Aug 29 – The focus of the first three of this week’s prayers, till the end of August, is preparing for September’s month of prayer and fasting, the prayers are developed from Sunday morning’s sermon. Throughout September the prayers are taken from our month of prayer booklet. The first six days of prayer below are written by Pastor Leslie.

Father, thank You that at the heart of Fasting is a partnership with Your Spirit – we pray that He will be our Spiritual Director in this. Holy Spirit You are not dictatorial, nor oblivious to the challenges we face. You are wonderfully Creative, and can guide us in how to fast aright.

We pray for those who have never fasted before – may You speak about how best to partner with You in this month of prayer. We also pray for those health issues which prevent fasting – guide them about how abstinence can form the basis of their praying this month. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Aug 30 – 2 Corinthians 7:1, TPT says this, ‘Beloved ones, with promises like these, and because of our deepest respect and worship of God, we must remove everything from our lives that contaminates body and spirit, and continue to complete the development of holiness within us.’

Father, how amazing that the promises were that You would make Your home among us, by the Spirit, and we would be Your sons and daughters, if we would separate ourselves from the world’s morals, philosophies and ways of living and building relationships (2 Corinthians 6:14-18).

Thank You for the power in abstinence helping us remove those things from our lives which contaminate body and spirit, and hinder the development of holiness in us. Guide is in how to apply the principle of abstinence in developing holiness as we fellowship with You – so You can share Your holiness with us; living in Your presence, so we can become godlier – living righteously in accordance to Your nature and character, and increase the level of spiritual power in our lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Aug 31 – Father, we pray that as we fast, usually from food or certain types of liquids – may it create a hunger within which reminds us of our absolute need to have Jesus as the centre of our lives, and as a way of disciplining our bodies while earnestly seeking You in prayer.

Thank You that fasting is linked to prayer, and to praise, thanksgiving, intercession and spiritual warfare, and to deep repentance – may it lead to a new spiritual depth in our lives, and to see Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in many wonderful ways in and through Telford Elim, in person and online.

Thank You that abstinence is linked to pursuing godliness, holiness and Your fullness in our lives. We pray that this will be the case for many in September.

Teach us further about how fasting and abstinence are important as we Live by faith leaning into Christ, drawing upon the Spirit’s power, and seeking to worship and serve as He calls us to do. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Sept 1 – Father, as we focus on Kingdom Building in this month of prayer for the church, we thank You that as Your Kingdom comes, it transforms our lives, families and communities in Christ-honouring ways. Our vision is for Christ-honouring witness, outreach and Community Engagement – Kingdom building in Telford and Shropshire, and beyond.

Lord, we would to preach the life-changing Gospel, minister to the whole person, and see

godly transformation take place:

Head – our thinking renewed by Your word, Spirit and our fellowship together. Godly thinking leads to healthy, Christ-honouring living.

Heart – spiritual formation deep within us changing us as Christ is formed in us, not just behaviour modification on a surface level, but creating worshippers in Spirit and truth.

Hands – practical, loving worship, service, witness, fellowship and giving as we step out following Jesus in every area of our lives.

Health – ministering wholeness to all who come, and to our communities as Your Spirit and word are at work among us as we also go out in response to Your Great Commission. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Sept 2 – Serve Team – Father, at the heart of the concept for our Serve Team – is a Kingdom building, disciple-making focus. We pray for Your grace, insight and love, for the power of the Spirit, His anointing, and gifting, and for ongoing character development in order to make many disciples in Telford Elim.

We don’t want a church where the people serve the church. We want one that equips the people to serve You, Your mission and call, and Your purposes.

We want to create an accountability culture which enables people to grow in faith, deepen their spirituality as they serve together with their brothers and sisters in Your work, and step out into Your service in every area of their lives. Mutually accountable and committed in our respective roles.

May we be a church renowned for being really good at Making Disciples, followers of Christ who themselves go on to make many Disciples of all ages from every background and culture as they serve You and Your Kingdom. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Sept 3 – Serve Team – Father, we pray for each one who is a member of our Serve Team. Our desire, as a church, is that we will equip them to serve well in Christ-honouring ways, and become disciple makers themselves – we ask for great success in this whole area.

Father, thank You for the 3 Mission Fields You have placed us in:

1. Church – our spiritual home, place of equipping, fellowship centre with other believers.

2. Our own setting including home, family, work, studies etc.

3. In the community – engaging and seeking to partner with others in reaching the lost with the Gospel; seeking to make a Christ-honouring contribution to society.

We pray for a Serve Team who will help deliver the Kingdom building vision in these three mission fields. As such we ask for guidance as the Serve Team serve in the following three ministry areas in our church:

1. Hospitality – all about engaging with people and making their experience in our church an amazing one.

2. Cleaning, Estates and Maintenance – all about ensuring that our building and the premises we use to deliver ministry are clean, fit for purpose, and available for ministry at all times.

3. Missions – Home and Elim Missions reaching out with the Gospel, reaching the unreached, preaching the Gospel, and teaching the untaught. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Sept 4 – Kids Extravaganza by Felcia Khetia – Prayers for the children: Heavenly Father, we thank and praise You for the children’s ministry, Kids Extravaganza. We bring before You the children who attend the class in person, and those who watch online. Bless each one of them in a mighty way, protect and keep them healthy. Watch over these precious children and keep them safe.

We pray, Lord, that as we sow the seed of Your word, it will dwell in them, grow and will reap a big harvest of salvation, dedicating their lives to You, Lord Jesus. You have given each one of them a gift, teach them to use those gifts for Your glory.

Keep them away from bad advice and friends who could lead them away from You. May they always stay close to You, and seek Your guidance and knowledge. Bless them with wisdom and understanding so that they can flourish in their lives.

Help them to make right decisions in life; and when they face challenges, we pray, Lord, that You will lead, guide and comfort them. May they learn to hear Your voice, and follow the example You have set before them. In Jesus’ name. Amen