Tag Archives: prayer - Page 2

Christians offer hope in Japan

Posted by on September 21, 2011 Comments Off

In all our busyness, especially leading up to the SMBC team joining us next week, let’s not forget about Japan, and their continued need for our prayers. See here for the ongoing work post-earthquake / tsunami, and the prayer points are at the bottom of the page

A prayer when feeling tired and weary

Posted by on August 18, 2011 1 comment

With lots of 5:17ers feeling sick and quite fatigued at the moment, I thought I’d share a prayer that I’ve found helpful. It’s from Pastor Scotty Smith’s blog (I highly recommend it!).

A Prayer When Feeling Tired and Weary

The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isa. 40:28–31

Gracious Father, this was one of the first Scriptures I memorized as a young believer, yet reading it today is like finding a new treasure in an old field. That’s one of the things I most love about your Word. It’s never antiquated or redundant but always vintage and ever new. You’re the God who speaks in specifics and without stuttering. You’re the Father who knows what we need even before we ask, and you provide before we ask.

This passage from Isaiah is underlined multiple times in my favorite Bible, and for good reason. It reminds me that you’re not like me, in so many ways. You never get tired or weary. I do and I am. Accepting limitations, finiteness, and weakness has never been one of my strengths. But I must. Since youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall, why do I think I’m exempt from “running on empty” and hitting a wall?

Father, I’m not asking to soar like an eagle, as cool as that might be, and I’m not seeking to run like a marathoner, though I’d love the legs and lungs to do so. Just walking upright with a renewed heart, a steady gait and replenished energy will be enough.

My hope is in you, Abba, Father, for you promise daily mercies, steadfast love and sufficient grace. I’m not depleted, though I’m heading in that direction. I’m not medicating in destructive ways, though tempted at times. I’m not depressed, but have enough of the blues and blahs to take my condition seriously. I look to you for all the spiritual, emotional, mental and physical strength I need. The next few months are going to really busy. Send your Spirit. Please grant me good sleep and real Sabbath.

Because Jesus embraced the ultimate weakness and weariness of the cross, I’m confident of your burden-bearing love. You are the perfect, present and persistent Father. I may be weary in my servanthood, but I’m secure in my sonship. Nothing can separate me from your love. So very Amen I pray in Jesus’ tender and triumphant name.

August 13, 2011

Source: http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/scottysmith/2011/08/13/a-prayer-when-feeling-tired-and-weary/

What should I pray for myself?

Posted by on May 6, 2011 Comments Off

Just before we went on holidays as well as while we were away, Jakey’s sleep went pear-shaped. We’ve been incredibly blessed in that he’s been a good sleeper since birth and started sleeping through the night very early on. But then in March he got sick and then in April he experienced jet-lag in North America, and he started waking up 3-4 times each night for a feed. As you can imagine, my weary, groggy prayers through the nights have been, ‘God, PLEASE help Jakey sleep!’ and by that of course I mean ‘help him sleep through the night again so I can sleep!’.

And of course it’s fine to pray like this. Apparently such prayer is traditionally known as ‘Simple Prayer’ and it’s the gut-level type of praying that just blurts out before you even think about it. But as I stopped to think about my prayer and the fact that night after night, God didn’t appear to be answering it in the affirmative, I realised that the motive underlying that prayer was basically my own comfort and convenience. Sure, I want Jakey to sleep well for his sake too, but really I’m suffering more than he is so it’s pretty much a self-centred prayer request! And God doesn’t exist or answer my prayers simply for my own comfort and convenience.

Romans 8:28 tells us that God works everything for the good of those who love Him, and Philippians 1:6 tells us that God is bringing His children on to completion (perfection, maturity) in Christ. So while it’s not necessarily wrong to pray for things that make me comfortable (or happy, or physically and financially stable and secure) it may be a bit wrong-headed. Such motivations put me at the centre of my prayers rather than God’s glory or my Christlike good – and God obviously doesn’t measure what’s good for me in the same blinkered way that I do! I need to pray for things that are good for me from God’s point of view – that is, for whatever will help me to become more like Jesus.

So if that means I learn selflessness, endurance, compassion, and patience through Jakey not sleeping well (and even if it means I’m not clear-headed enough to write all the blog posts I’d like to), and if this is the good God would like to work in me, I want to learn to submit to that. So I try to modify my weary, groggy, overnight prayers – ‘God, please help Jakey sleep so I can too, but ultimately, please make me and him more like Jesus through this time’.

