Summer Prayer Challenge
Spring is technically here, and summer is right around the corner.
It’s one of my favorite times of year for a few reasons. People are outside more! You will actually see your neighbors. That means there are fresh opportunities to pray, engage with, and love them. I also love seeing new life coming out of the long, cold winter as flowers and plants bud and grow. And Spring will give way to summer with longer days outside and more interaction with the people around us. The warmth, the people, the new life always seems to invigorate my prayer life as I go for runs, take my kids to parks, and spend time outside with family and friends. So I want to encourage you to simply listen to these verses in Colossians and do them in a two-fold way. We’ll call this our South Cities Summer Prayer Challenge.
Find 30 minutes this week to sit down with a pen/paper/phone/etc. to write down a list of things you want to see change in your heart, in your life, in your family, and for those around you in the next 4–6 months. I want to encourage you to ask big prayers. Ask God to help you “seek the things above where Christ is” (Colossians 3:1), put to death what is not in line with Christ (Colossians 3:5), and put on what would honor him more (Colossians 3:12). Maybe there are adjustments in how you steward your time and resources. Maybe there are sin patterns you want to see broken. Maybe there’s deeper fellowship with Jesus you want to experience. Maybe there’s reconciliation you want to happen. Wherever the biggest pain points in your heart and life are––write them down and bring them to God. Then, over the next 4–6 months do two things:
Continue steadfastly in prayer. Just keep praying for them.
Be watchful as you pray. Watch for God to work new life in your heart by his Spirit. Watch for new things to bloom. And as you see them, write them down.
What might God do in us and through us if we prayed big prayers steadfastly and watched for God to work over the summer months?
Pray that God would open the door for the people of South Cities Church to tell others about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Go for prayer walks through your neighborhoods. Strike up conversations at those outdoor sporting events. Invite your neighbors over for hot dogs on the grill. And while you do all of these things, pray for God to open doors for the gospel to go out through you. Pray for God to open doors for your blood-bought family to share the hope that we have in Jesus this summer in whatever neighborhoods, workplaces, sporting events, or outdoor activities God places us in.
What might God do if our whole church prayed for open gospel doors over the summer months?
Lastly, as you pray, find someone else to share your prayer requests with. Share with your spouse, your small group, or a friend about the burdens you have and ask them to join you in prayer for your own soul, your family, and your gospel witness. Becoming a praying people starts with simple steps of faithfulness. Let’s pray steadfastly along these two lines this summer and ask God to work in us and through us.
So, grab a notebook and write down some big prayers. Go for a walk and begin praying for your neighborhood. And this Fall, when I get back from sabbatical, I’ll ask some of you to share how you saw God move in you and through you this summer. I’ll do the same thing.
—Pastor Dave
