Dear Brother or Sister in Christ,
Thanks for praying for our church as we draw ever nearer to our 100-year anniversary in the year 2024, should the Lord tarry.
This week our church is turning to a new chapter in the ongoing story of COVID-19. We are no longer requiring face-coverings but they will continue to be made available. This will cause many of those in our church family much rejoicing and relief. But it will also cause some within our church family increased anxiety and sadness. Please keep all of this in prayer. Pray that we will continue loving one another and getting along well, despite our differing opinions. May we “be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” And may we “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:2–3).
Also, pray for all of the various impacts that this change will have on our current and future ministries. It’s amazing how much there is to think through as we move away from face-coverings and social distancing guidelines. Pray that we’ll have great wisdom and discernment as to which things to go back to and which things to allow to be different. Rather than just automatically going back to our old “normal” way of doing all of our ministries, pray that we will consider opportunities to improve and enhance our way of worshipping God and serving one another. Pray that we’ll learn some lessons from this past year and apply those lessons toward real change and improvement in how our church ministers for God’s glory. Please pray for our ministry leaders as we navigate our way forward “post-pandemic.”
Let’s praise God for the faithful financial giving in our church. Let’s also pray for increased giving since we are currently falling short of this year’s budgeted goal. Pray that each person in our church family will worship God with their whole lives, including consistent, faithful giving, as each of us is able. Pray that each of our ministries will be fully funded and not held back by budget shortages. Pray for continued progress in reducing our building loan principle. Praise God that we are able to pay extra toward principle each month and save costly interest. Praise God that our Global Partners continue to be fully funded and that all of our staff are receiving their full pay. Pray that our Elder Board is able to identify and meet any benevolence needs within our church family.
Pray for effective ministry by our Global Partners as they face various language, cultural, and racial challenges. Pray for language translation and insight into how to communicate the gospel clearly and accurately. Pray for a deep and abiding personal walk with Christ that will fuel and sustain our Global Partners day in and day out. Pray that they will overcome temptation, discouragement, and distraction by lesser things. Pray for those who are retiring and transitioning off of the field as well as for those just getting started and at every stage in between. Pray for those trying to get back to their geographical sweet spot. Pray that the challenges of COVID-19, including international travel hassles, will subside and not hinder their ministry strategy. Pray for their physical and emotional health.
Pray for our church staff. We are currently in lots of transition. Pray that Pastor Albin, Kay Sue Eriksson, and Matt Graf will be able to finish strong and that they will flourish in their next chapter of ministry. Pray for our church as we look for godly people with the right giftings to step in and carry forward these ministries. Pray for our Youth and Young Adult Pastor search committee. Pray for me, Pastor Jerry, as I seek to find our next Visitation Caregiver. And pray for Pastor Eric as he tries to find a new 10:45 Music Director. May God give our church clear direction in all of its staffing decisions and may He sustain us during this transition time of being understaffed in multiple areas. Pray that our summer youth group can keep going with the help of volunteers. Pray that our 3rd and 4th Sundays of 10:45 worship music will be sustained while we search for new leadership. Pray that our Visitation Caregiver ministry will find someone to help cover it during our search process.
Pray that ongoing discipleship for every person in our church will be effective and God-honoring. Pray that all of us will be committed to and aligned with gospel priorities over against any other agendas or distractions. Pray for our summer and fall planning. May God be honored as we make plans for summer youth group, weddings, adult spiritual formation classes, membership classes, and more. Pray that we’ll have clear vision for how to engage in ministry this fall. Pray for decisions about Wednesday night kids and youth ministry, as well as things like music ministry, sermon series, and so on. And please pray for the volunteers who will be needed for our various ministries this fall.
Please pray for our graduating high school seniors as they head out for college, career, and life opportunities. May their faith in Jesus be well grounded and secure. Pray that what they have heard from our church will be kept “as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus” and that they will guard the good deposit that was entrusted to them, with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in them. (2 Timothy 1:13–14). In fact, pray that for all of us.
Pray for those going through physical and mental health challenges. Keep Gerri’s husband, Eric Thorsgard, in your prayers as he continues to battle brain cancer. Let’s continue to ask for God’s healing. Praise God that his new chemo treatments are helping. Praise God for their safe return after a wonderful month-long road trip with their 3 youngest children. Pray for others on our church’s prayer chain who are battling breast cancer, recovering from back surgery and other surgeries, and so on. Also pray for those struggling with COVID-19 infections and quarantines. Praise God for the new babies who’ve been born lately and keep our current pregnancies in prayer. May each family find encouragement through the joys, and peace through the challenges and heartaches. May we rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn (Romans 12:15).
Pray for the many people who have quit going to church during this time of COVID-19. Pray that God will guide them back to regular, in person fellowship, with a healthy, Bible teaching, local church. Pray also for many who have changed churches over the past year. May each of us believers in Christ find a church that is a good fit for our spiritual needs and then may we fully commit to that body.
Brothers and Sisters in Christ, thanks for praying!
Together for Christ, Pastor Jerry