July 18, 2016

Praying with the old hymn by J. Wilbur Chapman this week. Click here to hear it.

Jesus! What a Friend for sinners! 

Jesus! Lover of my soul;

Friends may fail me, foes assail me, 

He, my Savior, makes me whole.

Lord, we are daily reminded of how  of sinful we are. Our world continually falls apart because of our sinfulness. Thank You for being our hero. Thank You for running into our mess and saving us. Thank You for running to this world to save us. Thank You for getting messy with us; for dying for us.

In a world of so much hate, thank You Jesus for loving us, and making us lovable.

Jesus! What a Strength in weakness!

Let me hide myself in Him;

Tempted, tried, and sometimes failing.

He, my Strength, my vict’ry wins.

Lord, we pray for our heroes.

Our imperfect, fallible, vulnerable heroes who run to trouble for us.

Those who are trying to make a difference in others’ lives everyday.

Lord give them Your strength.

Let them hide themselves in You.

Please keep our deployed safe and help them accomplish their mission.

Please keep our policemen safe and help them accomplish their mission.

Please keep our firemen safe.

Jesus! What a Help in sorrow!

While the billows o’er me roll,

Even when my heart is breaking,

He, My Comfort, helps my soul.

Lord, we pray for the hurting families, the hurting communities. 

We pray for the mothers and fathers, the wives, the children of the fallen.

We pray for the leaders, and those who need to be leaders.

Lord, please be our heroes’ Comfort today.

Jesus! What a Guide and Keeper!

While the tempest still is high,

Storms about me, night o’ertakes me,

He, my Pilot, hears my cry.

Lord we pray for wisdom.

Move in the hearts of the mommas of the communities.

Help the community organizers to have an affect.

Guide the police chiefs, the mayors, the governors, the President. 

Lead the platoon sergeant, the commanders, the generals, the Chief of Chaplains’ office.

In the dark of night, Lord please hear the heart cry of the hurting veteran, and be their Pilot until day.

Jesus! I do now receive Him,

More than all in Him I find,

He hath granted me forgiveness,

I am His, and He is mine.

Lord, we pray for our pastors, our chaplains, our youth leaders. May Your Christians be the guiding way through this troubled time. May we be used in changing lives, changing neighborhoods, changing our country. May our heroes turn to You first.

We take joy in our forgiveness, and in being Yours. Help us to spread that joy today.

Helping, keeping, saving, loving
He is with me to the end.

July 11, 2016

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord;
O Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.
If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins,
O Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness; 
therefore you are feared.

Only You, Lord--
Only You can turn a nation of slavery into a nation of great promise and hope for all.
Only You can turn a fallen couple into the parents of Your kingdom.
Only You can turn bitterness into brotherhood.
Only You can protect and defend, can guide and give wisdom.
Only You can calm the raging seas.

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in his word I put my hope.
My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.

Lord help us to put our trust in You and never in men. As we long for peace, may it be a reminder that we long most for You. As we search amongst all the voices for wisdom, may we turn to your word. Empty us, so we may shine your light. May your people build the walls, and stand in the gap to pray.

O Israel, put your hope in the Lord,
for with the Lord is unfailing love
and with him is full redemption.
He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.

Lord, many burdens are heavy on our heart:
*we pray for our nation's division
*we pray for our elections
*we pray for justice, and mercy

*we pray for our protectors--our military, our police, our firemen and EMTs
*we pray for our deployed
*we pray for hurting veterans

*we pray for our sick children like the young man with Crohns, the baby born with a lymphatic problem, the boy in a coma from falling out of a tree. And we thank You for saving two children recently from drowning.
*we pray for the family who just lost their son to cancer.
*we pray for safety for all of our kids in this fun, busy season.
*we pray for those still on the road for PCS season.

*we pray for our leaders, our elected officials, our police chiefs, our mayors, our generals, our Pentagon, our Chief of Chaplains office
*we pray for our forming ministry teams including chapel leadership and PWOC

with You is unfailing love
with You is full redemption
so we go out today with joy knowing You are on the throne! Amen!

July 4, 2016

Lord, I come, I confess
Bowing here I find my rest
Without You I fall apart
You're the One that guides my heart

Lord, we have a restless and searching nation. And without You, we are falling apart. Lead us to You, that we might find rest.

Lord, I need You, oh, I need You
Every hour I need You
My one defense, my righteousness
Oh God, how I need You

We trust in many things in America, Lord. But You are truly our only defense. You are truly our own claim to righteousness.

Where sin runs deep Your grace is more
Where grace is found is where You are
And where You are, Lord, I am free
Holiness is Christ in me

Lord forgive us of our sins as a nation. Forgive us of our arrogant pride, of our self-reliance. Forgive us for trusting in a president, in a military, in a scientist's ability to figure things out.
Only in You can we be truly free.

