South Carolina

Dear Heavenly Father,
When Jacob lay his head on a rock, You gave him a dream of angels ascending and descending from heaven. Speak to the leaders of this diocese in dreams that they may be a blessing to the earth. Grant them the land they lie on, and do not leave them.
You stood before Moses upon the rock of Horeb. When he smote the rock, water came out for the people to drink. Speak to the diocese of South Carolina and show them where to strike, that streams of living water might flow to Your children.
Like miners tunneling through rock, seeking unknown veins of silver, gold, iron, copper, zinc, and sapphires, reveal the treasures you have stored up for them. May they recognize every precious thing and bring forth the hidden things to light. Show them the path in Christ Jesus that is free from birds of prey and fierce lions.
Yea, Lord, as they lay bare the root of the mountain of the church in society, we speak rivers of living water cut out among the rocks. Amen.
Genesis 28:11-16, Exodus 17:1-7, Job 28:1-11

South Carolina

Lord,
We pray that the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina will walk worthy of the calling it has received. May they be humble, gentle, and patient, bearing with one another in love and making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, reflecting one body, one Spirit, and one hope in Jesus Christ.
Christ descended into the lower parts of the earth before ascending far above all heavens, that He might fill all things. As the diocese walks through this abyss of false delusions created by rejection of truth, may it share in Christ’s victory, enduring suffering, renouncing all self-assertion, speaking the truth in love, and thereby grow into the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Amen.
Ephesians 4:1-16, 2 Thessalonians 2:10-11

More prayers for South Carolina

Gathered from SF and L&B comment threads–

Georgia prayed:
May the Diocese of South Carolina walk in the glorious holiness, the unlimited power, the splendid freedom, the peace beyond understanding and inimitable, exceeding, unending joy that Christ has won for us at the cost of His own life. In the Name of the Only Savior and Lord,
Jesus Christ, the Only Name under heaven by which we may be saved from sin and given new life. Amen.
I John 5:11-12.

John3v3 prayed:
May the Lord bring conviction of sin, of the righteousness and holiness of God and of the judgment to come upon His Whole sullied, unfaithful Church. May a revival spring out of the dirty heart of ECUSA that will bring His cleansing Word of Truth, Love and Life to defeat the evils of lies, deception, lust and death and all the evils afflicting the world, the flesh and the Church. Amen.

Milton said:
Prayers for +Lawrence, all clergy, deans, vestry, parishioners, to soon come to one mind, the right mind, in the true unity of the true Holy Spirit, so He may come down with fire and great power and shake DioSC, TEO, Lambeth, and the entire Anglican Communion with a mighty earthquake of revival!

South Carolina

The diocese of South Carolina is discerning how to move forward together in a truthful, loving, and godly way. The bishop is Mark Lawrence. The members of the standing committee are Patrick, William, Johnnie, Ann, Meredith, Lydia, Samuel, Anthony, Jeff, Jennie, Lynda, and David. The deans are John, John, Ed, Peet, Craige, Chuck, and John. The Canon to the Ordinary is Jim, and the Canon Theologian is Kendall.
There will be a clergy gathering on Thursday, August 13. Please pray for them much over the next week.

Our Father in heaven,
We cry out for the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina. Grant them insight into the mystery of Christ and His body, the Church. May they share together in the promise of Christ Jesus. Through this diocese, may the manifold wisdom of God, in all its infinite variety and innumerable aspects, be made known to the angelic rulers and authorities in the heavenly spheres.
We bow our knees before You, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for whom this diocese is named. Grant these diocesan leaders strength out of the rich treasury of Your glory. Reinforce their innermost being by the indwelling of Your Holy Spirit. May Christ dwell in their hearts through faith that they may be rooted in love.
Christ’s love is so wide that any sinner can fit into it. No matter how long this diocese exists, it will continue to discover His love. Christ’s love is so high, the protecting barrier formed by the words of His promises cannot be broken. His love is so deep that streams of living water will never run dry. His love surpasses knowledge.
You are able to do far more than the diocese of South Carolina can ask or think. Fill them with the fullness of God to the glory of Your name. Amen.
Ephesians 3

