Part of our year of Discipleship - THY KINGDOM COME 2020During the 11 days of Thy Kingdom Come, it is hoped that everyone who takes part will
Through the centuries Christians have gathered at that time to pray for the coming of the Holy Spirit. ‘Thy Kingdom Come’ picks up this tradition. Over the past three years more and more worshiping communities have dedicated the days between Ascension and Pentecost to pray ‘Come Holy Spirit’. We are praying that the Spirit would inspire and equip us to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with our friends and families, our communities and networks. It has been amazing how many varied ways there have been in which people from every tradition have taken up this challenge. The effects have been remarkable. It is our prayer that those who have not yet heard the Good News of Jesus Christ and his love for the world will hear it for themselves, and respond and follow Him. Specifically, we again invite each and every Christian across the country to pray that God’s Spirit might work in the lives of 5 friends who have not responded with their ‘Yes’ to God’s call. Whether you have joined in ‘Thy Kingdom Come’ before or not, we invite you to take part this year – along with churches from over 65 different denominations in 114 countries around the world. "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses …to the ends of the earth. When he had said this…he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight…Then they returned to Jerusalem … and were constantly devoting themselves to prayer… When the day of Pentecost had come they were all together in one place... All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit... and that day about three thousand persons were added." Acts 1, 2 “In praying 'Thy Kingdom Come' we all commit to playing our part in the renewal of the nations and the transformation of communities." Archbishop Justin Welby
24-Hours of Prayer // Prayer Guide Feel free to use this guide to pray through the full-hour that you’ve signed up. Spending 15 minutes on each letter in the P.R.A.Y. acronym will take up the whole hour. Below, there are specific ways to pray through each letter, and a Psalm given to read and inspire your prayers. Read through the guide before praying, so that you use minimal time reading and more time actually praying during your hour! P. R. A. Y. Praise: Psalm 33 Remind yourself what God is like, remember Jesus’ words “If you’ve seen me you’ve seen the Father”. Remember what He means to you, thank Him for the good things you have. Thank God for his creation. Thank God for being a new creation. Give thanks for God Himself through Jesus. If you find your thoughts wandering, use the Psalm by reading it through and choosing a set of 2 or 3 verses that stand out to you. Repeat them to yourself slowly, in your mind or out-loud, 3-4 times. Close your eyes and envision what’s being said as you recite them. Once you have digested them, move on to another set, or give thanks for whatever else God leads you to. Repent: Psalm 130 Be honest with yourself and with God, He already knows all your wrongdoing, be specific as you ask for forgiveness. Don’t brush over things that may come up that you didn’t think you needed forgiveness for. God could be bringing them up! He offers forgiveness. Take a few minutes to allow God to show you the reasons-behind your wrongdoing. Use the Psalm by picking out one or two verses to repeat slowly 4-5 times, and listen for the thoughts that the Holy Spirit may interrupt with to show you those reasons. Beware of any self-condemning thoughts or shame, those are not God! Be positive use it as a chance to grow and expand in your discipleship Ask: Psalm 123 Spend about 5 or-so minutes on requests for 1) yourself and those close to you, 2) our church community, Ask God to lead our church community to the places where we can best see the Holy Spirit transform people’s lives. Pray for God to inspire you and each one of us to serve God in some specific way in our church community.as well as the people and local land where we live: pray for Croxteth park, Liverpool and for THY KINGDOM to come across the nation, pray for BREXIT and the people in need across Britain and beyond. 3) Pray for the needs around the world. Ask God to filter out lies from truth, and for us to be pure-hearted and free from hatred in our discussions of this case with others. Syria & Iraq: Pray for the persecuted Christians in those countries, that God would provide safety and refuge, and that their hearts would not be bitter, but that they’d have peace in their hearts. Pray for God to touch the hearts of high-ranking men in terrorist organisations, pray that God would orchestrate a pathway to peace, and that followers of Jesus would be central in that pathway. pray for all world problems and for the environment Yield: Psalm 131 Our prayers will have an impact, and now we can rest trusting that God is good. God has been, and will continue-to, work for the best-possible-outcome in every request we bring. The analogy in Psalm 131 is of a child who is no longer just using his mother for food like infants do, but now is growing-up, and is content just to be with her. Take a few minutes to enjoy God, recite a portion of the Psalm if it helps to focus. For all who trust in Jesus as God, He promised that the Holy Spirit would live through us. The Holy Spirit is with you where you are, in this moment. Here is the Novena provided by Thy Kingdom come that provide a reflection and prayers from today (Ascension Day to Pentecost 9th June) Do please join in, in any way you can. www.thykingdomcome.global/resources/novena-2019 |
Simple Prayer Ideas
|