1/8/24 Prayer

Heavenly Father,

In the stillness of your presence, we find peace. Teach us, Lord, to embrace the wisdom of Less can be more. Less busyness means more time in your presence. Less in our hands is more room for what's ahead. And so often the less stuff we own, the more we simplify our lives to make room and time for you and those around us. Help us today to remember the spiritual discipline of simplicity. You showed us in Matthew 6:33, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Help us to declutter our hearts, to focus on what truly matters. In simplicity, we seek your face, and your will, understanding that in having less and doing less, we gain more of you.

Amen.

Jenna Bush

1/7/24 Prayer

Devotion: 

   My philodendron was dying. If your plant knowledge is similar to mine, you might not know that a philodendron is a beautiful climbing indoor plant. The vines grow and luscious green leaves cascade down. I’ve had one hanging in my bathroom for four years. It was full of life, vibrant, and made me smile each time I saw it.  

   Over the last year, it began to change. My plant started showing endless naked vines and only grew more bare with each passing day. I started watering it more frequently and only made matters worse. No matter how much I watered this plant, it seemed too late and too far gone. I was sad. I had given up on my plant and even asked for a new one for Christmas.  

    One day, I figured I had nothing to lose and stepped out of my comfort zone. I grabbed the scissors and went to town trimming away until I decided I very much screwed up. I took a picture of this bare plant with almost all of its vines chopped off and was confident that was it, my plant was too far gone. I left it hanging until I was ready to pitch it.  

    After a few days, I noticed something. This seemingly helpless plant created new vines and new leaves. Then, over the last several weeks, it started to transform into a brand-new plant. This dull, dead, empty philodendron became full of life again.  

     I look at this transformed plant that has shifted my perspective. I wasn’t allowing space for it to grow. It was overcrowded, overspent, and getting worn out. After an extended period of too much on its plate, it started to give out. When I finally cut out the unnecessary and created space, it could breathe again.  

     God tells us time and again to make space for Him. Our lives are so busy and so full, yet we come up feeling too spent and too tired. We become dull, dark, and lifeless. Mathew 11:28 reminds us to come to the Lord when we are weary and He will give us rest. If we learn to let go and make space for the Lord, we may find new growth inside of us. It’s time to get your scissors and start cutting outside of your comfort zone. Watch the Lord work in your life. 

Prayer: 

Lord, please help us clear out our lives and make space for what matters most. Help us to hear you and follow you every single day. We long to live a life that is pleasing to you. Show us what to cut out so that we may open our lives to you fully. We love you, Lord, and we thank you for our many blessings. 

Amen.

Lauren Smith

1/6/24 Prayer

Heavenly Father, 

Today, we pray for a New Life family that is seeking direction from you. This family is feeling led to make a BIG change in life with a potential career change, a potential move, and possibly different educational choices for their children. This family is seeking clarity on what is being asked of them and for boldness in doing what they are called to do. They are asking for awareness of the opportunities all around them to be your hands and feet.   

Father God, today we pray for this family and any family that is seeking clarity and understanding on what the next steps may be in this thing we call life. Father, we ask that you answer prayers people have prayed and give people confidence and clarity on how to move forward with big decisions and life-changing opportunities. 

Father, we trust that anything you call us to is for our good, and your plans will prosper us and never harm us. Father, give us wisdom and discernment, and may your will be done.

Amen. 

This prayer was based on a request that was submitted.

1/5/25 Prayer

Matthew 22:36-40

“Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind’. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as Yourself’. The entire law and the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments”.

Almighty God, 

I praise you for your goodness. I praise you for the redemption of mankind through the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross. I love you and seek to follow your commandments. I do admit that I often fall short and must rely on your abundant grace and mercy. Thank you, Father, for your love for me that forgives and looks past my failures. 

Father, loving you is the easier part. But one of my failures is not always loving my neighbor; specifically, those who do not agree with my values. I do not seek to harm anyone intentionally. I do recognize there is injustice and inequity in the world. But often I feel more like David in the Psalms; calling for the punishment of those whom I consider more of an enemy than a neighbor. I am made in your image and yet I am reviled as the cause of their grievances. You as the Creator are reviled also as an unjust and unloving Father. This hurts and it angers me. 

Lord, you know that sometimes I don’t love them and don’t want to love them. Help me to love as Jesus loved. Help me to focus on the fact that Jesus died for all mankind and forgave even those who sought his death. Help me to listen and try to understand my neighbor’s viewpoint, even though I may not agree with it. Help me to be an instrument of peace, not war. Help me to understand that I cannot fully love you if I do not love my neighbor.

Thank you, Father, for your patience with me. I pray that John 13:35 will be my focus: “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

Amen

Fred Hicks

1/4/24 Prayer

Father God,
In our lives, we may experience turmoil, fear, heartache, frustration, confusion, and hopelessness. May we always call out to you, reach up to you, and know that you love us and that you are the God of HOPE. Thank you for your Word and for giving us inspiration and hope. Let us be encouraged and strengthened by

Paul’s prayer from Romans 15:13: ‘I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.’

