Wednesday 23 May 2012

Prayers for peace. Prayer topics 24th May 2012

2 Chronicles 7:14
14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Peace in our time

In these recent days I have been struck by the headlines in our newspapers and on the news websites as to the prosecutions for violent crimes, and public disorder in our local communities.
Just yesterday there has been a fire in a disused school where the suspect arson.  In my own street in Haghill, there was serious incident in the local shop.  This took place in the middle of the afternoon, just after the schools finished for the day, of which there are 3 nearby.  There was a report this week of a young woman who has been raped and attacked in the west end of Glasgow.  These are just 3 such incidents, and there are many more being reported.

We pray for the peace of the spirit to descend on our communities.
We pray for the safety of our communities.  That people will live in harmony and unity.

We pray for God’s kingdom and power to reign in our communities.
We pray for Justice, peace and mercy to be demonstrated by all. 

We pray that local churches will be effective in bringing light into the darkness.  We pray for protection for those working in the front line who deal with these incidents daily.  We pray that they will be protected, and that they will know the presence of God with them daily.
The Olympic Torch & Pentecost

We continue to pray for the preparations for the arrival of the Torch in our city.  We pray that as the light is brought here physically, that the light of God will also shine brightly.
We need to pray for the group of Christian leaders who are organising this. 

We pray for the day that the torch arrives in Glasgow, that all those people who come into our City will be safe and that the event will pass safely and people will enter into the spirit of celebration.  We pray that those who are come into the City will be touched by the power of the Spirit of God.  That we see a wave of prayer over the City, as we pray the City of Glasgow into the Kingdom of God.
Pray for the impact of the Spirit this Pentecost.  Pray that we will see a mighty moving of God’s spirit in the City.  That the Light and Fire of the Spirit will descend with all the might of the Father.

We pray expectantly that God will do great and big things this Pentecost. 
Pray that we see the Kingdom come.

The Word
I have again included the Scripture that God brought to me previously as I believe that we need to continue to listen to God in this, and take action in this. I have also given a link to a Youtube clip of an old advert that was on TV some years ago.  The reason for this, is that I believe that God wants us to be God colours in our community.  We shouldn’t just be dull and boring, trapped in the black and white era, but rather our lives should be full of colour – High Definition and 3D God colour.  Pray through this scripture, and allow God to reveal Himself to us through this, that it will impact on our lives, and we will respond as God directs through the leading of His Spirit.

Zechariah 7(New Living Translation)

A Call to Justice and Mercy

8 Then this message came to Zechariah from the Lord: 9 “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Judge fairly, and show mercy and kindness to one another. 10 Do not oppress widows, orphans, foreigners, and the poor. And do not scheme against each other.

11 “Your ancestors refused to listen to this message. They stubbornly turned away and put their fingers in their ears to keep from hearing. 12 They made their hearts as hard as stone, so they could not hear the instructions or the messages that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies had sent them by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. That is why the Lord of Heaven’s Armies was so angry with them.

13 “Since they refused to listen when I called to them, I would not listen when they called to me, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. 14 As with a whirlwind, I scattered them among the distant nations, where they lived as strangers. Their land became so desolate that no one even traveled through it. They turned their pleasant land into a desert.”

Amos 5:18-27 (NLT)

Warning of Coming Judgment
21 “I hate all your show and pretense—
the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies.
22 I will not accept your burnt offerings and grain offerings.
I won’t even notice all your choice peace offerings.
23 Away with your noisy hymns of praise!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.
24 Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice,
an endless river of righteous living.


25 “Was it to me you were bringing sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in the wilderness, Israel? 26 No, you served your pagan gods—Sakkuth your king god and Kaiwan your star god—the images you made for yourselves. 27 So I will send you into exile, to a land east of Damascus,” says the Lord, whose name is the God of Heaven’s Armies.
1 Corinthians 2:14 (NLT)

14 But people who aren’t spiritualcan’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means.

God Colours
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GURvHJNmGrc

Matthew 5:13-16 (MSG)
13"Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You've lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage.