What’s needed when I’m in need?

Posted by on November 9, 2010 Comments Off

Steve was chatting with his cousin about babies and overnight feeding, because like us, they have a relative newborn eating up their sleep too. Although what W said was actually that though he used to be a very light sleeper, now he sleeps through their bub’s ‘wake-up-mum!’ cries, because he’s back at work and in his words, ‘not sleeping is just not an option’.

The funny thing is that for a mum of course, sleeping through your bub’s cries is just not an option.

In both cases, the common factor is what is most needed. If you need the sleep, your body will shut your ears down to allow you to sleep. And if you need to stay awake despite lack of sleep, your body will somehow keep you going (I believe it’s called ‘adrenalin’!).

It got me thinking more generally about what’s needed when I’m in need. Of course the answer for a Christian, is prayer. Need drives us to pray.

When Jacob first came home from the hospital with us, we desperately needed a whole lot of wisdom to know how to look after him. This need drove me to pray constantly as an expression of my utter dependence on God (and God constantly heard and answered!). Pastor Ben wrote recently in the morning service bulletin that ‘prayer is faith articulated’. Indeed, prayer is an expression of our dependent need on Someone and Something greater than ourselves. When we pray, we’re expressing our belief that that Someone can help us in our time of need where we can’t help ourselves.

And of course the opposite is true – if and when I don’t pray, I’m effectively saying I have no need, I can do it myself, I don’t need to humbly trust Another. The Bible tells us this is human arrogance and folly; we are creatures dependent on our Creator for even our every breath (Colossians 1:16-17) – and so we need to pray.

The more used to being a mum I get, the less I pray – which is kind of ok in that it’s a reflection of God’s very answers to my prayers for wisdom! I need less wisdom than I used to in the sense that God’s grown my wisdom in various areas, so I can rely on that God-given wisdom to look after Jacob. But if I stop praying altogether that would be foolish – and sometimes (like you?) I’m in danger of doing just this – through busyness, laziness, pride, and self-deception.

So how are you going at expressing your needs to God, in trusting dependence on Him? Don’t let your needs drive you to helplessness, rather let them drive you to prayerfulness. God is willing and able to do for us what we can’t, and is exalted when we express in and by our prayers, that He is great and we are not.

Psalm 23 – (a song about needs fulfilled)

The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Who is praying with us and for us?

Posted by on September 27, 2010 1 comment

Yesterday at 4:30pm, our first official ‘before the service’ prayer meeting began (thanks to Grace for organising this). As Grace said in her email to the 5:17 group:

Prayer is where the real groundwork is laid, in that we realize that without Christ we can do nothing, without Christ 5:17 can do nothing. So let us gather together in prayer in full dependence in Him as we seek to grow closer with Jesus, with each other, and with our non-christian friends & community.

May I encourage as many 5:17ers as possible to join this group – for the above reasons.

But as we meet and pray, let’s remember that it’s not only us praying. Who is praying with us and for us?

Jesus Christ

Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them (Hebrews 7:25).

My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:1-2).

Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised— who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us (Romans 8:34).

The Holy Spirit

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God (Romans 8:26-27)

Grace and Truth: Toward Christlike Relationships with Muslims

Posted by on September 9, 2010 Comments Off

Over the last month, I’ve been praying through the 30 Days of Prayer for the Muslim World (2010). It has been a really encouraging, challenging time – in learning the needs of the Muslim world, as well as how to love and pray for them. One particularly striking feature of the 30 Days booklet was the Grace and Truth Affirmation. In contrast to horrible actions of a church in Florida which is planning to burn copies of the Koran on 9/11, the following is an affirmation that was made by a Global Network of Christians who love, serve, and live among Muslims. It’s quite long but it’s a very important read.

Jesus calls his followers to experience and live out the love of God. This love is made accessible to all people through Christ, who came to the world “full of grace and truth.” However, because of cultural differences, threats of terrorism and negative stereotypes of Muslims, many of God’s people shrink back from fulfilling Jesus’ command to love all people. Scripture teaches us how followers of Christ can interact with Muslims in a Christ-honoring fashion.


