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Pray for the World

Pray for Christians around the world, particularly those persecuted or harassed.

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Reflections

The Pieces of My Life

Part 4

We welcomed the New Year by considering Eugene Peterson’s version of Psalm 5:3:

“Every morning you'll hear me at it again. Every morning I lay out the pieces of my life on your altar and watch for fire to descend” (The Message).

The picture of an Old Testament priest offering daily sacrifices on the altar provides a challenging model for us. For January, let’s talk about the pieces of our lives on which we invite God’s blessing daily in the coming year.

“What the World Needs is Jesus…”

The first chorus I learned in my childhood days of church-going was “What the world needs is Jesus, just a glimpse of Him.” That was seven decades ago, but the truth of the chorus rings in my ears as I look at the chaotic world around me. This lost world is the final piece of my life I bring daily to the altar of the Lord.

Just as we are intricate parts of a local community, we also are inseparably connected to the entire world we live in. The “far away places with strange-sounding names” I learned about in geography have been brought very near by the wonders of modern technology. Decisions made in major capitals of the world affect Smalltown, USA.

Sometimes when we see the magnitude of problems around our world, we feel insignificant and helpless. Our tendency is to ignore the problems and get on with the business of living our personal lives. However, as Christians we have a responsibility to our world, particularly for its spiritual needs.

Our first responsibility, of course, is to share the gospel. Jesus commissioned us to carry the gospel to the ends of the earth. Our participation in our church’s world missions program gives us opportunity to fulfill our personal part of that commission.

This is where prayer comes in. Think of all the things the New Testament tells us to pray for: “workers in the harvest,” “kings and all in authority,” and the “peace of Jerusalem”—to name a few. Our prayers for the world include our local, state and national leaders, both political and religious. We pray for our missionary friends, that the Lord will strengthen their hands.

Jesus taught us to pray for those who persecute us. While we may not be suffering persecution personally, many Christians suffer intense persecution worldwide. We pray for them and for their persecutors.

We pray for spiritual renewal throughout our world, that many people will come to Christ. The needs of the world are overwhelming in one sense, but the bottom line is that the world needs Jesus—just like the chorus from my childhood said. Our prayers help make the truth of that chorus a reality.

Points to Ponder:

Have you heard the expression—life is hard by the yard, but it’s a cinch by the inch?

Remembering that expression might help us in our prayer lives.

When we think of the overwhelming needs before us—our own personal needs, those of our family and friends, our communities and our world—we may be overwhelmed. But we lay the needs upon the altar piece by piece—inch by inch! And the God who answers by fire is big enough to meet all our needs. Praise His Name!

PEGGY MUSGROVE is a licensed Assemblies of God minister. She is also a speaker, freelance writer, author and prayer group leader. Her latest book, Musings of a Maraschino Cherry was released in 2004.. You can visit her at www.musgroveville.com.

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