14-16"Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand. Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

A living wage
There is a campaign that is starting to gain momentum in the country that is calling for all workers to be paid a living wage, and I believe that we should pray into this, and take action as we need to.

Please pray that all employers act on this call that wages should be a living wage, not just what is legally obligated.
Please pray that every church and Christian organisation takes the lead on this.  There should be no excuse for any church to not pay a living wage.  Pray that the excuse of money & cost doesn’t get in the way of doing what is just, fair and right.  Pray for boldness and courage for church leaders to step out in faith on this important issue.

Thy Kingdom Come
We pray that there is a real and tangible moving of the Spirit in our City. 

We claim that God’s Kingdom will Come.
We pray that souls will be won for the Kingdom, and that we will rejoice with the angels as men and women, boys and girls turn to God as their saviour.

Other requests from previous weeks:
Each week we continue to pray for topics that we prayed for previously.  We won’t always list all the details, but rather just give you the headings to allow you to pray into these situations as God leads, and if you need to you can refer to previous weeks guides.

Community
Church Leaders

Glasgow
Debt & Wealth

Elderly & Vulnerable
Families

Young People
Trafficking, refugees and Asylum seekers

Churches

Other prayer requests from around the city and the world:

I am very excited to say that this week we have had a number of requests for prayer from many different places, people and churches.   We give thanks to God for this privilege.

We give thanks for answered prayer in our community that God’s peace is being found in different situations, and that practical changes that we have been praying for will be happening, which God has guided and led.  We give thanks for this answer to our prayers.  In this situation the devil is still trying to foil the work of God, please pray for the protection of things that were already agreed in our community.

We pray against the influence of astrology, tarot readings and psychics.  We pray that the power of the Spirit will overcome this darkness.  Please pray for Godly and spiritual conversations for some in our community that are engaging in these practices.  Pray that they will put their hope in Christ, rather than the false hope of these other things.

For the escalating violence in Afghanistan, Syria& in the Middle East & Africa.  May God bring a lasting peace and reconciliation.

Sean Rooney, 15 years old, rare form of cancer

We pray for the son of one of the people associated with our fellowship.  We rejoice with all the angels and the saints as he has come back to the Lord and renewed his relationship with Christ.  We pray protection over him as he starts this new journey in relationship with the saviour.  We pray that he finds a church where he can be nurtured and fed spiritually.

We pray for Sarah as she finishes her studies.  We pray that God directs her in finding employment.  We also pray for her mission trip this summer to Thailand, and that God is in the preparations and the ministry that she will engage in.

We pray for the Anderston Primary School choir as it takes part in the Pentecost Messy Church on Sunday at the Salvation Army.  We pray that the parent’s will be led to go along and that what they hear might encourage them to consider going along to further meetings.

We pray for the Anderston Primary School Summer Fete on Saturday that plans for the day will run smoothly; that there will be an opportunity for witness during this; that this might be a time when families and other members of the Anderston community can come together in a relaxing way.

Mary, who has been in hospital on holiday, that she would be well enough to travel home.

Norah, struggling with ill-heath and suffering from dementia, also for her family

John, recovering from a badly broken ankle.

We have had prayer requests from several people who are looking for work.

Also for families going through times of stress.

For Business in Glasgow as they try to bring together Christians who have a commitment to the business and offices communities of Glasgow

For students who are reaching the end of their courses, anxious about grades and what comes next.

Mary, an older lady, who is having a growth checked out by the doctors.

Michael, middle-aged man, under a lot of stress with family difficulties at the moment, and also physical infection.

Patrick, a young man, who will soon be in court as a result of an unwise joke which got out of hand---  for mercy and understanding from officials, that they will wipe the slate clean, for another chance so that he does not  end up with a record which could affect his career.

We pray for the Masih family.

We pray for Sonita’s sister Nila who is suffering from arthritis.

Robert, 32 years old, illness.

For the staff and pupils of Anderston Primary School, St Patricks Primary School, Sandyford Day Nursery &Cranstonhill Nursery School.

Lord, there are many hurting people across our city and the world.  May you fill them with your love, show compassion, give peace and bring comfort in their time of need.

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