Supplication

SUPPLICATION

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SICKNESS – LIFE THREATENING

[The majority of our prayers concern physical health. We all know someone who is dealing with a life-ending disease. Here is an opportunity to pray for them. Fill their name in the blanks.]

PRECIOUS IN THE SIGHT OF THE LORD IS THE DEATH OF HIS SAINTS

Screen Shot 2015-09-04 at 6.21.02 PM…FATHER, reveal to ____ why death is so precious to You. It is so important and not a light matter because it is connected with Your “great plans, and…there are great purposes to be accomplished by it” Barnes’ Notes (ref#16, [Ps 116:15]).

A Purtain believer said, “I am not afraid to look the king of terrors in the face, for I know I shall be drawn, not driven, out of the world” The Valley of Vision (ref#76, p205). Cause ____ to realize You, FATHER, have thought long and hard about such a great decision. The death of a saint is an act of great deliberation on Your part (ref#16, [Ps 116:15]).

Death is important because, (1) one more successful race is won, (2) “a new triumph of the work of redemption—showing the power and the value of that work” has occurred (ref#16, [Ps 116:15]), and (3) it is living proof of Your reality, better than any abstract argument” (ref#16, [Ps 116:15]). Keep ____ aware that You celebrate when a saint moves forever from earth to heaven as well as when a sinner trusts in JESUS (Luke 15:7).

SUPPLICATION

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GENERAL TRIBULATION

[We all can think of a Christian sister or brother experiencing so much affliction they may not be able to pray for themselves. Here’s an opportunity to pray for them. Fill their name in the blanks.]

MADE PERFECT BY SUFFERING

screen-shot-2016-12-07-at-11-22-14-am…FATHER, persevere with ____ as You teach (him/her) why suffering is necessary to procure (his/her) obedience to You. You brought situations that made Your Son suffer saying through those unpleasant circumstances He learned obedience (Heb 5:8).

CHRIST also suffered on ____’s behalf leaving behind for (him/her) a model to imitate. I pray that by close application (he/she) might follow in His Savior’s footprints (1 Pet 2:21).

“…there is one very comforting thought in the fact of Christ’s ‘being made perfect through suffering’—it is, that He can have complete sympathy with us. ‘He is not an high priest that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities.’ In this sympathy of Christ we find a sustaining power” Charles Spurgeon (ref#34, March 29th AM).

CHRIST was “made perfect” by suffering (Heb 5:9). And ____ must suffer also, so (he/she) might identify with Him (2 Tim 2:12). Affliction deflates the human ego. It is in opposition to what ____ naturally wants. In ____’s humanness (he/she) wants everything that inflates (his/her) ego. (He/She) would love to present (himself/herself) to You beautiful and fit for Your service but that attitude is only (his/her) old fleshly nature wanting to be righteous. Instead, the affliction You bring causes wounds and displays (his/her) weaknesses. Wounds take away (his/her) covering so dear to (him/her)—the veil of (his/her) own righteousness (ref#128, p457).

FATHER, plant the truth of being made perfect by suffering deep within ____ . Anchor (him/her) so (he/she) will not be moved by afflictions for (he/she) is destined for them (1 Thes 3:3). “Thinkest thou to espouse a God, covered with wounds, torn with nails and despoiled of everything without being treated in the same manner” Madame Guyon (ref#128, p457)? Encourage ____ LORD, with all (his/her) tribulations for in them (he/she) is more the beautiful to You.

SUPPLICATION

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SICKNESS – LIFE THREATENING

[The majority of our prayers concern physical health. We all know someone who is dealing with a life-ending disease. Here is an opportunity to pray for them. Fill their name in the blanks.]

ETERNITY IN OUR HEARTS

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-2-22-43-pm…LORD, You have planted eternity in ____’s heart (Eccl 3:11). And so You have had to set the cherubim and a flaming sword to guard the way to the tree of life (Gen 3:24) lest (he/she) eat from the tree and live forever in (his/her) fallen nature. It is (his/her) human desire to live forever. ____ would like to always be healthy. But if (his/her) present body would become immortal it would mean eternal torment. You have not created (his/her) present bodies to last forever.

This world is in bondage to decay (Rom 8:21). It will not endure. At CHRIST’s second coming, the material elements of the universe will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and the works that are upon it will be burned up (2 Pet 3:10).

____’s body is (his/her) earthly home. The Apostle Paul calls bodies tents for they are only temporary (2 Cor 5:1). In this (he/she) groans because (he/she) is encompassed with many infirmities (2 Cor 5:2).

