Partnership with the Holy Spirit

THE HOLY SPIRIT

Verse of the Day: May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. – 2 Corinthians 13:14 (NIV)

The Blessing for today: May you be enriched and strengthened by the active participation and partnership of the Holy Spirit in your life as He (the Spirit) reveals the grace of Jesus and the
love of God for you in ever increasing measure. May, through the Spirit’s work, the sacrifice of Jesus on your behalf and the purpose of God for you, both now and eternally, be fully revealed to you. May the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit guide you in following Jesus and serving
God through all of life. And may you always be kept strong in your faith by the Spirit’s power to face the challenges that will come and to live out the opportunities that he will provide for you in your walk with God. Amen.

Al Funk - Lead Pastor Colwood Pentecostal Church

Let My Eyes Be Fixed On You

THE HOLY SPIRIT: Self Control

Verse of the Day: They said to each other, 'Didn't our hearts burn within us as he talked with us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?' – Luke 24:32 (NLT)

Today I pray that you would find the courage to obey the Holy Spirit’s leading. Inviting God into your life and your daily activities is the beginning stage, but it is not where we are to stop. It is
in the doing of His will by actually walking it out, that true blessing comes. We all invite the Holy Spirit and desire to do his will. My prayer is that you not only invite, but obey His directing and leading today. Doing this transforms our hearts and our communities. 

King David was a man after God’s heart. What this means is that he found out what was in God’s heart and then did those things. Pray with me.....Lord my God, give me strength today to walk in obedience to your leading. Give me your love and let me care for others. Let me have compassion on those who are less fortunate than myself. Let my eyes be fixed on you, while my hands work to improve and change our community. 

Neil Van Heerden - Living Edge

May We Have Rest

THE HOLY SPIRIT: Gentleness

Verse of the Day: Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. – Matthew 11:28-30

Bless you Father, for you have sent your Son to us not in the strength of might but in the power of humility and gentleness that we may have rest. Likewise, as you form us more fully into
your image, guard us from using truth as a hammer and strength as a weapon. Let us bear others in their weakness, their desperation, their deprecations, and receive them as you have received us. Where the world is angry, violent, and coercive, help us to be graceful, merciful, and gentle. Lord, we are tempted to respond to our enemies harshly and brutally; settle us in your love, that we may be slow to take offense and quick to extend a hand of friendship. Spirit, may our words and our tone soothe without sacrificing truth. In granting us meekness, make known the great glory of our God, who in gentleness gathers His children. Through Christ, our Lord: Amen. 

Josh Wilton - The Table Church

Bless the God of Faithfulness

THE HOLY SPIRIT: Faithfulness

Verse of the Day: 'For if you had faith even as small as a tiny mustard seed you could say to this mountain, ‘Move!’ and it would go far away. Nothing would be impossible’ – Matthew 17:20

Bless the God of all Faithfulness, who demonstrates again and again that, when we trust Him, He is faithful and worthy of our trust. Bless me/us as your community of faith to work miracles in my/our community with mountain-moving faith, with power from the Holy Spirit breaking all human resistance. May we persevere in faithfulness when the all the odds seem to be against us. May we faithfully pray for the conversion of our community and the transforming of hearts and lives of all those who dwell there. May we act in faith as though this has all already happened because of our sure perception that it is the will of God. May the Holy Spirit, who is your Faithful Guide and ever near your side, bless you. May the Holy Spirit, who is your Ever
Present, Truest Friend and ever near to lend you aid, bless you. Amen.

Peter Umland - Church of Our Lord

A Lifestyle of Goodness

THE HOLY SPIRIT: Goodness

Verse of the Day: For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. - Romans 14:17 (NLT)

Lord, we are grateful that You not only give us the gift of Your Holy Spirit but that Your Word also tells us in Galatians 5:22 what the fruit of the Spirit looks like when lived out. Today, we pray for the fruit of goodness to be shed abroad in our communities. Jesus challenge us in this scripture by the Greek word for goodness “agathosune” which means not only to have an attitude or a motivation to act or be good but to actually lead a lifestyle characterized by virtue and actual acts of helpfulness. Lord, we pray that we will live a lifestyle of Your “agathosune”. 

May we be a visible display of this aspect of Your Holy Spirit to our neighbors and those we come into contact with so that they clearly see this goodness of Yours in us and get to know You more. We pray also that as they embrace Your goodness that their lives will be transformed. Give us strategies on where and how to be helpful and as we all work together to produce the fruit of goodness may it be the salve to all of our relationships and may it come to define our communities and city.

Dick Knight - Renaissance International Ministries

God is Kind To Me

THE HOLY SPIRIT: Kindness

Verse of the Day: Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you – Colossians 3:12,13 (NIV)

Gracious God who lives and loves through each one
Open our hearts to be touched by Your Word and Truth
Do Your Will to show others Your love and compassion

Kindness is Your Spirit, giving and forgiving are Your attributes
In the shadow of Your wings, we take refuge, covered by Your greatness and goodness
Never shall we forget Your mercy and grace
Do we deserve Your loving-kindness, to be saved from the depth of the pit?

To You, we bear the image of Your Son, the Holy Spirit lives in us
Only You, see our potential to make us the channel of Your blessings

Merciful One, You are urging us to reach out, to go into communities, invite the broken-hearted, the oppressed, the helpless, the hopeless, the weak and sick to come to Your Table, for You have room for Your children
Earnestly we pray, O LORD, help us to be always kind in hearts and deeds, in Jesus' precious name, Amen.
(Acronym in prayer God, Kind To Me)

Gwendolyn Lam - Mount Edwards Court

His Patience was Perfect!

THE HOLY SPIRIT: Patience

Verse of the Day: Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, – 1 Peter 1:8

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. – James 1:2-4

I use to pray for patience, only to find out that my trials increased. Now I pray for grace to get me through each trial. Sometimes it seems like whenever a trial is over, another one surfaces. Through this process I have learned the gift of patience with peace. Patience is not only a gift of the Holy Spirit but also a teacher that can guide us through life. 

I’m always amazed at how Jesus made it to the cross - His patience was perfect! Not lacking anything! Thank God for the gift of patience! I pray the blessing of FAITH for my neighbours! Father I ask that they will see Jesus, and love him; and even though they may not see him now, that they will believe in him and be filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy and receive the gift of your faith - the gift of salvation for their soul. May the grace you have given be poured out upon my neighbors.

Cliff Power - Extreme Outreach Ministry