A few weeks ago I did a sermon about the importance of spending time in prayer as an individual and as a community of faith. Prayer above all else is communicating with God in order to feel closer to God and to improve our relationship. Prayer also helps us find guidance, overcome temptation, and accept God’s will. In addition, prayer gives us a greater sense of purpose, improves our mood, and helps us to cope with life’s difficulties. The Bible also tells us to pray for one another.
I think the month of November gives us many good reasons to be in prayer:
November 1 is All Saints Day on which we remember those who have died and those who have been left behind to remember and mourn them.
On November 3, we turn our clocks back to standard time, and we pray for this adjustment for our bodies and minds.
This year we have a national election for the next President of the United States. As I said in my sermon, this is an important day to spend in prayer.
The last several days of the month will be gun deer hunting in Wisconsin. We pray for all to be safe during hunting season.
November 28 will be Thanksgiving Day this year. I think we all become mindful of what we have to be grateful for at this time of the year, and hopefully we bow to God in prayer to show our gratitude.
There are always good reasons to spend time in prayer. November is not unique, but I thought about prayer this month because of the recent sermon that I did and because of Thanksgiving. As individuals, we know what we need and what we are grateful for and who we want or need to pray for. As a community of faith, we can lift one another up in prayer and pray for specific concerns within the community. By doing this, we can encourage one another and find strength and comfort together.
As Jesus prayed in John 17:22-23: “The glory that you (God) have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”
Prayerful Thanksgiving blessings to you all!
Pastor Beth
920-562-2853
pastorbmacha@yahoo.com