Teach my song to rise to You
When temptation comes my way
And when I cannot stand I'll fall on You
Jesus, You're my hope and stay

Thank You Lord for all You have blessed us with. Thank You for this good land, overflowing with blessings--from the Alaska salmon to the Maine lobster. From California strawberries to Hawaii's pineapple to Georgia peaches. Thank You Lord for the great breadbasket of the Plains. Thank You for this melting pot of people, with cultures unique and blended.

Lord, I need You, oh, I need You
Every hour I need You
My one defense, my righteousness
Oh God, how I need You

Thank You for the freedom to openly serve You here, to speak freely of You, to shout Your praises from the rooftop. And Lord we do need You. Remind us of that, even if it hurts.

We pray You will be the God of our nation.
We pray You will be the God of our military.
We pray You will be the God of our neighbors.

Please comfort our hurting veterans. Quiet their nightmares. Give them hope in You.
Please be with us through this election. You turn the hearts of kings, and we ask that Your will be done.
Please give our leaders courage, including the Chief of Chaplains office.
Please keep our moving friends safe and may the time on the road be a time of family strengthening. Lord please help us with houses found/sold/bought/rented.

Please surround our deployed with Your heavenly armies.

We love You Lord and want more of You in this land.
Amen

June 27, 2016

Praying with Habakkuk 3 this week:

Lord, I have heard of your fame;
I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord.
Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known;
in wrath remember mercy.

...His glory covered the heavens and His praise filled the earth.
His splendor was like the sunrise; rays flashed from His hand,
where His power was hidden.
Plague went before Him;
pestilence followed His steps.
He stood and shook the earth;
He looked, and made the nations tremble.
The ancient mountains crumbled and the age-old hills collapsed--
But He marches on forever.

Father God, we come humbly before You,
recognizing Your power,
remembering Your love.

We have failed.
Forgive us for our part in losing this nation.
We sacrifice the unborn babies.
We idolize the ones who disregard You.
We focus on our comfort--
our gods are our stomachs.
We fight for more money.
We have muddied the path to You, until it is unrecognizable.

We can only come to You because we know You have already forgiven.

Thank You Lord Jesus.

Please help us with this land.
We pray that we will be found worthy of standing in the gap, that we will rise up as Your Bride, and draw people to Your side.

We have failed to legislate morality. We need You to turn hearts. We ask for revival.

We ask for a moving of Your Spirit through our military. Be with our leaders, guide us from the top on down. We pray for the Chief of Chaplain's office--may there be unity and a stronghold of morality.

We pray for our Christian warriors' integrity. We pray for protection of body and heart for our deployed.

We pray we will all be used by You.

We pray for the hurting veterans--may they see You as never before. We want to stand in the gap for them especially. Rescue them from their pit, please Father God!

We pray for the PCS moves--amidst the houses and schools and new friends, Lord plant us where You would have us. Set us into new habits of sharing You in our new communities.

And we ask for help with houses bought/sold/rented. We ask for help with children finding their new ways.

We ask for help for our many friends who are struggling with their health. Lord, may the bones You have broken rejoice (Psalm51)--may they see You working during their weakness.

We pray for those digging out after the floods. We pray for those fighting fires in the forests. 

We are in awe of Your power. We are in awe of Your love.
Amen.

June 19, 2016

Click here to worship with How Deep the Fathers Love for Us.

Thank you Father God for heroes:
For Jesus
For fathers
For good warriors
For firemen
For policemen
For pastors

Thank you for those willing to lay down their lives for us. Please fill them with your courage, with wisdom, with strength for the day. Please keep them safe. May their challenges bring them closer to you.

We pray for the daddies who are deployed. Please surround them with your angels. Fill their loneliness with You; lead them in Your path.

We pray for the daddies who are home. Lord, redeem the lost time. Strengthen our families with love. Help our fathers be the spiritual leaders in our homes, in our military.

And we pray for the many young soldiers who don't know a good father. Lord use us to start a revival, to introduce You.

Please surround our suicidal veterans with people of hope.
Lord, lead our leaders even if it takes breaking them. May the Chief of Chaplains office have the courage to fight for Your ways.

Lord lead us through this PCS season. We pray You will place us where we can minister to our neighbors. We pray for houses found, rented, sold. We pray for new friends.

Thank you Father for being our hero.

June 13, 2016

I Kings 8:23, 56-
Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or earth below--You who keep Your covenant of love with Your servants who continue wholeheartedly in Your way. 
May the Lord our God be with us as He was with our ancestors; may He never leave us nor forsake us. May He turn our hearts to Him, to walk in obedience to Him and keep the commands, decrees and laws He gave our ancestors. 

