My hope is that it will bring you some hope this Christmas, no matter how things are shaping up at this point in the week.
I always have an idyllic notion of Christmas in my head. Maybe it's because I was raised in family that owned a chain of Hallmark stores. Or maybe it's because I've seen too many holiday movies on the Hallmark channel. (Anybody but me have a slight addiction to sappy, sweet holiday stories?)
I don't expect my actual holidays to match the idyllic ones I dream up in my head. Nonetheless I also never consider that I might spend Christmas sick with the flu. Or having a car accident that nearly totaled my car days before Christmas. Or getting stuck in a snow storm. Yet each of those have happened to me and gave me the distinct feeling that I might miss Christmas that year.
Of course it's impossible to miss Christmas when He is in your midst. That's the beauty of Emmanuel.
Leave a prayer request for whatever issues you are facing, or whatever Christmas plans you are making and I'll pray for you today. As you leave your comment, read the one posted ahead of yours and pray for them too. Because where three or more gather in His Name, He has promised to be in their midst. Merry Christmas!
PS. For a little Christmas gift to you, your figure and your health, see my last post. Just had to share the bargain!
Please pray that Martin will realise that Jesus is the answer to all his problems as they're all still there after the bottle of vodka (or whatever alcohol he can get hold of). Praying for you Rachel as you pray for us.
ReplyDeleteI am having a numbness and burning in my upper back and shoulder area. Please pray for healing. I have been through two tests and it is not my heart-PRAISE GOD!!!!!
ReplyDeleteHeavenly Father, Thank you for this new day we give you all honor, praise and glory for this day. I lift up Martin to you this day and I pray that you would break this stronghold of alcohol over his life. I pray that he would know the power in Your name and that only You can break any stronghold in a person's life. I pray , Lord, that he would find Your word and read it. Lord through the power of Your Holy Spirit I pray that you would bind that need for alcohol and that Martin would experience a distaste for it and that you would loose Your love upon him. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Janet
My husband age 56 has stage 4 Prostate Cancer. I am struggling to understand Gods purpose and plan. I thank you for this story and the Proverbs 19:21 verse .
ReplyDeleteMy unwanted circumstances are that I'm going through a divorce. Pretty short yet difficult marriage. God has brought me to repentance, and I'm praying He softens my husband's heart and opens a door for us to reconcile. We've been separated for almost 6 months now though, and don't really communicate. I know his ring is off and he just wants to be done with me/ this chapter. It will be nothing short of a miracle.
ReplyDeletePlease pray for me for physical strength. We need to get someone to share our townhouse with us as we have no money to pay the rent. The rooms the person will have to use are very full and I need to empty them. I am so tired and battle with bipolar and simply do not know where I will get the strength from to do this.
ReplyDeletePlease pray for a breakthrough in our finances for the speedy delivery of our chemicals before christmas and for our clients whose jobs are pending to continue to be patient with us till the delivery of our chemicals
ReplyDeleteI am going through some unusual situations right now, we had a recent burgulary (small stuff like jewelry was taken)Thank God. Also, a job-related incident that I know God will show/is showing his Glory. Please pray for all these and for my daughter's plans to study law out of state and my husband's liver condition. I am a born again Christian of many years and I trust God to do his Will all the time. God bless you and continue to shine his light on you this Christmas Season and New Year.
ReplyDeleteI just found out that my 21 year old step daughter is pregnant. She is not married and this is a result of a one night stand. Please pray for her.
ReplyDeleteThank you SO much for allowing God to speak to me today, through you. I am struggling with a health issue, something I caused to happen to myself. I've been discouraged, wondering how God will be able to shine His light into this darkness. Again, today, I did not awake to wholeness and healing. But, I did awake to His reminder that He is in charge and that He is with me, every step of the way. It's hard to accept that He would allow me to face these consequences for my decisions, but I love the verse that confirms that even though I make plans for myself, His purpose for me with prevail. Thanks again - please pray for my healing.
