For as many [of you] as were baptized into Christ [into a spiritual union and communion with Christ, the Anointed One, the Messiah] have put on (clothed yourselves with) Christ. There is [now no distinction] neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.  Galatians 3: 27-28 (AMPC)

Unity and healing are vital topics in our culture today. Small town America has become multicultural, and adjustments are necessary to have unity and racial healing. The good news about this is that when people believe in Jesus Christ, the distinction of race, gender, and socioeconomic characteristics fades.  Because of our union with Christ, we can embrace others regardless of diversity.

Father, we call on you about this issue of community unity and racial healing here in El Dorado. We can see that Jesus Christ is the answer to these problems. Right now, we pray that the Holy Spirit will move in our town to bring the lost to Christ. We ask that people needing salvation would not be able to resist the powerful outpouring of the Spirit of God. Thank you, God, that you are at work in the hearts of all men, women, boys, and girls, regardless of age. And we thank you for the rise of unity and racial healing that will be apparent during these 40 days of prayer and beyond. 

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. – 1 Peter 4:12-14

Scripture teaches that trouble, difficulty, and even outright persecution are inevitable for faithful followers of Jesus living in an ungodly world controlled by Satan and opposed to the message of Christ. But scripture also teaches that those who suffer because of their loyalty to Christ are blessed by the Holy Spirit’s presence, resting on and strengthening them in very special ways.

Dear Lord, we pray for the persecuted church across the world. We ask that they sense Your presence and be calmed by Your peace. We pray that they will remain faithful to you despite their suffering. We ask that through their witness, even those that would do them harm would be opened to the power of the gospel. And we ask that your hand of protection and providence be theirs in all situations.

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas

SCRIPTURE:

Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court. – Psalm 127:3-5

“Children are a heritage from the LORD.” Solomon, a wise man, understood that children are not a burden but a source of joy and fulfillment. They are a tangible expression of the love of God, our Father, towards us. May God bless you in the day-to-day activities of the family, but never forget to stop and breathe in the love of God for us through our children.

Heavenly Father, we are amazed at the blessing of our children that you have lavished upon us. God, we ask for your wisdom to lead our children in growth and towards living a godly life with you in the center. Please help us not provoke our children but love them with the same love with which you love us. Amen.

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas

Therefore, a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate. – Matthew 19:5-6  

Jesus emphasizes God’s original purpose for marriage. It was established by God in the beginning (Genesis 2:24) as a sacred and joyful covenant, a gift meant to fully express love between a man and a woman. Currently, marriage is experiencing a crisis for various reasons, but the underlying issue is spiritual and caused by sin in our hearts. Jesus instructs, “What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” Let’s pray for the marriages in our community that they will be honoring to the Lord.

Dear Jesus, today we pray that your plan for marriage will be displayed throughout our lives. We pray that we will honor our marriages completely. We pray for open communication and for the wisdom to listen when it would be easier to speak. We pray for humility to say, “I’m sorry.” We pray for the graciousness to forgive like You forgave us. We pray for You, Jesus, to be the center of our marriages so that when the world looks at us, they see You. Help us to love each other like You have loved us. Amen.

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas

I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.” Psalm 18:1-3

Praising God begins with acknowledging the truths we know about Him. David’s praise in Psalm 18 starts with a powerful declaration: “The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer.” When we praise and thank God for what He has done in our lives, we align our thoughts with “whatever is true,” as the apostle Paul encourages us in Philippians 4:8. This practice not only brings us peace but also transforms our hearts and lives. As we intentionally praise God, we become more attuned to His presence and the ways He is working in and around us.

Heavenly Father, You are our rock, our fortress, and our deliverer. Today, we lift our voices to give You the praise and honor that only You deserve. Thank you, Lord, for Your unfailing goodness towards us. As we praise You, make us more aware of Your presence in our lives and in our community. Fix our eyes on You, God, and help us to recognize Your hand at work each day. In Jesus’s name, we pray. Amen.

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas

You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you. Psalm 86:5

Love and forgiveness are deeply intertwined, each serving as a balm for the wounds that can arise in close relationships. True love is often expressed through the willingness to forgive, seeing past mistakes, and nurturing growth instead of harboring grudges. In this way, forgiveness becomes a profound act of love, allowing connections to heal and flourish despite imperfections.

Dear Heavenly Father, grant us the strength to love unconditionally and the grace to forgive wholeheartedly. Help us see beyond each other’s faults and embrace one another with compassion and understanding. May your divine wisdom guide us to build bridges of reconciliation and foster a spirit of enduring peace. Amen.

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Have you ever felt like you were in the middle of a battle? Jesus told us to expect opposition and troubles in this world, but He also promised to give us His peace. He assures us that He has overcome the world and all its chaos and conflict. When we abide in Him, He channels His peace through us so that we can bring His kingdom of peace and healing to the world around us. When peace seems so elusive in our nation and world, Jesus promises us peace of heart. Lovingly, He sends us out as peacemakers and ministers of reconciliation to our broken world.

Lord, we ask in the name of Jesus that you would help us realize the abundant peace we have in You. Our nation and world are characterized by chaos. Peace seems so far away, yet it is always near through Your presence in our lives. Help us live by Your presence and power so that we can bring light and peace to our nation and world. We know You have already overcome, and we eagerly await the day when Your Kingdom will bring eternal peace to our world. Until then, help us bring Your Kingdom of peace on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. ¹⁸ And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. James 3:17-18 (ESV)

In the latter part of James Chapter 3, it refers to wisdom from above. To that point, we need to set aside selfishness and jealousy; we need to take heed to the fact that our Savior came to share a religion that is founded in love. Scripture instructs us to “love thy neighbor.” Simply put, we need to lay down all thoughts that prevent us from being the “good neighbor.”

Holy God, help us to remove all prejudice, hate, and misconception from our hearts. Show us the way to practice the love you teach so that we can be the catalyst to bring the spirit of peace to our community. Amen.

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas

Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? Psalm 85:6

When God’s people have a sense of spiritual dryness or emptiness, it is right for them to pray that he will revive them, both individually and as a group. We must have a desire to do God’s will—to accomplish his desires and purposes for our lives. Will you pray today that God will revive us again? That He would awaken the dry bones!

Heavenly Father, we ask for a revival of hearts and minds, for a renewal of faith and hope in our community. Let the spirit of unity and love spread like wildfire, igniting a passion for goodness and truth. May we be instruments of your peace, bringing light to the darkest corners of our world. May we be peacemakers and not warmakers. Revive us today, oh Lord, in Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas

SCRIPTURE:

You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. – Deuteronomy 6:7

The family is God’s social building block. Or, to think of it another way, the family is the cell and society is the organism. He shows us clearly how to keep the family holy, happy, and healthy—we are to fill our lives with His word. Everyone in Union County at least has access to a Bible—may we fill our homes with His word. Today, read God’s word and talk about it with your family.

Father, we are grateful for our families. There are many in our community who are broken and suffering because of sin in the world. Please fill our homes with your word—give us a hunger to read it and live it. Have mercy on those who are suffering, and please restore family bonds in our community. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Thank you for joining in prayer with your neighbors across El Dorado and Union County, Arkansas for the 2024 40 Days of Prayer. Please continue to pray for blessings and unity for our community.

We are so grateful for your partnership in God’s Kingdom work. May you and yours be blessed.

#eldorado40 #40daysofprayer #eldoradoarkansas