Prayer & Praise
The Collect
Heavenly Father, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you: Look with compassion upon the heartfelt desires of your servants, and purify our disordered affections, that we may behold your eternal glory in the face of Christ Jesus; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Exodus 17:1-7
All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, âGive us water to drink.â And Moses said to them, âWhy do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?â But the people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Moses and said, âWhy did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?â So Moses cried to the Lord, âWhat shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.â And the Lord said to Moses, âPass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel, and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink.â And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the Lord by saying, âIs the Lord among us or not?â
Psalm 95
O come, let us sing unto the Lord; * let us heartily rejoice in the strength of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving * and show ourselves glad in him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God * and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are all the depths of the earth * and the heights of the hills are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it, * and his hands prepared the dry land.
O come, let us worship and fall down, * and kneel before the Lord our Maker.
For he is our God, * and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.
Today, if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts * as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness,
When your fathers tested me, * and put me to the proof, though they had seen my works.
Forty years long was I grieved with this generation and said, * âIt is a people that err in their hearts, for they have not known my ways,â
Of whom I swore in my wrath * that they should not enter into my rest.
+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 5:1-10
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous personâthough perhaps for a good person one would dare even to dieâbut God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
John 4:5-42
So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.
A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, âGive me a drink.â (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, âHow is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?â (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, âIf you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, âGive me a drink,â you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.â The woman said to him, âSir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock.â Jesus said to her, âEveryone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.â The woman said to him, âSir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.â
Jesus said to her, âGo, call your husband, and come here.â The woman answered him, âI have no husband.â Jesus said to her, âYou are right in saying, âI have no husbandâ; for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.â The woman said to him, âSir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.â Jesus said to her, âWoman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.â The woman said to him, âI know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.â Jesus said to her, âI who speak to you am he.â
Just then his disciples came back. They marveled that he was talking with a woman, but no one said, âWhat do you seek?â or, âWhy are you talking with her?â So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and said to the people, âCome, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?â They went out of the town and were coming to him.
Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, saying, âRabbi, eat.â But he said to them, âI have food to eat that you do not know about.â So the disciples said to one another, âHas anyone brought him something to eat?â Jesus said to them, âMy food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, âThere are yet four months, then comes the harvestâ? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, âOne sows and another reaps.â I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.â
Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, âHe told me all that I ever did.â So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, âIt is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.â
“… you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you…”
One of Augustine’s best phrases…
It has been an eventful National Day of Prayer – people care -people believe – people pray
please remember in prayer
Em â 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 â 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 gall bladder, which is another issue!) and joint and muscle aches
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.
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
Holy Father, our Redeemer, show Your grace and mercy.
Thank you, Dusty!
Grateful for dusty’s list…. “…what a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer” fr. What a Friend We Have in Jesus…
I have a praise to God to share…. My daughters hospital does not so far issue adequate masks etc…. Neighbors are finding in their supplies industrial strength masks and bringing them to her… She WILL use them in spite of hospital “big, little shot hotel managers” protest – the hospital/hotel may demand that the company she works for fire her… Big burden – please remember them all in prayer
Em…praying for your daughter’s hospital, that her company will not fire her or others for protecting their own lives. Keeping all in prayer in sweet dusty’s prayer list.
answered prayers? my daughter’s BIL has one Corona test negative and they are waiting the results of a second which will release him from isolation… received a picture and he’s been through the mill – looks like a shriveled, little old man, but has a bright smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye… by God’s grace and mercy his dear wife will have her companion back… hope it isn’t premature to say thank You, Lord, thank You, thank You, thank You….
We were blessed today to got a home delivery today of food and sundries that we needed badly. As my wife and I are high risk and home bound we are happy amazon fresh was able to process and deliver our order. Who would have thought Amazon Prime would be such a godsend four months ago? Praying for you all during these difficult times.