We note that the Islamic World contains significant theological and ideological diversity. The spectrum of Muslim perspectives and practice ranges from secularists, modernists and some traditionalists, to extremist Islamists who promote militant jihad. Recognizing this great diversity, we affirm ten biblical guidelines that can enable Jesus’ followers to serve as his representatives in relationship with Muslims of every persuasion.


1. Be Faithful to God’s Truth – the Whole Truth
We seek to relate to Muslims on the basis of the core convictions of Christian faith, not by hiding or diminishing them. Relating to Muslims with respect, understanding and love includes bearing faithful witness to essential truths of the gospel. Jesus is Lord. Forgiveness, salvation and eternal life are free gifts of God’s grace available to any person through repentance and faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection. We seek to obey the whole will of God, with its implications for every part of our lives in this world (Matt 22:37, 39; 28:20; Micah 6:8).


2. Be Jesus-Centered in our Interaction
Our focus is Jesus because he is the essence of the gospel. God has revealed himself to us by taking human form. We say with Paul: “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor 2:2 NIV). We affirm a Jesus-centered approach to Muslims because it highlights the treasure of the gospel. It does not confuse the good news with Christendom, patriotism or our civilization. Jesus is our model, and we seek to embody his life in all we say and do.


3. Be Truthful and Gracious in our Words and Witness
We seek to be accurate when we speak about Muslims and their faith. Overstatement, exaggeration and words taken out of context should not be found among followers of Jesus, for he calls us to be careful about the words we speak (Matt 12:36). God commands us not to bear false witness against our neighbor (Ex 20:16) and to do unto others as we would have them do unto us (Matt 7:12). Thus we endeavor to speak truthfully about Muslims, and we seek to be clear and positive in our communication of the gospel to Muslims.


As much as it depends on us, we seek to live at peace with all people, while acknowledging that speaking the truth, even graciously, will offend some. We acknowledge that respectful and gracious witness does not imply naiveté or silence about troublesome issues. We are called to speak the truth in love. At the same time we refuse to project onto all Muslims a violent agenda espoused by only a minority. We choose to relate to Muslims as unique individuals rather than assuming they fit our stereotype of a “Muslim.” Moreover, we refuse to prioritize concerns of political power and self-protection above the commands of Scripture, such as love for neighbor (Matt 22:39). We affirm that proclaiming the Good News of Christ’s love is a higher priority than defending our culture.


4. Be Wise in our Words and Witness
God’s Word calls us to share our faith wisely. “Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity” (Col 4:5). What does wisdom look like in practice? According to James, “the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness” (James 3:17-18 NIV).


In our interaction with articles, books and commentators, we need to discern between those reflecting the wisdom from above and those whose approach is “earthly”. We need to embrace that which is impartial and sincere, neither glossing over vital truths nor telling only one side of a story.


5. Be Respectful and Bold in our Witness
In the spirit of the Prince of Peace, respectful witness focuses on giving a positive presentation of the gospel. It does not attack the other or avoid presenting truth. As the apostle Peter says: “In your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15 NIV). Numerous biblical examples (i.e. Acts 4:31; 9:27-28; 13:46; 14:3; 17:30-31; 19:8) invite us to emulate the boldness of early believers in sharing the good news. In obedience to the Scripture, we seek to be both respectful and bold in our witness.


6. Be Prudent in our Google-ized World
In the past, when leaders in a religious community spoke, it was only heard by their own community. But today our words ricochet around the world. When we try to explain who we are, what we believe, what we do, and why we do it, our words may reach beyond our primary audience and enter the global marketplace of ideas. After saying something controversial, an outspoken leader may try to clarify his statement. But the damage is already done. Words are powerful. Prudence is required. “A man of knowledge uses words with restraint” (Prov 17:27).


7. Be Persistent in our Call for Religious Freedom
We affirm the right of religious freedom for every person and community. We defend the right of Muslims to express their faith respectfully among Christians and of Christians to express their faith respectfully among Muslims. Moreover, we affirm the right of Muslims and Christians alike to change religious beliefs, practices and/or affiliations according to their conscience (2 Cor 4:2). Thus we stand against all forms of religious persecution toward Muslims, Christians, or anyone else.


8. Be Peaceable and Uncompromising in our Dialogue
Dialogue between Muslims and Christians provides us with opportunities to understand Muslims, build relationships, engage in peacemaking and share our faith. We seek to share the gospel respectfully and boldly, without compromise – as Paul “reasoned with” people (Acts 17:2, 17). Through dialogue, we work toward mutual respect, graciously bearing witness to our faith and working toward religious freedom. Ultimately, we long to see as many as possible reconciled with God, through the person of Christ.


