Dear Brother or Sister in Christ,
Thank you for your continued faithfulness in lifting up our church before God. Let’s begin by praying that our Heavenly Father will be honored by our worship, instruction, fellowship, evangelism, and service. May our love for God be expressed in heartfelt praise and worship on Sunday mornings but also all throughout the week. As Romans 12:1 reminds us, pray that, in view of God’s mercy, we will offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, which is our true and proper worship. Pray that we will love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and that we will love our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:30-31).
As we enter into the summer season, please pray that each one of us will continue to grow spiritually and mature in our faith. Pray that summer will not distract our faith but rather enhance it. Please ask God to protect us from “taking a vacation from our faith.” Pray that we’ll continue to attend our local church as often as we can and that when we’re out of town we will find ways to participate online as well as to grow through our personal daily quiet times with God. Pray for ministries like men’s softball and our Senior Connection potlucks on the 2nd Friday of each month. Pray also for the many Christian camps, concerts, mission trips, and other special Christian activities throughout the summer. May each once be effective in growing believers in their faith and drawing not yet Christians to believing faith and salvation. Pray for all of the various volunteers and staff that serve in these summer ministries, particularly places like Camp Oak Hills and our Global Partners like the Buchan’s, Eastling’s, and Helweg’s. Please pray for all of our various global partners, near and far.
Pray for the various kids and youth ministry discipleship and outreach events, those at our church and those at Diamond Point. Check out the recent bulletin insert for a full list of activities including summer youth group, a youth apologetics weekend, a family movie night, summer kids’ events, and VBS plans. Please pray even now for the preparation and plans for these events. Pray that they will be Christ-centered and God-honoring. And let’s ask God to begin preparing the hearts of those of us at E-Free as well as the hearts of people in our community who will attend. May God supernaturally be drawing people to Himself in and through our gospel efforts (John 6:44). Pray that our church will be in step with what God is doing to build His Kingdom in Bemidji and beyond. May we keep the truth of Psalm 127:1 in mind, “Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain.”
Let’s pray for our many high school graduates and their families as well as college grads and those receiving advanced degrees. May they be responsive to how and where God is leading them in their careers and life calling. Pray for favor with future plans, financial needs, and potential hiring opportunities. Please continue to pray for our search for a new Facility Supervisor for our church. Praise God for multiple applications and some good interviews. Please pray for upcoming reference calls and follow up interviews. May God provide just the right fit for this ministry position in His perfect timing. Pray also for the interim period during which we need to cover these duties until our next hire.
Pray for our new 9:30 combined summer service and 11:00 intergenerational discipleship time and kids Sunday School. Pray that this will indeed foster greater unity in our church as we gather together as one church family. As we know, at any family gathering, there can be challenges with having everyone together. Please pray for a spirit of love and patience as we navigate sharing and learning each other’s music and enjoying fellowship with one another. Pray that we will honor one another above ourselves. Please pray the words of Philippians 2:1-5 for our church, “Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.” May God receive such amazing glory and honor as His people dwell together in unity and give such a clear witness as to how He has taught us to love one another (Psalm 133:1; John 13:35).
Let’s pray that our words will be honoring to Christ. As we recently learned from James 3 our words have incredible power and potential to bring God glory. Pray that this will be true for each deeply devoted follower of Jesus at E-Free Bemidji. May our words be building, encouraging, and instructive, including our words of gentle rebuke and loving admonition. Pray for wisdom and discernment in all of our relationships so that we’ll be quick to listen and slow to speak and slow to become angry (James 1:19). Pray that we’ll know when to bite our tongues and be silent, when to speak the truth in love, and even when we might need to be a bit more insistent and bold. In all our words, may God’s will be done and may we grow in personal maturity and devotion to Christ. Pray also that any of us who teach, including me, Pastor Jerry, will be especially careful and selective with our words (James 3:1).
Please pray for multiple people within our church who are going through difficult health challenges. Sign up for our church’s Prayer Chain for more details. Pray that God will help them endure the struggle and to have the patience and the strength that they need as these difficult journeys grind on month after month. May God bring His supernatural provision as well as earthly remedies through medicine and doctoring. Pray that our church family will become aware of each of these needs and that a number of us can make ourselves available to come alongside and help in tangible ways. Pray for wisdom for our elders and pastors, and for our Visitation Caregiver, Jan Hendrickson. Pray also for each one of us in this local body to jump in and help one another whenever we can.
Finally, please continue to pray fervently that our church will become more and more the church that God would have us be. Brothers and Sisters in Christ, thank you for praying!
Together for Christ,
Pastor Jerry