back to indexBerean Community Church Praise and Prayer Night July 30, 2021
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We're going to get started with our praise and prayer 00:11:47.760 |
And before we begin, and as people are still coming in, 00:11:52.760 |
I want us to just kind of reflect on this question. 00:12:02.760 |
that you have to give to the Lord before you guys can go 00:12:08.760 |
Because I know there is time for fellowship this evening. 00:12:13.760 |
Or are you here because you have had a rough week, 00:12:17.760 |
things have happened, and you want to draw near to the Lord? 00:12:21.760 |
Or are you here just because this is something 00:12:40.760 |
And so I want to give you about 30 seconds just 00:13:26.760 |
Father, we are here seeking to draw near and to meet you. 00:13:33.320 |
We want to give you worship and sing praise to your name 00:13:42.600 |
And help the truths that we sing and the prayers that we pray 00:13:51.280 |
be sincere and help us to mean the words that we lift up. 00:13:56.960 |
Father, if our hearts have been far from you, 00:14:06.840 |
and rekindle the flame that is in our hearts. 00:14:21.400 |
are a good, good father that draws near to his people 00:14:34.840 |
Lord, would you help us not to do it just out 00:14:50.760 |
I'm going to read a psalm, Psalm 57, 7 through 11. 00:15:14.040 |
I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples. 00:15:17.480 |
I will sing praises to you among the nations. 00:15:21.240 |
For your lovingkindness is great to the heavens 00:15:45.960 |
tells us that it was written when David was in a cave. 00:15:53.840 |
And he believes wholeheartedly that God is sovereign 00:15:56.800 |
and that God is good, no matter what the circumstances 00:16:09.600 |
has ordained some very harrowing times for the king. 00:16:13.600 |
And regardless of the situation that he is in, 00:16:25.520 |
He's committed to exalting the Lord God Almighty. 00:16:28.200 |
And you see that as you read through Psalm 57. 00:16:46.200 |
that we're approaching a thrice holy God, creator 00:16:49.320 |
of the universe, who is worthy to be praised. 00:16:53.520 |
But at the same time, we're approaching our Father. 00:16:57.840 |
And we come to the throne of grace with boldness, right? 00:17:02.920 |
But I hope that tonight, as we hear the word of God, 00:17:19.720 |
And we are here to be reminded of our purpose. 00:17:22.560 |
And we are here to just give glory to the Lord, 00:17:32.520 |
And I'm going to read a Jonathan Edwards quote for you. 00:17:44.880 |
and that I have a passion for my joy in that glory, 00:17:58.200 |
delights the heart of God is what truly brings us to life. 00:18:03.600 |
So I'm going to invite you guys to stand with me. 00:18:06.080 |
And we're going to start with a few songs of praise. 00:18:23.240 |
Heard thou, O Lord, God high above all the earth. 00:18:50.800 |
Heard thou, O Lord, God high above all the earth. 00:20:09.120 |
Heard thou, O Lord, God high above all the earth. 00:20:35.600 |
Heard thou, O Lord, God high above all the earth. 00:23:22.960 |
And on his rise to the high, trembles at his voice. 00:24:27.400 |
The Father, Spirit, Son, the Lion and the Lamb. 00:29:02.880 |
And all that is within me, bless his holy name. 00:31:14.880 |
There is nothing good in us outside of Christ 00:36:05.380 |
Alright, I invite you guys all to take a seat. 00:36:35.380 |
and just in terms of how we've been doing spiritually. 00:36:39.380 |
So, the first topic, the first item of prayer, 00:36:51.380 |
just the things that have been distracting you, 00:36:53.380 |
the things that have been hindering your worship. 00:36:55.380 |
And secondly, we're going to be praying a prayer of repentance 00:37:01.380 |
And then, if you can pray for the leaders of the church 00:37:05.380 |
that we will not turn from the left or to the right from the word, 00:37:20.380 |
And then, just pray that the Lord will raise up 00:37:24.380 |
more biblically literate teachers and leaders in our church. 00:37:28.380 |
Our church keeps growing, and we need servants. 00:37:33.380 |
But more than that, we need people who are just faithful 00:37:47.380 |
also take time to pray for your home group leader. 00:37:55.380 |
In the Sunday school, all the kids also do Titus. 00:37:59.380 |
And so, please pray that God would really teach our children 00:38:09.380 |
And so, the Sunday school teachers do play a big role in this. 00:38:13.380 |
And so, I'm going to give you guys about 10 minutes 00:38:27.380 |
and reflect on just the goodness of our Lord. 00:38:34.380 |
I'll tap the mic or something that Pastor Peter usually does. 00:52:32.220 |
>> And then we're going to take another few minutes just to pray 00:52:40.220 |
The first one, in about two weeks' time, we're going to be up 00:52:48.220 |
Pray for God to minister powerfully through Dr. John 00:52:52.220 |
Street and that in the areas of just personal and just whatever 00:52:58.240 |
reconciliation entails that we would grow in those areas. 00:53:05.240 |
And also, we're going to take some time to pray for just the 00:53:08.240 |
