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We want to remember that God is the originator and he is the perfecter of your faith and my faith.
And in doing that, we want to fix our eyes on Jesus, that author and perfecter of our faith.
And one of the ways that you and I do that is we spend time in prayer.
We spend time talking to God, just like I'm talking with you this morning.
Prayer is nothing that's got a little bit of dust sprinkled on or anything like that.
Prayer is just simply you and I having a conversation with God, seeking what God's desire is for
our life, sharing with God what's on our heart and our mind, going before God with the burdens
not only of our lives, but maybe of our family or of our friends or our neighbors, just simply
spending time with the Lord in conversation.
That's what we call prayer.
And so this morning, that's what we want to do.
We want to fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.
This morning, we have the privilege as your church staff to guide you through this prayer
time.
And each of us will take a specific point in your prayer guide and walk you through that
time of prayer.
We'll read a verse of scripture.
Then we'll share with you what to pray for.
Then we'll give you time to pray over that item.
And then each of us will close our time in prayer.
So many of you, if you don't know me, my name is David Allen, and my ministry focus here
at Willow Ridge Church is adult ministry.
And so I have the privilege and the honor to guide our adults through the various aspects
of ministry.
And so I'd like for you and I together this morning to pray for our church.
In Philippians 1, verses 9 through 11, we read these words.
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.
So in the first that we're going to pray for, we're going to pray for our church's leadership
and staff, our elders, our trustees, our small group leaders, our volunteers, and our staff,
that we will continue to seek the Lord's guidance as we come into 2026.
So would you pray that prayer at this moment?
Thank you.
Now I want to encourage you to pray for the engagement within the body.
How are you connecting with the body of Christ at Willow Ridge Church?
Is it in a small group?
Is it serving?
Is it meeting somebody new?
Let's spend this time now asking God to guide us in the engagement that we have with the body
of Christ.
Let's pray for the rest.
Now let's pray for our church's commitment and the desire for prayer in 2026.
That we as a church grow in our prayer life.
That we grow in our prayer for one another.
That we grow in our prayer for the ministries of Willow Ridge Church.
That we grow in our time of praying over our church family and where God would have us.
Let's also pray that God would increase the depth of your prayers and my prayers as we spend time with him.
Thank you.
Lord, thank you so much for the bride, your church.
Lord, you have put people together to come to worship, to come and grow in their faith,
to come and grow in their knowledge and understanding of who you are,
to give us opportunities to serve one another.
And again, Lord, you call that your church.
Thank you for loving us so much that you designed the body of Christ to come together, Lord.
As a church, Lord, we pray that as we enter in 2026,
that you would just do things in our lives that we've not seen you do before.
Lord, we pray that you will do things in the life of Willow Ridge Church that we have not seen you do before.
Lord, that you would make us the light on top of the hill in our community.
Father, stretch us.
Lord, grow us.
Help us to come together as your body, serving here in our community,
serving where you desire for us to serve.
Lord, we love you and we thank you.
And we ask this prayer in your name.
Amen.
Good morning, Willow Ridge.
For those of you who don't know me, my name is Dawn Coulter, and I am the children's minister here.
It is an honor and a privilege to help invest in your kids here.
As 2026 approaches, we want to focus on praying for our families, seeking God's blessings,
guidance, favor, and protection in this year.
Our prayer life is not limited to early morning hours, quiet moments, or big life events.
At any time, in any place, we can freely come to God's throne of grace with our family's needs.
First, we are going to pray for our marriages.
Genesis 2, 24 tells us,
Therefore, a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
We want to spend time in prayer for our marriages, to be strengthened in the love of God.
How can you live out true commitment and service to each other?
Pray for your own heart to become more Christ-like, asking God for guidance to love sacrificially and reflect his unconditional love to your spouse.
Pray for unity within your home, for a deeper connection, to grow closer spiritually and emotionally.
And maybe for some, it's a prayer for your spouse's salvation and spiritual growth.
Let's take a moment to bow our heads and quietly pray.
Next, we want to pray for our children, that they may grow spiritually as they are raised in godly homes.
Psalm 127, 3-5
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth.
Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them.
He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.
Pray for their spiritual growth, as well as physical and emotional well-being, their protection and guidance.
Pray for wisdom, patience, and homes that reflect God's love through a strong biblical foundation
and are filled with peace, laughter, and encouragement.
Or maybe it's a prayer for an older child that has strayed from their faith.
Ask God to soften their hearts and draw them back to him.
Would you go before the Lord in prayer?
Last, we are going to pray for spiritual priorities in 2026.
That our families would make Jesus their highest priority.
