Last week we read Matt: 25:14-30 the parable of the talents , through this parable we established that we should be good stewards of all that God has given us.
We also looked at what we pledge to do when we join the church and how we pledge to support the church with our prayers, our presence, our talents and gifts.
I want to tell you again today that your church needs you.
Not only is your presence needed but your prayers are needed to.
Not just The Lord’s Prayer, not just the Doxology, but your genuine sincere prayers are needed for your church each and every day.
If we want our church to thrive and prosper we need to be on our knees praying daily for the church as a whole, we need to be praying for the pastor, we need to be praying for the leaders of the church, we need to be praying for each other.
We need to be praying that:
• All who worship here will feel God's presence and be so in awe of his power, authority, love, wisdom, and grace that everyone who walks through those doors will have no choice but to worship God and hold on to him.
• Everyone who puts there feet on this carpet or their seat in these pews will know Jesus Christ as their Savior before the leave this house and that they will grow to know him better and better.
• That the Word of God will be declared with clarity, boldness, love, and power.
• Nothing will distract God's people from focusing on him and being fully open to the blessings he wants to bring into their lives.
• All of our worship leaders will rely on and be used of the Lord.
• Everyone who enters here will apply the biblical truths and principles they hear and be encouraged, uplifted, challenged, and rebuked.
We need to be in prayer daily for our church, if you don’t pray for your church guess who gets shortchanged, you do.
You do because I promise you prayer changes things It can change our church, it can change you .
Have you ever heard about The Prayer of Jabez ? It’s a prayer that I think every Christian should pray for their church it’s found in 1 Chronicles 4:10, and this is how it reads:
"And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that Thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that Thine hand might be with me, and that Thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested."
We all should be asking God to keep His hand on us and on our church and grant us an increase.
We need to be praying that God will make our church a beacon in this town and that we would increase, not for our sake but for His.
As a nation our idea of prayer is kind of funny. Most schools aren’t allowed to have prayer and I see all the time people talking about the reason the schools and the kids are so bad is that we have taken prayer out of our schools.
I beg to differ with them , I’ll tell you why there’s so much violence and crime, I’ll tell you why the schools are so bad, It’s not because we have taken prayer out of our schools it’s because we have taken prayer out of our homes.
How many of us here today pray together daily as a family?
How many of us spend time in prayer daily talking to God?
Prayer is powerful and we need to engage in it daily.
In 1st Thessalonians 5:16-18 scripture tells us rejoice always pray without ceasing and in everything give thanks: for this is Gods will.
I promise you results will come to the church because of your faithful prayers, you can’t give up we must pray daily, we said we would .
We can’t give up we must continue praying Jesus told us that persistence pays off .
In Luke Chapter 11 Jesus gave us an example and then followed it up with a parable on persistence.
Read Luke 11: 2-10.
