Prayer & Praise
Almighty God, you know that we have no power in ourselves to help ourselves: Keep us both outwardly in our bodies and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities that may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts that may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Genesis 12:1-9
Now the Lord said to Abram, âGo from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.â
So Abram went, as the Lord had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people that they had acquired in Haran, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan, Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, âTo your offspring I will give this land.â So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him. From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord. And Abram journeyed on, still going toward the Negeb.
Psalm 33:12-21
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, * and blessed are the people he has chosen for himself to be his inheritance.
The Lord looks down from heaven and beholds all the children of men; * from the habitation of his dwelling he considers all those who dwell on the earth.
He fashions all the hearts of them * and understands all their works.
There is no king who can be saved by a mighty host; * neither is any mighty man delivered by great strength.
A horse is considered a vain hope to save a man; * neither shall it deliver anyone by its great strength.
Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon those who fear him, * and upon those who put their trust in his mercy,
To deliver their soul from death, * and to feed them in the time of famine.
Our soul has patiently waited for the Lord, * for he is our help and our shield.
Our heart shall rejoice in him, * because we have hoped in his holy Name.
Let your merciful kindness, O Lord, be upon us, * as we have put our trust in you.
+Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be; world without end. Amen
Romans 4:1-17
What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? âAbraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.â Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:
âBlessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;
blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.â
Is this blessing then only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness. How then was it counted to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, and to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.
For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.
That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspringânot only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, as it is written, âI have made you the father of many nationsââin the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
John 3:1-16
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, âRabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.â Jesus answered him, âTruly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.â Nicodemus said to him, âHow can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?â Jesus answered, âTruly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, âYou must be born again.â The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.â
Nicodemus said to him, âHow can these things be?â Jesus answered him, âAre you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
âFor God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
Good and encouraging words today on the prayer post – thank you
For those who have prayed for my daughter’s BIL with Corona V: he is not out of the woods, but today’s report IS a miracle….March 8, 2020
“The breathing tube was removed this morning. They put him on what’s called “Bipap” and he absolutely hated it. We were able to change to a “high flow oxygen” system and he’s more content with that. That being said, he’s lost 8+ days of his life and is really surprised when we tell him what has transpired during the last week.” today is his first conscious day….
his wife knows many are praying and always expresses her gratitude
Thank you, Em, for passing on this good news. Will keep praying, for sure.
please remember in prayer
Em – For those who have prayed for my daughterâs BIL with Corona V: he is not out of the woods, but todayâs report IS a miracleâŠ.March 8, 2020
âThe breathing tube was removed this morning. They put him on whatâs called âBipapâ and he absolutely hated it. We were able to change to a âhigh flow oxygenâ system and heâs more content with that. That being said, heâs lost 8+ days of his life and is really surprised when we tell him what has transpired during the last week.â today is his first conscious dayâŠ.
his wife knows many are praying and always expresses her gratitude
Em – A lovely man died last night â a neighbor who suffers from PTSD went into his garage and turned on his car â he leaves a 2 1/2 year old child and a wife who is 4 months pregnant â hopefully the VFW here will help
as would prayers from the pray-ers here
thank you and God keep
Linneia â All, would you pray for me? I have a rather painful kidney stone that is not passing. I may need an intervention. Thank you!
Nancy â uested prayer for her discernment of an unexpected opportunity to become a more public advocate for the homeless, especially the challenges that homeless women face. Sandra participates in her churchâs ministry of providing meals, clothing and occasional housing opportunities. She understands the serious responsibilities of being an effective and sensitive communicator of those needs and also the benefits and temptations that a more public presence might bring into her life. Her passion is great to be obedient to God and truly serve others. I am blessed to be one of her beneficiaries!!
Em â daughter is healing from fracture spine
Babylonâs Dread â My ministry partner got ill manifesting mental instability. He is a stroke survivor so we returned early. He is now in hospital being tested for stroke. He is my friend of 25 years and was my co-pastor starting our church. Because of the coronavirus heâs in quarantine protocols â he has no symptoms of infection but all international returnees with illness go into these protocols. He is very confused and unstable.
Linnea â Would appreciate prayerâŠlots of joint and muscle aches as well as fatigue, that have gotten worse over the last few weeks. I have a full schedule this next week and really need strength to get through. Thank you!
Michael â I would appreciate prayer as wellâŠlife is pretty overwhelming right now.
