e-Praise & Prayers - June 29, 2004
You can talk to God because God listens. Your voice matters in heaven.
He takes you very seriously.
When you enter His presence, the attendants turn to you to hear your voice.
No need to fear that you will be ignored.
Even if you stammer or stumble, even if what you have to say impresses no one,
it impresses God - and He listens.
Max Lucado
Sam Arnold decided awhile back to discontinue his chemo treatments. He has been slowly failing since then. On Sonday morning death was defeated once again as Sam Arnold passed from this life and into his new life in the presence of his LORD and Savior, whom Sam loved. We praise God for the witness of strong Christians like Sam Arnold. His faithfulness and strength leave a legacy behind that we can all follow. Please pray for his wife, Betty, and all of the family. His Celebration of Life is scheduled for 11:00 Wednesday morning at FFBC.
Walt Hemphill has come home from Redwood City. They were unable to do the heart surgery because the tests showed that his kidneys were shutting down. Walt is on some new meds that will hopefully clear up this problem and allow him to have the surgery he needs. Please pray for Walt, Donna, their son, Ray and the whole family.
Judi Wright’s mother’s Alzheimer’s is getting worse and Judi (who is her care giver) is really feeling the strain of her mother’s illness. Please pray for strength for Judi. Judi is such a blessing to our congregation and to the choir in particular.
Kelly Hastings father, Chuck Johnson, will undergo additional surgery to remove cancer. Please pray that the cancer will be contained and has not spread to his lymph nodes.
I was hoping this past week to hear from Crystal Snow or her mother, but did not. Please pray that Crystal will contact me and that I can help her to find the hope and help she needs in Jesus.
I received a letter from Char Cole who reports that camp is going much better this week. Next week they will be hosting another inner city camp - please pray that these children will find Jesus in a personal relationship during their week in camp.
Pastor & Joy Nolte leave Hawaii tonight at 11:15 p.m. Hawaii time which is 3:15 pm Fresno time. They will reach Fresno Wednesday morning at 10:45 (Fresno time). Please pray for traveling mercies for them - and that they can catch up on their rest and get over the jet lag quickly. Even though my kitchen looks like a swarm of locust goes through it daily - I have loved having this time with Clark as my temporarily adopted son.
Please pray for traveling mercies for all of our families who travel during the summer.
Please continue to pray for Annie Dennis’ father, John Rogers in his battle with cancer and that Father will use this to bring John into a personal relationship with Him. Please continue to pray for Cheryl Baledra with her cancer, Mandy and her cancer, Connie & her baby, Chantel in Paris, who will soon undergo surgery, Carola Polythress for continuing recovery, Khamla and her continued recovery, Biana’s nephew, Brent, as they finish their filming in South Africa, Kris Baiz and her foot, Robert Kammer & his sleep apnea, Rick, Leslie and Kayla, as Rick continues his chemo treatments.
Continue to pray for our missionaries, Reaching Hand Society in India, Jan & Larry Martin in Thailand, Bounkham & Khamla to Laos, and Dr. George Pe Myat Win in the Congo and all those who build the Kingdom of God far from their homes.
Pray fervently for our church family, our pastors, church leadership and finances. We are so blessed to have Dan and Edie Gates as members of our congregation and for Dan’s leadership with our Seniors ministry. Please pray for them this week.
The Friday Night at the (car-less) Drive In movies is going great! This past Friday I met a man and his two sons who were coming to our campus for the first time because of the movies. Pray that this outreach opportunity will reach out to all of our neighborhood and that we will build relational bridges with them - bridges that will then be built with Jesus. This Friday we will be seeing “The Miracle” - the wonderful story of the USA Olympic gold-medal winning ice hockey team.
As we approach our celebration of our country’s independence, please pray for our country, our leaders and our military.
Ancient of Days, God of the whole earth,
We take joy to be in Your presence. We give You praise and thanks that those who search for You will have no difficulty in finding You.
Jehovah, my God, we praise and thank You for the enduring witness of Sam Arnold. Although Sam is no longer with us we know that He is safe with You and that You have welcomed Him home with open arms. We lift up Betty and the family as they grieve their loss - even as they - and we - know the parting is a temporary thing. We are still beings bound by space and time - Sam is now a being who dances in eternity. Tell Sam that we will see him soon.
Good Shepherd, we ask Your mercy on Walt Hemphill. You know the plans that You have for Walt - and we know that they are good. We ask that You strengthen Walt during this time, and that he be able to receive this surgery. Be with Donna, Ray and the family as they support and love Walt. We thank You for this man’s strong witness of faith in You.
We call out to You on Judi’s behalf and ask that You be her strong tower of refuge in a troubled land. Give her strength, patience and comfort as she cares for her mother. Grant peace to her mother.
We pray for Chuck Johnson as he undergoes surgery for cancer. LORD God, please do not let it spread to the lymph nodes.
Abba, I love Crystal so much - and I know that the only hope that she has is You. I ask that You use me as You see fit to reach her.
We lift up all of those who work among the children at Camp Sugarpine. We ask that You reach out to the children who will be at the next inner city camp and soften their hearts. Give them eyes to see Your glory and ears to hear Your message of salvation.
We lift up Willie, Joy and all of those in our family who are traveling. Keep them safe as they travel and bring them home to us.
Lifter of our Heads, we continue to pray for John Rogers, Cheryl, Mandy, Connie & her baby, Chantel, Carola, Khamla, Brent, Kris, Robert, Rick, Leslie and Kayla.
Protector, we pray a stronghold of protection around all of our missionaries. Provide for their needs as they build Your kingdom.. In particular we call out for Reaching Hand Society, Jan & Larry Martin, Bounkham & Khamla, and Dr. George Pe Myat Win. Father, we ask that You bless them from Your abundance until their lives are overflowing with the joy of serving You.
Son of the Most High God, we lift before Your crystal throne all of the pastors and leadership of Your Church. We thank You that You have brought these exceptional men and women and placed them with us. We ask Your blessings on us, the church family, that we will support out pastors and leaders and that we will serve You with our whole hearts. Make us a people who are known for our service to You. Help us to use every opportunity - including the Friday night movies - to share the Good News of You. We ask Your abundance on the finances of the Church and ask that You meet all of her needs. Help us to give of our hearts, our time and our resources to build Your kingdom. We ask a special blessing on Dan and Edie Gates and we thank You for the many ways that they serve the needs of our congregation. We thank You for Dan’s leadership of our Senior’s ministry and we ask that You continue to use him to meet the needs of our “seasoned” members and attenders.
Father God, we ask Your blessings on our country and ask that You use us to bring her back to You. Make the words on our money - In God We Trust - the words of our country’s heart. We pray for the leadership of our country and ask that You guide them in the decisions that they make. Bless our military men and women as they serve us and their country.
LORD Jesus, we are so glad that You are not a collection of fables in an outdated book whose time has come and gone. You are alive forevermore - the great I AM - the same yesterday, today and forever. Thank You that the Bible, Your very own Word, is as relevant to our lives today as it was to that little shepherd boy facing down a giant, or Noah when he released the dove. You are the breath of life that we breathe. We love You, LORD. We will love You forever. Amen
Posted by Valerie at June 29, 2004 07:43 PM