Together Seeking God’s Face: A Year of Praying in the CRCNA
The prayers for June 6-16, 2022 are prayers for Synod and the CRC as a whole.
They are taken from “40 Days of Intentional, Guided Prayers before Synod 2022”.
This and other prayer resources can be found at https://network.crcna.org/prayer
June 6 - Theme: Seeking God Together
Suggested Bible Reading: Psalm 63:1-3
“You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land where there is no water.
I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.
Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.”
Prayer
By Jon Hoekema, Pastor, CRCNA Prayer Shepherd, Downers Grove, IL
God as we come before you at the beginning of this journey in prayer, we come before you seeking your face. For it is you who we want to see. Along with the Psalmist we pray, “My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek.” (Psalm 27:8)
While we desire to seek your face, God, we confess that it is so easy to get pulled away from you. We keep our eyes looking down at our feet, wondering what our next step will be, wondering if we will survive slogging through the mud in the storm we find ourselves in, wondering if we will be tripped up yet again.
God it's also easy to lose our focus on your face when all we do is seek your hand, only turning to you to meet our needs, to get what we want, praying only for what you can give to us.
Forgive us for all the distractions that pull us away from the thing we desire most, which is an ever-deepening relationship with you.
As we begin this prayer journey, we long for your presence. We long for, right now, that which we will have for eternity - the presence of God with us.
May our prayer be that of the Psalmist in Psalm 63:1-3:
You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land where there is no water.
I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.
Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. Amen.
June 7 - Theme: Seeking God Together
Suggested Bible Reading: Ephesians 2:14-16
“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.”
Prayer
By Rev. Dr. Michelle Lloyd-Paige, Executive Associate to the President for Diversity and Inclusion, Calvin University, Grand Rapids, MI
Reconciling God,
We come to you at your invitation to cast all our cares to you. We have so many cares. Many of these cares cause anxiety and it makes us feel like we are alone. But we know that we are not alone. There are people who look like us and those who do not, who share our same personal struggles; there are people who look like us and those who do not, who have the same concerns about the state of our denomination; there are people who look like us and those who do not, who want to do what is right, but are not sure what is right.
So we come to you together with our cares, together with our differences, together with our longing for a healthy and flourishing denomination, and together with a desire to do what is right. We come to you grateful that we can seek you together because Christ has brought us together through his death on the cross. The cross brought us together and through the cross we are joined together.
Lord, help us to remember the joining work that is already complete in Christ. Help us to have a heart and ears to listen well, to listen as one would to a beloved family member. Help us to live into the unity that has ready been made possible by the work of the cross. Help us to seek your perfect will for our lives, the gathering of synod, and the denomination … together.
In the name of the One who has brought us together and reconciled us to You, Jesus the Christ.
Amen.
June 8 - Theme: We Want to See Jesus
Suggested Bible Reading: Ephesians 4:11-16
“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”
Prayer
By Pennylyn Dykstra-Pruim, Associate Dean for Diversity & Inclusion Calvin University, Grand Rapids, MI
Lord Healer Savior
We praise and thank you for your steadfast love
for your many blessings
for the ways you guide our thinking and living in the world.
We are making our way through a difficult time
wrestling with important decisions for our church
trying to find the best way forward.
Tune our hearts to the voices of others.
Help us to listen respectfully to our brothers and sisters and siblings in Christ.
Speak to our souls with your Spirit’s whispers, inspiring hope and goodness.
Help us to show your kindness to one another.
Surround our conversations with your unfailing love.
Help us to recognize in each other different parts of the body of Christ.
We humbly ask you to do these things in and among us
so that in our work and lives together, we may see you in the faces and graces of each other
so that we may be the hands and feet of Christ to each other and in our broken world
so that the world may see Jesus in us.
In His name we pray, Amen.
June 9 - Theme: Desiring that the World May Know Jesus
Suggested Bible Reading: John 20:19-23
“On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.’ And with that he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.’”
Prayer
By Tyrell Natewa, Calvin Seminary MDiv Student, Albuquerque, NM
In today's scripture reading, the disciples are in a closed room where fear is in the air. The disciples' fear causes them to lock their doors and windows. The disciples' fear caused them to not be out in the world telling of Jesus and the forgiveness of sins. As the disciples sat in the closed room where their fear was lurking. Jesus comes in through the closed doors and windows and says, "Peace be with you". The disciples are overjoyed when they see Jesus. Jesus again says, "Peace be with you". Jesus then tells the disciples that they must go and share the Good News of forgiveness of sins so all the world may know of his peace. The disciples need to be letting the world know of the peace that Jesus gives to those who follow him.
Brothers and Sisters, God, says "peace be with you" today. May you be strengthened by God to go and share about the forgiveness of sins. May you share of Jesus' forgiveness of sins so that all the world may know of him.
God of peace, you whisper, "peace be with you."
God of shalom, we thank you for calming our souls in a time of fear and chaos.
Father God, forgive us for relying on our strength for peace.
