Sun 6 Jan - God calls us to abandon everything and follow Him. On this first Sunday of the New Year are we prepared to abandon everything for Jesus? Ask God to show you what this means in your life. Matt 16:24 “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross and follow me.” Mon 7 Jan - Today, revisit what God has said to you in the past week. Why not open a journal, commit to spending time with God each day, reading His Word, praying to Him and being quiet in His presence. CHURCH FAMILY Tues 8 Jan - Praise GOD for His amazing and consistent goodness to us as a church family . Time and time again we see GOD in all His faithfulness through the different seasons that we go through as a church. We experienced His goodness so wonderfully over the Christmas period and that fills us with HOPE and JOY as we start this new year… What a faithful GOD we serve. Wed 9 Jan - Praise God for all the genuinely caring and thoughtful people we have in our church family. We see it over and over again in simple acts of loving kindness, in the 20 hampers that we gave away as a church, in the love and kindness that our volunteers pour into the lives of children, teenagers and adults in our different ministries. Praise God for people in SST who have reached out to you and touched your life with God’s living kindness in a way that has made a difference to you. Thurs 10 Jan - Praise God for the continued encouragement of the early service which is meeting a real need among many of our people. The 11am continues to be largely full and we rejoice in the number of young children we have. The Sunday Morning breakfast encourages the teenagers who come and the Healing service and Contemporary service each touch different people in different ways. We long to see GOD move more powerfully in all our lives as we worship on Sundays. We long for church services that are impregnated with the unmistakable Presence of Our Loving God and Father. We want to see Heaven invading our services. Come Holy Spirit come. Fri 11 Jan - We care for our older people and long to see them
encouraged. We would love more to join our bowls on Thursday and Saturday nights and there is always room for more in our PW afternoon group. Both of these groups are places of genuine love and friendship and we long to see both these groups strengthened and encouraged. Come Holy Spirit come. We rejoice in the strength of the PW Evening group and the opportunities there for God to work. Pray for the leaders of all these groups to be encouraged as they serve.
Sat 12 Jan - So how does GOD want to use us as a church family to reflect His Presence and His glory among our neighbours and the nations? What is the particular role and ministry that God is giving us as a church family in this town, nation and world? LORD, how do YOU want to use us as a church to show Jesus and share Jesus today? Change us LORD!! Change us to be more like YOU in who we are and in all we do so that people will see You in us and in our life together. Sun 13 Jan - In this past year we have lost a number of elders through sickness and death. Men who have loved and served this congregation for many, many years. We hope in the next few months to elect new leaders and this is a glorious opportunity for us to see fresh leaders step up to the mark and take us as a congregation into God’s future. This is an exciting step for us and we want to soak all that we do in loving, dependant prayer that reflects our total dependency upon GOD. We are GOD centered and GOD dependant. Begin to pray now about who could lead us forward as a church. LORD who do YOU want as elders. Who has vision and passion for Your purposes? Mon 14 Jan - God takes His church through some tough times to bring them into something much better. We long to see the mighty hand of God upon us as a congregation. We have such potential. We have some wonderful Christian people. We have the Word of God and the Spirit of God. We could be a really loving people who reflect the beauty and power of Jesus as we live the Gospel and proclaim the Gospel to the nations. More LORD, so much more of you, that’s what our hearts cry for. DONAGHADEE
Tues 15 Jan - Pray for the shopkeepers and traders in D’dee as they start another year, pray for an increase in the number of people coming into town and their support for
the local businesses. Pray God will use Christians to share their faith with those they meet whether serving or being served. Wed 16 Jan - Pray for each of the churches in D’dee. Pray for each minister or pastor that God will use them to reach into the hearts of those people in the seats or pews and in turn they will share the gospel in their work, school or home. Thurs 17 Jan - Pray for the young people of D’dee, for those who come into the Drop in Centre, attend various organisations in the churches of the town, that God would use the leaders to reach them with the truths of the Bible. So many of them are mixed up in drugs, drink and through this have ended up in serious trouble. Pray God will open their eyes and ears to His rescue plan for them. Fri 18 Jan - Please pray for people who find themselves in financial difficulties, especially after Christmas, maybe through losing a job or some other reason, pray they will seek advice from the right support group to help them through what can often seem an impossible situation. Sat 19 Jan - Pray for comfort for those who have lost a loved one in recent days or weeks, pray for people who may have been taken into hospital with any number of reasons some serious and others not so serious. Pray God would put His healing hand upon them and return them to health and strength again. Sun 20 Jan - Pray for the elderly folk, those in their own home others in care or nursing homes. Pray for them as they spend each day maybe only able to look out of a window as people go by, others could be confined to bed unable to look out and hoping someone will call for a chat or to ask if they need anything. Pray God would bless them and those who make an effort to be of some help. Mon 21 Jan - Pray for the Police, Fire Service Crew, Health Centre staff, Lifeboat Crew. Pray for their safety, for wisdom in dealing with situations. Pray for those who do not know Jesus as their personal Saviour yet and for those who do, that God would use them as they serve Him. Our Nation Tues 22 Jan - Northern Ireland We begin with a view of the work of Belfast City Mission and their outreach among the