ReplyDeletePlease pray for my inlaws - my father in law had a mini stroke this past summer & his memory is not good anymore, my mother in law is feeling the weight of caring for him & he is not a pleasant man to care for. Also I ask for prayer for myself & my co-worker there has been a huge upheaveal in our office & we will have a new boss in January who did not obtain this position honourably or honestly please pray for peace, strength & protection during this time. Thank you Rachel for your words that were only timed so perfectly by our Heavenly Father & Protector
ReplyDeleteI would like to ask you this morning to pray for my husband. Two months ago he left our home..he left our family...he has turned his back on God. Please pray that God change his heart and restore our marriage. I would also like to ask that you pray for me, for strength to handle everything I am left with. I have not been able to make our mortgage on our home and I am facing foreclosure. I know that God can fix this anytime he chooses to. "For nothing is impossible with God." Luke 1:37. Please pray with me for my husband as God works in his life. Thank you so much.
ReplyDeletePlease pray for my mother and our family. She is battling cancer for the 2nd time, and things seem to be taking a different turn. It's been hard for me to experience the glory of Christmas this year because in the back of my mind I think it's my last with her. Pray that she feels well and experiences enjoyment for Christmas.
ReplyDeleteIn reading through all these requests, I am moved to tears. I will pray for all of you by name that I read today. Thank you, Rachel, for giving me a chance to take the focus off my own issues today and pray over my sisters' issues. God bless you all!
Thank you for this Christmas story about Joseph. Most don't stop to think about what Joseph was going through because we think, "My goodness, Joseph, how could you doubt?" But what would most men do if this happened to them in this day and time! Divorce would be already happening as quick as a wink. What a joy it must have been when he realized that his Lord and Savior was going to grow up in his home.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your blog. I can tell by all the prayer requests that it is a needed blog. I pray that all those who ask you to pray for them will find answers through Jesus Christ.
Blessings to you during this Holy Season of celebration of the birth of Christ our Lord!
Please pray for my husband and I. We've been trying to get pregnant for 2.5 years. Trying to decide whether to keep waiting patiently or move on with further options. Thank you
ReplyDeleteAs I read the needs of others, I'm reminded of the blessings I have & how God reminds me of them.My request is for my mother, who is in constant back & hip pain. We have just made the decsion for her to live with us. Husband Jeff & I need prayers for patience & acceptance of our God given,blessed & precious burden.
ReplyDeleteRachel your post today made me smile. How many times I thought Christmas will not be this year because .... Thank God, He is good & Christmas comes;) It is in the hard times that I see Jesus at work & in the good times I give thanks to Him for the moments of now.
ReplyDeleteSaping for all that our mighty God will give peace, wisdom, & healing.
Please pray for my brother & sister-in-law's marriage. Thank you.
Blessings & Peace
MaryG
Thank you for sharing this with all of us! It helped me to put some perspective and remember HE is stil in control. It does not seem that way all the time as my marriage is falling apart, my husband almost left us on Black Friday. He ended up not leaving physicaly but he has check out emotionally. There has been some untreated depresion and anger for a while now. Being unemployed has agraviated the already existing issues. He announce yesterday he might not travel with us for Christmas. Pray for reconcialiation and obedience. Thank you
ReplyDeletePlease pray for my son to return to the Lord with his whole heart and that the attachments to sin in his life would be broken , that God would fill him with his spirit and his heart would be broken and soft for God. Thank-you so much for being able to share
ReplyDeleteI am asking for prayer for my husband, that he will totally give his life to Christ. Trust, and build a personal relationship with him.
ReplyDeleteI am asking prayer for all lost souls that don't acknowledge or belive in our Lord Jesus Christ. Save them this Christmas!
Thank You And God Bless You!
Rachel I am now having to care to my mother. We live in a two story house and a stairlift costs 4000.00. Seems no one will pay for it and we should move to a one story house, as you know that costs money too. I know God is bigger than this problem. Please pray for His will. Thank you and Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeletePlease pray for my brother-in-law who was given 72 hours to live yesterday. Also, please pray for healing of my heart palpitations that the doctor says is caused by stress.
ReplyDeleteI loved your story on Encouragement For Today on how our problems could be part of God's plans for us.
Barb, My husband has chronic leg and back pain.I pray that the Lord would give your mom the strength to deal with the pain and that He would cover her with his love and peace. I pray for you and your husband, that the Lord would give you all that you need physically and spirituallly to take care of your mom.
