Praying for Community: Spiritual Empowerment

June 4, 2017 ~ Prev | Intro | Next

Today we celebrate Pentecost, the day when the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples in the early church. The power of the Spirit brought unity to a diverse group of people. They were all able to hear the same message in many ways. The disciples through one gospel shared many gifts.

This idea of unity in the midst of diversity is also highlighted in the scriptural text from 1 Corinthians 12: 4-7:

⁴ There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. ⁵ There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. ⁶ There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. ⁷ Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.

During June we are concentrating on prayers that strengthen community. This week we will focus on the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Pastor Jon Bloom writes that as believers we need to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit in order to have empowered worship and witness. These two elements are central to a vital Christian community. Bloom writes:

Do you feel dry? Are you weary? Does your worship feel distracted and hollow? Are you lacking in gratitude to God? Do you long for more fruit, both the internal fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23) and the external fruit of empowered ministry? Then you are a good candidate for the filling of the Holy Spirit. Your dryness and discouragement may, in fact, be invitations from God to press in to him.^[1]

This week, pray that the Holy Spirit may descend on you and upon all the member of Christ UMC, that we may be unified in empowered worship and witness to the world.


^[1] http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/lord-fill-me-with-your-spirit