A Prayer for Global Mission Efforts

by Joel Stephen Williams

You are the Lord, our God, the Holy One, our Savior. May we never forget that you are our Savior, you and you alone. You want all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. You do not want anyone to perish, but rather you desire that everyone would come to repentance. It is in you that we put our hope, in you the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe. You desire our salvation so much that you gave your one and only Son. You did not send him into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world. For this we praise you, O God, our Father.

Your Son is also our Savior, even the Savior of the world. You exalted him as Savior that he might give us repentance and forgiveness of sins and be the Savior of the church. Your Son, Jesus Christ, gave himself as a ransom for all mankind. He came into this world to seek and save the lost. He is the good shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep. For this we praise Jesus Christ, the Lord.

Your Holy Spirit came and proved the world was wrong about sin and righteousness and that Jesus was the Christ, giving witness to him. Your Spirit has saved believers through sanctification. Your Spirit has given us Scripture from which we can preach the word of truth, the gospel of peace and salvation, so that believers may be marked with the seal of the Holy Spirit. For this we praise your Holy Spirit.

We are humbled, God, that you have dared to call us to be fellow workers with you in this great cause of the salvation of mankind. You have made us your ambassadors as you make your appeal to mankind through us. You are pleased through the foolishness of our preaching to save those who believe. We plant the seed of your word and water it; we know that you make it grow. Apart from you we can do nothing. We have no competence in ourselves; our competence comes from you. Help us as we proclaim Christ, admonishing and teaching everyone, so that we may present everyone to you, perfect in Christ.

And now, Father,
          I commend to you these missionaries….
          I pray for these preachers of the gospel in the US and in foreign fields….
          I pray for these congregations in these countries….
          I pray for Christians, wherever they are, who are suffering from poverty, disease, oppression, or persecution….
          Finally, I pray for lost souls, that they may be able to hear the gospel….

Through Jesus, our Lord, Amen.

(Isa. 43:3, 11; 1 Tim. 1:1; Hos. 13:4; Psa. 106:21; 1 Tim. 2:3–4; 2 Pet. 3:9; 1 Tim. 4:10; Jn. 3:16–17; 4:42; 1 Jn. 4:14; Acts 5:31; Eph. 5:23; 1 Tim. 2:5–6; Lk. 19:10; Jn. 10:11; 16:7–11; Acts 5:31-33; 2 Thess. 2:13; 5:23; 2 Pet. 1:20–21; Eph. 1:13; 6:15; 1 Cor. 3:9; 2 Cor. 5:20–6:1; 1 Cor. 1:21; Rom. 11:14; 1 Cor. 3:6–7; Jn. 15:5; 2 Cor. 3:5; Col. 1:28).

Try combining the Scripture readings and your meditations on them with a concluding reading of the prayer based on these biblical passages. Fill in the ellipses with names of missionaries, preachers, and congregations in the US and around the world that you are familiar with to personalize the prayer. Follow the prayer with a letter or an email to one of those plus a donation, if you are able, unless you are already giving on a regular basis.

Saturday, June 20, 2020