You are invited to pray with us these prayers throughout
this year of our Lord, Jesus Christ, 2014!
The idea is to embrace these prayer priorities and through a six week
cycle focus on all of them, repeating the 6 week cycle for the rest of
2014.
The A
section about the Church and God’s work has been developed for a 6 week
cycle that runs simultaneously with a 6 week cycle for the needs of the world
and humanity in Section B.
A Section. Prayers for
the work of the Church and for God’s work through us:
Gracious
Father of all creation and our Father in Jesus Christ, through the work of the
Holy Spirit,
we pray, o Lord of hosts, during this year of our Lord
Jesus Christ:
(Week 1)
Enable
Christians of all denominations and traditions to respect and honour each other
and to work and pray in unity that the world may believe that our Lord Jesus
Christ indeed is the Saviour of the world and the Prince of Peace and that
his Kingdom is coming into our world!
Enthuse all believers to carry forward the torch that
saints have carried from generation to generation, since the beginning of the
Church, without compromise or fear, that
the Light of the world, Jesus Christ our Lord,
will guide all nations to follow God’s reformation plan for their
countries and for humanity.
(Week 2)
Show
through the witness of all believers to Africa, and to our beloved country, the
only truth that reconciles, brings forgiveness and discovers growth and
progress which is the biblical Christian Faith.
Send
the Holy Spirit to enable every Christian to proclaim the Gospel in the rural
areas and amongst the poorest communities and to liberate through Jesus our
Lord, the Truth, the Way and the Life, everyone from fear, superstition and
false religion who is lost as the result of human wisdom, worldly leadership
and manmade initiatives. May we all, because we are in need of salvation, put our
trust in the only Saviour of the world, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Redeemer.
(Week 3)
Unite
all ordained servants of the Word and sacraments, all pastors and priests, all
leaders in the church, all ordained and lay leaders, to, in harmony, selflessly
seek to evangelise all who have not been reached with the Gospel – in every
part of the world.
Unite
preachers of and listeners to God’s word, both the leaders and the members of all
faith communities, to work together without envy, personal agenda’s or personal
politics to accomplish their best endeavours for the work of God, sparing
nothing and giving everything for the redemption of all people and the growth
of God’s work in local churches and in the worldwide assembly of the faithful.
(Week 4)
Send
missionaries during this year to every province and country on earth to, with
gladness and enthusiasm, announce that the Kingdom of God has come and that
salvation, truth and love reign through King Jesus, our Lord.
Inspire
all Christians by the faithful proclamation of the Word of God, to dutifully serve
the poor, the suffering and the lost.
(Week 5)
Call
young people to a life of ministry and grant them the spiritual formation to
pursue their calling, providing godly mentors and Spirit filled teachers.
Call young
people to accept the Lord’s invitation to surrender to Christ and to, with
obedience, proclaim the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ for the rest of their
lives.
(Week 6)
Inspire, through the power of the resurrected Lord, hope in the lives of all who
experience pain, sickness, affliction and anxiety and may they see in the lives
of your people the love of Jesus Christ that shows us the love of God, our
Father.
Grant
God’s people Christian parents that keep their vows to pass on to their
children the gift of faith in God the most holy, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
that the next generation will also benefit from the apostles’ teachings and become
authentic members of the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ, found in all truly Christian
traditions and denominations.
B Section. Prayers for the needs of the world and for humanity:
Almighty
God, protector and provider of Your creation -
we pray, o Lord of hosts, to during this year of our
Lord Jesus Christ-
(Week 1)
Grant
us enough rain, good weather and a growing economy providing for the needs and advancement
of all peoples.
Bless
all endeavours for the protection of Your creation and our environment and natural
resources.
(Week 2)
Grant
peace to peoples worn out by civil war, violence, unrest and military threats
to their countries.
Provide
for generosity to refugees, all foreigners, all who had to abandon their homes
and motherlands and Lord, protect their safety and dignity.
(Week 3)
Heal
all who suffer from depression and are lonely, sad and afraid and grant that
Your children will help them to see and experience the mercy and the love of
God and his Church.
Call
and help health workers who will bless community health programs, clinics and
hospitals to provide for excellent care of all who are ill, treating those who
are sick with respect and love.
(Week 4)
Provide
jobs for the unemployed, make mentors and enablers available to them and
restore their serenity, confidence and self-esteem.
Love
all who live with disabilities and help them in all they need to enjoy
dignified lives.
Sustain
and protect the elderly.
(Week 5)
Grant
respect for the rights and significance of women in all communities and strengthen,
heal and protect all our mothers and sisters who are vulnerable and suffering.
Protect
all children and heal those children who have been hurt, abused and neglected.
Help
and enable all who work for the proper education of all children, repair
dysfunctional schools and call teachers and mentors who selflessly, creatively
and with passion develop the God-given talents of every learner.
(Week 6)
Restore
all men to be strong, honest and kind men of God and help them to, with love, provide
for and to protect their families and Your family, according to Your example, o
gracious Father.
Defeat
criminality, corruption, violence and those who cause it and are guilty of it.
May wickedness come to a fall during this year.
Redeem and deliver those who repent and seek Your gracious forgiveness
and bring to justice all who with hardened, unrepentant hearts embrace darkness
and evil.
Our Father who is in heaven,
Glorify your Name and
may your Kingdom come and your will be done on earth,
as it is in heaven.
Give us each day our daily bread
and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that
trespass against us.
And protect us from temptation.
Father,
have mercy on us!
Through
Jesus Christ, our Lord!
Amen.
After researching the prayer priorities of a couple of
global denominations and prayer movements and as a result being inspired by
them, these prayer priorities were compiled by Andries Combrink to be used as
part and parcel of the prayer strategy of the Centurion West Presbyterian
Church in Tshwane, South Africa. He
invites all Christian faith communities to utilise, adapt to your own
circumstances and promote these prayer priorities in any way you are led by the
Holy Spirit.
-
Andries.