FATHER, how my sympathies want You to rise up and help ____ become well again. The desire to live forever is so strong that my first prayer request is always to ask You to heal. I know life isn’t the best here or earth, but it appears a lot better than death. And, so I pray for ____. But, my sympathies do not equal Your compassion.

LORD, guard ____ from deceptive and self-destructive means of temporary escape. And guard me from going no further in prayer than to ask You for more of this temporary life. I do not want to pray for only the pain and inconvenience to go away.

Give ____ enough faith to commit (his/her) way to You—to trust You (Ps 35:5). I pray ____ place (his/her) hope in You (Rom 15:13). Help (him/her) to embrace true Christian maturity (2 Cor 13:9) for godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come (1 Tim 4:8).

Aid ____ to resist the urge to desire this temporary life to be permanent. Prod (him/her) to prepare for the life to come by living each day of this week from faith to faith (Rom 1:17).

SUPPLICATION

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CHRISTIAN

[Because we are Christians and live in the world we will always need prayer for our walk and for witnessing to others about CHRIST. Here’s an opportunity to pray for others or even ourselves. Fill their name or your name in the blanks.]

SEPARATING THE SHEEP FROM THE GOATS

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…FATHER, hold ____ back from ever saying to an unbeliever, “GOD loves you.” A. W. Pink (ref#152, p160). Allow (him/her) a lesson from the words of Your Son. CHRIST spoke in such a way that His followers were drawn to Him but unbelievers were repelled. Nothing in His words or actions caused an unbeliever to feel secure in his sins—nothing to “cauterize his conscience” A.W. Pink (ref#152, p160). Entreat ____ to not speak in such a way that (he/she) inoculates the unsaved with encouraging words that do not save.

CHRIST came to “cleanse His threshing floor” (Matt 3:12)—gathering the grain and burning the chaff. Place in ____’s mouth truthful words that will cause (his/her) listeners to be for or against CHRIST.

“’Always preach,’ said Luther, ‘in a way that if the people do not come to hate their sin, they will instead hate you’” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#159, p43).

Urge ____ to use words that will trigger rejoicing or disgruntlement. The truth will always cause CHRIST-rejecters to find something that they disapprove of hindering them from acknowledging CHRIST’s authority (Matt 15:12).

Give ____ a burden to show the unregenerated their need for CHRIST. Provide the words to tell them of their absolute ruin and lost condition—“their imminent and awful danger of suffering the wrath to come, the fearful guilt resting upon them in the sight of God” Thayer’s Greek Lexicon (ref#150, p161).

“That which sinners need to have brought before them is, the ineffable holiness, the exacting righteousness, the inflexible justice and the terrible wrath of God” A.W. Pink (ref#152, p160).

SUPPLICATION

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NON CHRISTIAN Resisters

[We all have friends and family that do not want anything to do with Christianity so it is up to us to pray for their salvation. Here’s an opportunity to pray for them. Fill their name in the blanks.]

THOMAS – SEEING IS BELIEVING

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-11-59-13-am…FATHER, ones who believe without seeing, JESUS called blessed. But, to Thomas the doubter, CHRIST showed His nail-pierced hands and then asked him to believe (John 20:27-29). This passage makes me conclude that You, FATHER, in Your great abandon love, will show Yourself to ____ who may not believe without seeing.

Let me muse on the heavenly Solomon and how willing He is to show Himself to His bride the church—to ones in His church and ones who have yet to come. “My sister, my spouse, He calls them” (Song 4:12). I pray ____ is a (brother-to-be/sister-to-be) to CHRIST; I pray CHRIST has watched ____ from (his/her) earliest infancy. I pray He understands (his/her) nature and that He knows just how (he/she) feels, and sympathies with (him/her) (Heb 4:15). I pray ____ become His spouse—His sweet companion—part of His own self (Gal 2:20).

FATHER, enlighten ____’s eyes, show (him/her) Your Son’s nail-pierced hands, as You did for Thomas. Give (him/her) a spirit of wisdom—insight into Your mysteries and secrets—an understanding into the deep and intimate knowledge of JESUS (Eph 1:18,17). May Your kindness lead (him/her) to repentance (Rom 2:4).

You, FATHER, have sent JESUS to proclaim liberty to the captives and to give freedom to the prisoner (Isa 61:1).   LORD, soon, please, reveal JESUS in a way ____ may come to a saving knowledge of Him. Oh, that (he/she) might see clearly the immeasurable and unlimited and surpassing greatness of You, LORD (Eph 1:19).

