God Heard Their Prayers

The priests and the Levites asked the Lord's blessing on the people. In his home in heaven God heard their prayers and accepted them. (2 Chronicles 30:27 NLT)

Day 31 of 31 days of prayer

• Thank you for praying for Emmanuel College during this special New Year's emphasis. 

Today's meditation:

• It is enough that God hears our prayers, but it is especially wonderful that he accepts and answers our prayers as well.

Pray Today:

• For the Emmanuel family to focus on prayer in 2017 as never before, for faith to be strong, for love and mercy to prevail.
• For the prayers offered during these last 31 days to be accepted and answered by the Lord, for patience to wait  upon the Lord and his timing, for fear to be banished, for courage to rise.
• For God's blessing and favor to rest upon Emmanuel College in 2017, for his purposes to be accomplished, for his work and will to be done.

Pray First in every circumstance, challenge, and choice. Always Pray First!

Pray For Me

And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God's mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike. (Ephesians 6:19 NLT)

Day 30 of 31 days of prayer

Today's meditation:

• God's plan can be mysterious and counter intuitive at times, but regardless, we should move forward in confident faith in the Lord and his plan.

Pray Today:

• For me as president of Emmanuel College to lead with compassion, to have a servant's heart, to have a fierce resolve to defend and advance the mission of the College.
• For me to know God's heart, to seek and find wisdom, to speak the right words, to take bold action.
• For me to cast God's vision for the College, to be spiritually enabled, to be full of the Holy Spirit, to be strengthened mentally, emotionally, and physically.

Pray First in every circumstance, challenge, and choice. Always Pray First!

Shout Louder

They told him that Jesus the Nazarene was going by. So he began shouting, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"  
"Be quiet!" the people in front yelled at him.
But he only shouted louder, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" (Luke 18:37-39 NLT)

Day 29 of 31 days of prayer

Today's meditation:

• The people told the blind man that Jesus from Nazareth was passing by, but he called out for Jesus, the Son of David, not the son of Nazareth.Who are we calling out to today? Jesus, an ancient, historical figure or Jesus, the Son of God, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Pray Today:

• For persistent prayers to come forth from God's people for Emmanuel College, and when the world says, "Be quiet", we shout all the louder, "Jesus, have mercy on us!"
• For streams of prayer rising continuously to God from this prayer blog, not just once per day, but throughout each day, as people intercede on our behalf for the petitions listed.
• For our prayer partners to re-visit many of the petitions in past weeks and months that still need prayer (students, staff, faculty, EC Serve, enrollment, elimination of the debt, to name a few) and vigorously keep them before the Lord.

Pray First in every circumstance, challenge, and choice. Always Pray First!

Many People Praying

Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen." When this dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. (Acts 12:11-12 NIV)

Day 28 of 31 days of prayer

Today's one-sentence meditation:

• When people pray, if evil is present evil is thwarted, if angels are needed angels show up, and if rescue is necessary rescue happens.

Pray Today:

• For the thousands of youth gathered in Gatlinburg, Tennessee at Accelerant which is happening now and finishes on Sunday, for many to receive Christ, for many to be inspired and encouraged to live for Christ, for many to commit to serve the Lord.
• For our admissions team to be super successful in connecting with these youth, for them to guide them and advise them, for them to say the right words, not just about Emmanuel, but about living a life in Christ.
• For many of these youth from across the IPHC and from other churches to be inspired and called to attend Emmanuel, some next fall, others in the years to come, but coming by the thousands to learn and to live in ways that fulfill their potential and find their destiny in Jesus.

Pray First in every circumstance, challenge, and choice. Always Pray First!

Your Father Knows

When you pray, don't babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. Don't be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him! (Matthew 6:7-8 NLT)

Day 27 of 31 days of prayer

Today's one-sentence meditation:

• Pray specific prayers for what we think we need, and even if we ask inappropriately, the Father will give us what we actually need because he knows the difference between needs and wants.

Pray Today:

• For more than 1000 students to be enrolled at Emmanuel College in the fall 2017, just 80 more students than last fall, for the needs of these students to be met on our campus, for the College's needs to be met as we meet theirs.
• For students who have never heard of Emmanuel to find us through alumni, friends, acquaintances, Internet searches, and most importantly, promptings of the Holy Spirit.
• For students who are familiar with Emmanuel, and for those who know very little about us, to prayerfully consider enrolling, to decide to visit campus, to engage with our admissions staff, to talk to our students, staff and faculty, to obey God in this life-changing decision.

Pray First in every circumstance, challenge, and choice. Always Pray First!

After this Prayer

"Stretch out your hand with healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus." After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:30-31 NLT)

Day 26 of 31 days of prayer

Today's one-sentence meditation:

• Every believer is called to serve, following the example of Jesus, using our hands to help, our words to enlighten, our actions to bring hope, and our prayers to change the world.

Continue to Pray Today:

• For the ministry of EC Serve to be the heartbeat of the Emmanuel College campus, for there to be a culture of service pervading our campus as we seek to live out the lessons of Jesus.
• For EC Serve to be characterized by power, wonder, and boldness, shaking us loose from our lethargy and comfort, compelling us to follow the words of Jesus - seek, save, wash feet, feed, clothe, visit, not to be served but to serve.
• For EC Serve to be a magnet, drawing students from across our nation who have a heart to serve, who enroll in record numbers to reach their educational goals and service objectives, who are resolute in following Jesus with heart and action.

Pray First in every circumstance, challenge, and choice. Always Pray First!

Voices Together in Prayer

When they heard the report, all the believers lifted their voices together in prayer to God: "O Sovereign Lord, Creator of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. . .hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word." (Acts 4:24, 29 NLT)

Day 25 of 31 days of prayer

Today's one-sentence meditation:

• As the concert of prayer ascends from his people, it is like the melody of a beautiful song rising to God, who hears every word, understands every emotion, sees every need, and knows best how to respond.

Pray Today:

• For the ministry of EC Serve, for the EC Serve Committee and leadership team, for those who volunteer for this vital work to be strengthened and protected, to find resources to support them in their work, to minister faithfully where God leads, to inspire and be inspired.
• For EC Serve trips planned this summer to Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Kenya, for the leaders to have wisdom, for sufficient numbers of students to go, for all involved to be able to raise their support, for fruit in the field this summer from their labors of service and love. 
• For potential EC Serve trips still in the making to Haiti and the Cherokee Nation, for our plans to align with God's plan, for leaders to emerge, for student volunteers to step up.

Pray First in every circumstance, challenge, and choice. Always Pray First!