Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him. (Psalm 62:5, a psalm of David)

Jesus: Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)

Prayer is a time and space of rest. When you go through a season of stress, do you experience tension in your shoulders, a dull headache, or trouble falling asleep, even though you are casting your cares on the Lord and trusting Him to carry the load? Whether those physical manifestations of stress are the “bathtub ring” of the problems you have turned over to the Lord or pieces of the problems you have held back is really immaterial. You need rest, and the Lord is the source of rest. Rest in prayer, stay still in His presence, and be restored.

Here are some suggestions for prayer this week:

1. In last week’s blog, I suggested praying for Tomasz Chylka’s church because its members contribute nothing toward his support. Tomasz e-mailed last week to correct that statement. When Pastor Dave was in Poland last summer and asked Tomasz about his church’s support, he said his church pays him nothing. What Dave did not understand is that the church members faithfully pay some of the Chylkas’ expenses and so provide support for Tomasz. We can still be praying that the Lord will grow and prosper Tomasz’s small church so that they can continue, and expand, their missionary work.

2. Tomorrow is Veterans Day, a day for honoring Americans who have served their nation in the armed forces. Thank the Lord for the millions who have been willing to put their lives on the line to defend their nation and its principles.

3. Nick DonVito has been incapacitated by painful sciatica for over three weeks now. Pray for pain relief for Nick, for an accurate diagnosis of the source of the pain, and for patience to get through the healing process.

4. Pray for young families as plans develop for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. They must negotiate competing demands from extended families as they attempt to establish their own holiday traditions. Pray that parents of adult children will respect appropriate boundaries.

5. Our capital campaign to fund the next phase of our building remodel has passed the two-year mark. Ask the Lord to remind all of us of the reasons for a larger sanctuary and to strengthen our resolve to build it without debt. Review your own commitment to the project before the Lord.

6. Bring before the Lord those among us who have unbelieving spouses. Ask Him to show them day by day how to demonstrate the love of God in their homes.

7. Pray that we will be quick to hear and receive what the Lord has for us in the book of James. Pray that our study of James will be earthshaking and life changing.

In Christ,
Carol Gilbert, Prayer Chair
Calvary Community Church of Brea