9. Be Loving toward All
The world’s Muslims are our neighbors, as Jesus used the term (Luke 10:29-37). The command of God to his people stands for all time: “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev 19:18; Luke 10:27b). How can a follower of Christ take seriously Jesus’ command to love our neighbor, and at the same time address the real threat of terrorism (by those who position themselves as our enemies)? Jesus’ teaching about love of enemy (Luke 6:35) is among the most radical and most ignored commands in the Bible. We do not want to engage in the “hermeneutics of evasion” – figuring out ways to interpret Jesus’ command so it doesn’t apply to our lives.


Both peacemakers and those who love their enemies are described as “sons [or daughters] of God” (Matt 5:9, 44; Luke 6:35). They are called children of God because they are acting like their Father: the God of Peace (Phil 4:9; 1 Thess 5:23). In other words, peacemakers and those who love their enemies demonstrate their authenticity as children of God by their words and acts of peace. Jesus modeled this by loving us and laying down his life for us, “while we were enemies” (Rom 5:10; cf. Col 1:21). Responding to enemies with self-giving, sacrificial love demonstrates the gospel.


10. Differentiate between the Role of God’s People and the Role of Government
In Romans 12:9-13:10, Paul describes a godly response to evil (which includes terrorism). He portrays a sharp contrast between how God’s people are to respond to evil versus how the government should respond. Jesus’ followers are called to a peacemaking ethic of sacrificial love. Paul begins the section with an appeal to love (Rom 12:9-10) and closes the section by a repeated call to loving our neighbor (13:8-10). Moreover, he exhorts believers to bless our persecutors, respond non-violently to evil and seek peace with all.


By contrast, a government is clearly called to bring justice within its borders, using force if necessary. Thus the justice wrought by the state reflects a partial and provisional manifestation of God’s justice on earth against evil. A truly biblical response to Muslims makes two important distinctions: 1) We distinguish between the role of God’s people and the role of the state, and 2) We differentiate between terrorists and the majority of Muslims in the world.


Conclusion
We have been entrusted with the ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor 5:18, 19). The commission to “make disciples of all nations” has not been rescinded. Neither have the commands to demonstrate sacrificial love and to work toward peace. There is no separate gospel for wartime and peacetime. The message of God’s love in Christ is for all times, places and peoples. We affirm the ten biblical guidelines presented here for all followers of Christ, that we may remain faithful to him and become more fruitful in our relationships with Muslims.


Source: http://www.30-days.net/reveal/wp-content/uploads/2010/grace_and_truth_affirmation.pdf


The people who wrote and signed ask Christians to seriously consider the statements in the text above and to pray this for ourselves, our church and the Body of Christ. They encourage believers to repent concerning all un-Christlike attitudes towards Muslims which are unworthy of our crucified and risen King. I want to encourage all of us to do so, and thus shine the light of Christ to our Muslim neighbours near and far.

Praying for 5:17 church

Posted by on May 18, 2010 1 comment

Praying for 5:17 church

If you are ever struggling to think of something to pray for 5:17 church, here’s a great 8-second prayer that we would love you to bring to God our Father:

“Lord, cause your Word to run and be glorified in the ministries of 5:17 and the missions we support. Amen!”

You can find the source of this prayer here, reflecting on 2 Thessalonians 3:1

pray for the Chandlers

Posted by on December 17, 2009 2 comments

Some of you may have heard or heard of Pastor Matt Chandler and/or The Village Church, Texas USA. Matt is a faithful preacher of God’s word and his sermons are very popular worldwide (especially amongst fans of Mark Driscoll et al) because he too seeks to be biblically faithful and culturally relevant.

So you may also know that Matt had a seizure on Nov 26 and tests revealed a tumour in his frontal lobe.  He underwent surgery soon after to have it removed and pathology results in the past week have shown that the tumour was malignant (cancerous).  Also, the surgeon was unable to remove it all given its nature. The Chandler family now face decisions about what treatment course/s to take.

As you can imagine this is a huge trial for Matt, his wife Lauren and their 3 young kids, as well as The Village Church family (which is several thousand strong). I’ve been so impressed and encouraged by Matt’s personal response as well as that of the VC’s Elders. As far as I can read from their blog updates, they’ve lead the church with enormous grace and wisdom at a very hard time.

