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Dear Prayer Team,
Fast. No, I am not speaking of Olympic short track speed skating or any other Olympic event for that matter, though it has been fun to watch! I am speaking of the Biblical word, fast: a period of abstention or self-denial. This is a key word around Renew right now. We are in the first week of a church-wide 40 days of prayer and fasting. The reason, to open us up individually and as a church body to what God wants to do with us, for us, through us to the greater community. We are grateful for His leading in this matter and are eager to see where He takes us in this process.
We ask you to praise with us:
- that God is a God of abounding love and renewing mercy!
- for all the children at Renew!
We ask you to pray with us:
- that we would minister effectively to our kids
- to find new and interesting ways to make God’s love visible in our families, our church, and our community.
- for more people from the Adventist community to be willing to support Renew.
- for clear conviction/creative energy to add ? (whatever God wants) to the worship service.
- that this time of fasting for our church will draw us together in unity and understanding of God’s will. Please pray that God reveals Himself to each person fasting and we as a church hear his voice very clearly, and that people’s faith grows.
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for Renew to continue to be a place where God is pleased to bring people who are seeking Him, that we continue to be a prayer-filled ministry where healing and reconciliation are continual experiences.
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for the children coming to Renew. May they each experience a heart connection with Jesus and understand God’s love and who God is for them. Pray for their families that God becomes or continues to be the central most influential power in their homes.
Thank you for your continued prayer and concern for this ministry. You are welcome to join us in our 40 day fast if the Lord is calling you to make such a step. Please contact me if you are interested. I will send you our daily devotional guide and updates of testimonies as we go along.
I pray peace for you this week.
Kristi
6[Rather] is not this the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every [enslaving] yoke?(B) 7Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house–when you see the naked, that you cover him, and that you hide not yourself from [the needs of] your own flesh and blood?
8Then shall your light break forth like the morning, and your healing (your restoration and the power of a new life) shall spring forth speedily; your righteousness (your rightness, your justice, and your right relationship with God) shall go before you [conducting you to peace and prosperity], and the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Isaiah 58 (Amplified Bible)
Dear Prayer Team,
It is very difficult to send out prayer requests on the heels of the devastating earthquake in Haiti. As Renew met for prayer Thursday night, the cry of every person’s heart was for the people of Haiti and the real pain and misery that was continuing there even as we met for prayer in Minnesota. So many people expressed the wish to be able to do something. We prayed. So, before I go into the praises and requests of the Renew family, let us just take a moment to remember our brothers and sisters there.
Let us praise God together that He is a compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love.
We ask for prayer that:
May God’s blessing be with you this week and may we be a blessing to those we meet and those we are touched by.
Peace be with you,
Kristin
Even in the midst of great pain, Lord,
I praise you for that which is.
I will not refuse this grief
or close myself to this anguish.
Let shallow men pray for ease:
"Comfort us; shield us from sorrow."
I pray for whatever you send me,
and I ask to receive it as your gift.
You have put a joy in my heart
greater than all the world's riches.
I lie down trusting the darkness,
for I know that even now you are here.
a translation of Psalm 4 by Stephen Mitchell
Dear Prayer Team,
This month’s Time To Pray theme has been Seeking Him. As I was experiencing prayer and praying with the group this last Thursday evening we were focusing on 1 Chronicles 16:8-11. Verse 11 calls us to ‘look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.’ As we were praying over that verse and asking forgiveness for all the things we yearn for, forgetting to seek the Lord, it struck me that there were only three people in the entire world that noticed the star and followed it to Jesus. Three.
It seems that the difficulties of yearning for and seeking the Lord we experience in our busy, technologically savvy world have been around for thousands of years. There has never been a better, simpler time that made serving Christ easier. Every generation has had it’s own problems, it’s own substitutions for seeking Christ constantly.
In this last week leading up to Christmas, where is your focus? What are you yearning for? On what does your mind linger? Is it the self-imposed responsibilities and expectations, the stress of getting everything just right this holiday season? Is it yearning to be somewhere else or with someone else or for the perfect gift? Is it the face of Jesus?
