I was enjoying a pleasant walk along a country road when I saw that the cows in the field had taken quite an interest in me. They all moved together towards the fence and then walked together while chewing away and keeping their eyes on me. It occurred to me how influenced cattle are by the herd. Their herd mentality has them all following what the others are doing. It seems that not much thought is given to anything, but simply following what everyone else is doing. This may be okay for cows, but it is not okay for people. In fact it is potentially dangerous and destructive to go along with what everyone else is doing, saying, and thinking. We as people of faith, continue to ask God to lead and guide our thoughts and attitudes and actions. In Scripture we read, “Yet, O LORD, You are our Father. We are the clay, You are the Potter; we are all the work of Your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8) When we sincerely look to God in prayer, we are asking God to shape us as He intends. We can invite God to influence our lives closer to Him. This will not have us going along with what everyone else around us is doing, but rather inviting God to show us His will, His way, and His time in all things. This will be our approach for our WEDNESDAY PRAYER TOGETHER tomorrow June 7th at 1 pm. Please plan to pause for this significant time of prayer.
Thankful that our God is available to show us His way, Pastor Lola
Loving God, we choose to thank You for being the One Who gives our lives purpose. Thank You that You have called us to so much more than just following the crowd. We know that it takes intention and focused prayer to discern Your will for us. We want to be available for this so that You can shape us as Your will, Your way, and Your time. We thank You that we can call you Father and know the tenderness and compassion of Your love for us. As clay in Your hands, God, we want You the Potter to form us as your own. We are confident that Your plans for us are good. When we mindlessly follow what everyone else is doing, we miss the personal ways that You want to reveal Yourself to us. We miss the unique ways that You want to use us and who you have created each of us to be. Often our thoughts get focused on what will benefit us and how we want to arrange things for our comfort and security. Forgive us, we pray. Please expand our vision to consider the concerns of others around us. The days and weeks could go by with us so consumed with ourselves that we are not shaped by You to live Your love in our world. Today we continue to pray for The Ukraine and for resolution of the conflict there. We thank You for the anticipation of the arrival of Nikoli to be reunited with his family. We trust You God for this time of transition and change. Thank You for those who are coming to Canada to find a new home here. We pray that we will be welcoming and helpful. God, please guard against selfishness and move us to respond with generosity of heart. As we consider that we as human beings can be learning from each other, we pray for how this will happen. Rather than succumb to herd mentality, we pray that each of us will seek and find You and be led by You in all things. It is humbling to know that we are the work of Your hand. It is also apparent to us that Your work in us continues. Still there are areas of our lives to be surrendered to You and Your plans and purposes. Surrender does not come easily, yet this is our desire. Only as we allow Your work in our lives are we becoming Who You have designed us to be. When we resist this process, we pray that Your Spirit will show us a better way. Please forgive that resistance and replace it with a greater love for You that urges us to release what we insist on grasping. Our prayer is for both ourselves and others to be liberated by our commitment to follow You always. All of his we pray in the Name of Jesus our Saviour. AMEN