people in our lives who are sick, recently lost loved ones. 00:53:15.260 |
This is just for you guys to be mindful of and pray for. 00:53:20.260 |
Victor Wang's father just passed away about like 20 hours ago. 00:53:29.260 |
And we do have a lot of different church people with 00:53:37.280 |
We do have a lot of people expecting and in the process of 00:53:45.280 |
So, please pray that God will help them to become spiritually 00:53:49.280 |
healthy parents, just spiritually vibrant parents and 00:53:54.280 |
that we as a community would surround these parents and 00:53:57.280 |
really just bless and pray over their children. 00:54:01.300 |
At the same time, we do have a lot of couples in our church 00:54:06.300 |
who are waiting for babies and the Lord hasn't said yet or said 00:54:15.300 |
That one, in his time that he would provide the gift of 00:54:19.300 |
children and two, that while they wait, they would maximize 00:54:22.300 |
their time in giving God glory in this season of life. 00:54:27.300 |
And also, just there are I'm sure people in your lives around 00:54:32.300 |
you and even in our church who are spiritually drifting, who 00:54:36.300 |
have been entangled, who are struggling and who personally 00:54:43.300 |
And there are people who pretty much are on their way to turning 00:54:52.300 |
And that should keep you guys very engaged for the next 10 00:54:58.300 |
Just praying for all the different needs of our church 00:55:02.300 |
So, we're going to take another 10 minutes just to lift up these 01:04:18.860 |
I'm going to read Ephesians chapter 6, verses 10 to 13, 01:04:27.860 |
"Finally be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. 01:04:32.860 |
Put on the full armor of God so that you will be able to stand 01:04:39.860 |
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, 01:04:50.860 |
against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. 01:04:54.860 |
Therefore take up the full armor of God so that you will be able 01:04:59.860 |
to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, 01:05:07.860 |
And it goes on in verse 18, "With all prayer and petition, 01:05:11.860 |
pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, 01:05:17.860 |
be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for 01:05:23.860 |
So as you guys know, the theme for this year is "Watch and Pray." 01:05:27.860 |
And if you guys are finding it difficult to pray, 01:05:30.860 |
part of that is it may be very well connected to your 01:05:36.860 |
Because as we discover that we're not being watchful, 01:05:39.860 |
we're not being sober, and we are filling our hearts and our 01:05:44.860 |
it really is difficult to just pray with passion and with fervor. 01:05:50.860 |
And here, the reminder is that our struggle is not against flesh 01:06:00.860 |
And we do need to come together to pray because this is -- we 01:06:05.860 |
cannot build our church by human effort or by leaning on just the 01:06:12.860 |
This is a church that is only built up by the Spirit of the Lord. 01:06:27.860 |
And I'm going to read just one more passage for you, 01:06:33.860 |
And this is for those of us who may be feeling discouraged. 01:06:41.860 |
And there are things that are going on in my life that haven't 01:06:45.860 |
been fully dealt with, and I feel like I'm not worthy to be here. 01:06:54.860 |
It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance that 01:07:00.860 |
Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, 01:07:06.860 |
And as I mentioned before, there's absolutely nothing good 01:07:13.860 |
And praise God that He saved us while we were still wretches. 01:07:16.860 |
And praise God that our salvation was not earned, 01:07:24.860 |
my sinful soul is counted free, for God the just is satisfied to 01:07:32.860 |
And before we go into our third time of prayer, 01:07:36.860 |
I want us to sing this just to be reminded of our identity in Christ. 01:10:53.860 |
- And we're gonna go into our third little time of praying 01:11:19.860 |
The first one is we do have a cafe night that's gonna be held 01:11:24.860 |
This is not an invitation for you to come to support it. 01:11:27.860 |
It's just something that we would like you to pray over, 01:11:34.860 |
and so that the people who are bringing the nonbelieving 01:11:37.860 |
friends will hear the gospel, and seeds will be planted 01:11:56.860 |
like, "I gotta perform well to not hinder the evening," 01:12:10.860 |
So let's pray for them and that God would use them 01:12:17.860 |
We're also gonna be praying for our India pastors, 01:12:20.860 |
and that God would fill them with overflowing joy, 01:12:23.860 |
with boldness, and with a passion for preaching. 01:12:27.860 |
If you guys have been there, my encouragement is pray 01:12:33.860 |
Pray that just the word will be preached accurately and clearly, 01:12:45.860 |
and pray for spiritual leaders to be raised up, 01:12:53.860 |
Pray for our church to be a healthy community 01:12:56.860 |
that equips and sends out workers into the harvest fields 01:13:09.860 |
Let's pray that as we are growing in the Lord, 01:13:11.860 |
as we are growing in skill to handling His word, 01:13:16.860 |
