Prayer Connection for September 2024:
Have a conversation with God!
This month, have a conversation with God -- let the Lord inspire and guide your prayer time through a Scripture reading. Begin by reading the passage actively and experientially: Where are you in the Bible passage? Who do you identify with? What is happening? As you reflect, calm your heart, and let the Lord speak to you. Then answer Him in your prayer.
Consider John 6:5-13:
5 When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6 He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do
7 Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!”
8 Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, 9 “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?”
10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). 11 Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.
12 When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” 13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
Where are you in this passage? Who do you identify with? What is happening?
Are you part of the crowd sitting in the grass? Are you Philip, Andrew, one of the other disciples, or the little boy? Do you see Jesus give thanks for the loaves and the fish and begin to distribute them to the people? Do you hear Jesus say, “Let nothing be wasted”? Are you one of the people who gathers all the leftover pieces, so abundant that twelve baskets were filled?
Calm your heart, let the Lord speak to you. What is God saying to you in this passage, for your life today? Trust and rest in God’s grace, and have a dialog with God about this passage: Converse with God in prayer!
A member of our congregation shared a Sunday morning prayer inspired by this Bible passage, adapted from the Church of Scotland:
Gracious God,
Creator of all we perceive,
We join today in the abundance of Your love,
in community and in the joy that comes through love;
through the nourishment of Jesus,
our shepherd and our guide,
the one who feeds us in mind and in body;
through the sustenance of the Spirit,
and the knowledge that You are with us
as we face the highs and lows,
the struggles and joys of this life.
As we worship You this morning,
fill us with Your truth,
your wisdom,
your love and your mercy.
In the name of Jesus, I pray,
Amen.