Missionary Prayer Tree

Every year at this time, we take part in the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering that supports our international missions. This year we wanted to look more at our missionaries and the people groups they are reaching so that we can truly partner with them in the mission with full awareness of their needs and best support them both financially and by lifting them up in prayer.

To begin, look at this excerpt from Psalm 93:
“Oh sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD all the earth! Sing to the LORD, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples.”

This is the very work that our missionaries are faithfully living out. And look also at a perhaps more familiar verse, Matthew 28:19-20:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

We are all called to make disciples and to declare the marvelous works of the LORD. But, some are quite literally going to the nations to spread the Good News. We have the opportunity and responsibility to help them in this work. Each of us should use the gifts we have been blessed with to serve others, being faithful stewards of all God has given us.

We will use the small Christmas tree at the Welcome Desk to help us with this. There are colored paper ornaments hanging from the tree. On each ornamen,t is a prayer request from the IMB (International Mission Board) for a missionary, project, people group, or individual they have encountered.

We ask that families or individuals choose an ornament from the tree and place it somewhere you will see it every day to remind you to pray for the request. You can choose at random or find one that seems particularly meaningful to you. Lift them up in prayer and pray also that God will change our hearts to be like His and grow our love and concern for the nations, that they would be saved and that God will be glorified.

From Romans 10:
“For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’”