You might like to read the Elders’ blog updates here, as well as the prayer points the Elders suggest (and do pray!).

I’ll close with a reflection point from Pastor Matt himself; be impacted and grown by his perspective -

I am grateful for the men of God in my life, namely John Piper who taught me to hold my life cheap and to join with Paul in saying “I don’t count my life of any value or as precious to myself if only I might finish my course and complete the work that He gave me to do to testify to the Gospel of the grace of God. I’m nothing, I just have a job. God keep me faithful on the job and then let me drop and go to the reward.” [...]

Engaged in the suffering of the afflicted

Posted by on November 3, 2009 Comments Off

What does it mean to live out our faith in a world full of pain and suffering? How can we watch SBS news and not feel totally overwhelmed at all the injustice in this world? I’ve found that it’s so easy to get numb and distant from the plight of the helpless and hopeless. I find that it’s easy to ignore issues ‘out there’ when I have enough issues of my own. But that only works until I read stories like the following. Keiyeng mentioned Sara Groves in a recent post. Here is how she’s trying to live out her faith, and make a difference in the here and now. It’s challenged me to action. Hopefully it will challenge you too:

Sara explains, “I believe God invites us to add to the beauty of his plan, letting us participate in his redemptive work. But I found myself asking, ‘How have I applied this idea?’ I had groomed and groomed and groomed my personal faith, but to what end?”

Her answers came in a series of global conversations and experiences, from the flood-ravaged gulf of Louisiana, to the genocide memorials of Rwanda, to the testimonies of Southeast Asia sex trade survivors. These experiences showed the disparity between some of the American [and Australian] pursuits of comfort and wealth and the joy of joining the difficult work of social justice and engaging in the suffering of the afflicted.

“One of the main inspirations behind this album is a girl named Elisabeth,” Sara says. “I knew about human trafficking and modern day slavery at some sort of global level, but I didn’t truly understand the personal stories behind what was happening until I met Elisabeth in Washington, D.C.”

Elisabeth’s story is both heartbreaking and phenomenal. The oldest of seven children living in Southeast Asia, the teenager had just finished her sophomore year of high school and decided to take a job in a neighboring community to save money for Bible college. But, tragically, she was betrayed by a traveling companion, kidnapped and sold to a brothel owner. She found herself days later in a foreign country, unable to speak the language, forced into a life of prostitution.

Sara relates the rest of the story: “Elizabeth prayed every night for God to rescue her, even though the other girls in the brothel mocked her. After eight months, an International Justice Mission operative was able to secure her freedom. While retrieving her belongings, they saw Psalm 27 written on the wall above her mattress in her tiny room: ‘The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid?’

“The phrase ‘social justice’ can be loaded. To some people it is a political or a liberal conversation, but to me, it is a Kingdom conversation. There are people behind these stories and statistics, and God’s heart for justice burns on their behalf. I wanted to write songs that drew attention to the people like Elizabeth who know God deeply because of their suffering. There is a commonality in all of these friends, and that is the perseverance of hope.”

Much of what Groves has learned has come through her new friends at International Justice Mission, an organization that stands in the gap for victims of violence, sexual exploitation, slavery and oppression when they are left without an advocate.  Her interactions with IJM, as well as recent mission trips to Rwanda and New Orleans, have brought a fresh sense of purpose and excitement to Sara’s life-long Christian faith.

“Much of what I had done before along the lines of service was guilt induced. When I would hear a horrific story, I would want to respond quickly, write a check, and be done with it. But I have met many incredible people who are responding with their lives, and that has exposed something in me. I have been given a lot of joy in life, but I’ve also missed something. All of my life I have been grooming my faith, but have missed something about the purpose of that grooming. If I understand scripture at all, I have to know that to enter into the suffering of the poor and the oppressed is to know Christ and his suffering.”

The Groves’ family look forward to learning more about how their lives will be useful in bringing hope to individuals like Elizabeth.

