Lord, I lift up the children and youth in my congregation to You. May the little ones remain humble examples of what we adults need to become in the kingdom. Let their conduct always be pure and right with reputations that show that they remember You, Creator God. Teach them to declare Your marvelous deeds. May they flee evil desires and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace. (Matt 18:3-4; Prov. 20:11; Eccl. 12:1; Ps. 71:17; 2 Tim. 2:22)
Is your congregation’s prayer list filled exclusively with names of saints who are sick or facing surgery? If so, this could be the main reason so many of your members have never learned how to pray in biblical proportion! Consider this simple change; it might turn a business-as-usual prayer meeting into a prayer adventure.
Do NOT remove the names of those who are ill . . . Simply add other
critical issues. A prayer list might look something like this:
*Sick & Suffering (ask the Lord to bring hope and healing to those who are diseased or distressed) *Seeking & Searching (pray for your neighbor and coworker) *Streets & Society (pray about social illnesses) *Strategic Servants (pray for leaders in civic and business realms) *Sent & Sacrificing (pray for those carrying the gospel around the world)
You may choose different
categories, of course. They key is to never print a prayer list that
ONLY asks the reader to pray for sick people!
January 2005 
