Scripture and Prayer Focus for September 11, 2026

 September 11 -- John 7: 21-27 "Jesus answered them, 'I did one work, and you all marvel at it. Moses gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fahters), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because on the Sabbath I made a man's whole body well? Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.' Some of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, 'Is not this the man whom they seek to kill? And here he is, speaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Christ? But we know where this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, no one will know where he comes from.'"

Prayer focus for today: Double-standards are something we all seem fine living out, yet can't STAND seeing in other people. Jesus was quick to point this out, and it ruffled feathers, to say the least. Pray today for a strong mind and heart to tackle the double-standards you allow in your life. Pray for eyes wide open to see the truth of following Jesus's ways, and let go of the rest. Pray for opportunities to reconcile with those whom you may have offended through the double-standards you allow in your life.

Scripture and Prayer Focus for September 10, 2026

 September 10 -- John 7: 14-20 "About the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and began teaching. The Jews therefore marveled, saying, 'How is it that this man has learning, when he has never studied?' So Jesus answered them, 'My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority. The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood. Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why do you seek to kill me?' The crowd answered, 'You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you?'"

Prayer focus for today: How many times have you heard someone speak and it becomes evident that they are just speaking so you will marvel at their knowledge?  Sadly, today there are even pastors, just as there were religious leaders in Jesus' day, who speak to try to bring glory to themselves, rather than simply be used of God to speak His truth ... that HE may be glorified. Pray today that we would all be humbled to speak ONLY for Jesus. Pray for wisdom, discernment, and humility to know Him more clearly and speak His truth in love, as Scripture commands. Pray that we would each take time to not just speak words in prayer, but truly sit and wait on Jesus ... listen to His voice ... don't rush on after YOU speak and miss the most important voice of all. 

Scripture and Prayer Focus for September 9, 2026

 September 9 -- John 7: 8-13 "'You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.' After saying this, he remained in Galilee. But after his brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly but in private. The Jews were looking for him at the feast, and saying, 'Where is he?' And there was much muttering about him among the people. While some said, 'He is a good man.' others said, 'No, he is leading the people astray.' Yet for fear of the Jews no one spoke openly of him."

Prayer focus for today:  How often have you allowed the people around you or situations you are in to dictate how you respond in a situation?   We all speak more openly with "like-minded people" than with those in authority over us. We form our thoughts and opinions and often do not speak them out if we have any fear of ramifications from someone who might hear.  The people who were seeing Jesus and hearing about all He had done had formed opinions, yet were afraid to speak out because they feared the Jewish leadership. 

Pray today for wisdom to know when to speak and when to be still and let God work. Pray for confident discernment to speak the truth about what Jesus has done in your life -- YOU could be the reason someone accepts Jesus today!  Pray for those trapped in situations where they cannot speak the truth about Christ -- that the word may still go out to those around them and lives changed for eternity.

Scripture and Prayer Focus for September 8, 2026

 September 8 -- John 7: 1-7 "After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him. Now the Jews' Feast of Booths was at hand. So his brothers said to him, 'Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.' For not even his brothers believed in him. Jesus said to them, 'My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil.'"

Prayer focus for today: Once again, Jesus clearly explains his mission ... and that of his followers, yet they didn't understand exactly what He was meaning with His words. Today, we're often the same. We read the Bible, we say we believe (and actually believe we believe), yet we want Jesus to act in accordance with what we THINK and KNOW. We tell Him to "do this" or "do that", often forgetting to simply ask Him to do what HE wants done and use us however He sees fit.  We expect Jesus to fix problems we brought on ourselves, when He just wanted us to obey Him in the first place. Just as Jesus said in verse 6 ... 'your time is always here', we each need to be about testifying about all Jesus has done and can do, according to His word and what we have witnessed, yet trusting Him with all the details. 

Pray today for faith to simply let Christ lead out. Pray for faith to follow right now and trust Him to fill in the details as the plan unfolds. 

Scripture and Prayer Focus for September 7, 2026

 September 7 -- John 6: 65-71 "And he said, 'This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.' After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So Jesus said to the twelve, 'Do you want to go away as well?' Simon Peter answered him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have beleived, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.' Jesus answered them, 'Did I not choose you, the twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.' He spoke of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray him." 

Prayer focus for today: Pray today for discernment to know who you follow and why. We are have so many choices to make today; pray for wisdom to make the right choice in the things that matter. Pray for true understanding of God's Word and courage to choose Christ NO MATTER WHAT. Satan will try to pull you away little by little through the choices you make ... pray we will all choose Christ and nothing less. If you or someone you know is struggling in this area, pray for wisdom, courage, and strength to resist the temptation to turn away from Jesus and know with all confidence that HE is the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE. 

Scripture and Prayer Focus for September 6, 2026

 September 6 -- John 6: 58-64  "'This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.' Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as he taught at Capernaum. When many of his disciples heard it, they said, 'This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?' But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, 'Do you take offense at this? Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe.' (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not belive, and who it was who would betray him.)"

Prayer focus for today: When we were young, we never liked being around the kid who was  "know-it-all". They were annoying and overbearing. However, Jesus is one know-it-all who can wear that title proudly!  While sometimes we do get annoyed at all He knows, deep down, we know it is the truth!  If we say we believe in Jesus, but still believe there are things in our lives we are hiding from Him, we are just listening to the lies of Satan who helps us to fool ourselves. 

Pray today for Jesus to be KING in your life. He already knows ALL and knows every aspect of YOU better than you know yourself. Pray for healing for the areas of your life you keep bottled up - thinking NO ONE knows. He knows, He forgives, He cares, and He wants you to trust Him to heal. And lastly, pray today that you will be willing to allow Jesus to be the voice of truth THROUGH you. Until you listen to King Knows It All ... you haven't found true freedom. Let others hear about Him and see Him through you.

Scripture and Prayer Focus for September 5, 2026

 September 5 -- John 6: 50-57 "'This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.'  The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, 'How can this man give us his flesh to eat?' So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.  As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me.'"

Prayer focus for today:  These verses are some that often turn people away from Christianity, because they are looking at the literal words Jesus said instead of looking at all the ways/times He used parables to teach. Jesus is talking about himself as food and drink, knowing that this is what we humans know as essential for life. Jesus is NOT suggesting we take up a cannibalistic life. He is teaching that HE is all we need to survive. HE is to be our sustenance when we can't go on. HE is to be our life-giving all-in-all. 

Pray today for a mind to understand the Bible the way God intended it. Pray for wisdom and time to study the original text (even Google can help with that); even a brief tidbit can open our understanding in great ways. Pray that Christ will give you the words to say to help someone who has misunderstood Scripture see clearly today and choose to follow Christ alone.