Mining Jesus

Dear Jesus,
You are our Rock. We search the farthest recesses for Your wisdom, Your wealth. We cut a shaft through the blackest darkness to find You; we dangle and sway. We are transformed by Your Holy Spirit, and we find wisdom and understanding.
In Your presence, no bird of prey can follow us, and no lion can prowl. We intercede from this protected place.
We press into You, for we know that in Your light we see light. We fear You and find wisdom. To shun evil is understanding. In You we dwell. Amen.
Job 28

Fighting a lion

On a recent trip to Rwanda, my husband and I had interesting conversations with the bishop of Butare and our host priest. Both had grown up herding cattle in Uganda. The bishop commented that it was good preparation for spiritual warfare. These men had fought off lions with a stick as their only weapon. As the lion approaches, the cattle and dogs run away, leaving the cowboy standing between the lion and the herd. If the cowboy runs away or takes one step back, the lion will bring him down. He must stand his ground. He scares the lion off by shouting and shaking his stick.

1 Peter 5:8 (English Standard Version)
Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

Dear Lord, grant Your children in the Episcopal Church shepherds who will stand firm against Satan, preach against sin, and claim their flock for the kingdom of heaven. Amen.

Petition for integrity

O Lord,
We pray that Christians in the marketplace will perform acts of charity out of compassion, rather than political benefit.
2 Samuel 9

The Light of Calvary

Thanks to my cyber friend, Lutheran pastor Eric Swensson for this great post from his blog Awakenings.

IT IS IN THE LIGHT of Calvary that we can see what it means for us to confess our poverty and our helplessness and to renounce the attempt to overcome them on our own. It is there that we accept our suffering and turn it into a compassion with all the pains that men bear, bundled together as they are in the suffering of Christ.
– Simon Tugwell, The Beatitudes

GRANT, O LORD, that in your wounds we may find my safety, in your stripes my cure, in your pain my peace, in your cross my victory, in your resurrection my triumph, and a crown of righteousness in the glories of your eternal kingdom.
– Jeremy Taylor, in, The Westminster Collection of Christian Prayers

Earnings and riches

O Lord,
We pray that Your servants in the economic sector of our nation will dedicate their earnings and their riches to You.
2 Samuel 8:11

Charles Spurgeon: remove the things that hinder our communion with God

Lord Jesus,
take from us now
everything that would hinder the closest communion with God.
Any wish or desire that might hamper us in prayer
remove, we pray you.
Any memory of either sorrow or care
that might hinder the fixing of our affection wholly on our God,
take it away now.
What have we to do with idols anymore?
You have seen and observed us.
You know where the difficulty lies.
Help us against it,
and may we now come boldly,
not in the holy place alone,
but in the holiest of all,
where we should not dare to come
if our great Lord had not torn the veil,
sprinkled the mercy seat with his own blood,
and asked us to enter.

- Charles Spurgeon

h/t: Kingdom People blog

Mark 8:1-10

In those days, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar.” Then His disciples answered Him, “How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?” He asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven.” So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude. They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them. So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments. Now those who had eaten were about four thousand. And He sent them away, immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha. (Mark 8:1-10)
A word received: I fed the four thousand in their need. Look to me to provide for you.

[Note: I will be off-line for a week. Torre]
Saturday: 75, 76; 2 Samuel 5:22-6:11; Acts 17:16-34; Mark 8:1-10
Sunday: 93, 96; 2 Samuel 6:12-23; Rom. 4:7-12; John 1:43-51
Monday: 80; 2 Samuel 7:1-17; Acts 18:1-11; Mark 8:11-21
Tuesday: 78:1-39; 2 Samuel 7:18-29; Acts 18:12-28; Mark 8:22-33
Wednesday: 119:97-120; 2 Samuel 9:1-13; Acts 19:1-10; Mark 8:34-9:1
Thursday: [83] or 145; 2 Samuel 11:1-27; Acts 19:11-20; Mark 9:2-13
Friday: 88; 2 Samuel 12:1-14; Acts 19:21-41; Mark 9:14-29
Saturday: 87, 90; 2 Samuel 12:15-31; Acts 20:1-16; Mark 9:30-41

Albany Intercessor