Sunday Praise and a Prayer of Joy

Dear Heavenly Father, we praise you. On this Palm Sunday, we praise you for all you’ve done, for sending your Son in fulfillment of the coming Savior written about in the Old Testament of your Word.

That Zechariah foretold His coming in this way – “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey,” and that is just what He did. 

And so we praise you, Lord Jesus, and honor and glorify you for coming as the only One who could have saved us, and has saved us from our sins. We are filled with joy that you loved us so much that you came to purchase our souls with the sacrifice of your own life, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

There is no joy like the joy of those who have been saved and filled with your Holy Spirit, that we might commune with you always, and know your love, your peace, and your hope. Help us walk in your joy as we keep in mind all you’ve done for us. In Jesus’ holy and mighty name we pray, amen. 

Friday Funnies – The Star Spangled Banner, Tim Hawkins Style

It’s Friday, ya’ll! We made it another week. We lived, we worked, we prayed, we grew, and now it’s time to laugh. 

Tim Hawkins shows his serious side for just a minute in this one. He and his wife struggled through 2020 like the rest of us, but Jesus was there with them, just like He is for all of us.

But, thankfully, he hasn’t lost his sense of humor. 

Happy Friday, everyone, and have a blessed weekend. 

 

Sunday Praise and a Prayer for Peace

Oh Precious Heavenly Father, we praise and magnify your name. You are mighty and holy and worthy of all praise. 

Father, we ask for forgiveness for our sins, and we thank you for giving your Son to take the punishment that should have been ours. 

Thank you for blessing us far more than we could ever deserve. A right relationship with you is all we need, but through it you’ve done so much more than we could have ever imagined. 

Father, I want to lift up our country again to you this week. We need you so much, and we know there is nothing we can do in our own strength to change anything. We desperately look to you and pray for your grace and mercy and the pouring out of your Holy Spirit as we walk into the events of the week. 

We pray you would go before us and bind the hand of the enemy, that you would let your peace and rest be in control of our land, especially in our nation’s capital. We pray your power would be felt and your light would shine in the darkness. 

This week and beyond, may your Church, with repentant and thankful hearts, constantly lift up our voices together to you, in faith, knowing you hear us and will answer us, as we pray for salvation among the lost and revival within your church, and that you would give us the wisdom, strength, courage, and hope we’ll need in the coming days and years. 

May we abide in you so we can be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, producing the fruit of magnifying and glorifying the name of Jesus wherever we go. May we do in our world today what the early church did in theirs, and be your witnesses in our homes, our neighborhoods, and to the ends of the earth.

In Jesus’ holy and precious name we pray, amen. 

 

Sunday Praise and a Prayer for Perseverance

Dear Heavenly Father, we praise you. We praise you for all you are and for all you do. You are our King above all kings and we look to you and you alone to provide for us, to give us courage, to open and close doors, to show us the way. You are not only the God Almighty who was, and is, and is to come, but You are our Father who lovingly cares for us in Your power and victory. 

Thank You for the strength You give us as we walk through long trials. We sometimes get tired and weary, but as we hold out a hand to You, You lift us up.

You invite us to take your yoke upon us so you can lift the weight of our trials, and that through them we can learn from You and Your gentle and humble heart, and find rest for our weary souls. 

Father, help us persevere through the prolonged difficulties we face. Help us continue to keep our focus on you, daily dying to our flesh and being filled with your Holy Spirit, seeing through your eyes of grace and mercy. 

Help us not get restless as we wait for your deliverance, but give us patience and your peace that surpasses all understanding.

Help us to “do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that we may become blameless and pure, ‘children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.’ Then we will shine among them like stars in the sky as we hold firmly to the word of life.”  

Fill us with your joy and hope at what’s to come, and through them may we  encourage and build each other up until that day. 

Thank you, Father, for your love and faithfulness to keep all your promises. May our faith rest confidently in You. 

In Jesus’ name we pray, amen. 

Sunday Praise and a Prayer for the Sick

Dear Heavenly Father, we praise you. You are the omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent God. You are faithful to hear our prayers, and we thank you for hearing our prayer today. 

Father, we lift up to you those who are facing life-altering and life-threatening illnesses.

For those who know you, we ask that you would renew their strength and hope. We pray you would comfort them and fill them with your peace that passes all understanding. We pray you would surround them with people who support them with love and friendship. We ask that you would also give strength and hope for their loved ones and caregivers. 

For those who don’t yet know you, we pray you would reveal yourself to them in a very personal way. Maybe they’ve blamed you for what they’re going through. Maybe they’re angry, or lost and just don’t know where to turn. We pray you would not allow the enemy to fill their minds with lies.

Father, we know what a personal and compassionate God you are, and we ask that you would show them that you know them and you love them.

We pray you would open their eyes and turn their hearts toward you, that they would receive you as their Lord, their Savior, their Hope to walk with them through this time, giving them all they need and more. 

We pray you would remove all fear and help them keep their focus on You, the God Who is bigger than anything they’ll face here on earth. We pray you would give them strength and courage to walk in confidence with you each day. 

Father, you are also the Great Physician. You created our bodies and you can heal them. If it be your will, Lord, we ask that you would do miracles and grant healing and restoration. We pray you would open doors and move mountains to do those things that need to be done.

We pray you would give the doctors and nurses your wisdom, your skill, and your compassion. 

We pray, Lord, that you would also open doors to provide financially, and that all debt is paid. 

Father, we pray you would be glorified in all these circumstances. What the enemy has meant for evil, we pray you would use for your good. We lay it all at your feet, trusting you, and we thank you ahead of time for what you’re going to do. 

In Jesus’ precious and holy name we pray, amen.