What steps do you need to take to grow in your faith this year?
Romans 12:2
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is.
His good, pleasing, and perfect will.
Here are some areas that you can consider praying over as you discern what God is asking of you.
If you are not serving within the body of the church, would you consider serving in a ministry using your talents and gifts God has given you?
Maybe it's being intentional to prioritize daily personal or family devotions.
Or for some, it might be the step of faith to begin giving financially to the church.
What is it that God is asking of you to do or change this next year to make Him your highest priority?
Let's enter a time of prayer and ask God to show and reveal this to you.
What is it that God is asking of you?
Lord, as 2025 comes to a close, we thank you for this past year.
Regardless of what this year has held, you have brought each of us here today.
Thank you for a new year, for new beginnings, and for your faithfulness.
We pray for restoration and renewal in every area of our lives.
You know the weight, trials, and blessings that we have carried in 2025.
And as we enter into 2026, will your favor go before us?
We lift up our marriages to you.
May our homes be filled with love, unity, and your presence.
Strengthen and protect our marriages.
Help us to become more Christ-like in our relationships.
We pray for our children, for your wisdom and guidance in our role as parents.
Give us the patience, love, and understanding needed to raise our children in a way that honors you.
Give us discernment to make decisions that are in their best interest.
And surround our children with your protection and draw them close to you.
May our parenting reflect your mercy and grace.
And as our children grow, may they desire to know and love you more.
Thank you for the precious gift of our children.
Lord, I pray that you will remove the things that hinder our connection with you.
And fill us with a hunger for more of you.
I pray for a renewed sense of spiritual priorities that you will help us to grow in our faith.
May we be reminded that true hope can be found nowhere else but in you.
Give us a sense of urgency to live with purpose and focus on what matters most this coming year.
In your holy and precious name I pray.
Amen.
Good morning, church.
I'm Joel Van Ham.
I'm your pastor of business, finance, and let's be honest, the best students in the world.
This morning I am excited to lead us in prayer as a congregation for evangelism.
Scripture tells us in 1 Peter 3:15,
"But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for the reason of hope that you have in you.
Yet do it with gentleness and respect."
Evangelism is our response to God's command to go and tell.
We are called to spread the gospel.
The good news.
That Jesus came.
That he lived a sin-free life.
That he died for our sins.
That he rose again.
And that he's coming back for those who believe in him.
So how do we pray for evangelism?
We, as believers, know the story of truth and we've accepted it.
Our next step is to share it.
But that's not always easy.
For some of us, sharing our faith is difficult.
For some of us, just talking to somebody is difficult.
Some of us don't know the right words to say or when to say them.
So we pray.
But before we think about how and who to share the gospel with, we must pray for a desire in our own hearts to share with others.
Our first prayer is that God will give us the heart for evangelism.
The heart to share what we know.
I have no doubt that every believer in here knows about Jesus because someone else was willing to share with them.
Maybe it was a Sunday school teacher.
Maybe it was your mom or your dad, a grandma or a co-worker.
Someone told you about the love of Jesus and you accepted it.
They did it because they care about you.
Like we care for others.
Paul in Romans 10:15 reminds us of Isaiah the prophet's statement saying this.
And how can anyone preach unless they are sent?
As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news.
Church, we are the sent that he's talking about.
God, you and I are sent into a world that needs the message of hope.
For our first prayer, we're going to pray in our hearts that God will give us the desire or the want to tell others about Jesus, to offer them his salvation, that the Lord will give us courage and strength to start the conversation.
So we're going to pray for desire, courage, and strength to share the gospel.
Let's pray.
As we heed the calling to obey God in sharing the gospel, we must also pray for those who are going to receive it.
Each of us has a sphere or an area of influence in our life.
For some of us, it's our workplace.
For some of us, it's our school.
For some of it, it's chat groups, sports teams, gaming groups, business meetings, hunting clubs.
Wherever it is, God has prepared a place for you to share.
We must not discount our influence that we have on other people.
So next, we are going to pray for those that God has allowed to be in our lives that don't yet know him.
John 16:8 tells us that the Holy Spirit is preparing the hearts of non-believers to hear the gospel.
We believe that.
It says, "And he, when he comes, will convict the world regarding sin and righteousness and judgment."
Next church, we're going to pray for the hearts of the non-believers in our lives.
As the Holy Spirit will prepare their hearts to hear what God has laid on our hearts to share with them.
That not only can we be bold to share that with those that don't know, but they will be open to hear the good news.
So let's pray now for the hearts of the unbelievers in our lives.
Let's pray now for the hearts of the unbelievers.
