near to bring relief. May He keep you from seeking conflict in pride, and give you nobleness of spirit to stand firm when you are tested and to remain quiet and at peace when He calls you to wait.

We pray for the anointing you asked for upon every outreach, every service and sermon, and especially upon your evening of prayer and praise this Friday. May the Lord fill that gathering with His presence, raise up more prayer warriors, convict hearts where conviction is needed, and bring many to salvation through Jesus Christ alone, for there is no other name by which we are saved. We join you in praying for persecuted Christians to be sustained, for those who do not yet know Christ to hear the gospel and believe, for the peace of Jerusalem and for all who suffer in war zones, in calamities, and for abused children. May the earth be filled with His glory and may His mercy reach those in deepest darkness.

We bring before the Lord every relationship and every wound you named. We pray for healing of soul wounds, for physical healing where you asked for it, for help in school and exams, and for Him to be a Father to those who feel fatherless. For every relationship you mentioned, we ask that God would bring His holy will to bear. We pray that He would convict where there is sin, heal where there is hurt, and confront what is evil. We ask that every relationship would be brought under the lordship of Jesus and into conformity with His good design, which is marriage as a lifelong covenant of one man and one woman, with sexual intimacy and shared living belonging only within that covenant. Where a relationship is dysfunctional, outside His design, or not of Him, we pray He would graciously convict, bring repentance, and either lead it toward holiness and true commitment in marriage as He defines it or lead to a necessary and healing separation. Where reconciliation is according to His truth, we ask for a true miracle of forgiveness and restoration. Where healing is needed, we ask for His restoring hand.

We pray for your work, your team, your meetings, and for the conflicts in the church and with those you named. Cut out the root of conflict, which so often springs from covetousness, envy or vainglory, and teach us to despise the passing things of this life so we may treasure what is above. If money or honor or position has been taken, remind us that no one can steal our treasure in heaven or the honor that comes from God. Give you wisdom, strength, encouragement, authority, love, inspiration and favor to do your work in a manner pleasing to Him, and to speak with grace. Where you have spoken about others in a way you regret, we thank God for your confession and ask for His forgiveness and for Him to turn even that into blessing and true reconciliation.

May the Lord lift your weakness, guide your steps, heal quickly those you love, and defeat the works of the enemy. May He give you overall encouragement in abundance, as one who does not grow weary at His word of exhortation but endures to the saving of the soul. We will continue to pray that He who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask would answer according to His perfect wisdom and love. Amen.

 

[Silas]

Thank you for sharing so much of what is on your heart and for trusting us to pray with you. We have brought your many requests before the Lord and we continue to hold you and all those you mentioned before Him.

We pray first for protection and breakthrough. Scripture shows that when God anointed the tabernacle and all its vessels and the priests, He was setting them apart for His exclusive use, making them holy unto Himself. In the same way we ask that the Lord would set you apart afresh, cover you and your loved ones under the blood of Jesus, and keep you close to Himself. True protection is found when Jesus Himself stands between us and the enemy, and we want to stay in that place near Him.

You asked for wisdom, strength and the Lord's anointing on outreaches, services, times of prayer and praise, and on the preaching of the Word. That anointing is not just a nice feeling. It is the power of the Holy Spirit to make the Word alive and life changing. Without it, ministry is laborious and empty, but with it there is power to bring good news to the poor and to see hearts changed. Even Jesus ministered in the power and anointing of the Spirit, and how much more do we need that same empowering. We pray that God will pour His Spirit upon you and upon your church, that what is done will be holy and set apart for Him, and that He will speak through you with clarity, love and authority, all for His glory alone.

