dennis martin papp

40 Days--The Weekend Prayer

This weekend will mark the sixth and seventh days of SouthField's 40 Days to Pray.

You can click here for a prayer guide.

On the weekend we will pray from one of my favorite Psalms

Psalm 90:13-17
O Lord, come back to us!
    How long will you delay?
    Take pity on your servants!
14 Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love,
    so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives.
15 Give us gladness in proportion to our former misery!
    Replace the evil years with good.
16 Let us, your servants, see you work again;
    let our children see your glory.
17 And may the Lord our God show us his approval
    and make our efforts successful.
    Yes, make our efforts successful!

Take any of these themes and make them your prayer this Saturday and Sunday. Here's mine:

Dear God,

There are so many great themes to pray in this short passage.

Thank you for inspiring Moses to write it.

The first verse begs for You to come back.

Lord, we know that You never go away. 

You promised never to leave us or forsake us.

We are the ones who leave, who wander.

Sometimes though, even though You are still nearby, You feel so far away.

We know You are there. 

We pray for a powerful sense of Your Divine Presence.

Let us feel You breathing on our necks.

Show us Your Presence through Your Power working on our behalf.

Take pity on us. A simply prayer for mercy.

Give us what we do not deserve, and keep from us what we do deserve.

Make Your Presence known to us.

In the Name of Our Savior Jesus,

Amen.

40 Days--A Prayer for Favor

Today is the fifth day of SouthField's 40 Days to Pray. You can click here for a prayer guide.

Today I am praying the fifth request, for favor. 

For this topic, we chose verses from Philippians 1--

Phillippians 1:6
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

Dear God,

We long of Your face and Your favor to shine on us.

This verse reminds us both that You started this work in us,

      and that we are the work of Your Hands, start to finish.

We are open to anything You want to do in us and through us.

We are Yours.

This work is Yours.

Smile on us, we pray.

Because of Jesus,

Amen.

Life in the Badlands--Sego Lily (5 Images)

A beautiful lily of the plains, which was eaten by homesteaders and Native Americans alike. The bulbs of this and other Calochortus species were roasted, boiled or made into a porridge and were also used as a food source by the Mormon pioneers. Because of this and for its natural beauty, it is Utah's State flower. (thanks wiki)

40 Days--A Prayer for Protection

Today is the fourth day of SouthField's 40 Days to Pray. You can click here for a prayer guide.

Today I am praying the fourth request, for protection. 

For this topic, we chose verses from 2 Thessalonians--

2 Thessalonians 3:3
But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.

This may seem like a strange request to you. Why would we pray for protection from the evil one?

Here's my experience, for what it's worth. Every time we are on the verge of potential Kingdom advances, the fires of hell seem to heat up. During seasons of dreaming, nightmares increase. 

Satan hates to see any progress in God's agenda. 

I want to be proactive, not so much to pray Satan down, but to lift up God. I want to see God's power at work in everything and Satan thwarted at every turn.

My prayer for today is simple... 

Our Father in Heaven...

...rescue us from the evil one.

We are Yours, not His.

Stop him at every turn.

Let Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in Channahon, as it is in Heaven.

Amen.

Life in the Badlands--Plains Prickly-pear Cactus (4 images)

The Badlands climate is one of extremes: hot, cold, dry, windy and stormy with blizzards, floods, droughts, and fires. Further, the soil appears to be composed of clay and gravel. Looking at the soil, I would have guessed nothing would survive there. I was surprised to find some incredible plants and wildflowers, not to mention numerous prairie grasses.

My favorite plant is the Plains Prickly-pear. Learn more here. It is a cactus, and so its presence surprised me in a place that is impacted by severe cold and blizzards. Shows what I know!