Scripture: 1st Thessalonians 5:25
Beloved, pray for us.
Thought for the Day: In what is thought to be the earliest letter written by the Apostle Paul, we come across a long string of requests, suggestions and words of counsel. Toward the end, Paul makes one clear appeal: …pray for us. I made that same request last night as we were finishing up the Christmas Decorating Party at the church. There had to have been 20lbs of glitter scattered on the floor. It was everywhere. A smorgasbord of colors, each speck catching the light from the floor of the Activity Room. One of the children described it as beautiful, but I requested that they pray for me once the custodians saw the mess. Actually, the prayers should be for those who came in later in the evening to make our church ready again for another week. I do ask – Beloved, pray for us. But when I use the word ‘us’, I am making a request on behalf of all those who make Cypress Creek Christian Church move along… but specifically those whose faces are rarely seen. They do hard work at odd hours, yet they deal with all the mess that I and others have created. One of the other petitions Paul makes earlier in the chapter is to respect those who labor among you. This should be true throughout the year, but especially during the holidays when the labors among us are easily dismissed as nothing more than objects to be used and then forgotten. They are people and beloved children of God.
Prayer: Eternal God, provide me with heavenly vision, so that what I see is what you see… and that what I pray is what you would have me pray. Amen.