people of Belfast and beyond. Please pray this outreach will have a dramatic impact on the people of our province. Pray as they reach out in acts of kindness to folk in need God will enable the good news of the gospel to be shared with those they are helping and as the seed is sown God will bring forth the growth of His word in people’s hearts. Wed 23 Jan - Scotland The Christian Outreach Centre is holding a Euromax conference in Scotland targeting the young adult population. These young people could be a force to be reckoned with. Today’s and tomorrow’s leaders and influencers, this age group are perfectly positioned to bring Christ’s Kingdom to the very centre of every sector of society. The Euromax gathering that takes place each year is a time for young adults to get together, relax and enjoy each other’s company, and passionately pursue the presence of God. Please pray God will use this conference to inspire young people to step out of their comfort zone and win people for Him. Pray God will bless those who are making this all possible. Thurs 24 Jan - England We look and what do we find, there is little real community – so many people don’t even know their neighbours. We live such separate lives and the prevailing “I’m alright, Jack” culture has left many of us not “alright” at all! In fact, millions are lonely, isolated, depressed, directionless and looking for something more to make life more meaningful. What can we do? PRAY, pray people would seek to know more of God. Pray for Christian leaders to “take God’s power and presence back to the communities who so desperately need it” Pray God will reach down and stir us and others into action. Fri 25 Jan - Wales Human Trafficking – it can’t be in Wales? Human trafficking may not feel like a pressing issue in the UK, but a growing number of Christians in Wales are lobbying, praying and meeting to bring an end to this terrible practice. This is in line with the lead taken by the Welsh Government, appointing an Anti Human Trafficking Co-ordinator for Wales last year. This group has been praised by the head of the UK Human Trafficking Centre for its work in tackling trafficking, and relies on many organisations working together, sharing knowledge and information. Please pray for this group, many of them Christians, that this practice can be stopped and as a result those being used and abused will be supported by Christian folk who care and want to show God’s love.
Sat 26 Jan - Looking back As we have taken time over the past four days to pray for the different corners of our nation let’s not forget there is so much more we can consider, especially those who have suffered due to flooding, people at the point of despair with their houses damaged by flood water and unable to live in them. Pray for these folk and ask God to comfort them in the months ahead as they try to repair the damage. Pray Christian folk will give help where they find it is needed. Sun 27 Jan- The future Looking to the future, pray for our nation, pray for Christian values to be upheld. Ask God that through His spirit He will speak into the hearts of people and through the work of churches, groups of Christians the peoples of our nation will want to find their way back to Him. This is not impossible with our God, with Him all things are possible, let us get down to prayer and start the ball rolling. Mon 28 Jan - Pray for the leaders of our country and all those in government. Pray for the Christian leaders that they will take a stand for Jesus on issues being discussed and bills being passed. Pray that God will lead and guide them in the decisions they have to make. Our World Tues 29 Jan - Unreached People World population stands at 6.93 billion. 2.89 billion of these people make up unreached people groups. Please pray for organisations who are working to take the Gospel of Jesus to these groups. Wed 30 Jan - Poor & Needy Over 3 billion people live on less than $2.50 a day; 780 million people live without clean water; nearly 33 million people are living with HIV; nearly 10 million children under 5 yrs die each year mostly from preventable illnesses. Pray for the relief agencies working with all of these people. Pray that God will supply the necessary resources. Thurs 31 Jan - The Persecuted Persecution facing Christians is the largest human rights violation issue in today's world. According to the World Evangelical Alliance, over 200 million Christians in at least 60 countries are denied fundamental human rights solely because of their faith. Pray for the persecuted and the agencies working with them throughout the world. ‘Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.’ 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18
Shore Street Presbyterian
PRAYER CALENDAR January 2013 ME PERSONALLY Tues 1 Jan - Last night at midnight God handed each of us a new year. I said to a man who stood at the gate of the year: "Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown"; and he replied, "Go into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God. That shall be to you better than a light and safer than a known way!” Let us begin the new year by giving our lives afresh to God. “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name. You are mine. ” Isaiah 43 Wed 2 Jan - Where am I now? Where am I spiritually, physically, financially, emotionally, relationally? What would I like to change? It is never too late. Pray over your own situation today and ask God to show you what He wants you to change, then hand these changes over to Him. Thurs 3 Jan - Do you know what God created you for? What gifts has God given you? How are you using them? Pray today for God to show you how you can use the gifts He has given you. Fri 4 Jan - Pray for the family, home, workplace which God has placed you in. Ask God to use you to witness and live for Him in these places. Sat 5 Jan - ‘Let my heart be broken with the things that break the heart of God.’ May we encourage each other to think this through today and let God open our eyes to the needs around us, but also show us how He may use us in these situations.