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Firm Foundations |
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Jesus said "I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock" Luke 6:46,47 |
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Prayer was the foundation of Jesus' ministry. Before His ministry started He spent forty days in the desert preparing Himself. Frequently He would withdraw to pray, to spend time with the Father. Prayer is no less vital for God's church today. Our leaders not only need to spend time themselves in prayer, but also to receive prayer support from within the church. We know that we will need quality time in prayer to become tuned in to where God is moving, if we are seeking to be obedient to His call and direction. At the same time, Christian leaders are under greater and greater pressure as they minister to a society which itself is under pressure. Leaders need to be men and women of prayer, seeking the Lord in all aspects of their work. Yet, they also need to be supported in prayer, by the church community and by those whom God may be calling to intercede for them and for their ministry. We provide a one page pdf file which offers : - encouragement for leaders to ask their churches to pray for them regularly - observations on Paul's knowledge of his need for prayer. - thoughts on how leaders can recruit intercessors who will support them in prayer at three levels. We believe that prayer support for leaders in our churches can strengthen the foundations of their ministries, enabling their work to be rooted more deeply in God's purpose and direction. In turn this will impact the whole mission and ministry of the church. Increasing such prayer support will also provide our leaders with greater defences against burnout, stress and spiritual attack. We see the leadership and ministries of far too many of our clergy and church leaders being negated by these, and other, factors. The potential impact of the church rediscovering the power of prayer is immense |
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| Pause for thought : Finally we offer three
questions for a church council
to engage in as part of a review of prayer for the church's leadership and direction.
(This discussion may best be chaired by a lay person, rather than the leader). - Is the leadership prayed for as an integral part of the church's corporate prayer life? If so, do prayer groups etc. have enough information on the needs of leaders? - Does the whole church congregation receive regular encouragement to pray for their leaders as part of their personal intercessions? Do they need reminding of this? - Does your leadership need greater personal prayer support? If so, are members of the church council prepared to commit themselves to pray for the Lord to provide such prayer support? |
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