"Besides You there is No Savior" - 27 November 2022

 

O God, before whom no god was formed, nor shall there be any after you; for you, you alone are the LORD, and besides you there is no savior (Isaiah 43:10-11). We implore you to show kindness and care to those who are facing critical times, those who are hospitalized and weakening, those who are recovering from sickness or surgery, those swallowed up in sorrow and sadness, for exhausted caregivers, for those walking through darkness, depression, or disorder (…). Grant them relief and replenishment, as well as faith and hope so as not to rely on themselves but on you, O God, who raises the dead. For you are he who delivers us from such deadly perils and will deliver us. And so, on you may we set our hope that you will deliver us again (2 Corinthians 1:9-10).

O Father, from whom all fatherhood is named in heaven and on earth: we who have come to know you as the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:3), you who are over all and through all and in all (Ephesians 4:6), we implore you to strengthen and aid our brothers and sisters world over, including this congregation and First Baptist-Edmond, Emmaus, Faith Pointe, and  First Southern Baptist Church. Bing us all to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which we have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Ephesians 4:1-3).

O Almighty, with the Psalmist we say, “For I know that the LORD is great, and that our Lord is above all gods. Whatever the LORD pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps” (Psalm 135:5–6). Therefore, direct all nations, all tribes, communities, clans, ethnic groups and peoples toward honesty, fairness, and the common good. Detain and defeat all evil, immorality, anarchy, bloodletting, banditry, and bullying. Keep or restore domestic equilibrium where it has either disintegrated or is being threatened.

O Maker of heaven and earth, who upholds all who are falling             and raises up all who are bowed down; to whom the eyes of all look, and you give them their food in due season; who opens your hand, and satisfies the desire of every living thing (Psalm 145:14-16): we give you our deepest thanks for all you have supplied, especially the rain this past week. We pray for those in prison and those who minister in the prisons, that you would bring hope and life and salvation. We pray for those who didn’t have anything, or had very little, to eat this past week and to whom the coming week looks just as sparse, that you would take care of them and provide them plentifully. We pray for those who are helping at Project 66, RestoreOKC, Hope Center of Edmond, City Rescue Mission, the Salvation Army, and other ministries, that you would enable them to provide the kind of aid that will be genuinely charitable and beneficial.

O Good God of order, we implore your care and kindness for those who have mental health troubles, who are suicidal, who have bipolar difficulties, as well as schizophrenia, paranoia, and deep depression (…). May they be open to seeking and receiving the kind of treatment and care they seriously need.

Finally, Creator God, we pray for those who need to know you as the one who brings new creation in Jesus Christ (…). Save them from their sins, and from themselves. 

We present our petitions to you in the name of, and by the authority of, Jesus Christ our Lord. And now we pray as we have been taught us, saying, Our Father…