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Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God
Philippians 4: 6 ESV
Welcome to our December 2011 first Friday Call to Prayer. Our aim is to provide you with teaching that we trust will enhance your prayer experience and will be an encouragement to you. We will also provide you with praise items and prayer requests coming from within ANiC and the Anglican Communion worldwide.
We encourage you to set aside the first Friday, December 2nd, as a day of prayer and fasting for the Church in these critical days, ideally gathering with other believers in your parish or region for corporate prayer at some point in the day
Prayer Quotes
“Notice, we never pray for folks we gossip about, and we never gossip about the folk for whom we pray! For prayer is a great deterrent.”
Leonard Ravenhill (1907-1994)
“Father, Make Us One”
During the 1980’s, I was pastoring a small interdenominational fellowship that had emerged out of a retreat centre ministry with which I had been involved since 1973. The local ministerial in Milton, ON was very active and had a particular emphasis on praying for the unity of the Body of Christ. Some of us gathered weekly to pray for “the Church of Milton”, rather than the “churches” of Milton, and we all shared a vision for the importance of working together as one church for the sake of our lost city. We frequently met in the office of the local Anglican priest who graciously hosted us each week. His name was the Reverend Charlie Masters."
One night I awoke in the wee hours of the morning having had a remarkable dream. Now I know that on the day of Pentecost, Peter quoted the prophet Joel in saying that, when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon all flesh, “Your old men will dream dreams” (Acts 2: 17), but it was a rare event for this old man to have a dream that was anything other than nonsensical. However, this one spoke powerfully to me of the potential unity of the Body. In the dream, I was standing at the back row of the largest hockey arena in the city. Looking down over the capacity crowd to the floor of the arena, I realized that all the people assembled there were Christians from every church in the city. They had gathered to join in corporate worship and praise to the Living God, and were all filled with joy and expectation of what the Lord was going to do in reaching the lost in our city. In the dream, my heart was thrilled beyond description, and as I shared my dream with the other clergy, we all began to pray that the Lord would bring this scene at the arena into reality. We also knew that it was something that only He could bring about, and that if we tried in our own strength, the end result would be an abysmal failure.
The well-known words of Jesus’ High Priestly prayer in John 17 remind us of the strategic importance of the unity of the Body. Think of it! Jesus prays to the Father that we might share in very same unity that is shared between the Father and the Son!
“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.”
John 17:20-23 ESV
The purpose of such divine unity is not just that we will all get along and not squabble, but it is proclaimed by Jesus that it is evidence to the world that the Father was the One who sent Jesus. Is it any wonder that the devil has worked ferociously for two millennia to destroy unity in the Church whenever and wherever possible!
One of the hallmarks of ANiC’s most recent diocesan synod held in Victoria was the remarkable sense of unity that we experienced. Please note that this is not a unity based on identical theology or political expedience. Synod delegates come from parishes with a variety of worship expressions and churchmanship. No, the unity that we are currently experiencing is based solely on our mutual passionate commitment to the transforming Gospel of Jesus Christ and His Lordship in our midst. It is a supernatural unity that is the work of the Holy Spirit and it cannot be counterfeited. But it is vulnerable to attack at any point and we must be vigilant to protect it from any and all assaults.
So, here is my challenge to us this month that will include many Christmas services in our ANiC parishes and throughout the churches of our cities and towns. Pray that the Father will make us one; one Body of Christ in ANiC, and in our city. Pray that the Lord will preserve true unity where it exists, and that we will cherish it as a highly valuable treasure worthy of hard work and sacrifice. Pray that, where it does not yet exist, the Spirit will break down the formidable barriers of jealousy, suspicion, and competition, expose legalism and idolatry, and melt the hearts of leaders and congregations alike so that real unity may prevail. Pray that we may ultimately live in the reality of Psalm 133:-
Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard,
on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes!
It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion!
For there the LORD has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.
Psalm 133: 1-3 ESV
Our prayers for unity should be at those two levels: the renewed Anglican movement of which we are a part, and the church universal in our city or town. The stakes are high because the effectiveness of our ministry varies directly with the level of unity that we are prepared to walk in. We must not settle for anything less than that for which Jesus prayed!
In the late 1970’s, the Gaither family released a new worship album entitled, Father, Make Us One. The title track from this anointed album was sung in thousands of churches, house groups, Bible schools and conference centres across Christendom. Let me encourage you to pray these verses, based on John 17 and Psalm 133, whenever you intercede for unity in the church. May the fervent prayers of the saints reach heaven as a sweet-smelling incense to our Lord! Amen.
Father, make us one,
Father, make us one,
That the world may know
Thou hast sent the Son,
Father, make us one. |
Behold how pleasant and how good it is
For brethren to dwell in unity,
For there the Lord commands the blessing,
Life for evermore. |
composed by Rick Ridings
Garth V. Hunt
Praise God …
For our ANiC parishes and diocese, and all other churches in our communities that preach the transforming Gospel of Jesus Christ..
For the Unity in ANiC and the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) that we have experienced thus far in our journey together.
For the work God is doing in the life of our diocese and province: – cleansing, restoring, transforming, healing and equipping.
That we can depend fully and unreservedly on our loving Father for every aspect of our lives.