That night in Washington D.C., Elizabeth was asked to share the Psalm she had written on the wall as part of her testimony, but Elizabeth refused, stating that Psalm 27 was for the brothel. Instead, she said, she would read Psalm 34: ‘I sought the Lord, and He heard my cry. “When I met Elizabeth, I felt like I was in the presence of royalty,” says Sara. “She is a college graduate now, and with tremendous courage, has used her story to inspire action. I couldn’t get her out of my mind as I was writing these songs. She knows something about God that I will never know. Those verses are real to her in a way that I have never experienced. After meeting her, genocide survivors, and others who  suffered great oppression, I was humbled by my lack of understanding of life, of love, of courage, and of Christ, and was filled with a hunger to know more.”

Do you want to know more? Do you want to do something about it too? Then:

  1. Come to church this Sunday as we learn about the Persecuted Church, and then pray for them (you’ll receive a 31-day prayer guide for North Korea – recently ranked #1 by Voice of the Martyrs for the 7th year running as the most persecuted people in the world).
  2. Check out the International Justice Mission website and see what they do.
  3. Also, Grace told us about the following organisation: The A21 Campaign. Check out their website – they have a list of 21 things you can do to help those caught in the horrifying slave trade. Last week, our challenge was to pray for the Persecuted Church in general. Next week we’ll focus on North Korea. This week, click on this following link and join me in praying for those in slavery.

Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering(Hebrews 13:3).

How to pray for persecuted Christians

Posted by on October 23, 2009 Comments Off

On Tuesday morning, after months of thinking about it, I finally tidied up my study. It took a good few hours – there were papers all over the floor, piles of books lying around, and little or no space to put anything. I’m now sitting in my study, and looking around the room, it’s amazing how different everything looks. Everything is in its place (or in the recycling/bin). And one of the good things I find when tidying up, is that you find things you forgot you had. One of the things I found in a big pile of old sermon notes was a Barnabas Fund prayer card entitled “How to pray for persecuted Christians”.

As I read through the prayer card, my heart was moved at what our brothers and sisters in Christ endure for the sake of His Name. I’ve never really experienced such injustice or persecution myself. Go to the Barnabas Fund link above to read some of their stories. The Bible tells us that the Church will be persecuted (John 15:20). So if the Lord will continue to allow persecution, what exactly should we ask Him for when we pray about these situations? I’ve found that the ten points below are helpful guidance in bringing our persecuted brothers and sisters before the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16).

1. God that He is all-knowing that in Christ He himself experienced shame, pain and agonising death, as well as the glorious resurrection. Thank Him for His promise: “I will never leave you nor forsake you”(Joshua 1:5, Matthew 28:20).

2. Pray that all governments will work for justice and righteousness. While Jesus says that in this world we will have trouble, (John 16.33) He does not say that it will always be present in every place.

3. Pray that leaders of liberal democracies will use their influence to find ways to reduce, if not end, persecution in countries where it occurs. Just as Paul appealed to Caesar to seek justice (Acts 25), so Christians can appeal to secular governments.

4. Pray for the growth of the Church where persecution flourishes, remembering that “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church”.

5. Pray for strength and courage for those undergoing persecution, and for peace that only God can bring. Thank Him that His grace is sufficient for their needs (2 Cor 12:9). Pray that their faith will not fail, but that their suffering will draw them closer to Him and increase their faith.

6. Pray that the Holy Spirit will enable persecuted Christians to forgive and love their persecutors (Matt 5:44) and that their Christ-like reactions will have an impact on their persecutors.

7. Pray that the Lord will be at work in the hearts of those who currently persecute our sisters and brothers to bring them to a saving knowledge of Himself, as He did with Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9).

8. Thank the Lord for the privilege of entering into the sufferings of our sisters and brothers, remembering that “if one part [of the body] suffers, every part suffers with it” (1 Cor 12:26).

9. Pray that Christians who are experiencing persecution will not lose the ability to accept or trust genuine approaches from those who have formerly persecuted them, as when the believers in Jerusalem had to learn to accept the reality of Saul’s conversion (Acts 9). Pray that the Lord will give discernment, and relief from unnecessary fears.

10. Pray for yourself and for persecuted Christians to be spiritually ready for whatever tomorrow brings, be that persecution, respite from suffering or Christ’s return (Matt 24.42).

I’m going to commit to praying the above  for the next 10 days. Will you join me and do likewise? You could print the 10 prayer points off (or read them off the screen), and pray them for the next 10 days too. Hopefully after 10 days, we’ll be in the habit of praying for the persecuted church – and through our prayers, though we might be small, may God change the world, and bring hope and peace to the hurting.