“A Lifestyle of Prayer”

A Time of Suffering!

“Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.”  
1 Peter 4:12-13 (NIV)

This week’s prayer emphasis will be about our identification with the suffering of Christ.  Jesus stated that we would have trouble in this world but we should not be overwhelmed, rather we should take heart, because He has overcome the world.  As we consider the death of Jesus on the cross, we understand that His time to die was actually good news for all who sin . . . which is everyone.  When Christ calls all who would follow Him to take up our cross daily, He does it with an awareness that we must die to self in order to be raised to new life.  In our prayer time we will seek to learn how to rejoice in the suffering we experience because of our relationship with Christ.  As you pray this week, talk to God not only about your suffering but about how you can help and encourage others who suffer.  Pray that you would experience the goodness of God in the midst of your suffering.  Pray the glory of God is revealed in you as you die to self and live for Christ.

“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”
Ephesians 6:18 (NIV) 

Please pray each day for God to help you know the value of joining in His suffering.

Sunday: Pray for your church staff, the preaching and teaching that takes place, the church leadership, the volunteers that are helping in so many areas, the spiritual and financial health of the congregation, and the work of the missions ministry of the church.  Pray for me (Tom Lemler) and the work of Impact Prayer Ministry.

Monday: Worthy to Suffer.  Pray that you would not be ashamed of living with the name “Christian”.  Pray that your relationship with Jesus will always be worth more to you than avoiding suffering.  Pray for a growing recognition of the honor it is to be identified with Christ.  “The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.”  Acts 5:41 (NIV)

Tuesday: Rejoice in Suffering.  Pray that you would rejoice as you trust God to produce good things in you through your suffering.  Pray that you would persevere when you suffer for doing right.  Pray that your identification with Jesus would lead you to a steadfast endurance.  “Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance.”  Romans 5:3 (NIV)

Wednesday: Share in Suffering.  Pray that your suffering for the sake of Christ would help you realize that you will also share in His glory.  Pray that you would always desire an inheritance with Christ more than the rewards of this world.  “Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”  Romans 8:17 (NIV)

Thursday: Comforted in Suffering.  Pray that you would be comforted in your suffering and that you would be a comfort to others in their suffering.  Pray that you would be filled with, and share, a great hope as you know the comfort of God which surpasses your suffering.  “And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.”  2 Corinthians 1:7 (NIV)

Friday: Fellowship in Suffering.  Pray that you would see suffering for the sake of Christ as a fellowship with Him in His sufferings on your behalf.  Pray that you would know Christ in a way that fills you with a confidence in joining His resurrection.  “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.”  Philippians 3:10-11 (NIV)

Saturday:  Obedience in Suffering.  Pray that you would follow the example of Jesus and learn obedience to God through the suffering that you experience.  Pray that your time in God’s Word would help you learn the lessons which suffering produces.  Pray for the humility to be obedient even in suffering.  “Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered.”  Hebrews 5:8 (NIV)