Dear brothers & sisters in Jesus,
I am praying for you today and thanking God for your steadfast prayer and support. It is a wonderful gift to have you as friends, co-laborers, and family in the Lord. The team and I often talk about how amazed we are at the way that God continues to bless us with people like you to pray alongside us. Your prayers are a huge, huge encouragement to us, and I know that God in His good providence is using your prayers to bring honour to Jesus in Merkinch. Thank you for your steadfast partnership in the Gospel! I am specifically praying the words of Philippians 1:9-11 for you today: “And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”
Ways You Can Pray:
The scheme has been pretty quiet this week. Yesterday I barely saw anyone out on the streets…partly because something was going down in the flats behind my house but also partly because of the lockdown which we pray fervently will be lifted in the Lord’s good timing.
One person I have seen a few times this week, however, is Boni*. Would you pray for her this week? Boni is kind of an iconic person around the scheme. She spends a lot of time on the main street by the bus stop or the post office, and she knows just about everybody’s name. It’s always cheering to me to hear her call out “Hiya Claire!” I’m praying Acts 16:14 for her today…“Lord, please open her heart so that she may believe the Gospel.”
Please pray, too, for our brothers and sisters labouring with 20schemes. This has been a really tough season of ministry, and I know that many of us feel the weariness. 20schemes just released this new music video today with the voices of many of us from the 20schemes churches. I pray that it will be an encouragement to you, as well, as we preach these truths to ourselves. And this video is a wonderful view into everyday life in a scheme; I am so excited that you will be able to see a glimpse into the areas for which I have such love.
Strong in Thy strength, safe in Thy keeping tender,
Claire
*Name changed for safety
Claire in Scotland 