21 Days Around the Word

"The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.”

- James 5:16-18

With the start of 2024, one of the most important ways for us to embrace God’s NEW AND BEST is to engage the devotion of PRAYER.  It is so much more than a command from Heaven or a religious observation that takes place at church.  Prayer is personally available so we can engage in an intimate relationship with Father God.  This precious way we communicate with the Lord allows us to cry out in praise, confession, awe, and need.  In Psalm 40:1 David declares, “I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry.”

This week our church has entered and joined with our Foursquare family in 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting (January 8-28).  In these 21 Days we want to personally surrender to the Lord; we want to set our attention on the Scriptures; we want to support one another through prayer and care; and we want to stand in agreement for powerful life to happen in our homes, city, nation and world. As believers we know the danger of putting God “in a box”, but there is also the damage in not believing for Him to do BIG THINGS in our lives and world! 1 John 5:14-15 tells us, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him.”

Here are ways to engage these special days at the start of the year:

1.    Visit Foursquare Website (foursquare.org/events/21-days-of-prayer) to download resources, prayer guide, and receive daily emails.

2.    Join others from our church for our NEW Monday Noon Prayer Meeting. Visit restorationchurch.to/monday-prayer to get the Zoom link.

3.    Find times throughout each day to stop and pray.

4.    Consider when and what to Fast (abstain from).  It could be a type of food, a meal a day, an entire day without food.  If you are unable to do food, you could limit or take a break from other things such as screentime or social media.

It is good to seek the Lord and what we gain will be great from this time of faith, focus, and forsaking!