On Saturday, June 24th, I had the privilege to attend an inspiring interdenominational prayer gathering organized by a dear friend whose passion and burden is to pray for Canada. In light of Canada’s 150th anniversary, the over arching theme was to commit our nation to the Lord, to call out to Him with one voice for healing of our land so Canada would be a blessing to all nations.
Our prayers were focused in three specific areas: Prayers for Christian Families (facilitated by my friend who is a physician by trade), Prayers for Pastors and Churches (facilitated by Director of Relational and Spiritual Vitality of Eastern Canadian District of Christian & Missionary Alliance), Prayers for Politicians (facilitated by national Directors of Nation At Prayer, a ministry that engages believers to pray for elected representatives at every level of government).
Representatives from over twenty Churches and six denominations, in the GTA and as far east as Montreal, were gathered with humble hearts and bended knees. Our only agenda was to turn our eyes to the Lord and call out to Him on behalf of our nation. What transpired in my prayer group was incredible, and I was blessed with a glimpse of what God intended us (His people, His Church) to be. Although there were ten culturally diverse individuals in my group from all walks of life, we prayed as though we were one – with one Spirit and one voice, in spite of our differences. This experience is an affirmation that when we submit ourselves to the Lord and abide in Him, He unites us in His Spirit and we become one in the body of Christ. Powerful indeed!
Please be in prayer for the following:
- SCBC Retreat – We look forward to a time of fellowship and learning together at Kempenfelt this weekend! We are thankful for our Retreat Team, for all their effort in planning and preparing for this event. We pray for safety in travels to and from the retreat. We pray the Lord would bless our time together, that we would deepen friendships with one another and we would build one another up in Christ. We pray for the Presence of the Lord to be with us, that He would be evident in our conversations and our activities. We pray for active and thoughtful participation in our discussion groups, that we would be inspired by the Holy Spirit. We pray that through our time together, the Lord would unify and strengthen His church.
- Summerfun – We give thanks for the privilege to host Summerfun! We give thanks for the opportunity to reach out and meet the needs of our community. We give thanks for each child registered. We give thanks for all Staff, Volunteers, Spiritual Action Leadership Team (SALT), Adult Mentors. Please commit to praying for our Summerfun program with “SCBC Summerfun 2017 Prayer Calendar” which outlines specific weekly prayer items.
- Healing and Peace – We remember family members and friends, who are walking through the valley, with illness and treatment regiments. We pray for God’s peace and grace to be with them. We pray they will experience God’s peace and comfort before, during, and after treatment procedures. We pray for recovery without complications. We pray the Lord would uphold them with His strength. We boldly pray for healing, but trust in His sovereignty, that His will is perfect.
- Canada Day Celebration – We give thanks for our nation, may God keep it strong and free! We pray for celebrations across Canada on July 1st, especially in our nation’s capitol, that it would be peaceful and a time of gratitude for all the blessings of Canada.