Scripture and Prayer Focus for September 1, 2026

 September 1 -- John 6: 22-28 "On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, 'Rabbi, when did you come here?' Jesus answered them, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.' Then they said to him, 'What must we do, to be doing the works of God?'" 

Prayer focus for today:  Today's Scripture passage continues to build on the story. The people who were fed by Jesus' miracle with the five loaves and two fish want more. But they don't really know WHAT they want more of, and Jesus clearly points this out to them in His words. How often do we, today, waste time seeking after the things that look "good, nice, perfect, tantalizing, exciting, fun, ..." ? You name your adjective. In our human minds we convince ourselves we know what we want, and we let Satan distract us, often to the point of numbness towards the things of God. 

Pray today that the Father would open our hearts and minds to His truth and clarify our day's focus to be 'doing the works of God' by faithfully following Jesus. Pray that Christ would make it clear to you what it is that is distracting you and taking your focus off of the things of God. Pray openly with a willing heart and mind to let God the Father cleanse you and renew His purpose within you. 

Scripture and Prayer Focus for August 31, 2026

 August 31 -- John 6: 16-21 "When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. But he said to them, 'It is I; do not be afraid.' Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going."

Prayer focus for today:  As we end the first month in the book of John,  let us start our prayers today thanking God for His Word and the blessings of praying through these first chapters. Pray for each of us to better understand the Scriptures as we continue through this Gospel of Jesus which is PACKED with so much to learn. Pray for wisdom to be able to share these powerful stories with someone who doesn't know Jesus or who is a new believer. 

Scripture and Prayer Focus for August 30, 2026

August 30 -- John 6: 8-15 "One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, 'There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?' Jesus said, 'Have the people sit down.' Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, 'Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.' So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, 'This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!' Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself."

Prayer focus for today:  Anyone who has grown up with any connection to the Christian faith knows something of today's Scripture story. Typically entitled, 'Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand' or 'The Miracle Meal' or something similar, there have been countless songs, stories, and adaptations throughout recent time. If we look past the fact that hungry people were fed, we see a deeper significance in this story ... we see God keeping His word to ALWAYS meet our every need. To the human - thinking of the disciples, these people needed to go away and figure out a solution to their hunger problem on their own; there was NO WAY they could do anything to feed so many. But to the 'God thinking' Jesus, these people needed to just sit down and trust that the God who created them would meet every need they had ... not just physical hunger. 

Pray today for faith to just sit and trust Jesus to meet your every need. Set aside the worry, fear, doubt, and time being wasted trying to solve your own problems. Pray for strength to stay peace-filled despite the temptations Satan will send to try to stir you up into worry, being distracted by thoughts that NEVER were yours to have. Jesus has a perfect plan to meet every need - even I need to remember this today. Praying today we can all sit down and trust in Him alone. 

Scripture and Prayer Focus for August 29, 2026

 August 29 -- John 6: 1-7 "After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, 'Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?' He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him, 'Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.'"

Prayer focus for today: How many times have you worried whether or not your paycheck would meet all of your needs until the next check came in?  How many times have you  doubted you'd have enough money to feed your family and still be able to pay school fees?  Pray today for faith -- pure and simple trust in Jesus Christ alone.  He already knows what He will do to meet your every need. Pray today for the strength to trust in Him alone ... and not worry. 

Scripture and Prayer Focus for August 28, 2026

 August 28 -- John 5: 37-47 "And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. I do not receive glory from people. But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. I have come in my Father's name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?'"

Prayer focus for today:  Today's scriptures highlight an important human characteristic that wasn't just a battle in Jesus' time -- it's still a battle we all face today. How often do we have something that is TRUE placed before us, yet we do not believe, because it doesn't align with something else we believe. How often do we have something FALSE placed before us, and we quickly believe it because it makes sense with something else we've read / heard or it's simply "fantastic news" that we want to share, thinking it will make us look like we're really smart?  We all fall into these categories at some time or another because -- well, we're human. Jesus was laying the truth down without any hidden agendas. He even addressed the unbelief. Today, Jesus is addressing us the same way.

Pray today for eyes and minds to be laser-focused on Jesus and the Word of God. Pray that we would each be drawn into truth, and not distracted by spending hours on social media reading things that don't matter. Pray for true healing in homes that need to be cleansed of these practices -- that we would all believe and spend our time on things that truly matter. 

Scripture and Prayer Focus for August 27, 2026

 August 27 -- John 5: 30-36 "'I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me. If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me.'"

Prayer focus for today: In today's Scriptures, Jesus is restating that John was simply a messenger to tell of the truth of Jesus and point people to Him alone. Pray today that we would all point others to Jesus, and not try to bring attention or glory to ourselves. Pray for humility to see the truth of Jesus and live it out before others. Pray that we would all be faithful to do the 'works' that the Father has given us to accomplish -- for only in this will we live out the potential for which we were each created. 

Scripture and Prayer Focus for August 26, 2026

 August 26 -- John 5: 22-29 "'For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Fahter. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.' 'Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.'"

Prayer focus for today:  Have you ever left one of your children in charge of the others while you went away for a short time?  Perhaps YOU were that sibling who was left in charge of the others or perhaps YOU were one of the children placed under the authority of your older sibling. Whatever the case, that authority came from a higher authority.

In today's Scriptures, we see Jesus (fully God and fully man; God the Son) describing the authority given to Him by His Father (God the Father). (We won't get into a deep discussion about the Trinity today, but just know it's there!)  Being fully God, Jesus spoke the truth in everything. He didn't always speak where everyone understood perfect all that He said, but He did speak truth. Today, let's each spend time in prayer asking for forgiveness for all the times we have failed to submit fully to God's authority over our lives. Follow that with a time of prayer asking God to show you areas where you still need to submit fully to His authority -- that you may live a more full life. Lastly, let's all pray for a more clear understanding of exactly who Jesus is and what it means to follow Him. Even if you've been a Christian since you were a young child, asking God to help you see more clearly who He is and what He wants you to do is crucial in living a more full life for Him!  Praying with you and for you every day!  We love you all.