Scripture for Monday
1 At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. 2 He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. 3 One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”
4 Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked.
The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. 5 Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. 6 He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea.”
7 When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier who was one of his attendants. 8 He told them everything that had happened and sent them to Joppa.
Prayers for a Fruitful Church
Lord of the Harvest, we pray that your church will be fruitful. We do not want to be like the fig tree that didn’t produce. Our desire, O God, is for church to be vibrant and healthy; an organism that is growing and reproducing as you designed. Lord, as we begin the process of cultivating a new church, planting the gospel in our neighborhoods and community, we pray in faith knowing that you desire to bring about growth. We ask for the courage and faithfulness to serve as workers in your harvest field and we pray those you are even now preparing to send out as well. God, we pray that Intentional People will produce fruit for your kingdom as well. We pray for those with whom we will come into contact. We offer our lives and our efforts to your kingdom for the purpose of cultivating and equipping disciples who engage more fully in your mission. We desire, O Lord of the Harvest, to be a beneficial resource to your church. God, we offer ourselves to your service, use us as you see fit.
Our new house church met together for worship and a meal yesterday. 10 adults and 9.5 kids spent nearly 4 hours hanging out, discussing faith and what it means to be faithful, eating mountains of lasagna, studying Genesis...and going back for more lasagna. Afterwards a friend that was visiting with us made the comment, “I’ve never enjoyed being ‘in church‘ like I did today.” We made the decision to call our new church, “The Gathering.” We are harvesters and we are fruit from the harvest - God is gathering us together and we in turn are sent out to gather others in the name of Christ. Would you spend a few minutes today praying specifically for The Gathering? Pray that God will continue to produce fruit in our lives and that our growth in discipleship will be a compelling witness to our friends and neighbors.
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