Prayer and The Church

Jesus said, “I will build My church” (Matthew 16:18), and yet, He has called us, His people, to co-labor with Him. In the building of the church there are things for us to do – and things only God can do. This Friday evening at 6 we will be gathering to pray for our church, as well as for our community and the nation. I hope you will join us if you can. If you can’t make it to this particular prayer gathering, please print the guide below and take some time each day to pray for at least one of the items on this list. I believe God wants to do amazing things through our church – but prayer holds the key to our seeing this come to pass. And don’t miss the final installment of our Blindsided series this Sunday. The concluding message to this series is very important. Nine Things to Pray for our Church 1. That God would draw people to Jesus, convict of sin and open hearts to the gospel “No one comes to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws Him…”  - John 6:44 “And when He (the Holy Spirit) has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment…” _ - John 16:8_ “Now a certain woman named Lydia… The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul.”  - Acts 16:14 2. That God would give to us (His people), the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him “… after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe …”  - Ephesians 1:15:19 3. That God would fill us with His Spirit “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit…”  - Ephesians 5:18 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”  - Luke 11:13 4. That God would give us boldness to share the gospel and that He would confirm the Word preached with signs following “Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, 30 by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.” 31 And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.”  - Acts 4:29-31 5. That we would be conformed to the image of Jesus and that holiness and righteousness would characterize the people at The Bridge “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”  - 2 Corinthians 3:18 “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord…”  - Hebrews 12:14 6. That the kingdom of God would come to our community, our nation and the world “Your kingdom come.  Your will be done  On earth as it is in heaven.”  _ - Matthew 6:10_ 7. That God would meet the needs of His people and that by giving each of us a spirit of generosity all needs of the church would be met “Give us this day our daily bread.”  _ - Matthew 6:11_ ”So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” _  _ - 2 Corinthians 9:7-8 8. That we grow in our love for God and each other “Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”  - Matthew 22:37 9. That we be delivered from temptation and protected from the evil one “And do not lead us into temptation,  But deliver us from the evil one.”  _ - Matthew 6:13_ God bless,

God's Miracle Working Power

The Gospels record Jesus performing something like 37 specific miracles during the three years of His public ministry on the earth. There were, of course, many more than this as there were times when Jesus healed all who came to him, without the actual number of miracles being noted. John concludes His Gospel by saying: “Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written” (John 21:25). We know that one reason Jesus performed so many miracles of healing was to help people know that He was sent from heaven and was God’s Son. But we also find places where Jesus healed people simply out of compassion. The question asked by many is, “Does God still heal today?" While I don’t claim to understand why everyone who petitions God for healing is not healed, I am convinced that God does in fact heal people today.

This Sunday as we continue our Blindsided series, we will hear the testimony of someone who was brought back from certain death by a miracle of healing. No matter what you might be facing in your life, I’m sure you will be encouraged by this amazing testimony.

Yours in Christ’s love,

Bo

Join us for Super Bowl Sunday!

This Sunday at The Bridge we are going to have a Super Bowl-themed day that will include hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, soft drinks and more following both the 9 AM and 11 AM services. Wear the jersey of your favorite NFL team (if you have one) and plan to join in the fun. We will also be kicking-off (pun intended) a new teaching series called Blindsided: What to do when life knocks you down. Just like in football, everybody gets knocked down at some point. The key to living an overcoming life is learning how to get back up after you’ve been blindsided. This will be a great day to invite a friend to church as they will have the chance to see you can have fun in church and also hear an encouraging message. See you Sunday! Bo