that people will go out really to proclaim His word 01:13:21.860 |
to our Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. 01:13:24.860 |
So let's pray that we are a missionary-raising church. 01:26:20.960 |
We're gonna break up into groups of three or four. 01:26:32.540 |
And as you are breaking up into groups of three and four, 01:26:35.340 |
and I know you probably have a bunch of things 01:26:39.220 |
There are things that you hope that happens in your life, 01:26:44.680 |
attitudes you want changed in different circumstances 01:26:50.300 |
But the thing that I would like us to share with one another 01:26:54.060 |
is in what areas of my life do I need help in surrendering to 01:27:00.060 |
'Cause our struggle is not against flesh and blood. 01:27:01.840 |
It is not our effort that attains spiritual maturity. 01:27:16.180 |
Whatever, if you have time to squeeze in other prayer 01:27:19.860 |
requests by all means, whatever's pressing by all means. 01:27:23.060 |
But really what I would want us to just pray over 01:27:33.320 |
And then after about 10 minutes, I'll have you all stand 01:28:20.520 |
I think all the lessons I learned, a lot of that feedback in the business of the industry, 01:28:42.680 |
and the retreat, all put together, it sacked me with a lot of energy. 01:28:50.360 |
I went to a summer retreat, because I'm the speaker for the kids, and I'm running it. 01:29:59.120 |
I was thinking, my brain's kind of all scattered, 01:30:11.800 |
And I've been waking up early, but my prayer and devotion 01:30:20.760 |
but it hasn't been focused the way I want it to. 01:30:25.000 |
So it's been kind of like this hills and valleys of priorities 01:31:11.520 |
the rest of my life and the good, strengthening years 01:31:16.480 |
that my body's still functioning well, and to do it well. 01:31:31.280 |
I don't want to say worry, but am I wasting my life, 01:31:42.320 |
And my kids-- and part of that umbrella is my kids' salvation. 01:31:48.720 |
I still can say he's probably not a Christian. 01:31:58.320 |
But at least for the most part, they're open and saying, no, 01:37:01.440 |
All right, if I can have you just come back to your seats 01:37:11.160 |
And we're going to close with just a final reading 01:37:55.040 |
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer 01:38:06.160 |
And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, 01:38:09.080 |
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 01:38:13.200 |
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, 01:38:17.680 |
whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, 01:38:21.920 |
whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence 01:38:26.080 |
and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. 01:38:31.880 |
The things that you've learned and received and heard 01:38:49.200 |
It's the condition and an attitude of the heart 01:38:51.560 |
that understands that God, when he's in his rightful place, 01:38:59.680 |
And this is a song that's actually kind of hard to end. 01:39:09.520 |
And so just I hope that as we sing this song with hearts 01:39:14.120 |
of celebration, it might end kind of awkwardly. 01:39:18.040 |
And if that's the case, just shout hallelujah. 01:39:30.240 |
When I think about the Lord, how he saved me, how he raised me, 01:39:49.160 |
When I think about the Lord, how he picked me up, 01:39:56.160 |
turned me around, and he set my feet on solid ground. 01:40:10.640 |
Thank you, Jesus, for you're worthy of all the glory, 01:40:23.120 |
When I think about the Lord, when I think about the Lord, 01:40:42.560 |
When I think about the Lord, how he picked me up, 01:40:50.040 |
turned me around, how he set my feet on solid ground. 01:41:04.040 |
Thank you, Jesus, Lord, you're worthy of all the glory, 01:41:22.000 |
Thank you, Jesus, Lord, you're worthy of all the glory, 01:41:40.480 |
Thank you, Jesus, Lord, you're worthy of all the glory, 01:42:02.920 |
Thank you, Jesus, Lord, you're worthy of all the glory, 01:42:24.880 |
God, we thank you for the fellowship we have in Christ. 01:42:31.880 |
We thank you for bringing your church together to pray in one 01:42:35.280 |
voice, to lift up our hearts together, and beseech you, 01:42:39.320 |
Lord God, for many various things going on in our own 01:42:46.240 |
Lord, help us to see with your eyes what you see. 01:42:54.680 |
Help us, Lord God, to have your heart and your compassion. 01:43:03.000 |
Help us to watch our own lives, that we can be ready and 01:43:15.400 |
So we ask, Lord God, that you continue to build this church, 01:43:18.880 |
build up each and every believer in this room. 01:43:22.840 |
Help us to trust you fully, that our hearts may love you, 01:43:27.720 |
Lord God, and honor you with our lips, with our lives, that 01:43:33.280 |
we represent you to this world, and that you may ultimately be 01:43:37.280 |
pleased with what we give and what we sacrifice. 01:43:43.120 |
We ask that you continue, Lord God, to strengthen and 01:43:47.280 |
establish your church by your ways and your power. 01:43:51.040 |
So we entrust our lives to you at this time to you.