A Prayer For You Today

Dear friends,

The Apostle Paul asked the churches to pray for him at least seven times. (2 Thessalonians 3:1a; 2 Thessalonians 3:1b; 2 Thessalonians 3:2; Romans 15:31b; Colossians 4:3; Colossians 4:4; Ephesians 6:20). All to say, Pastors and people are continuously in need of prayer.

A prayer for you and me today.

Lord Christ, Head of the Body, the Church, in Your mercy, you have called and set apart ministers from every tribe, tongue, and nation to follow you and make your gospel known. Pour out your Holy Spirit on these men and women as they pour out their lives to equip the saints for ministry.

For those who shepherd and lead, give them deep and abiding love for those in their care, that in their zeal they might also practice gentleness.

For those who pray and study, give them self-discipline, wise instructors, restorative sleep, and timely retreats, that they might be most at home in a quiet place with you.

For those who teach and preach, nourish them on the truths of the gospel, give them delight in the craft of words, and protect them against distraction and anxiety, that they might rightly handle the Word in every season.

For those who evangelize and beckon prodigals home, give them endurance to keep sharing the good news, and ongoing conviction that the news really is good, that they might find Christ alone to be their portion.

For those who minister to the sick and dying, give them hope in you, Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life, within the waves of grief, that they might know the companionship of the One who wept at his friend’s grave.

For those who suffer and are persecuted because of the gospel, give them grace to continue to abide in you and be strengthened by you, that they might know for themselves and share with others a life truly hidden with Christ in God.

For those in moments or seasons of doubt, surprise them with your presence and goodness in unexpected places and sustain them with stories and memories of past provision, that they might have ears to hear and eyes to see you again.

For those who are tired and tempted to give up, give them a holy resistance to discouragement and despair, and bless them with good and faithful companions along the way, that your joy, O Lord, might be their strength.

We ask all this in your name, Jesus, so that the enemy would be put to flight, so these servants might bear fruit a hundredfold, and so that your kingdom would indeed come in their lives and ministries. Amen.

A Liturgy of Corporate Intercession for Ministers

by Anna A. Friedrich from

Every Moment Holy Volume III: The Work of the People

May God’s grace abound over us all according to His goodness and love.

Pastor Joe