Father, I pray for the family unit, which is under vicious attack throughout the world today. Your perfect design cannot be improved upon even when earthly institutions attempt to redefine, enlighten, update or explain away Your original intent. I pray for godly parents to remain resolute in nurturing their children in the ways of the Lord. May Your Word and its instruction filter all that we see and hear so that You remain our absolute authority, not the ever-changing whims of our culture. I pray for our churches and their leaders to be cleansed and purified by Your Holy Word. May their instruction always be from Your inerrant Holy Word, not by those who present a societal agenda. By Your grace and our commitment to holy living we can reside in the world without having the mind of this world. Help us through Christ Jesus our Lord in whose name we pray. Amen.

Father, our hearts are heavy today as we continue to see the disastrous results of a country that has turned away from its original purpose for existence. Our current laws have dictated that Your Ten Commandments have no place in the discourse of public education. The government has stripped itself of the right to pray and seek Your approval when establishing the laws that govern our lives. Many cry out, “Where was God?” when the gunman killed 20 young children along with six courageous instructors. Yet, all that Scripture teaches us about how to live and show love one to another is referred to as old-fashioned, irrelevant, a thing of the past. Experts come from every direction to discuss their thoughts, but we know the only lasting answer to our need is provided for us in the arrival of Your Son, Jesus, who came to deliver us from our sins. How we pray for a mighty revival to sweep our land, revive our hearts and turn people away from their sins. We thank You for Your infinite mercy, and pray for Your comfort to be heaped upon those whose loved ones were stolen from them by the enemy fire. May our brothers and sisters nearby have an inroad to these hurting families as they reach out to them with the love that only You can provide through their loving endeavors. We also pray for the rescue workers and officials overseeing the crime scene, that You would guide them in wisdom. Fade from their memory the visual horrors to which they are exposed. We pray this in Christ’s name. Amen.

Father, in our human nature we want the best seat, the first choice, the biggest piece, to be first in line, and on and on it goes. The desire to serve self before serving others is an ongoing battle. Thank you for those who walk in humility, giving preference to others, rather than choosing to please themselves first. They serve as human examples of the attitude Jesus exemplified when He, being in Your very nature did not consider equality with You something to hold onto. Instead Jesus took on the very nature of a servant and became God in the flesh. In His human role He showed us the greatest example of humility as He related to people from day to day and ultimately when He laid down His life for us. We’re thankful for Jesus and His greatest act of humility. It is in His name that we pray. Amen.

Father, the Psalmist writes that we are to be still and know that You are God. And yet we run to and fro looking for solutions to the problems at hand. We purchase the newest and latest book to hopefully make us more victorious Christians. We charge up our phone or other electronic device playing Christian music that will surely elevate us to higher ground in You. We listen to great teachers of Scripture and expect that we will be stronger, wiser, and more sensitive to Your Spirit. While all of these things serve us well and build us up in the faith, there is also needed time for solace that we need to work into our schedule, a time where we block out noise, activity, and other people so that we can listen carefully for Your still small voice in an unrushed and quiet setting. For most of us that’s early in the morning before the phone rings and family members, job duties or chores demand our attention. Just as the Psalmist requested in Psalm 5, “Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my meditation…for unto Thee will I pray, my voice shalt Thou hear in the morning…unto Thee I will look up.” Or as Job spoke these words, “Teach me, and I will be quiet…” (Job 6:24).

Father, You have instructed us through Scripture to bear one another’s burdens so that we fulfill the law of Christ. The law is fulfilled in one commandment, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself”. This compels us to express loving compassion toward our brothers and sisters as they undergo trial helping to bear their burden as they bear our burden as well. The Scanlon family is in need of the prayer support of their brothers and sisters and are symbolic of the many others who are trusting and waiting as You make Your will known to them. So we place their lives in Your hands as we uphold them in prayer. Amen.

Father, I want to store up Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You. It is my Guiding Light so that as I live by faith I will triumph over evil. Help me to rebuke the devil’s temptations with Scripture just as Jesus did during the wilderness temptations. I may be weak, but Your Word is powerful to fight off the temptation to sin and to reassure me that You are with me even when others may forsake me. As a sign of my love for You I will obey Your commands and heed Your instruction. I can do this because I have stored up Your truths and commands in my heart and because Christ gives me strength. Amen.

Father, how wonderful it is that nothing is impossible with You. There is nothing You are unable to do except that which is untrue to Your divine nature. You are able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to Your power that is at work within us. To You, Father, be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.

Father, we could bemoan the fact that there are so many heartless people in the world, that evil dominates the headlines, that people in general are not trustworthy, and that terrorism is always a looming threat. But we are heartened and find deep joy in knowing that there are scores and scores of good people who seek to make this world a better place. One of the best ways we can do this is to share Your love by telling others what You have done for us, by sharing of our faith and showing others that Jesus Christ is real to us. Grant us courage to witness to others of the salvation You provide to all who surrender their hearts to You. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.

Father, our generation seeks more and more knowledge all the while exercising less and less restraint toward sins that grieve Your heart. In our information age knowledge is promoted as the key to success, fulfillment, happiness and financial security and yet we see so many educated people lacking in these areas. While higher education is important, godly wisdom and biblical understanding are the foundational tools by which we accept or reject current philosophies, basic principles, human traditions, and the practices of our day. Your Word helps us to interpret knowledge that is ever changing so that we are careful to build our foundation upon You, the unchanging Solid Rock. Any other foundation will sink when the rain falls, the streams rise, and the assaulting winds blow and beat against that which we have worked so hard to build. We choose to love You and have a healthy fear of going against Your prescribed will for our lives. Amen..

Father, help us not to be like the Pharisees of old who were proud of their spiritual accomplishments, mingling only with those of like mind. You have called us to reach out to the lost and dying, to be examples of Your saving grace, to share the salvation message with those whose eternal future hangs in the balance. Just as we were rescued from the domain of darkness, we want to snatch others from that darkness as well. We throw out the lifeline of salvation through the cleansing blood of Jesus our Lord as we pull them to eternal safety. Amen.