15 days of prayer from the PVBC Community Group; Originally posted from February 14th, 2024 through February 28th.

Day One - February 14th – Valentine’s Day – Theme: Sacrifice Prayer scripture:

“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” – John 15:13
Take some time today to pray for the relationships that you have around you. Your spouse, your kids, your grandkids, your neighbors, your colleagues at work, your classmates at school, your friends and those who you are in a difficult time in relationship with currently. Make a list to pray for them over the next 15 days and show sacrificial love toward them as Christ has shown us.

Day Two - February 15th – Theme: Faith Prayer Scripture –

“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.” – Jeremiah 33:3
How big or small is your faith today? Is there something that you are trusting God for that if it happens, only God could do it? Claim this promise from the prophet Jeremiah today and stay persistent in prayer. God will show you great and mighty things (KJV says mighty things) in His time and in His way.

Day Three - February 16th – Theme: Experiencing God Prayer Scripture –

“I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.” Ephesians 1:17 (NIV)
We grow in love in our relationship with our spouse, with our children, with our friends and people in the church family. How much time are we focusing on knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ more? We are in an eternal relationship with our Heavenly Father and as we obey Him and experience His working in our lives, we grow deeper in our relationship with Him and we understand Him more. What will you do today to develop a deeper and richer relationship with the Lord? Take some time to go beyond reading scripture and meditate on how far God has brought you in your relationship with Him.

Day Four - February 17th – Theme: Humility in serving Prayer Scripture –

“Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart.” – 2 Corinthians 4:1
This is a very interesting verse. The first clause in the verse talks about ministry given to Paul and us by God. Ministry is the Greek word used for deacon / servant. In this passage, the word servant gives us a word picture of a galley slave on a large ship and this servant is chained to other servants and the bench he sits on, down in the fourth level of the ship to be one of the rowers of the boat. The word minister means the servant executes the commands given to him. Do we see ourselves as humble galley slaves, saved by the mercy of God and available for His use? How can you focus on the mercy of God in your life and stay encouraged as you serve Him without losing heart today?

Day Five - February 18th – Theme: Sharing the Light of Christ Prayer Scripture –

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us” – 2 Corinthians 4:7
As you pray today, focus on the treasure that you possess (The Holy Spirit) that lives in you to reflect the light of Christ to others. Thank God for the privilege to have the resurrection power of Christ within us, to change us, to make us more like Christ and by our actions show the world a glimpse of the Savior. Reflect on the privilege and responsibility we are given to reveal the treasure of the Gospel by word and deed today. Who can you show / share the love of Christ with today?

Day Six - February 19th – Theme: Repentance Prayer Scripture –

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin! 3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. 4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.” – Psalm 51:1 -4
Today, let’s get down to the root of our sin and who is responsible for it. David was heartbroken over the loss of his son because of his sin, came to the end of himself and confessed in humility that he sinned against God and God alone. Take some time today to reflect on your sin and what God says about it. Remember that it took the very Son of God to die on the cross in our place to pay for our sin, our sin of a lifetime. As you reflect on your sin, own it, confess your sins individually as prompted by the Holy Spirit, turn away from them and receive with joy God’s forgiveness today.

Day Seven - February 20th – Theme: Treasure in Heaven Prayer Scripture –

“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. 36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? 37 For what can a man give in return for his soul?” – Mark 8:34 – 37
What is more important to us than following the ways of God? What causes us to sell out at times, to follow an idol or stray off the path of righteousness, only to find it, it wasn’t worth it after all. Today think about how you invest your time, talent and treasures. Are they leading to eternal rewards in heaven where moth and rust cannot destroy it or are you so earthly minded you are not any heavenly good. In these verses, Christ asks good questions for us to meditate on to understand the passions and desires of our heart. I hope and trust you can give God your heart, a heart to follow and serve Him today. How would you evaluate the depth of commitment you have for the Lord today?

Day Eight - February 21st – Theme: Avoiding Idols Prayer Scripture -

“Little children, keep yourselves from idols” - I John 5:21
John Calvin wrote in his famous work The Institutes of Christian Religion, “‘The human heart is a perpetual idol factory.” Why is that we as human beings are so easily drawn to things that are good but are not the best for us? Today, take some time to exam your heart, exam your time commitments, exam your checkbook and see where your heart spends the most time. It has been said that anything that is more important or comes between your relationship with God is an idol. Idols that we worship today are not necessarily objects of worship created by man but could be our hobbies, materialism, overuse of time spent on screens, a relationship, etc. Renounce any idols that are creeping in to your life today in prayer.

Day Nine – February 22nd – Theme: The Power of the Word Prayer Scripture –

“16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” – Romans 1:16 - 17
Let’s reflect today on the power of the Word of God and how it can transform our lives. The word power in verse 16 is the word we see in Greek that we get our word dynamite. We all know and have seen the explosive power of dynamite. Alfred Nobel invented dynamite. He saw it being abused by people and he thought he did not want to go to his grave with his obituary reading that he was the inventor of dynamite that killed many and caused destruction. So Alfred Nobel created a foundation to award Nobel prizes for different disciplines of innovation and creativity. We know him today for his philanthropic attitude in honoring those yearly for success in different fields of work and study. He transformed the way people would remember him. The power of the Gospel found in God’s Word brings people to salvation. The power of the Word of God provides the resurrection power of Christ indwelling us with the Holy Spirit to live a righteousness life we could not do before salvation. Reflect in prayer today about the power of the Word of God and how that power is changing you even today.

