Are you starting to feel the steepness of our climb? Our journey is taking us over a challenging course, and if you're like me you can tell that we are definitely journeying uphill! Many of us had a Christmas/New Year's break, and simply getting back into routines and the "stuff of life" can make a commitment like this one harder. Add to it that the enemy of our souls is trying at every turn to stop us from praying, and it's no wonder that some of us are definitely starting to be aware that this journey is not about enjoying the scenic route. In fact, in many ways we are breaking new paths -- several of us have "never been this way before" and are trusting God to help us learn how to pray missionally; others of us have prayed through Operation World but never as part of a team. (Personally, the 365 days of blogging is definitely a new thing for me, and I appreciate your prayers toward that end!)
Today's prayer focus is all about breaking new ground. Check out pages 21-24, "The Unfinished Task - Religious Systems" and then come back here for prayer.
Does your heart break to read of the vast lostness of the world? Despite the proliferation of Christianity on the map on p. 24, the prayer points make it clear that "The majority of those who identify themselves as Christians do not actively practice their faith" to the point the re-evangelization is necessary in many "Christian" countries. I am reminded afresh that breakthroughs are needed within the world's other religions. Only the Holy Spirit can bring these breakthroughs, but we must be aware that the web of darkness that encircles much of the world is thick, and the enemy is trying with all his might to hold onto those strongholds. Let's pray some strongholds down today!
My prayer for today: Oh Lord, Your word tells us you have set eternity in man's heart. We are created for worship, created for fellowship with You. Even when we don't realize it, we have a deeply spiritual nature. The proliferation of the world's religions testifies that we are hard-wired to believe in something. Lord, as Christians we believe that Jesus is the only way to relationship with You. Any other path ultimately proves to be a dead end. So Lord, it is out of a sense of humility, knowing You alone have opened our eyes, and deep love for those walking down dead end roads, that we pray for those in other religions today Lord. Father I first pray for those who consider themselves "Christians" but might not have a personal relationship with You, or have chosen to not walk out their faith. Lord, I pray that all who bear the name Christian to truly become followers of Jesus. I pray that You will raise up churches and missionaries with a heart for discipleship to truly teach people what it means to follow Jesus. Bring conviction where the commitment has been cultural rather than genuinely heart-felt. Judgment begins with the house of God, You tell us, and so we must be willing to take a hard look at ourselves and the church and examine what kind of witness we are for You. But Lord, we would be remiss if we did not recognize the darkness in much of the world that is entangled in a web of lies, never having heard the Gospel or seeing it as something cultural belonging to "the west". You came for the whole world Lord Jesus- we believe that with everything we are. And we know that there is an enemy who seeks to stop that message from penetrating hearts, and he does that by layering lie upon lie until people's spiritual eyes adjust to the darkness and the light seems to be an intrusion rather than a blessing. Lord, we ask You today in the name of Jesus, break the bondage of those lies!! Within the Muslim world, the Hindu world, the regions where Buddhism is prevalent - we pray for breakthroughs that can only come by the Holy Spirit. I pray for more missionaries to be called to these "big three" religious systems - especially Islam, Lord, where only 10% of the missionary force is currently focused. We don't want to ignore other religious systems as well Lord - the ethnic religions with their strong spiritism approach; the Sikhs who we are only beginning to reach out to; smaller religious groups such as Baha'i, Jains, and Parsees. Draw them to Yourself Lord, and send laborers to the harvest among them. And Lord for Your own people, the Jews -- we know they have suffered much at the hands of those who wrongly called themselves Christian. But Lord we believe that satan has used that lie to deceive them from the truth for too long. Remove the veil, Lord, and let them see that Jesus is their Yeshua Messiah, the promised one for whom they still long. Finally for the non-religious -- those who are secular, or atheist/agnostic -- Lord in many ways they are in the deepest bondage of all, for they are denying that they are created to seek truth. We pray for them to be increasingly unsettled and discontent. We ask that You cause them to seek - that they will find many questions to which they simply don't have satisfactory answers. Equip the Christians around them to be able to answer those questions. We love You Lord. Thank You that we see Your church in every political nation on earth ... help us be faithful to finish the task Lord, as so many within those lands have not heard the Gospel.
As a sidenote ... I am changing the numbering system to reflect both dates and the day order. The further into the year we get, the harder it will be for people to "catch up". I want to give new group members the option of joining us where we are on the journey, or starting at the beginning on any day of their choosing. Please continue to invite new travelers to come along!
No comments:
Post a Comment