“Day Sixteen”

10/16/2018                                                                               Sister Janelle Honorable

“Father God, Cause Us to Always Celebrate this “Month” Through Prayer and Fasting!

(Nehemiah 8: 13-18)

Father God, in the Name of Jesus, we come to You today saying Thank You, Jesus and Hallelujah to Your Most Holy Name! We come to before You to bless Your Name and to give You praise. Thank you Jesus, for Your Protection while we are in our homes, at our jobs, while at school, and along the roads as we travel about. Thank You Lord for keeping our minds; when the different and difficult situations come our way, You bring us the comfort and strength we need to make it through. Thank You for the Grace and Mercy that You have given to us yet once again. We thank You for Your Guidance and Instruction that helps us to manage our daily lives. And, we also thank You another opportunity to come before You in prayer and ask that You would forgive us of our sins and iniquities. We ask that You would give us a heart to continually seek after You and to cause us to always celebrate this month through prayer and fasting.

Father God, we thank You for the Word You have given us. In it, You have taught and continue to teach us so much. During the months of fasting and prayer, we count ourselves blessed to be able to come together as one to read Your Word, to commune with You, to cry out, and to hear from You.

Nehemiah 8:13-18 ¹³And on the second day were gathered together the chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to understand the words of the law. ¹⁴And they found written in the law which the Lord had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month: ¹⁵And that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written. ¹⁶So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim. ¹⁷And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths: for since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness. ¹⁸Also day by day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner.

Father God, just as the people sat in the streets and were attentive to Ezra as he read the law; let us be attentive and ever mindful of Your Word when we read it and as we are being taught. Let us be diligent and steadfast in our work. When we hear Your Word, let us be doers also, following after the law that You have set before us.

Father God, we come together many times throughout the year to fast and to pray, but this month, in particular, is one where we come together and consecrate ourselves to You. Consecrate means to devote or dedicate to some purpose. The world uses this month to worship all manner of evil, but our purpose is to pray against those evils that come against Your people and Your Kingdom. We also take this time to work on the things that we need to do to improve ourselves, as individuals, and as a collective. We ask that You help us as we go through the tests and trials that come our way, that we may pass them, and that we will have the faith to endure until the end. When we devote ourselves to You, we don’t have time to pay attention to what others are doing or to the distractions that they try to bring.

Lord God, help us to draw the people that You want, to build Your Kingdom, that we speak life into those who are yearning for Your Word, and that we continue to hunger and thirst after You. Let the work that we do be pleasing in Your Sight and that we will always celebrate this month through fasting and prayer. These things we ask in Jesus Name. Amen.