Let's pray now for the hearts of unbelievers.
Finally, when Jesus is about to send out his disciples into the world,
he explains the need for the disciples to share,
but he also explains the need for non-believers to hear it.
We read in Luke chapter 10 verse 2, Jesus says,
The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.
Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out the workers into the harvest field.
We all know the statistics about this world.
More and more people are deciding to follow themselves or their own selfish desires
and no longer follow Jesus.
They are our harvest.
We have prayed that God will give us strength to open our mouths.
We have prayed that the Holy Spirit will prepare their hearts
and give us the opportunity to reach.
Now we're going to pray that God will bring specific people into our minds
in our sphere of influence that God would have us share the gospel with.
Let's pray that God will open our eyes to those we are to speak to preparing us.
Let's pray.
Lord, it might be difficult, scary, or uncomfortable.
For some of us to share the gospel, you know our hearts, so you know that's true.
But it is so worth it, Lord.
Let us remember, Lord, what we are sharing.
Lord, it might be difficult, scary, or uncomfortable for some of us to share the gospel.
You know our hearts, so you know that's true.
But it is so worth it, Lord.
Let us remember, Lord, what we are sharing.
A life on this earth with Jesus, who loves us, cares for us, wants what's best for us.
But, Lord, it's so much more than that because it doesn't end when we pass.
Lord, your gospel promises us eternal salvation, a knowledge of what happens to us when we die.
The glorious promise of heaven.
God, we are so thankful the promise that you have given us, your son, Jesus' death on the cross for our sins.
His resurrection and the promise that he will return.
We are so grateful we have received this promise, Lord, but don't let this be the end for us.
What you have done for us, let us be bold to share that with others.
Even if it's a little uncomfortable.
Lord, prepare us to speak.
Prepare those who will hear.
Show us the opportunity.
And let us know who to share it with.
Lord, the harvest is plentiful.
Let us be the workers you have called us to be.
Amen.
Good morning.
My name is Josh Nix.
I lead our young adult ministry here at Willow Ridge Church.
I've got a wife, Kim, and three kids.
It's kind of cool to sit here and pray over the different areas of ministry in our church.
I look at the table that's got my wife and kids at it, and I just think of how each and every ministry is just filled each and every cup that sits at that table.
So it's cool to sit here this morning and do this.
You know, moving into a new year, we often find ourselves making new commitments, right?
Resolutions, if you will.
Things that will make us better versions of ourselves.
And so as we enter into a season where we often set goals and expectations for the year to come,
my prayer for our church is that the word "discipleship" would be on the forefront of our minds.
Not just a word that we associate with the 9 o'clock hour here on Sunday mornings.
Not just something that we show up to with hopes that it would pertain to our lives as believers.
So this morning, my time with you will be spent praying over discipleship within our church and how that impacts each and every one of us.
In Psalm 119:105, it says, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light unto my path."
So first this morning, I'd like for us to pray that God would give you and I a heart of passion for his word.
A passion that leads us to want to gain more from our time in his word.
A passion that leads us, not just for more understanding, but a passion that leads us to invite accountability into our lives when it comes to his word.
What would discipleship in my life and in your life look like if I and you took time to better understand his word?
So if you would take a moment with me and pray that God would give you a passion in 2026 for his word.
So if you would take a moment with me and pray that God would give you a passion for your life.
In Proverbs chapter 3 it says trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
And this morning as we take time to pray about discipleship.
Let's also take a moment and pray that God would give you and I a heart of obedience.
Obedience and trust in him and in the plans and the purpose that he has for us.
And last but certainly not least I'd like for us to pray that God would give you and I opportunities to disciple one another.
In 2 Timothy chapter 2 it says you then my child be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust the faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
You see one of the greatest beauties in discipleship is that God uses us right.
He uses us as individuals to participate in the discipleship of our friends and our family members and other believers in our lives.
He uses us in the discipleship of our kids, our co-workers, just anybody we come into contact with that's a believer.
Would you take a moment with me and pray that God would give you and I opportunities to disciple others.
Thank you.
God, I thank you for 2025.
And God, as we look into 2026 and in the anticipation of all that you have for us,
Lord, I pray that discipleship would be on the forefront of our minds.
God, give us a passion.
To know you and your word.
God, surround us with believers that are passionate about it as well.
And I pray that we would seek to hold one another accountable when it comes to our growth and knowledge of you and your word.
Lord, give us a heart of obedience and trust in you.
Help us trust your ways and your plans.
Help us trust that they have no rival.
God, I pray that whatever plans and positions we are holding on to, I pray that we would surrender it to you and your will.
