By P.K. Spratt
Allow me to share two stanzas from the classic hymn, The Church’s One Foundation:
1 The Church’s one foundation
is Jesus Christ, her Lord;
she is his new creation
by water and the Word:
from heav’n he came and sought her
to be his holy bride;
with his own blood he bought her,
and for her life he died.5 ‘Mid toil and tribulation,
and tumult of her war,
she waits the consummation
of peace forevermore;
till with the vision glorious
her longing eyes are blest,
and the great Church victorious
shall be the Church at rest.
My Prayer for Pastors and Churches
Dear God,
Through the victory of the cross, Christ bought the Church, His Bride. His Bride is the redeemed body of believers we call the Church.
During this time of adversity and scattering from this virus, we ask You to help us remain united. Like the church in Acts scattered due to persecution, as we scatter from this virus, we pray that the Church grows stronger.
May it be reminded and revived to be what You’ve called it to be. May it continue to disciple, minister to those in need, and, most of all, may the gospel of good news spread as it did in those times of persecution.
We thank You, Lord, for the reports that online worship services and the preaching of Your Word are being listened to by a larger number of people than those who’d normally hear it during a typical church service.
We lift pastors to You, Lord, Your shepherds for each local body. The majority, if not all, are working harder than ever before.
They’ve quickly adapted and embraced this challenge. Their hours have become long, and they endure a heavier burden to care for a flock they can’t see or visit in hospitals, nor be present with grieving families.
Many have turned on a dime to revamp church programming. For some, they’ve embraced an online service for the first time while preaching to a camera in an empty room.
Yet through it all, these pastors and their staff remain faithful. Please give them the desire to seek You, giving them wisdom and energy. Grow their passion for their church and provide them with rest.
We pray for the financial health of our churches. Lord, Your Word assures us You’ll meet all needs, we pray You meet and sustain not only the financial needs of our churches but also the needs of those we serve.
And finally, we pray for the members, the body of Christ. Although scattered, we pray for a greater cause for unity with the body, and may they long to be together corporately as one body.
Father grant them endurance, patience, greater faith, dependence, and trust in You. We pray for members to embrace the call to be the church, to make disciples wherever they are, starting with their families and neighbors.
Through all of this, may we remain confident Your Church will survive and thrive. May we earnestly seek you. Please, sovereign God, strengthen your Church! We ask all of these things in Your precious Son’s name. Amen!
P.K. SPRATT (@pkspratt) is a church partner serving churches in Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia for Lifeway Church Resources.