Forgive us when we close our doors and windows and do not share your good news.
Jesus, thank you for coming to earth, defeating sin and death, so our sins are forgiven.
Holy Spirit, fill us with your peace and help us as we share the good news.
Holy Spirit, walk with us now as we go into the world.
Hom a:kuyaye, Jesus Christ do’n a:will I deya’du. Da: do’n a:wanikchiya:du. (Galatians 6:18)
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers, and sisters. (Galatians 6:18)
Amen.
June 10 - Theme: Resting in Jesus & the Spirit, Who Are Interceding for Us
Suggested Bible Reading: Romans 8:22-30
“We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.”
Prayer
By Kelly Buist, Pastor, Calvin CRC, Grand Rapids, MI
Lord, some days we come to you filled with Joy, Hope, Delight in You.
Other days we come to you with a laundry list -
Of suggestions, Desires, Requests, Sorrows.
Many days we come to you Without words, Without much more than a grunt or a groan. We aren’t sure what to say, and wonder if we dare.
I wonder if these are the days, Lord, when we are most Vulnerable. True. Alive.
These days when our hearts speak Louder than our minds ever can.
Lord, today is one of those days - One of those seasons, for our beloved denomination.
We come with big desires, with great uncertainty, and we struggle to put words to the
Groans of our hearts.
On these days we are grateful for Your promise to intercede for us. To cry out from the Depths of You on behalf of that which lies within the Depths of us.
Help us, Lord Jesus, to rest in the knowledge that You know each of our hearts
And the heart of God.
And that because of this, You will intercede For us according to God’s will
Remind us, Holy Spirit, that You desire Goodness for those You love.
And that You Hold all our Joys, Desires, Groans, In Your hand.
Teach us, O God, To loosen our grip, To surrender our control, To rest,
In the knowledge Of Your goodness, Of Your love, Of You. Amen.
June 11 - Theme: Seeking God Together
Suggested Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 20:1-6, 12-13
“Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army is coming against you ... Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. The people of Judah came together to seek help from the Lord; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him. Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the Lord in the front of the new courtyard and said: ‘Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you… For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.’ All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the Lord.”
Prayer
By Sean Baker, Ministry Consultant, Pastor Church Resources, Grand Rapids, MI
In 2 Chronicles 20, God’s people learn of an imminent, coordinated attack upon Jerusalem from three hostile armies at once. Humanly-speaking, there was nothing to be done. Yet, King Jehoshaphat did not lose hope. Instead, he “inquired of the Lord…proclaimed a fast…[and] all the people of Judah came together to seek help from the Lord.” He prayerfully acknowledged their inadequacy (“we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us”) and publicly entrusted himself and the nation to God’s capable care: (“We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you.”) No sooner had Jehoshaphat prayed these words then the Spirit reassured all of Judah that they “Need not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s…You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions and stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you…do not be afraid. Do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow and the Lord will be with you.”
As many of us survey our denomination and conclude that, humanly-speaking, there is nothing to be done, we nevertheless join the hopeful prayer of Jehoshaphat:
Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven?
You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations.
Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you.
The challenges facing our denomination and churches are vast.
The odds of unity seem long.
Yet, we stand in your presence and cry out to you in our distress.
Hear us and save us.
We have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us.
We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.
June 12 - Theme: Seeking God Together
Suggested Bible Reading: John 17:6-12
“I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.”
Prayer
By Fernando del Rosario Jr., Commissioned Pastor, Emeritus Christ’s Community Church, Hayward CA Coordinator, Southeast Asian & Pacific Islands CRCs (SEAPI)
“Father, I pray for them…” John 17:9
To prepare for Synod 2022, a defining moment in the CRC, what comes to my heart is when the Lord Jesus prayed for the disciples a few hours on His path to Calvary. It was His defining moment. It was to be the culmination and fulfillment of the Father’s plan for our salvation. After giving glory and thanksgiving to His Father, Jesus turned his praying hands towards our direction. He knew what to pray for the disciples then - and also for us today. He knew all of us will have times of seeing at situations and issues in differing ways. Disagreements, misreading of each other’s intentions and passions, a myopic view of the impact decisions made today for the future, worse doing the blame game that further divides us.
Our Lord of Grace and Mercy saw these coming. Sadly. Unfortunately. That’s why He pleaded to the Father to embrace us always with His peace, joy that cuts through unresolved talk, protection against self-destruction, unrestrained love especially when we struggle to give it, unity of heart and voice to bring out Christ’s purity in our church family.
Our Lord and Savior prayed for us then. Still praying for us today, perhaps even more. And now, it is time for us to kneel together as in the garden where He was. Like Him, agonizing and seeking to pray. Together. With scarred hands and hearts, damaged opinions and passions, driven by repentance and submission to His will for us. That the Church He is building through us will be done. As difficult as the process maybe is today.
We are all invited to plead and pray together. On our knees. Our Lord is by our side. Praying with and for us.
[Take a few minutes to pray silently, imagining that Jesus is praying beside you as you pray.]
Amen.