Praying for Your Congregation

As Bible teachers we're in a position to model praying effectively, particularly for the people in our care. It's important to pray for individual needs as they are apparent. But it's also important to model prayer for the larger, corporate movement of God.

Here's a prayer from John Piper for his congregation, taken from his last sermon before a scheduled sabbatical:

"Send a remarkable awakening that results in…

• hundreds of people coming to Christ,
• old animosities being removed,
• marriages being reconciled and renewed,
• wayward children coming home,
• long-standing slavery to sin being conquered,
• spiritual dullness being replaced by vibrant joy,
• weak faith being replaced by bold witness,
• disinterest in prayer being replaced by fervent intercession,
• boring Bible reading being replaced by passion for the Word,
• disinterest in global missions being replaced by energy for Christ’s name among the nations, and
• lukewarm worship being replaced by zeal for the greatness of God’s glory."
  

There's a model prayer for your congregation!