Prayer for our nation.

Let us pray.
Almighty God, our Father, everything we see and everything we can’t see exists because of you alone. It all comes from you. It all belongs to you. It all exists for your glory.
History is your story. The Scripture tells us, “Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God. The Lord is One.” And you are the compassionate and merciful one. And you are loving to everyone you have made.

Now, today, we rejoice not only in America’s peaceful transfer of power for the 44th time. We celebrate a hingepoint of history with the inauguration of our first African American president of the United States. We are so grateful to live in this land, a land of unequaled possibility, where the son of an African immigrant can rise to the highest level of our leadership. And we know today that Dr. King and a great cloud of witnesses are shouting in heaven.

Give to our new President, Barack Obama, the wisdom to lead us with humility, the courage to lead us with integrity, the compassion to lead us with generosity. Bless and protect him, his family, Vice President Biden, the cabinet, and every one of our freely elected leaders.

Help us, O God, to remember that we are Americans, united not by race, or religion, or blood, but to our commitment to freedom and justice for all. When we focus on ourselves, when we fight each other, when we forget you, forgive us. When we presume that our greatness and our prosperity is ours alone, forgive us. When we fail to treat our fellow human beings and all the earth with the respect that they deserve, forgive us. And as we face these difficult days ahead, may we have a new birth of clarity in our aims, responsibility in our actions, humility in our approaches, and civility in our attitudes, even when we differ.

Help us to share, to serve and to seek the common good of all. May all people of goodwill today join together to work for a more just, a more healthy and a more prosperous nation and a peaceful planet. And may we never forget that one day all nations and all people will stand accountable before you. We now commit our new president and his wife, Michelle and his daughters, Malia and Sasha, into your loving care.

I humbly ask this in the name of the one who changed my life, Yeshua, Isa, Jesus [Spanish pronunciation], Jesus, who taught us to pray:

“Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen."

Rick Warren's Invocation at President Obama's Inaguration.

Plans.

My whole life I've been preoccupied with plans; making plans, re-evaluating plans, changing plans, sticking to the plan. I don't know about ya'll but I've always had a plan for every stage of my life. I've always try to have a plan to guide my way and to reference where I am going. A noble goal or extravagant task to complete. However, lately I've been constantly reminded about the insignificance of my plan and how it keeps God's plan out of the equation. 

"If we are attempting to do noble or difficult things, we assume that we must be experiencing the maximum potential for our lives and that God must, therefore, be pleased with us. Until we have heard from God, we cannot imagine all that our lives could become or all that God could accomplish through us." Henry and Richard Blackaby 

Lord, I pray that we remind ourselves of God's big picture and that we have limited imagination compared to God. I pray we are able to follow God's direction and be witness to things so powerful that they can only be explained by God working in our lives.

"Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us." Ephesians 3:20 

Happy New Year!

To me, the New Year always brings mixed feelings and emotions-excitement about the things to to come, anxiety about the future, thankfulness for God's blessings in my life, regrets about the last year-the list could go on and on... In 2009, I pray that Catalyst could grow inward and outward. Lord, let us be Christian brothers and sisters, lifting one another up in prayer. Lord, let us also be witnesses and disciples for you, sharing your love and blessings with the world.

In 2009, I pray that everyone in this class be showered with blessings and remember the words to this old hymn:
I am weak but Thou art strong, Jesus keep me from all wrong;
I'll be satisfied as long, As I walk let me walk close to Thee!
Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it Jesus, is my plea
Daily walking close to Thee, Let if be dear Lord, Let it be.

I would also like to add a special prayer request that has been on my heart since Friday evening, a prayer for the Romph family. They are members of my church back home in Missouri and I used to babysit for their older children. On Friday night, their 5 year-old daughter, Margaret, was in a horrific car accident that has left her paralyzed from the neck down and if she lives, she will be on a ventilator for the rest of her life. I ask that you all could lift her and her family up in your prayers, especially her older sister, Erin, who was driving the car at the time of the accident. There are thousands of people across the nation praying for her recovery, but she could always use a few more :) You may read about her-and see her precious pictures-on her website: www.caringbridge.org/visit/margaretromph Thank you all!

Blessings in the new year!

"Evening and morning and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud; and he shall hear my voice." Psalm 55:17

Our God is...Merciful

I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity.  I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD" and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Psalm 32:5 

"I know the plans I have for you." declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 

[The Lord] said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weakness, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9 

The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast. 1 Peter 5:10  

Lord, thank you for your mercy. Thank you that when I acknowledge my sin and don't cover it up, but confess it, you forgive the guilt of my sin. Thank you for your plans for the future & your hope. Please help me to forgive others like you have forgiven me. Amen.