God, I pray that you would open our eyes and our hearts to see those that we can pour into.
Give us opportunities to disciple others.
And when those moments come, help us be ready.
God, I pray that discipleship would not just be a fancy word on some signage, but it would speak to our desire as believers to help unbelievers.
That it would speak to our desire to help other believers.
And it would speak to our desire to grow from the help of the community that is the church.
God, let 2026 be a year that doesn't just grow us in number.
It doesn't just grow us in programs.
But let it be a year that grows us in closeness to you.
And let that fruit be evident in our discipleship.
In your name I pray.
Amen.
Thank you, buddy.
Good morning.
I want to thank you guys for coming out and for being with us this morning.
It's been amazing what God has done in this service.
I'm standing over here praying with my wife and was just thinking through several years ago before this.
This was the lowest attended Sunday in our church.
Less than 100 people usually on the Sunday after Christmas.
And then to gather together and to pray and to fellowship and what God has done and what God has set in our hearts each year and how to pray.
I want to encourage you, if prayer is something that you're constantly, you know you should do it, but you wonder how, what you should do, put this in your Bible.
A great reminder of the different things that you can pray for with biblical examples to kind of walk you through and then commit to praying through this over the course of this upcoming year.
I want to close this time in prayer.
I've got a few things I want to say afterwards, but I do want to talk for us to pray for our missions that we partner with.
God has given us the wonderful blessing not to just partner with missionaries, but to go and work alongside them, to support them financially, and to pray for them.
Jesus, in the heart of the gospel in Matthew 28 and 19 through 20, says,
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I've commanded you.
And God has allowed us unique opportunities at our church to be a part of that, not just here in our community and in our neighborhoods, but across our country and across this world.
I often think about our missionaries and are reminded of the apostle Paul where he writes in Romans 10, starting in verse 14.
How then will they call on him and who they have not believed, and how are they to believe in him of whom they have not heard, and how are they to hear without someone preaching, and how are they to preach unless they are sent?
As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news.
And we as a church partner with those people who are sent to go, and so we want to pray for them now.
Would you join me in prayer first as we pray for our missionaries, many of them in areas of great difficulty, and who are currently experiencing persecution and suffering.
Would you pray for our missionaries that they would endure through these difficult times?
Thank you.
While all of our missionaries trust on the power of God to provide and to enable the work they are doing, they also need support.
They need support from churches to come alongside and support them hand-in-hand and arm-in-arm in ministry.
They also need financial support to be able to pay their bills and provide for their family, to put away for retirement, and to fund the ministries that they do.
So during this time, we want to pray for our missionaries.
We'll get the community of fellowship support, but also financial support as they need.
Thank you.
And lastly,
whether it's New York City,
Jaipur, India,
different islands in the Philippines,
Black Mountain, North Carolina,
Salt Lake City, Utah,
Lexington, South Carolina,
or downtown Columbia.
There are people who need to hear the gospel
and pray that our missionaries
would have ample opportunities
to share the gospel
where God has placed them.
Amen.
Lord, we thank you for each and every one of our missionaries.
We thank you for the sacrifice that they've made.
We thank you for their faith in you.
We thank you for their boldness to go.
And God, what a privilege and honor it is to be their partner, to be their friend, to be their co-laborer in Christ.
God, may you continue to work and move in them and amongst them, in their marriages, in their families, in their ministries, where you have called them and placed them.
Lord, where there is fear, give them courage.
Where there is worry, give them confidence.
Where there is frustration, give them peace.
And may you be glorified in all that is done.
And it's in Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.
Well, I promise in just a moment you guys will be dismissed.
Thank you guys for being here.
But I do have a couple of things.
But as we're out here this morning cooking and talking and fellowship, God just laid on my heart.
And I want to be able to share with you guys.
A word that we've been using as your church staff lately in how we function and operate with one another.
And as we look to this upcoming year, as God continues to give us this word, engage, engage, engage.
Both engagement into the world that he's called us to go and to share and to serve.
But also engagement into one another's lives as a community, as a body of believers.
To not just know one another, but to continue to grow, to engage in service and sacrifice, in fellowship, in community, and in discipleship, and in prayer with one another.
And so we've set that as a goal for us as a church staff.
To dig deeper into relationships with one another, but also with you.
One of the things, one of the areas that we look the most forward to doing, I want to share this with you in 2026, is we pray for you constantly and continually.
We pray for requests that we know.
We pray for requests that we don't know.
But one of the things that God has set on our heart to do is to be more intentional and engaging in prayer with him for you.
And so you guys know we've been passing out the cards to get your information to make sure that we have an updated database so that we can reach out and contact you.