ReplyDeleteMy prayer request is for my husband, He is batlling depression because of constant pain in his lower back and legs. He has his good days and bad days. Now that he has retired he needs a purpose to get up each day. Please pray that the Lord would give Him direction and help him deal with his pain. God is faithful!
Praying you have a very blessed Christmas!
Grace
Thank you for your words of encouragement, I'm going thru a divorce, I love my husband and have been praying for restoration, our case went before the judge and didn't finalize it because some paper work was incomplete, this is a blessing, I pray that my husband call and come home for Christmas, I pray for all marriages that all husbands that have walked a way come home for Christmas IN JESUS NAME AMEN......
ReplyDeleteAfter reading all the prayer requests, God certainly puts things in perspective. What wonderful ministry you have and how blessed we are to be able to ask you to pray with us. We all need to know that others have serious problems and that we can send prayers up for them as well as asking you to pray for us.
ReplyDeleteThe story of Joseph added a new deminsion to Mary's pregnancy. I doubt many of us considered this is depth. Thank you!
My prayer request is for a dear friend that is experiencing many trials in her life. She has found strength through the Holy Spirit. I just ask that you pray that she will have a peaceful Christmas and that things will begin to fall into place. Thank you
Hi Rachel, I am in a difficult situation that I need prayer for. I have been friends with a gentleman at church for some time now, and I know he is hurting from previous bad relationships he has been in with other women. I want to be more than friends with this man and he doesn't want more than a friendship. It makes me sad and even hurts me that he can't move past his hurts and give me a chance. My first inclination is to move on and say goodbye to him and our friendship. I don't know what to do about our friendship. I can't be friends with him when I know I want more than that. I want my husband. I see marriage and children as gifts from God not something to fear or be scared of. I have prayed for God to change his heart but Kelly's heart is not budging. He is so scared. I need to know should I stay and fight for his heart or move on and wait for God to provide me a man whose heart is truly open and ready? I have to admit when I read your devotional this morning (I am in California) I feel like Joseph ready to ditch Mary. I am ready to ditch Kelly, but he has my heart and I don't know if that is what God wants me to do. I am going to be 40 next year, lord willing and I do not want to grow old alone. Please keep me and Kelly in prayer and thank so much for your love for Christ and other women.
ReplyDeleteLost my career as a Teacher earlier this year due to cutbacks and now don't know what to do. I am on unemployment that runs out in apx 2 months. I cannot seem to get a job anywhere. Please pray that God would give us direction and that we don't feel like we are drowning anymore.
ReplyDeleteamy son chris is in the hospital today with siesures from brain cancer- had all the surgery-left frontal lobe-chemo-radation-thank you for all your prayers.
ReplyDeletepray for family reconcilation, a criminal situation would b as God would want it, that God would give understanding where their are questions and that ppl who get their hearts desires for Christmas.
ReplyDeletepray for family reconcilation, a criminal situation would b as God would want it, that God would give understanding where their are questions and that ppl who get their hearts desires for Christmas.
ReplyDeleteoh and i dont have a job or church home please pray i will have enough for gifts. thank you.
ReplyDeletePlease pray for me to get a job. Thanks!
ReplyDeletePlease pray for my son who is struggling to stay on the right path. And that I would be able to have patience and show him grace as the Lord is always gracious toward us. Also please pray for heath for me, I struggle with anxiety/panic attacks and this week has been pretty bad. Thanks!
ReplyDeletePlease pray for our daughter and her husband they have been trying for 5 years to have a baby. They are both Christians and know that God has a plan but it's been very hard this Christmas season because her sister has just given birth to a beautiful baby girl and is not married. Only God understands and has the right plan.
ReplyDeletePRAYING FOR EACH OF YOU.