SUPPLICATION

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GENERAL TRIBULATION

[We all can think of a Christian sister or brother experiencing so much affliction they may not be able to pray for themselves. Here’s an opportunity to pray for them. Fill their name in the blanks.]

REASONS FOR AFFLICTION–TO OVERCOME

 

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-9-33-46-am“But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me” (Mic 7:7-8 NRSV).

 FATHER, our natural inclination is to be spared from trouble. But, in Your wisdom, You give us troubling situations to deliver us in trouble. No evil can harm us when we’re at one with You no matter what situation You have us in (ref#7, Aug 2nd).

“God does not give us overcoming life: He gives us life as we overcome. The strain is the strength. If there is no strain, there is no strength” Oswald Chambers (ref#7, Aug 2nd).

FATHER, empower ____ to accept the hard situations; compel (him/her), by faith, to defer to Your strength. Even anticipating hard situations wears ____ out physically, but if (he/she) spends (himself/herself) spiritually (he/she) will get more strength. You give strength minute by minute (ref#7, Aug 2nd).

“To deny oneself is to be aware only of Christ and no more of self, to see only him who goes before and no more the road which is too hard…” Dietrich Bonhoeffer (ref#10, p88).

____ will find You, FATHER, when (he/she) overcomes suffering by suffering. JESUS prayed for the cup to pass from Him (Matt 26:39). It did pass—when He drank it. His suffering passed as he accepted it. “The cross is his triumph over suffering” Dietrich Bonhoeffer (ref#10, p92).

FATHER, how vital for ____ to keep communion with You—to draw near You in hard times for if (he/she) removes (his/her) eye from You even for a moment, (he/she) will succumb to “every dark suggestion of the adversary” Octavius Winslow (ref#61, May 30th). Linked with You, (he/she) overcomes—we overcome—You, LORD, overcome for ____.

SUPPLICATION

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PROVISIONS

[We all know someone who is dealing with financial problems. Here is an opportunity to pray for them. Fill their name in the blanks.]

GIVE US OUR DAILY BREAD

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-8-39-05-am…FATHER, even the sparrow finds a home and the swallow makes a nest for herself in Your house, O LORD (Ps 84:3). The ravens do not sow or reap yet You feed them (Luke 12:24). The lilies do not toil, but how beautifully they survive (Luke 12:27). You clothe even the grass that is alive one day and the next day burned (Luke 12:28). You feed the birds;…are we not worth much more than these (Matt 6:26)?

O LORD, You are so attentive to ____ that You even know how many hairs are on (his/her) head (Luke 12:7). Let (him/her) find faith enough to know that You’ll also supply everything for (him/her) (Phil 4:19).

Unbelievers are worried about what they shall eat and drink and wear (Luke 12:30). Remind ____ that (he/she) should not be anxious about (his/her) life (Luke 12:22). You know what ____ needs (Luke 12:30). You will supply every need for (him/her)  from Your glorious riches which have been given to (him/her) in CHRIST (Phil 4:19).

FATHER, it is Your good pleasure to give (him/her) Your kingdom–all the resources You possess (Luke 12:32)!   It is through CHRIST’s kingdom You amply supply all (his/her) necessities. CHRIST is (his/her) over-generous provider. You gave Him to (him/her) as head over all things. He is all in all, making everything complete filling everything everywhere with Himself (Eph 1:22-23).

Through Your kingdom, You will supply (his/her) needs day after day (Luke 12:31). There is no evil or lack worth trembling at when (he/she) knows You will not allow anything to separate (him/her) from You (Rom 8:39).

King David prayed for all things as if he had nothing and prayed knowing he would have everything from You he needed.  May (he/she) rest in Your great provisions.

SUPPLICATION

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GENERAL SICKNESS

[The majority of our prayers concern physical health. We all know someone who is dealing with the pain of sickness. Here is an opportunity to pray for them. Fill their name in the blanks.]

GOD GLORIFIED IN SICKNESS

screen-shot-2016-10-19-at-4-57-19-pm…FATHER, embolden ____’s faith so she finds peace in believing that this sickness that disappoints (him/her) is due to the limitations of (his/her) human sight—that You have better plans than (he/she) can see (ref#66, p57). Inspire (him/her) to realize that even in Your plans for Your Son, You did not deliver Him from the cross but glorified Yourself through His suffering (ref#66, p61).

