Week 2 – The Voice of God
A major part of prayer is listening to God and allowing Him to direct us.
We as a church are in the second week of our designated 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting, Footprints of Faith. Our purpose is to position ourselves as a church to hear God’s voice, to listen to Him, to ask for His guidance, to ask Him to make known His desire for us.
The decision from the Elders to invite the entire membership to join us in prayer and fasting came after a Visionary Planning Weekend and reading together a book entitled, Discerning Your Congregation’s Future. We want the entire Glenwood family to join us in prayers for God’s guidance for Glenwood’s future. This desire was in place prior to Jeff and Katie being called elsewhere. As a part of this period of prayer and fasting, we want to ask God’s guidance in the “minister search process”. We want it to be a part but not the central focus.
The Elders are asking all members to pray everyday for God’s guidance for Glenwood and those who are able to include fasting with prayer one or more days during this period. We know there are Biblical core values that will never change, yet we want to ask God if we are submitting ourselves, as a church, to activities that aid our spiritual transformation, both individually and corporately? As you are praying for Glenwood’s future, will you include the following along with your individual requests?
- How can we more clearly discern God’s will for Glenwood’s future?
- How can we follow the Holy Spirit both individually and corporately?
- How can we best balance our inward focus with our outward focus?
- How can we communicate better among ourselves?
- How can we implement processes for open communication among the eldership, staff, and congregation?
- How can we reconcile our fear of change with our fear of not changing?
- How can we be more effective in sharing the gospel?
- How can be better embrace and assimilate new members?
- How can we be more intergenerational?
Our 40 days of prayer and fasting are intended to approach God without an agenda and sincerely seek His will. We want to see more clearly what God has in store for Glenwood. His voice may be heard in conversations with other Christians, certainly from His word, in the gentle nudging of the Holy Spirit, in worship, in observing His creation, and in ways we can only imagine. Hopefully, this will be a time of quiet listening.
Your elders are blessed to be shepherds of such a gifted, caring, and loving body. May the Lord bless you and keep you, and may His face shine upon you. May He be gracious to you and give you peace.
For the Elders,
Dewayne Manning