Em- my nurse daughter took a nasty fall, cracked a vertebrae and there is no one else on staff at the hospital that can do her job, so sheâs been working through it, sometimes wearing a brace⊠we need prayer that with so little respite her vertebrae will heal correctlyâŠ
BrianD â I lost my sister, and now a friend of the family (my mom)Sherrie has died of cancer. Please pray
Captain Kevin â Appreciate prayer. Iâve been in a Fibro/fatigue/depressed funk all week.
Also, Iâm teaching piano and voice at a local studio, and need many more students to make things work.
Linnea â Would you pray for Greg? He and my husband play tennis. He was treated for an aggressive brain cancer and thought he was clear, but it has roared back. Please pray for healing and that he and his wife come to know the Lord. Thank you!
Xenia-+Pray for the churches of Sri Lanka
Paige â Asking for prayer for a family issue⊠God knowsâŠ. and the silencing of a lying gossip who is spreading slander about me to family members and others. Itâs an on going issue that is quite perplexing, and apparently demonic. Twisted, delusional and strange.
I spoke to a trusted friend about the issue and was told âSatan has given XYZ power to turn people against youâ and âXYZ has been used by Satan to destroy your former marriage and harm the church and now to divide your familyâ.
This XYZ happens to also be cyber stalking me here on the Phoenix preacher.
May God enlighten all souls to see and know Truth and walk in it by His Spirit.
cash â depression , PTSD
David H â I could use a prayer. I was diagnosed with Bellâs Palsy . Right side of my face is paralyzed. Prednisone and an antiviral.
Michael â heart aneurysm and a bad valve, bad back and neck issues.
Captain Kevin â Please pray for my oldest daughter. She is separated from her husband. This is probably the 3rd time in the 3 years theyâve been married. Iâm not sure who is more at fault or if there is any abuse, so I just pray for Godâs will. They are believers, I think.
JD â Marshal whose mother told him that she doesnât love him
Linnea â Jon and Sarah. Please pray that they would know Godâs love and would follow Him out of horrible lifestyles to freedom.
Michael, Rick, Joel, Dan, capt. Kevin, Owen â wand to hear from God in their prayer life
JTK- ongoing back issue.
David H â Aunt Ramona has Adenocarcinoma primary lung cancer.
Victor- chronic back pain
Linnea- sister salvation
Paige- 4 boys to be pleasing to God
Thanks, Dusty!
Em…so happy to hear he is recovering. Praying for him and his family.
Dusty–thank you! For next week, you can take off the kidney stone (looks like it’s gall bladder, which is another issue!) and joint and muscle aches. I appreciate your faithfulness in prayer.
Linnea and bob1, the prayer is much appreciated… the fact that he is alive (60 years old) is a miracle – even if he should not make it, his wife and children can now converse with him (he can’t understand why he can’t just get up and go home). That in itself is a blessing. His dear wife has not left his side for over 8 days now – sleeping on a cot in his room. She tested positive for the virus, but it didn’t take her down.
So many folk here on the Phoenixpreacher are at risk – praying for all as well as dear dusty’s list
God keep
Post script, Linnea, don’t prolong the gall bladder issue. It can affect your pancreas also. It’s an easy laparoscopic surgery to get rid of tat pesky galll b. Been there, done that. đ
Em…what a special family, with his with so supportive. Yes, praying for our over 60 population, especially those who have chronic conditions underlying.
Lord, I pray that you would put a hedge of protection around the saints that fellowship here and their families and friends. Help us to trust you Lord as we navigate rough waters. Lift up our countenance and give us strength, endurance, and yes, even joy. Lord, I pray the peace that only you can offer.
Em–thanks for the advice…I’ve let it go too long–ultrasound and blood tests don’t show a problem, but other indicators, and pain, show otherwise. I’ll get in to a doc, other than the one at work, this week. Appreciate your concern.
Em–I am thankful to hear the good report about your daughter’s BIL. Have you heard how the young mother with children is doing following the tragic death of her husband?
Nancy, no i haven’t … she seems to have withdrawn from contact with neighbors – may not even be living in their house at present – that would be understandable, i guess
thank you for your concern …. stay safe and God keep
“Lord, I pray that you would put a hedge of protection around the saints that fellowship here and their families and friends. Help us to trust you Lord as we navigate rough waters. Lift up our countenance and give us strength, endurance, and yes, even joy. Lord, I pray the peace that only you can offer.” amen, Linnea – worth repeating
for those who’ve prayed for my daughter’s BIL here’s tonight’s update
“…Still not able to eat, but will have a swallow study in the next day or two to see if he can handle thin liquids or if they need to be thickened.
He was downgraded in the care he requires-he’s no longer considered critical but considered “serious”. Is he well, no…. BUT
unbelievable progress, thanking God for mercies and for pray-ers