Amen.

John Cafazza

1/3/24/ Prayer

Father God,

Thank you for who you are! Thank you for your Son! Thank you for your Holy Spirit! Thank you for placing us where we are and for the many blessings you have poured out on us! Thank you for the Hope you have placed in our hearts. Thank you for coming for us! Thank you that you will come again and make all things right! Thank you that you fully know us and love us anyway. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Help us to be self-controlled and alert to the potential idols around us for they never satisfy. They just stir up lust for more and more. We long to live in the Light of your Presence, following your lead King Jesus, and trusting in your good plan. Help us serve you with love and faithfulness. Satisfy us, Lord, for your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. Thank you that you have an eternal hold on us and that nothing surprises you. Free us from faulty images of ourselves so that we can see ourselves the way you do in Christ Jesus' love. Illuminate our hearts so that we are more aware of your presence and live fully abandoned lives for your honor and glory in the here and now and forevermore. 

Amen.

Lindy Bettis

1/2/24 Prayer

Today, we pray specifically for a family that knows New Life as a former MOPS family.  

Lord, today we lift up a special family to you. Although their names are not known, we pray for this mother and her four children who have experienced a second divorce and who are in the midst of a broken and difficult family situation where everyone is not together. Father God, we pray for unity for this family, for medications to work as prescribed, and for a broken family to be put together again. 

Father, this is a specific prayer request for one family, but we know there are other family situations amongst our congregation and others that call New Life their church. Father, we pray for a special anointing and healing in these families and for you to do what only you can do.  

In Jesus name!

This prayer was based on a request that was submitted.

1/1/24 Prayer

As we start 2024, may our hearts be filled with anticipation and delight of how we’ll see you, God Almighty, move in our lives and our church this new year. You are a good God and you love us more than we can understand. May our souls soak that in and help us God believe it with all our being. It’s so hard to believe sometimes!  But you are bigger than our unbelief and even expect it. Holy Spirit move us to believe it more and more as each day passes. Please give us the privilege and blessing of seeing your work in our lives, our church, and our community. May we attribute it to you and give you the glory!  And in that, may we grow in our faith, our trust in you, and our relationship with you—our Almighty, Ever Powerful, and Beautiful God!

Patty Covington

12/31/23 Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for meeting us exactly where we are on this New Year’s Eve. As another year draws to a close, we find ourselves in a variety of circumstances. For some of us, 2023 was a great year full of opportunities and only a few bumps in the road. For others of us, 2023 proved to be another challenging year full of obstacles that often left us feeling hopeless. However, for all of us, 2023 was another year of your faithfulness, your goodness, your grace, your mercy, your strength, your provisions, and your unconditional love. Father, forgive us for when our circumstances clouded our view and understanding of you. 

As we await the clock striking midnight, Lord, our eyes are fixed on you. Father, we need you - in the good times and the bad. We want your guidance and your wisdom. We want to walk in the confidence of being your loved child. We want to face our circumstances filled with your joy. We want to trust you with all that we have and all that we are, and we know that we can not do this alone. We need your help. 

Father, would you draw us close? Would you once again meet us where we are and help us to strengthen our relationship with you? God, would you create in us a hunger that is only satisfied by spending time talking with you? Father, would you take away the shame and embarrassment we feel because we think we don’t know how to talk to you? 

God, we know that who we are is simply defined as being created in your image. We want to live in that truth completely. The beginning of a new year often brings hope and excitement of possibility. But God, would you help us remember that we have hope and excitement of possibility every day because of who we are in you? 

For 2024, Father, we are intentionally setting our eyes on you and carving out time to meet with you through prayer. We want to be ‘pray first’ people. God, would you meet us here and lead us?  Father, we worship, praise, adore, and appreciate who you are. Thank you for being our one constant in a world full of ups and downs. Thank you for eagerly awaiting our time together. God, we are giving you permission to do what only you can do in us because our hearts, minds, and ears are open to receive what you have for us. May you receive all honor, all glory, and all praise for all the days of our lives. Lord, we love you. Make us more like you in all ways.

Amen. 

Rebecca Mabe

12/30/23 Welcome

Thank you for joining Pray First!

Beginning December 31 you will receive a prayer each day of January. These are the prayers of your New Life Family, both staff and laity, and some even associated on the fringe of New Life. Join us in praying these prayers daily. Pray individually, as a family, with friends, in Life Groups, or how you see fit. There is no right and wrong way. Some of these prayers are very personal and are prayer requests. Some are more corporate and family-oriented. Some are very grand and verbose and some are very simple and short. That is the beauty of prayer! We are looking forward to taking this journey together!

God, we seek you and invite you into this season of life and church!

Amen