Thank You Lord. Thank You for giving us this family--You as our Father, and all of our brothers and sisters. Thank You for the pastors who have helped shape us along the way. Thank You for the Sunday School teachers who had joy in seeing us and prayed for us. Thank You for the teachers who helped us work through thoughts.
Thank You Lord for dear friends who held our hands through the tough times. Thank You for the ones who inspired us to do great things. Thank You for the examples of the saints. Thank You for the saint next door who watched our kids. Thank You for breaking through our loneliness with sisters surrounding us--You, in the flesh.
Thank You for the chaplains Lord. Thank You for the ones brave enough to go into the battle with only a cross on their uniform. Thank You for the Christian leaders who believed in and pushed for greatness out of their soldiers. Thank You for Your light shining in the deepest dark through these broken vessels.
Thank You for Your chapels--sanctuary from the world.
Thank You for the prayer warriors we may never know about.

Ephesians 3:16-21
I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.

Lord, we pray against compassion fatigue. We pray against spiritual depression. We pray against PTSD.
We pray against apathy!
We pray You will strengthen Your children, Your military warriors with power. Give our chaplains, our Christian warriors, David's heart.

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord's holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

How deep the love!
Filled with the fullness of God!
Immeasurably more!
Lord we pray that for our chapels, our PWOCs, our small groups, our youth groups, our Sunday Schools and VBS. We pray that for our ministries: Planting Roots, Cadence, Christian Fellowship and more.
The world around us is dying--killing itself. Fill us with Your Spirit Lord. Use us to do more than we can imagine.

We pray our leaders will allow Your leading, including the Chief of Chaplains' office.
We pray we can minister to our hurting veterans. Lord save them from suicide.
We pray for our ministries as PCS season turns everything upside down.
We pray for new fellowship groups we can lock arms with in our new posts.
We pray for our Christian marriages.
And Lord, please keep our deployed safe. Guard their hearts. May they turn to You.

....so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other. And may your hearts be fully committed to the Lord our God, to live by His decrees and obey His commands, as at this time.

June 6, 2016

Click here to listen to and pray with: Nicole Mullen's My Redeemer Lives

Who taught the sun where to stand in the morning?
And who told the ocean you can only come this far?
And who showed the moon where to hide 'til evening?
Whose words alone can catch a falling star?

Well, I know my Redeemer lives
I know my Redeemer lives
All of creation testifies
This life within me cries
I know my Redeemer lives, yeah

The God who sends us--who gives us our orders--goes ahead of us, comes behind us. He's already there.

The God who sends the rain--and stops the rain

Who stirs the wind and flattens the angry seas

You are our Lord.

And You would choose to redeem us--it's too much to hold

The very same God that spins things in orbit
Runs to the weary, the worn and the weak
And the same gentle hands that hold me when I'm broken
They conquered death to bring me victory

Now I know my Redeemer lives
I know my Redeemer lives
Let all creation testify
Let this life within me cry
I know my Redeemer, He lives

To take away my shame
And He lives forever, I'll proclaim
That the payment for my sin
Was the precious life He gave
But now He's alive and there's an empty grave

This world hurts so much some days Lord. You did not make us for death--separation--goodbyes. Without Your hope it is impossible to carry. But because of the empty grave, because You are our Redeemer, we can face today.

We pray You will be with the families of our fallen right now. May they know Your redemption. May they have peace--hope

Please give courage to those involved in the search and rescues.

Because He lives I can face tomorrow

I know, I know, He lives, He lives, yeah, yeah
I spoke with Him this morning
He lives, He lives, the tomb is empty
He lives, He lives, I've gotta tell everybody, yeah

We pray for our veterans who need redeeming from the pit. Lord, please save them from suicide.

We pray for safety for our deployed, and our ones who are home and training.

We pray for the goodbyes of PCS. Please help us to continue to be open to the new.
We pray for the family driving through the Yukon territory, for the mother with toddlers flying over the Atlantic, for the wife frustrated with the ugly new kitchen, for the warrior who has to walk away from the family to deploy, for the marriages going through the strain of moving. Lord, please help us through the maze of needing houses sold/bought/rented as You provide for us.

We pray for the new lives and new families--for those trying to carry to term, for those trying to close an adoption. You are the Giver of life and the Father of adopted children and You care for all.

And Life Giver, we pray for our many friends in need of healing. In their affliction, may they grow closer to You. May they use their bodies, broken or healed, to bring You glory. We pray for those with Lymes, those with Crohns, those with cancer, those with unknown.

And Lord, thank You for being with our leaders. Please give wisdom to the Chief of Chaplain's office, others in the Pentagon and on Capital Hill.

We can bring these requests to You with confidence because You are our Redeemer. Thank You Lord!