Week of August 1, 2010, Colossians 3:1-11

One of the Scriptures for Sunday is from Paul’s letter to the Colossians, chapter 3, verses 1-11, where Paul talks about rules for holy living.
1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

5Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

Jesus, You suffered and died for us, and You were raised at Easter and You are seated at the right hand of God. Jesus, You raise us up, and tell us to set our hearts on things above. You tell us to set our minds on things above, not on earthly things. Help us to do that – to not be concerned with what we are to wear or what we are to eat, because we know that You watch over us, You provide, You direct us. Help us to have a holy perspective – a perspective that takes in all aspects of our life – to see that You have been intimately involved in our lives, with every aspect of our lives, and that You are with us through it all. Jesus, You are our life.

So help each of us to live lives worthy of children of God, to live our baptism each day – dying to ourselves and our earthly nature, and rising to new life each day – putting away unclean thoughts and evil desires, and walking in holiness and purity, moving away from anger and pride and envy and lies and filthy language, and all things contrary to Your ways, and to live and walk daily in the Spirit, putting on a new self, being renewed and refreshed each day in the Word of God in the Bible, and to realize always that there is no Greek or Jew, no white or black or Hispanic or Asian, slave or free, but to realize that Christ is all and Jesus Christ is in all.

Thanks, Jesus, for Your love, power, peace and presence in our lives. Amen.

May the love of the Lord Jesus draw us to Himself;
May the power of the Lord Jesus strengthen us in His service;
May the joy of the Lord Jesus fill our souls;
May the fire of the Holy Spirit bring comfort, guidance and fervency;
And may the blessing of the almighty and most merciful God - Creator, Word and eternal Holy Spirit - be upon us and remain with us always.
In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

You may leave a message or prayer request by emailing me at: peacewm@tds.net.
May God be with you now and always.

Week of July 11, 2010, Colossians 1:9-14

One of the Scriptures for Sunday is from Colossians, chapter 1, here from verses 9 to 14. Paul is talking about how he prays for the Church at Colosse, and so ultimately how we can pray for our church and for others:
9For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. 10And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully 12giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. 13For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Dear Lord, we ask for the Holy Spirit to guide us in praying for others as Paul has done here for the Colossian Church. Jesus, give us a love for prayer, to bring others to You. Lord God, we ask You to fill us and others with the knowledge of Your will from all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Lord God, we pray You would help us to live a life worthy of You, so that we would please You in every way, so that we would bear fruit in every good work, so that we would grow in knowing You more and more, so that we would be strengthened with power through Your glorious might, so that we may have great endurance and patience, so that we would be joyfully giving You thanks.

Thank You, Lord God, that You call us to share in the inheritance of all the saints in Your kingdom of light. Thank You, Lord God, that You have rescued us from the dominion of darkness and that You have brought us and continue to bring us into the kingdom of light, the kingdom of Your Son, in whom we have redemption and salvation, and forgiveness of sins.

Thanks Jesus, for suffering and dying on the cross for each one of us. Thanks for Your love, Your peace, Your presence with us always. Amen.

May the Lord shower you with His mercy; may the light of His presence be ever your guide; may He guard you and uphold you; may His Spirit be ever by your side. May He bless Your comings in and your goings out. When you sleep, may His angels watch over you; when you wake, may He fill you with His grace. May you love Him and serve Him all your days, and then in heaven to see His face forevermore.
In the name of the Father and of the Son of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

You may leave a message or prayer request by emailing me at: peacewm@tds.net.
May you be more and more aware of God’s presence and Spirit in your life each day.

Week of July 4, 2010, Psalm 66:1-9

One of the Scriptures for Sunday is Psalm 66 – a psalm of praise:
1 Shout with joy to God, all the earth!
2 Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious!
3 Say to God, "How awesome are your deeds!
So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you.
4 All the earth bows down to you;
they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name."
5 Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works in man's behalf!
6 He turned the sea into dry land,
they passed through the waters on foot— come, let us rejoice in him.
7 He rules forever by his power,
his eyes watch the nations— let not the rebellious rise up against him.
8 Praise our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard;
9 he has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping.

Dear Lord, You are a mighty and awesome God. Give me words to shout to You with joy, my heart filled with praise to the glory of Your name. All the earth bows down to You. All creation sees how You work, Your awesome deeds, how You turned the sea into dry land, how You watch over the nations, how enemies cringe before You and Your power.

Let us all come before You, Lord God, singing praise to You, rejoicing in You. For You, Lord, preserve our lives and keep our feet from slipping. During the times of anxiousness, fear, and concern, You watch over us. You never abandon us. You are always with us. You preserve us and keep us close to You, not allowing our feet to slip, not allowing our feet to stray from Your truth. For You are truth, Your Words are truth. Your promises are truth.

Lord, help each of us keep Your Words close to our heart, trusting in Your ways, and Your works, being filled with the confidence of Your grace and Your mercy and Your love.

Jesus, thanks for Your love, Your peace, Your presence with each of us – always. Amen.

May the Lord bless you as you go on your way. May He go before you to show you the way. May He go behind you to encourage you. May He go beside you to guide and befriend you. May He always be above you to watch over you. And may He be within you to give you great peace.

In the name of the Father and of the Son of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

You may leave a message or prayer request by emailing me at: peacewm@tds.net.
May you know God’s presence with you more and more each day.