Hello my friends, my brothers and sisters in Christ, and those that don’t know how incredible it is to know that you are loved by Jesus. This is our weekly Prayers for the Week post, and this week, we are going to redirect our thoughts away from money, away from worry, away from the cares that the world hands us, and instead, we are going to simplify — we are going to look at ways that we can simplify our life, and focus our attention and energy on the one that Loves us, the one that died for us, the one that is our Savior, Jesus Christ.
In the book of Matthew, in the 6th chapter, and the 27th verse, Jesus asked us this question:
27And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? ~ Jesus Christ, Matthew 6:27 (ESV)
That, of course, is just one verse in a passage on anxiety that Jesus spoke of. Here is the complete text from Matthew 6:25-34 (ESV)
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
There is so much that we can choose to worry over, my friends. Did you know that fear comes from the devil, the evil one? It is Satan that would have you worry — he would turn your thoughts to thoughts of fear, to thoughts of anxiety, to thoughts of anything other than where our minds should be focused — on our Lord, Jesus Christ. It’s all a way for Satan to take us off the playing field in the eternal war, the war between Jesus and Satan for our soul. If you have given yourself over to Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, as I have, then the war is already one for you. But, just because I know where I will end up after I die, that doesn’t mean that I should not work towards helping my brothers and sisters in the world become Brothers and Sisters in Christ. That is why I write this weekly post. I know that many of you are turned off by it, that you want me to focus on just Disney, and not to worry about these “supernatural” things. Well, I’m sorry, but I can’t do that. I feel led to write these each week, and I’ll continue to do so until I no longer feel that calling.
My friends, if you are unsure what to pray when you are worried, let me share one last thing with you. It is a prayer that I found on RachelWojo.com — here is the image of that prayer.

If you worry, pray this prayer with your heart, your mind, your body, and your soul, and it will give you Peace. Now, please pray with me our prayer requests and praises.
Prayer Requests and Praises…
- My friend Maureen left us a comment. Here is what she wrote: “Good Morning :) I want to thank you for posting my prayer requests and for your prayer support :) My Nanny had dementia in her later years and it was difficult to go through that with her – Prayers for patience and love go out to all going through that difficult season.”
- My sister Robin also left a comment. Here is what she wrote: “Excellent post again, as usual. I am very proud of you!”
- Last week, Sophie started Confirmand classes at our church. It is a huge deal for Cindy and I because our little baby — the same baby that was 4 pounds, 2 ounces and just 17 1/2″ long at birth, is now 13 1/2 years old, is taller than Cindy, and will be starting high school in the fall. For all of you new parents, or parents of children younger than Sophie, I urge you to cherish these moments, because they are GONE in an instant. Please pray with us and for us, as we see Sophie draw closer to God than either Cindy or I ever did when we were her age. As we told Sophie, we never went through Confirmand classes because that was something that our churches didn’t participate in, so she is the first in our family that has done so. Please pray that Sophie would be blessed beyond measure, and truly grasp what it means to Walk with the Lord. Thank you everyone!
That’s all the prayer requests we have this week. I urge you, if you are going through anything in your life, and would like for us to pray for you, please, please, please leave us a comment, or shoot me an email to prayer@mydreamsofdisney.com. We believe in the power of prayer, and we don’t need to know all the details, so if you want to leave an anonymous prayer request, just tell us what you want us to pray for, and we’ll do that. We don’t need to know the details because God already knows them. Now, please pray with me the prayer that Jesus taught His Disciples to pray:
Our Father, who art in Heaven,
Hallowed by thy name.
Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done,
On earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory forever and ever.
My friend Shannon has a prayer request that she has learned of. Here is what she wrote:
I’ve tagged as many Disney pals as I could. Please add others if you think they can help. There is a 15 year old girl here named Beth and her stage IV cancer has returned and all the doctors are doing now is preventative comfort measures. She’s in the hospital right now with low counts and a fever. She loves Disney. I’m going to do a post today asking all of our fans to send her Disney themed Valentines cards, or anything Disney. Thanks so much, Disney friends are the best friends. Prayers and pixie dust for Beth!
Please pray for this young lady as she struggles to come to grips with this disease, and works through her anxiety and fear. Please pray that God’s Peace, Comfort, Strength, and Love would descend upon her, her family and friends, and that God would guide the hands of her medical team. If it is God’s Will, may she be saved from this disease. It’s in Jesus’ name that I pray. Amen!
Please pray for the family of Sabrina Smith-Epley. Here is what my sister-in-law Nancy wrote:
Anna Jane and Sabrina Smith-Epley… her teacher last year…Anna Jane was her “mini me”. Sabrina passed away suddenly and unexpectedly last week. This lady motivated and encouraged our girl to be the “scary good” student that she has become. Her influence is her legacy.
Please pray with me:
Heavenly Father, those of us that knew Sabrina are mourning her passing today. Her family, her friends, her co-workers, her students — all of them are hurting at some level these days. We know that Your ways are mysterious to us, and we know that we can not understand right now why You called Sabrina home, but we miss her. Lord, please grant Your Peace, Comfort, Strength, and Love to descend upon all of us, and please know that we praise You for the time that you placed Sabrina into our lives. It is in the name of Your Son Jesus that we pray with Thanksgiving today, and every day. Amen.
My friend Kristin has a prayer request. Here is what she wrote:
Please pray for the family of Billy Harrison. He is my cousin in West Virginia. He was shot and killed last night. He has a wife and three children. Please pray!
Please pray for their grief, that God would hold them in His arms, and that they would have Peace, Comfort, Strength, and Love during their time of grief. Thank you everyone for praying!
My friend Rebecca has a prayer request — this is what she wrote on Facebook:
My dad was just rushed to the hospital. My brothers & I only know that so far. I know I ask this a lot, please pray for him. Thank you.
Please pray for his healing, for the medical team, for their skill in treating him, and for his and his family’s Peace, Comfort, and Strength! Thank you!
Locally here in the Raleigh-Durham area, please pray for Larry Stogner and his family. Larry is the anchor of the local ABC news telecast. Larry is stepping down, having been diagnosed with ALS. Here is a link to the story about him:
Larry Stogner Retirement
Also, please pray for two teenage boys, both Sophomores from Smithfield-Selma High School. They were killed when they were hit by an Amtrak train. According to reports, one was trying to get the other off of the tracks when they were both hit. Their names are Robert Naughton and Alan Peedin. Please pray for their families, friends, and everyone that is suffering with their loss.