ReplyDeleteOn Dec. 23rd it will be 6 months since I filed for divorce. I do not want this divorce, however, my husband is living with his ex wife. He has left everything he had. Our home is foreclosing, he quit a good paying job, he wont pay child support, he left his young adult children who are in college,he has ruined his testimony and quit a great church. I still love him and we just had our 22nd anniversary. I had to go through the day without him. He has just found out ( with his ex wife) that he has colon polyps and they are both very worried about the outcome. Please pray for God to restore my marriage and for my husband to realize he is the prodigal son who needs to come home. God is trying to get his attention. Thank you, Snoopy
ReplyDeletePlease pray for my marriage. My husband and I have really been struggling for the past 2 years, and need a breakthru. Also pray for my strength as I have just had my first child, a son, now 5 months old.
ReplyDeleteHi, Rachel. Thank you so much for offering to pray for us. My dad had back surgery earlier this year to correct some disintegrated vertebrae that was pinching his spinal cord and causing him to lose feeling in his feet and legs.
ReplyDeleteBefore his surgery, my 2 daughters and I stayed with my parents during the first part of the week and came home for the second half. When school started, I made the hard decision of completely moving in with my parents leaving my husband at home. My oldest daughter(7) went from a small-town, everybody-knows-everybody school to an urban, inner-city school. She didn't transition well. Plus my youngest(2) missed her daddy very much.
My dad made outstanding progress up until we told him we were moving back home. At the same time, his nerves in his legs started regenerating causing severe pain. Now he refuses to do his exercises or even let us rub his feet. He suffers from depression, although he won't admit it. I'm scared he's going to give up. Please pray for him. Also, please pray for my mom who is his main caretaker. And she works full-time outside the home.
Please pray for my husband to find a part time job. He is 62 and lost his full time job 6 yrs ago and has been working part time at a retirement community since then. He was laid off two weeks ago. We are in debt and I pray he will find a job that will help us get out of debt. He is a man of great character, who serves God. We have had many blessings from God. Rose
ReplyDeletePlease pray for my husband to find a part time job. He is 62 and lost his full time job 6 yrs ago and has been working part time at a retirement community since then. He was laid off two weeks ago. We are in debt and I pray he will find a job that will help us get out of debt. He is a man of great character, who serves God. We have had many blessings from God. Rose
ReplyDeleteI am a fairly new reader...thank you for you blog and ministry! What a wonderful idea to have all these lovely ladies to pray for each other! Blessings to all of you today!
ReplyDeleteMy family has just moved to a new town 150 miles from home due to a new job for my husband. Praise God for the job and the right home! The stress from the move and limited finances has caused me to begin having panic attacks and extreme worry. I have not suffered from panic attacks in a number of years, and I do not want to travel that road again. I know God is much bigger than my worries, but I struggle to let it all go to Him. Please pray for me to be able to give God my worries so that I can fully experience the joy of this season!
Kristin, you are in my prayers. I pray that God will bless you with extra doses of grace and surround you with His love as you adjust to your new home. You are right...God is big enough to get us through anything.
ReplyDeleteMy prayer request is for my teenage daughter who is dealing with anxiety and depression. It all started with a best friend who turned on her and hurt her badly with some very ugly words. Her confidence is faltering and I recently found out that she has been cutting herself to deal with her emotional pain. God has put some amazing doctors and youth group leaders in her life, and I am just asking for prayers that He will use all of these people as well as my husband and I to help pull her out of the depths of her depression and continue to draw her heart closer to Him. I also just ask for prayers that He will surround her with his love and keep her safe as we try to help her heal.
It is a humbling reality check to hear, and feel the pain and stress of so many people and families. I pray for each of you that God will grant you peace and wisdom as you walk into, through, and out of each of these heartaches. Our earthly peace and wisdom is so limited and sometimes distorted by our humanness and past experiences. Sometimes it is so hard to trust God because of this. But we must push through these doubts because time and again God tells us in His Word that He will never leave us or forsake us. Hold on to those truths and move forward with confidence and determination to keep your eyes firmly fixed on Jesus. With that said could you please pray for my 22 year old daughter. She is so angry and confused. Her choices are leading her to self destruction and I don't know how to stop it. Please, God, hold onto her heart, mind and soul. Thank you.
ReplyDeletePlease pray for my family. I have been battling anxiety, fear and doubts. I constantly worry about my children's future. Please pray for my marriage and for God to help me to be a better wife, mother and friend.
ReplyDelete