Hello everyone, and welcome to today’s Prayers for the Week post. Last week we looked at goodness, the sixth word that was mentioned as a fruit of the Spirit by the Apostle Paul.  Today, we look at faithfulness.  But first, let’s look at our Bible verses again to refresh them in our minds:

²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. ~ Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)

The concept of faithfulness to many people is a hard thing to have.  Basically, to exhibit the traits of faithfulness is to have your complete and total belief in knowing that God is looking out for you, and that He will take care of those problems that come up in our lives.  It’s so very easy in this fallen world we live in to be jaded by the events that surround us, whether they be political, economical, or whatever, that to exude that feeling of faithfulness can be kind of hard.

For me, being more faithful to God has become easier the older I’ve gotten.  This time in my life is by no means an easy road to hoe, we’re still battling with me losing my job nearly two years ago, trying to make my businesses work and thrive, and so forth — and the stress is not easily laid aside.  But throughout it all, in fact, because of it all, I think my relationship with God has grown in leaps and bounds beyond what I could ever imagine, and each day I see myself praying to God more and more each day, not just about big things, but about small, often what I would call “mundane” things.  Such as, Lord, help me get the weight loss I want this week, and so forth.

My latest challenge spiritually is that I have started the OWNit365 Whole Bible Plan on August 1st.  The challenge is to read through the entire Bible in one year, and this is something I’ve attempted before, but have never succeeded at.  So this is a big deal for me.  Please pray for me to continue to develop and maintain the discipline needed to read each day, and to complete this challenge.

Now, please join us as we pray over our prayer requests and praises.

Prayer Requests & Praises

• Shannan starts us off with a praise and continued prayers for her friend Darleen: Hey guys, I heard from Darleen today!!! She’s doing so much better. The plan, as of now is for her to go home sometime this coming week. She’s in good spirits but is still in some pain and can’t stand for long periods of time. Also, due to the length of time that she has been off, she also lost her job. I am in the process of researching restaurants nearby her address that deliver because she can’t drive right now either. I’m going to send a few gift cards to help with expenses when she gets home.
• Amanda asks for continued prayers for her husband Daniel.  Here’s the latest update from his tests: We had our appointment yesterday to see about a clinical trial. It was good and bad news. Over the past week, Daniel has become jaundice and had all the signs of liver issues. They are doing a scan on Monday at 3 to see if it is something simple like a blocked bile duct or if the cancer is causing it. Please pray that this is something simple that we can take care of quickly and get back on the path to getting him in remission. Also, please pray he doesn’t spike a fever – that is really bad. The good news is he isn’t a candidate for an immunotherapy clinical trial but instead off label use of a drug already very successful at treating breast cancer. We just need to get there!
• Jodi has a heartbreaking prayer request for a friend’s nephew: My friend’s 17-yr-old nephew unexpectedly passed away in his sleep. Don’t know cause. Please pray for the Dokken family!
• We have an update from Robin on this prayer request from earlier: Little man is back in the hospital his heart rate keeps going too low so he will be at the hospital for a while. This is from my high school classmate Carla regarding her grandson Dyrell. He has many medical needs and this baby needs prayer. His mama is Hilary and needs prayer as well as daddy.
  • Please keep praying: DJ is still in pediatric ICU. Carla appreciates our prayers.
• Robin also had a prayer request for Macie: Please add Macie to the list. She had her tonsils removed but wasn’t healing. They had to go in and cauterize the surgical site and her pain is needing to be managed. Macie is early teens so this is more difficult as children get older. Thanks
  • The good news, we’ve been praying for her in our Facebook prayer group and she is much better! From Robin: Macie is recovering beautifully. She can start volleyball practice Wednesday!
• Shannan also has a prayer request for Joshua: Please pray for my son’s girlfriend’s little brother, Joshua. He’s 12 and weighs 60lbs. They have done a ton of blood work and finally found he was anemic. He was admitted to the hospital after going to the ER this weekend and they have diagnosed him with Crohn’s disease. They did an endoscopy today but don’t have the results of the severity yet. We have a friend (same age as my son) that’s had the majority of her intestines removed already and is on humera injections for probably the rest of her life, but right now in remission. It’s a long and scary road for this little guy and his family.
• Tabitha has a prayer request for a friend: To my prayer warriors……I have a friend whose father can use some prayers right now. Please pray for him. God knows what he needs.
• Jodi also has a prayer request for Shannah: Please pray for a friend’s best friend named Shannah. She was hospitalized on the 21st with sepsis, liver failure, and kidney failure, in critical condition. Idk if she had prior problems or if this was a sudden onset. She’s still in the hospital, and they finally were able to start dialysis today. She’s only in her early 30s & has a 3-yr-old son.
• Stephanie has a prayer request for baby Wesley and his family: My stomach just dropped… two people I knew fairly well from college just posted this: “On Wednesday Riley Judy and Wesley Ellis were delivered. They were 14 weeks early. Last night our Riley girl passed and is no longer in any pain. Wesley is still fighting he has a long way to go. Please pray for Wesley.” I can only imagine what the new mommy and daddy are feeling so pray hard guys for them. God has a plan and I’m sure for them that plan seems so unclear….
• Lori has a prayer request for her friend Barb: God surely puts more on some people’s plates than others. Please add my friend Barb & her family, from MN to your prayers this week. Barb & her husband (who has cystic fibrosis himself) many years ago adopted and have cared for 3 special-needs boys – their oldest (wheel chair bound) is now just one badge away from Eagle Scout!Oh, yes. When Barb had difficulty finding a Scout Troop willing to take up the challenge of accommodating her boys, by gosh, she stepped up and started a new Troop! None who want to be a Scout are left out of her Troop!Barb is a full-time nurse supporting their family and is now tasked with caring for her quite elderly father with esophageal cancer as well.Please hold their family in your prayers – God has given my friend amazing Strength over the years!
• Please pray for the sign up dinner for the Men’s Study in Raleigh, NC that is happening this Tuesday, August 8th. If there are any men in the Raleigh/Durham area that want to come for a free BBQ dinner, and to hear my mentor Russ Andrews talk about the bible study, please come to Edenton Street UMC, 228 W. Edenton Street, Raleigh, NC, at 5:45PM on Tuesday the 8th.  If you sign up for this study and put your whole heart into it, it literally will change your life.
• Please pray for those that have no faith, for those that don’t know Jesus, for the lost, for those that are out to hurt others, for all that don’t know Jesus but desperately need to meet Him and know Him.
• Please pray for the world, for the leaders on all sides of government, and pray for those that are in need and not getting the help they need.

The prayers listed on this page each week do work — the answered prayers we have been a witness to over the years speak to how God hears us, hears our prayers, and answers our petitions. The strangers that pray for all of these prayer requests each and every week — most of whom I have never met before — speak to how faithful they are in their belief, their expectation, and their confidence that God will and does hear our prayers.  There is a peace that comes from prayer, my friends.  Do you know that Peace, that Peace that surpasses all understanding, yet brings a calmness to you like nothing else can? That Peace, my friends, is among the greatest of gifts that I will ever receive, and that Peace can only come from God.

Now, please close with us by praying the prayer that Jesus taught His Disciples and us to pray:

Our Father, who art in Heaven,
Hallowed be 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 that trespass against us.

Lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil.

For Thine is the Kingdom, and Power, and Glory
Forever and ever. Amen.