Our Church
This morning we will be praying for Marco & Fede Saillen. Marco and Federica are both involved in the leadership of the Nuova Vita church in Bologna, Italy. Marco serves as a pastor, and Fede helps to lead the anti-trafficking ministry of Vite Trasformate. My prayer this morning will be based on Isaiah 40:6–8.
6 A voice says, “Cry!”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”
All flesh is grass,
and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades
when the breath of the Lord blows on it;
surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God will stand forever.
Please pray with me.
Our Father, we are nothing but mortal flesh, and you are eternal. We know that we exist because you will it. And you exist without beginning or end. You neither need us nor anything we might bring. But what we do bring is the fruit of our sinful flesh. We confess we are indeed grass that will fade, apart from your mercy and grace. And so we confess our sins to you.
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We thank you that your word will stand forever, since in Christ you promise our sins are forgiven and we are declared righteous in your sight. What a relief that word is.
With the promises of your word, we come to you in our frailty. For all among us who are feeling the heat of circumstances, we pray for your sustaining grace. For those facing financial difficulty, we ask for provision. For those facing physical weakness, illness, and sleeplessness, we ask for your comforting presence and your strength. For those facing difficult decisions, we ask you to lead. For those who are lonely, we pray that they would find you faithful and that you would bring them into a meaningful connection in this church community. Help us to love each other.
As members of an earthly community, we pray for our nation’s president. We ask that you would grant him a humble heart to listen to good counsel, to discern good counsel from bad, and to act for peace and justice. Protect him from harm and help him to govern wisely.
As members of the global church, we pray for Marco and Fede. We pray for their kids to grow in discernment to respond to whatever they encounter at school and at play that is contrary to your word. Help them to grow in their knowledge and faith in Jesus. For Marco we pray that you would give strength for him to love his family, his church, and the people with whom he works. Help him and Fede to get the rest they need and the time they need together for their marriage to flourish.
We pray for Vite Trasformate, that the women and children in the house would see godly examples of maternal love as well as a balance of care and discipline, grace and nurture, firmness and compassion, and above all, a steadfast trust in God.
Teach us your way, O LORD, that we may walk in your truth; unite our hearts to fear your name (Ps 86:11), through Jesus Christ, amen.