Sunday Morning Prayer Guide

I wrote the following guide for a Sunday morning prayer time.  The requests are all about asking God to prepare our hearts to worship Him.  I wonder what might happen in our lives and churches, if we prayed prayers like this each Sunday morning. So here is a prayer guide for your consideration as you prepare to worship the Lord this Sunday, and maybe the Sundays beyond.

Pray through God’s Word
Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? Show us your steadfast love, O LORD, and grant us your salvation.
– Psalm 85:6-7

Pray for Myself
• A heart to worship the Lord for his great love and salvation
• God’s Word to convict, challenge, and comfort me this morning
• God’s help to encourage and build up others this morning

Pray for Our Church
• For people to come, and Holy Spirit to work mightily among us
• Growing joy and delight in the Lord, desire and thirst for God
• Deep hunger for the Word, and abundant grace to live it out
• Growing burden to pray – individually and corporately
• Reverent awe of our great and glorious God
• Gripped by the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection
• Personal revivals leading to church revival
• Practical love and care for one another

Saturday: Pray for Our World

Pray for our World:

  • Gospel to spread, people to be saved, and churches to be planted
  • A world-wide Great Awakening that transforms cultures
  • Unreached people groups to be reached with the gospel
  • Relief work in Nepal, Refugees in Syria and Iraq
  • Peace in Ukraine, Middle East, African countries

Friday: Pray for Our Nation

Pray for our Nation:

  • Growing recognition of the hollowness of the idols of our age: money, material things, sex, homosexuality, technology, social media, fame, power, alcohol, drugs, entertainment, government
  • Growing openness and response to the hope of the gospel
  • Many in our country to come to Christ and grow in Him
  • Another Great Awakening that transforms lives and our country
  • President Obama and his Cabinet, Congress, and the Supreme Court – wisdom, follow truth, righteousness, and justice
  • Supreme Court decision on “same-sex” marriage
  • State – Governor Snyder, Legislature, Judicial – wisdom
  • Families – strong marriages, children, finances/work
  • Economy – national/state growth, job growth
  • Education – federal/state policies, curriculum, teachers, safety, public schools, private schools, home-school freedom
  • Entertainment/Media – Christian influence, positive impact

Thursday: Pray For Your Community

Pray for your Community:

  • Growing openness and response to the hope of the gospel
  • Many people in our communities to come to Christ
  • Fruit from your church outreaches
  • A Great Awakening that transforms our community
  • Families – strong marriages, children, finances/work
  • Economy – local businesses, jobs
  • Education – local schools, teachers, safety, graduates

Wednesday: Pray for the World Church

Pray for the World Church:

  • Churches to grow, world-wide church revivals
  • Pastors – Biblical training and resources, Biblical faithfulness
  • Church in Nepal, Ukraine, Syria, Iraq, Iran, India, China, etc.
  • Perseverance and strength for persecuted Christians
  • God’s provision (food, homes, jobs) for Christians
  • Christian refugees – especially from Syria and Iraq – and those ministering to them
  • Bibles, Christian literature, radio, TV, and internet available to encourage, strengthen, and help grow in the Lord
  • Growing freedom to worship the Lord

Tuesday: Pray for the American Church

Pray for the American Church:

  • Personal revivals leading to church revivals around the country
  • Growing commitment to worship, prayer, discipleship, fellowship
  • Growing commitment to evangelism and missions
  • Growing love for God, his people, and the lost
  • Courageous fidelity to Biblical truth in a culture of compromise
  • Wisdom for pastors and other church leaders
  • Wisdom for leaders of Christian ministries, schools, missions
  • Christians living with Biblical integrity in the workplace, school, neighborhood, and community

Monday: Pray For Your Church

Pray for your church:

  • Growing joy and delight in the Lord, desire and thirst for God
  • Deep hunger for the Word, and abundant grace to live it out
  • Growing burden to pray – individually and corporately
  • Reverent awe of our great and glorious God
  • Gripped by the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection
  • Personal revivals leading to church revival
  • Practical love and care for one another
  • Striving for unity and peace in our thoughts, words, & actions

Week of Prayer

Acts 1 tells us that after Jesus ascended into heaven, the early disciples gathered together and “with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer” until the Day of Pentecost.  This past Sunday was Ascension Sunday, and the coming Sunday is Pentecost Sunday, so our church is following the example of those early disciples and having a week of focused prayer.  I want to invite you to join us as I post our daily prayer guide.