That the Creator and Sustainer of the universe loves us unconditionally and walks with us through the hard times – and the happy times.
For the reformation God is working out in global Anglicanism – and the entire Christian Church. In the midst of chaos, He is building His Kingdom and refining His bride, the Church.
For the many ANiC “projects” and church plants – the small, but growing congregations of faithful Anglicans that He is adding to our number.
For faithful Anglican Primates, bishops, clergy and laity – throughout the Communion – who are standing for truth even when their stand for Christ and His Word makes them targets of attack.
Confess if needed…
For failing to heed Jesus’ High Priestly example and not praying for Unity as often as we ought.
Not encouraging and regularly praying for our church, pastors, government leaders and all those in positions of authority and influence.
Please pray…
For each parish member.
That our churches would be models that live out our commitment to the unity of the Body in all that we do and say
That each of us would recognize our desperate need to be dependent on God for all things.
That even in times of prosperity and plenty we would not forget our Lord God.
That we would demonstrate our faith in God’s goodness and sovereignty by cultivating thankfulness and expressing praise in the midst of loss, adversity or injustice.
That we would have a passion for souls – for those around us who need our Lord.
For the ministries of our churches; that we would become intentional in reaching our communities.
For Bishops Donald Harvey, Stephen Leung, Charlie Masters, Trevor Walters, Malcolm Harding and Ronald Ferris – and their families. Pray for spiritual and physical protection and renewal, for wisdom, and for a daily closer walk with God.
For our Archdeacons: the Venerables Ron Corcoran (Vancouver Island), Dan Gifford (BC), Paul Charbonneau (Ontario), Paul Crossland (Prairies), Michael McKinnon (New England, USA), and Darrell Critch (Atlantic Region & Quebec).
For ANiC clergy and their families, especially those experiencing spiritual and physical attack. May the joy of the Lord be their strength.
For those suffering under the attack of the enemy in our congregations and families. Pray for victory in Christ and healing where needed.
For new and forming ANiC congregations as they attend to the many details of organizing and launching a parish – and for other congregations considering joining ANiC.
For the ANiC congregations that have lost and are losing their places of worship. May God comfort and pour our His blessing on them. May they be filled with the joy of the Lord.
For parishes involved in legal disputes.
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For wisdom for the people and leaders of St Aidan’s Windsor as they seek God’s leading. |
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For St George’s (Burlington, ON), Good Shepherd (St Catharines, ON) and St Hilda’s (Oakville, ON) in dealings with the Diocese of Niagara. |
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For a change of heart on the part of the leaders of dioceses pursuing ANiC parishes. May they genuinely seek to work with parishes to reach amicable, mutually beneficial settlements. |
For Anglican orphans – Biblically-faithful Anglicans in Canada who feel isolated in liberal churches and dioceses – as well as for those who feel they can no longer remain in the Anglican Church of Canada. May they find Christian support and spiritual nourishment through the newly launched “virtual” fellowship.
For the leaders of the Anglican Communion Alliance (formerly Anglican Essentials Federation), Anglican Essentials Network, and Anglican Essentials Canada as they provide support for orthodox Anglicans still within the Anglican Church of Canada.
For those in the Zacchaeus Fellowship who are giving testimony to the liberation God offers those held captive in sexual sin; for the Anglican Church of Canada to listen to their testimony.
For strength and wisdom for the Presiding Bishop of the Southern Cone, the Most Reverend Tito Zavala and for God’s blessing on the Province of the Southern Cone.
That God would continue His work in and through the Anglican Church in North America
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For Archbishop Bob Duncan (and wife, Nara), especially as his diocese deals with the ramifications of recent court decisions. |
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For the other ACNA dioceses. |
For Anglican1000 and those engaged in church planting in Canada and throughout ACNA.
For orthodox Primates and bishops – especially those in the Global South – who are courageously standing for Truth. Pray for spiritual and physical protection and for discernment, grace and strength as they lead in a torn Communion.
For the orthodox Primates in the Anglican Communion – especially the GAFCon primates – as they prepare for upcoming FCA/GAFCon gatherings of orthodox global Anglicans in 2012 & 2013.
For growing support of the Anglican Relief and Development Fund Canada (ARDFC). For the ARDFC’s new project in the Diocese of Kindu, Congo, focused on peace-building and restoring lives and reestablishing livelihoods devastated by years of war.
For the Archbishop of Canterbury. May he pursue God wholeheartedly and seek the wisdom and discernment he needs to fulfill his responsibilities to the glory of God.
For suffering Christians around the world in conditions of persecution, war and poverty – especially those in Muslim and communist countries who face injustice and violence.
For those in areas suffering from famine and natural disasters – especially in East Africa.
For God’s protection of Israel as it is surrounded by those who seek its destruction.
For peace in Sudan and in South Sudan.
That God would revive us, our church and, ultimately, our nation.
For those in authority over us and who serve our country. Pray for wise decisions that honour the Lord and promote the welfare of our nation. Pray specifically:
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For those in government – both for our elected leaders creating laws and for civil servants in positions of responsibility – that they would uphold righteousness. |
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For judges in our court system who are charged with interpreting and applying laws; |
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For officers of the law & emergency response personnel who risk their lives for us. |
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For those who selflessly serve our country in the military as well as their families at home. |
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