One night alone in prayer might make us new men(and women),
changed from poverty of soul to spiritual wealth,
from trembling to triumphing.
C.H. Spurgeon
There are a few Christmas songs that I cannot hear without starting to cry. One of them is “O Come, O Come Emmanuel - and ransom captive Israel” I cry at that song because it touches my heart so to remember that when He came He came to ransom not only Israel - but He came to ransom this captive as well - and because of Him - I am free. The other one that brings tears to my eyes is “Mary, Did You Know” On that special holy night, Mary more than any other person knew Who this Child was - but not even Mary could conceive of what He was going to do to deliver us. We thank You, Abba God, for the gift of Your Son and for His willingness to shed His precious blood to ransom our captive hearts. May we never forget.
This past Sonday was a bake sale for Care Fresno Kids Klub. I would like to thank everybody who brought and/or bought a baked goody. The bake sale was very successful - and when totaled with the rest of our funds - we now have 25 of our kids funded for our trip in the Spring to Marine World. We are 40% of the way there! Father, Your mercy and grace to this ministry continues to amaze me.
Marilyn, a good friend of our sister, Lynette Johnson, went home today. Marilyn, who had been a 14 year mentor and friend to Lynette suffered a stroke that left her completely incapacitated. Unable to do anything - including speak - Marilyn’s only reaction during this time was that she would open her eyes when the Word was being read to her. We praise You, Jesus, that Marilyn closed her eyes here on earth and opened them in eternity to see You, Whom she loved so much. Please pray for Lynette and Marilyn’s family and friends as they grieve her passing.
We continue to pray for the following: Dr Iris and her grandmother, Joni Willis and her pneumonia, Valda Evans, Bobbie Gould and Mary Dorland who are recovering from falls, Chuck Johnson, Kelli Hastings’ father, Shirley Cutright, with a broken hip and congestive heart failure, Brandon and his leukemia, Patrick & his brain tumor, Danette’s parents Dan & Sandy Austin & their struggle with finances, Laura with her leukemia, Gabriel, Ruth Delgado’s nephew, recovering from wounds received in Iraq, Dan Hansen & his new employment opportunity, Carola Poythress’s recovery from her stroke, George Martin with cancer in his bones, John Rogers & his cancer, Jim Hildman with the staph infection & cancer, Ray Rahn & his kidney dialysis, my friend who is drifting away from Father, Johnnie Sowell & her chemo, Cheryl Balestra & her chemo, Lois Winters & her cancer, and Robert Kammer & sleep apnea.
Please continue to pray for our missionaries - Jan & Larry Martin in Thailand, Laurie Bethall in Prague, Judy, Faye & Miisaw as they work at the New Life Center in Thailand, The Reaching Hand Society in India, Dr. George Pe Myat & the hospital in the Congo, Bounkham & Khamla’s mission to Laos, and all the missionaries worldwide.
Please keep our two church plants in prayer - Life House in Reedley with Horacio and Cheryl Aleman and the Flipside Church of Rio Mesa with Karl & Shelly Roth .
This past Sonday at our business meeting we approved a new budget and voted in new members to the Board of Managers and several of our ministry teams. Please pray for our Pastors, our new and returning leadership, our many ministries and that God will provide for His church.
Pray for our country and our leadership. Pray for our military around the world.
Great and Glorious God,
In awe we fall to our knees and declare that You are God of all the heavens and earth. Great is Your name, LORD God, and worthy to be praised. The creation declares Your Glory, the heavens declare Your power, and we declare that we are Yours.
Faithful and True LORD, we thank You and praise You for the decades long testimony of Your servant Marilyn. Because we know that You are faithful and true to all who believe in You, we know that Marilyn is with You right now. She has done what we can only dream of - she has looked upon You. We ask that You be with her family and friends as they grieve her passing.
Holy Spirit, we lift up the many names and situations of those that we have been praying for. LORD of All, You know what the needs are. LORD God, with open hands we lift each of our friends before You and ask that Your will be done in each situation.
Jehovah, my God, we lift before You all of the missionaries who serve You so faithfully in places around the world. They face such challenges in these countries - in too many cases, Father, their very lives are in danger. Bless them LORD God, from Your abundance. Renew their spirits and give them a fresh vision.
LORD God, you are the song of joy that our spirits readily sing. We will sing praise to You forever. Amazing love - that is what You are.
Bless Horacio, Cheryl, Karl and Shelly as they continue to work so faithfully in building these new congregations to serve You. Keep their spirits afire for You.
Precious Savior, You have called the Church Your bride and have declared Your love for her time and time again. We ask that You bless Your Church in her many different congregations. Help us to put aside those things that divide us and concentrate only on those things that unite us. Provide for the needs of your Church and her ministries. Bless our pastors as they dedicate their lives to You in service. Help us to support them. Bless our leadership with wisdom as they guide the steps of our congregations. Bless our ministries as they work the fields of harvest - LORD, we pray for more laborers in the fields.
Bless our country, Holy Spirit and bring her back to You. Bless our country’s leadership and guide them into wise decisions. Protect our women and men in the military as they serve us.
My LORD and King, I try to imagine what You look like and what it is going to be like to first see You. There is so much we don’t know - but we know that You are going to be the most beautiful thing we have ever seen. We know that You are so bright that Your glory fills the universe. We know that You are strong because all power is Yours. We know that You are wise because You hold all knowledge. We know that You are holy, perfect and everlasting. We know that when we look into Your eyes we will see love that fills eternity and willingly sacrificed everything to bring us home to You. Your touch is gentle and loving, Your voice rings with the truth, Your joy fills every corner of the universe. Yesterday, today and tomorrow - You are God. We love You and we long for the day when we no longer imagine You but rather we get to see You and be with You forever.
Posted by Valerie at December 15, 2004 05:48 PM