It is men’s ignorance of themselves that makes prayer little in request: hunger best teaches men to beg. You would be oftener on your knees, if you were oftener in your hearts. Prayer would not seem so needless, if you knew your needs. Know yourselves, and be prayerless if you can.

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Begin with Adoration

This week we are going to reach back to part of a hymn first published in 1695 by Anglican Bishop Thomas Ken. These four lines are some of the most treasured and sung in the history of the Church. We know it as the Doxology.

We want to encourage you to read, and sing—yes, sing—the Doxology as your prayer of adoration! You may want to sing it a few times. If you would like, sing along by clicking the play button below. Praise God…for all His blessings.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
Praise him, all creatures here below;
Praise him above, ye heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

The Doxology, by Thomas Ken

Continue with Confession

This week, let’s allow sections of David’s Psalm 32 guide us in confession…

Psalm 32

How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered!
² How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit!

³ When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away
Through my groaning all day long.
⁴ For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. Selah.
⁵ I acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I did not hide;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”;
And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.

¹¹ Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous ones;
And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.

As the Spirit brings any sin to mind, confess it as sin and turn from it (repent). Thank God that He forgives our sin and cleanses us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

Now offer words of Thanksgiving

Begin by adding one or two more things to your list of things you are thankful for looking back on the past year…

One of the most important things to note about this verse is what precedes it, particularly Ephesians 5:18.

As we are learning in our study through the book of Acts, there is nothing we can do in the Christian life apart from the empowering power of the Holy Spirit. Giving thanks in all things is impossible to do, apart from doing so in dependence upon—relying upon—the Holy Spirit.

Pause before continuing to give thanks, and make sure you are depending upon the Spirit’s presence and power within you to express your gratitude for all things

Conclude with Supplication & Intercession…

Let’s continue to begin our times of supplication and intercession by praying for those we know, who do not yet know Christ.

Now, ask God for what you need from Him today.

Finally, we asked the lay leaders of Fellowship to answer this question last month: “What is your prayer for Fellowship as we enter our next 20 years?” We will be praying some of their prayers over the final two weeks of our forty days, and begin with these three. Let’s make their prayers our prayer…

• We become a people who whole-heartedly love and treasure the Trinity above all else, cultivating the breathtaking goodness of God and then choosing to allow that love and goodness to spill out around us by wholeheartedly loving our family, friends, neighbors, and everyone we meet into the kingdom reign and rule of God through Jesus and His gospel.
• For God to continue to reach people here through His Word, and for that change to be contagious. For authentic community to thrive in small groups and in larger groups as well. That we would tell our stories to bolster each other and inspire each other to seek and share God’s story of redemption. The aroma of Christ in our body brings unbelievers to want to know more.
• That we would humble ourselves and seek God. That we would confess our sins, be healed and walk in faith into the future.