We pray a blessing over you. That the peace of Christ would be upon you as you focus your mind on the face of Him. That the things of earth would grow dim and the star would shine bright as you seek Him.
We are praising the Lord this month:
- for God’s power and presence alive in the church and it’s ministries
- for a renewed sense of church growth and ministry passion
- for new financial partners to help Renew meet its ministry needs as we grow
- for such an amazing year! God is good!
We ask you to join us in praying for:
- us to understand our next steps for church growth and ministry effectiveness
- the Community Prayer Service on Christmas Eve to be attended by people from the community that God wants to bless and that people attending would experience the love and power of God through prayer. Please pray for Kristi and Matt who are leading this service, that God fills them each with the Holy Spirit and intuitively will know how to best lead this prayer time.
- the church to be able to support one another and be ready to help people in the community with their needs. The holidays are a tough time for many people.
- Matt and all of us who struggle with this- When the pigs ran over the cliff into the water when Jesus healed the demoniac it always bugged me… what did the pigs do? The point is, in that community the pigs represented economic ability/ stability. Jesus was possibly getting at the MORE important issue of who were they going to trust… unfortunately they sent Him away, I hope I can get this lesson right in my life. Stability and financial security are good, but they are secondary to trusting Jesus and even further down the list when it comes to what is lasting, with true value in this life.
Thank you for your continued care and support of this ministry. May God bless you in your ministries in the coming year!
Kristin
8O give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known His doings among the peoples!
9Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; meditate on and talk of all His wondrous works and devoutly praise them!
10Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord!
11Seek the Lord and His strength; yearn for and seek His face and to be in His presence continually!
1 Chronicles 16:8-11 (Amplified Bible)
Dear Prayer Team,
Thanksgiving is placed in such a wonderful part of the year, isn’t it? Just when the scenery is becoming drab and the gray days run into each other, we get this incredible reason to remember all the blessings God has given us and share that thankfulness with those around us.
As our Time To Pray (churchwide prayer service) has been rolling along, it’s been amazing to everyone involved experiencing how praising God seems to lighten our load regardless of the horrible week we’ve had or how down we feel. What an amazing thing, that God takes our words of praise to Him to bless us with! In Isaiah 57:15 God tells us, “I live in a high and holy place, but I also live with people who are sad and humble. I give new life to those who are humble and to those whose hearts are broken.”
What a great week to spend some time remembering God’s goodness and all the wonder of who He is and experience how He lives with you, in your own personal trials and pains!
We are praising the Lord this week for:
- our first two baptisms! This last Saturday we welcomed our first two new members by baptism. It was such a blessing to watch God work in their lives and bring them to this point.
- new financial partners to help Renew meet its ministry needs as we grow.
- growth of our church and pray for continued growth and impact in the community.
- an operational plan for our children’s classes.
- Jay praises God for a renewed sense of personal spiritual growth and ministry passion.
We ask for prayer that:
- we would understand our next steps for church growth and ministry effectiveness.
- God can use the community Thanksgiving program to open doors for it to be a unifying experience for the churches involved as well as the Shakopee area as a whole and possibly some community worship activities that happen more than once a year are a result.
- God would continue to lead and watch over Adam, Jay and Matt.
- Susan and Matt ask for prayer for the continued health of the pregnancy with our little girl. Please Pray that if Susan is put on bed rest or loses her job (or both!), that she will not fall into discouragement, but will be faithful to believe that all things work together for good.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Kristi
Psalm 145:3-7 (New Living Translation)
3 Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise!
No one can measure his greatness.
4 Let each generation tell its children of your mighty acts;
let them proclaim your power.
5 I will meditate on your majestic, glorious splendor
and your wonderful miracles.
6 Your awe-inspiring deeds will be on every tongue;
I will proclaim your greatness.
7 Everyone will share the story of your wonderful goodness;
they will sing with joy about your righteousness.
A lot has happened this year – we’ve started weekly worship services, discipleship classes, connection groups, Weekend Bible Conferences, prayer meeting… God’s doing some amazing things.
Thank you to everyone who’s been praying, encouraging, and supporting. We couldn’t do this without your help!
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