Favor ____ by impressing upon (him/her) the fact that You have moved (him/her) away from Your work so that (he/she) might be able to concentrate exclusively and entirely on You. In (his/her) work (his/her) great desire was to glorify You; now in (his/her) rest (he/she) has the opportunity to glorify You. Thank You, FATHER, for selecting the best means for ____ to advance Your glory (ref#61, Aug 16th).

LORD, (he/she) whom You love is ill (John 11:3). FATHER, how You love and guard Your suffering patient. Impress on ____ that as (he/she) is languishing and weak (he/she) is more inclined and able to hang on to You. And You will not forsake (him/her) (Heb 13:5).

SUPPLICATION

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SORROW

[“Blessed are those who mourn…” (Matt 5:4 NASB). We know people who are grieving; let’s pray for them. Fill the name in the blanks to this prayer.]

BROKENHEARTED

screen-shot-2016-10-18-at-4-34-57-pm“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit” (Ps 34:18 ESV).

FATHER, I pray for ____ as (he/she) is in a most vulnerable state. Move ____ not to let (his/her) feelings dictate (his/her) actions. Do not let them determine what is Truth. Wrap (him/her), LORD, in Your arms; reveal to (him/her) the reality that You are close. Indeed, ____ is Your brokenhearted child—Yours to revive again (ref#136, session 1, p10).

My concerned prayer is that ____ let You bind up (his/her) wounds. Don’t allow (him/her) to entertain the notion that You are content to let (him/her) writhe in pain. Demonstrate, please, to (him/her) that You are (his/her) Healer. Stop (him/her) from basing (his/her) thoughts on what (he/she) sees or feels. Give (him/her) faith enough to let You hold (him/her) during this time (ref#136, p33).

Cause (him/her) to be able to let (his/her) grieving show. Instill in (him/her) that this is not the time to be brave or strong (ref#136, Zig Ziglar, session 1, p2).

“Confession, disorientation and roller-coaster emotions characterize a ‘normal’ grief experience. No matter what you are feeling, be sure to tell God. Get in the habit of sharing openly with Him” Church Initiative (ref#136, p30).

SUPPLICATION

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NON CHRISTIAN Pursuers

[We all have friends and family that sit in our churches but only act like they are Christians. It is up to us to pray for their salvation. Here’s an opportunity to pray for them. Fill their name in the blanks.]

FLESH – ALL AN UNREGENERATE PERSON IS

screen-shot-2016-10-14-at-4-12-38-pm…FATHER, I can hear ____ say, “Since GOD did so much for me, I want to show my appreciation by being and doing good.” Anyone who approaches You this way does not know You, they only think they do. You have yet to do anything for them. They are simply practicing “religious moralism” Madame Guyon (ref#123, p13). “To most people in our society, Christianity is religion and moralism” Madame Guyon (ref#123, p14).

____ can make great strides at being and doing good. Without any help (he/she) can, all by (himself/herself), accomplish many good works. “Self-confidence and self-reliance… are the notable traits of the good works of the flesh” Watchman Nee (ref#33, p114).

The Apostle Paul calls the unregenerated person “fleshly” (Rom 7:14). “Flesh” is not just the body, but encompasses the entire person (ref#33, p69).  “…put no confidence in human effort,” (Phil 3:3 NLT) says the Apostle Paul, because “it is impossible for the flesh to lean upon God” Watchman Nee (ref#33, p114).

____ has not come to the cross as a helpless sinner. (He/She) is enamored with CHRIST’s goodness and thus wants to show Him (his/her) own goodness.   CHRIST is (his/her) hero but not yet (his/her) Savior.

You, FATHER, have not yet impressed upon (him/her) that the goodness of (his/her) flesh is as filthy rags (Isa 64:6). Send Your SPIRIT to convict ____ of the sin of operating with (his/her) flesh. And, not only once “but daily and incessantly” remind (him/her) of this fact  (ref#33, p122).

FATHER, it is good that ____ admires You. I pray You keep (his/her) interest by revealing more and more of Yourself to (him/her). But, (he/she)) cannot know You until (he/she) first knows (himself/herself). “The nothingness of the creature helps our conception of the all of God” Madame Guyon (ref#128, p405, [Song of Songs 1:7]). Propel ____ to go forth into more understanding of You, permitting (himself/herself) “no natural satisfaction and no life in self” Madame Guyon (ref#128, p405, [Song of Songs 1:7]).