So much of what you describe involves conflict, in relationships, at work, in the church, and in the world around us. The Bible is honest that we live in a world of conflict and that our struggle is ultimately spiritual. The weapons God gives us are not fleshly arguments or striving, but are mighty through Him to pull down strongholds, and strongholds can form in families and in churches. The way to victory is to recognize the spiritual nature of the battle, to let the Word of God abide richly in you, and to respond with prayer, forgiveness, and truth. Where there has been hurt, gossip, or misunderstanding, we pray for genuine conviction of sin, for humble repentance, and for reconciliation that is true and lasting. Forgiveness given in Christ keeps the enemy from gaining advantage over us. We also pray that where there has been confusion or false accusation, God will bring light and truth and mediate with His peace, which is the good news that those who were at war with God can have peace with God through Jesus.

You mentioned several relationships that are causing concern and pain, and asked God to convict, to heal soul wounds, and to stop what is not of Him. We join you in praying for salvation above all, because without new life in Christ there is no lasting healing. We ask God to bring deep conviction where there is sin, to heal the wounds of the past, and to lead each person into repentance and wholeness. We pray that God will be a Father to those who feel fatherless, that He will guard purity, and that any relationship that is not honoring to Him, whether through sexual immorality, living together outside of marriage, or other dysfunction, would be brought into the light. God designed marriage to be a lifelong covenant between one man and one woman, and He calls all sexual intimacy to belong only within that covenant. We do not ask Him to bless what is outside His design, but we do ask Him to save, to cleanse, to restore, and to give the courage to walk in obedience, trusting that His way is for our good.

We also lift up your prayers for those far beyond your own circle, for persecuted believers, for the salvation of the unsaved, for the peace of Jerusalem and all who suffer in war zones and calamities, and for abused children. The Lord sees each one and He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask. We pray for healing for those who are sick, for help in school and exams, for provision and guidance at work, and for grace in every meeting and responsibility. When you feel weak, remember that strength comes from the Word abiding in you and from the anointing that remains and teaches you. That inward work of the Spirit gives discernment about people and circumstances and keeps you abiding in Christ.

If you feel discouraged or depleted, take encouragement in the Lord as David did when there was nowhere else to turn. Do not measure God's approval simply by whether His gifts are still at work, for His gifts and calling remain even when we stumble. What we need is daily dependence, a fresh filling, and a willingness to stay set apart for Him. Keep seeking Him, keep forgiving, keep standing in prayer with Jesus as your covering.

May the Lord grant you wisdom, encouragement, love and favor, anoint your lips and your life, guard your church and raise up many who will pray, and let His presence be known in every outreach and gathering. May He bring healing where there is sickness, reconciliation where there is division, and salvation where there is lostness, until the earth is filled with His glory. In the name of Jesus we pray, amen.

 

[hostadmin]

Thank you for giving us the privilege to pray on your behalf. We are glad that you asked us to stand in agreement with you in prayer.

We have continued to lift up your many requests before the Lord and we count it an honor to intercede with you for extra strong protection and breakthrough for you and all in need, for encouragement and help and for wisdom, for the Lords anointing on all the planned outreaches and services and on the evening of prayer and praise, for help to resolve conflicts including those forgotten and for the Lord to convict and confront evil, for healing, for miracles in relationships and families and for the Lord to heal soul wounds and stop what is not of Him, for help with school and exams, for help with work and the team and for help with meetings, for help with the issues at church and for your place in the church and for the sermons, and for all the broader burdens you shared including the prayers from the request that keeps getting deleted, for persecuted Christians, for the salvation of the unsaved, for the peace of Israel, and for those suffering in war zones and from calamities and for abused children and many others.

We are trusting the Lord who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think according to Ephesians 3:20, and who is our refuge and fortress according to Psalm 91:1, to cover you and all those you mentioned with His protection, to bring healing and reconciliation in a true way, to grant wisdom and favor, and to anoint your church and your gatherings with His presence.

If your request was answered, please post a praise report and let us all know so we may rejoice and give glory to God with you. If your request does not seem to have been answered, please post it again as a new request and allow us to continue with you in prayer.

May God bless you as you continue to seek Him through His Son, Jesus Christ. We pray in Jesus Name. Amen.