Day Ten – February 23rd – Theme: Honoring the name Christian Prayer Scripture –

“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called,” – Ephesians 4:1
In Acts 11:26, the believers in Jesus Christ who were known as followers of the Way or followers of the Nazarene were first officially called “Christians,” at Antioch. When we read this, we don’t immediately understand that this name “Christian” was meant to be a derogatory name, a name of shame, especially for Jews who had trusted Christ as Savior. Paul is challenging us here in Ephesians 4:1, by urging us to live up to the name we are called, Christian which means “little Christ” Our actions and attitudes are on full display each day to a watching world to see if we walk the talk. Reflect today on how well you live out your faith in a consistent manner before your co-workers, your spouse and kids, your extended family, your classmates, your teammates on a sports team, or where you have sphere of influence. If they were to put you on trial and ask if you are a Christian, would they have enough evidence to prove that you were a Christian?

Day Eleven – February 24th – Theme: Thanksgiving Prayer Scripture –

“Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! - Psalm 100: 4
There is a sign in my office that I see every morning that reminds me “Start each day with a Grateful Heart.” When we approach our circumstances and possessions that we are stewards of with thanksgiving, it brings our heart into a place of proper perspective. Take some time to simply look around the room you are sitting in and begin to thank God for each and every item and how God has provided these useful and beautiful things for you. Come to God today with a heart of thanksgiving and you will be encouraged throughout your day today.

Day Twelve: - February 25th – Theme: Keeping a level head Prayer Scripture –

“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” - Romans 12:12
One of my often-used tools on my workbench is the level. It is a simple tool and extremely accurate. The goal is to put it on the shelf or whatever you are trying to balance and make adjustments to it as you look at the level until the bubble in the glass tube of the level is dead center. When you achieve that, you mark the wall and drill the holes to attach the shelf properly. If we rely on simple “eyeballing it” to see if it is level, we can be sadly mistaken after the installation. These verses keep me level headed. Don’t get too high or too low, stay constant and consistent in our focus upon the sovereign God who is the engineer of all circumstances and ruler over the nations. Take some time today to find some things to rejoice about, some things to pray about as you are patient in tribulation. This will keep your heart and mind on God’s perspective and not just the horizontal perspective of the here and now that is fickle and changes quickly.

Day Thirteen – February 26th – Theme: Seated in Heaven Prayer Scripture –

“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” – Colossians 3:1 – 2
I often think that we forget, at least I do, of positionally, where I am in Christ. We are justified by faith, we are heirs with Christ, but these verses talk about how we are already seated in the heavenly realms. How would we live today if we knew that we were as good as in heaven with Christ right now? How at peace and confident would we be. How minimal the difficulties of this life would seem. We need to be constantly reminded that this world is not our home but we are merely passing through. We are fortunate that at times we get a little taste of the joy of heaven and a few glimpses here on earth what heaven currently like and more. Meditate on turning your eyes to Jesus. Look full into His wonderful face and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glorious grace. Slow down and see that you have been raised with Christ!!

Day Fourteen – February 27th – Theme: Grace in God’s Revelation to Us Prayer Scripture –

“According to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ” – Ephesians 1:6b – 9
God is bountiful and abundant in grace. We stand and live in the grace (Romans 5:2). God lavishly floods our lives with His grace so He can give us wisdom and insight in how to follow His will. God wants His will to be known in each of our lives. By reading and obeying His scriptures daily, He will lead us. He has a grander plan in our lives than we can imagine. Today, ask God to show you His will in one area of your life. Maybe it has to do with something you have been struggling with. Maybe it has to do with a relationship, to seek out a new job, or to move, etc. God in His lavish grace wants to meet you where you are today, provide everything you will need throughout the day and continue to show you that way to go, His will. May we stay focused on God today and allow Him to show you His will instead of running ahead of God with our plans and then hope God will bless them. Seek the relationship with Him and not what God can do for you.

Day Fifteen – February 28th – Theme: The Benefits of our Salvation Prayer Scripture –

“How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard.” – Hebrews 12:3
We conclude these fifteen days of prayer with thoughts about our salvation. We must never forget or neglect our salvation. First, salvation begins when we cross the line of faith and accept Christ as Savior and it doesn’t stop there but we are working out our salvation (Philippians 2:10 – 11) and we are continually being saved from our sin. The culmination of our salvation is when our faith becomes sight and we see Jesus’ face to face. Second, we should focus, be thankful and utilize all the benefits that come our way when we were born again. Take time today to think about all the benefits of this great salvation and how far you have come in your faith journey since you accepted Christ as your Savior.