2014.10.25 礼拝

Kids: Is there peer pressure in Japan? Possibly more in Japan than in the States. Also occurred during the time of Jesus.
Matthew 9:36 – When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. If sheep were left without a shepherd, they don’t know where to go and just get lost, even down the cliff behaving like their peers. Likewise, without a good leader, people could be led astray. The best shepherd is Jesus.
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Matthew 9:35-38, “Prayer Walking” : Went on prayer walking after service.
Mark had walked around the Imperial Palace with other members taking about two and a half hours. All the names of Japan’s prefectures were written on the map with additional information about each prefecture. It allowed praying for the people in each prefecture of Japan.
Free to pray as you want but some of the prayers could be:
– Pray for the person to be released to believe.
– Pray for transformed lives.
Praying for believers
– Pray for Christ to send believers into the harvest filed.
– Pray for Christians to have Christ’s joy made full in themselves.
– Pray for Christ to guard and protect believers from the evil one.
– Pray for Christians to be united in one mission, purpose and spirit even as the Father and Son are one.
– Pray for Christians to be where Christ is and join in his work.
– Pray for Christians to be filled with spiritual wisdom; pleasing in all ways to Christ; strengthened spiritually, mentally, physically and emotionally; and being fruitful in every good work.
Matthew 9: 37-38 – Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” One of the prayers to remember in prayer walk could be to pray for Christ to send believers into harvest fields.
Another method of “prayer walking” could be as done every Tuesday morning by a group (mostly missionaries) taking the Yamanote Line and praying for the people living in areas of each stop. Due to lack of information about people in each area, there was a need to check out about the places and the people so that appropriate prayers could be said.
This provides an urge to find out about the people and places you pray for. Therefore, it is good to go out rather than just praying at home and the main purpose of prayer walking – “praying on site with insight.”
Jesus went to where there were crowds.
Mathew 9:35 – Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the goods news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.
Harvesting is gathering the good crops, i.e. the people who want to know about God in a crowd. Jesus did not just wait but went out to the crowd. Therefore, we will go out and pray taking note of the people we pray for.