And here's what you'll begin to see in January of 2026.
That you, as a part of Willow Ridge Church, will be reached out to monthly from at least one of our staff members.
To check on you, to see how you're doing.
To see if there's anything that we can specifically be praying for you.
To encourage you to walk alongside you.
And so two things.
We want to encourage you to make sure that we have your proper information so that we can reach out to you.
But then secondly, when we do, let us know.
Let us know how we can pray.
Let us know what we can pray for.
And God will bless that as we come before him, setting our hearts before him in prayer.
We want to encourage you to continue to engage more.
To take another step.
We all look forward.
I was talking to somebody earlier this morning.
And I'm there with them.
We've kind of hit our max peak of 2025 weight.
And now we need to move forward to our 2026 weight, right?
We set the goals.
We set the agendas.
We set the things that we want to do.
That we want to accomplish.
That we want to become.
And what if it wasn't just financial goals?
What if it wasn't just physical goals?
What if it was spiritual goals as well?
To take another step of faithfulness in discipleship.
In serving.
In giving.
We want to encourage you to take those steps.
To not just attend a church.
But to invest and to engage in a life of a church.
We've got so many ways that we can help connect you.
One is through our discipleship studies that will be starting at the first of the year.
Getting involved.
Getting connected in a small group.
Getting involved.
Getting connected into serving.
So many ways that you can.
But you have to be willing to take that step.
And we want to encourage you to.
I'm going to ask Berger and our worship team if they'll come back on stage.
We're going to sing one more song before we leave.
But I'd like to do something in closing.
Number one.
Let me say this.
First and foremost.
I'm so glad that I'm at a church where we hear children.
We hear them laugh.
We hear them run.
We hear them cry.
We hear them make noises and drop things and spill things.
And so if you're here and you're a parent of a young child.
Number one.
Thank you for being here and for bringing them with you.
What you're doing right now and modeling for them.
We know.
All of us who have been there and done that.
We know that it ain't easy.
But we're so glad that you love the Lord enough.
And you love your church enough.
And you love your kids enough where you're modeling for them what this looks like.
So thank you.
Thank you.
But then number two.
We want to specifically pray for you today if you have a specific need.
So I'm going to do something a little bit different.
Now I'm not going to ask you.
We've got too many of us here to know what each individual need is.
But before we close in worship, we're going to close in one more time of prayer.
And if you're here today and you have something on your heart that you want us to pray for.
Maybe it's a financial struggle.
Maybe it's a spiritual struggle.
Maybe it's a sickness.
Maybe it's someone that you know and that you love and they're at a hard time and you want someone to pray for them.
Here's what I ask you to do.
In just a moment, I'm just going to ask you to stand.
I'm going to ask you to stand right where you're at.
And we're going to pray for you.
And we don't have to know what it is because God knows.
But those that are around you will have the opportunity to pray for you specifically as they can look and see you.
And that's how we'll end our time in prayer.
So would you do this?
I know it takes a lot of courage.
I know it takes, you didn't know that we were going to do this when you got here.
It might be uncomfortable for you.
But if you're here today and you have something very specific that you would like us to pray for,
just right where you're at, would you just stand?
If you guys would remain standing.
And if you're near someone standing, would you let them know that they're not alone?
Would you just reach out and just put your hand on them?
Grab their hand.
Let them know that they're there.
You may have to move around.
I want to encourage you to do that.
Let's go to the Lord in prayer.
God, you know everything.
You know the day before it begins.
You know the thought before it's had.
You know the need before we even realize it.
And you know the burden that each person in this room is carrying right now.
God, I lift up every individual in here.
Lord, especially those who have stood to say, I'm not okay.
It's not okay.
The situation's not okay.
God, first and foremost, God, for each person here,
we pray for the comfort and peace that comes in Christ and Christ alone.
God, while we may not know what tomorrow holds, you do.
And we know that you hold us in your hand.
And while tomorrow may be tough,
Lord, we know that your word tells us,
as hard as it is sometimes,
that you are working all things for the good
for those who are called by your name
and who are known and loved by you.
Lord, may we rest in that confidence.
God, may we pray for your will to be done.
Whether it's a health situation,
a finance situation,
a relationship situation,
a job situation.
God, may your will be done.
God, may whatever we're walking through,
may we not be consumed with bitterness,
with worry, with anger, with fret.
But may we grow in confidence,
faith in you.
Lord, we love you.
May this year
be a year for us
of growth,
of faithfulness,
of love,
of evangelism,
of discipleship,
of worship,
of missions,
of service,
of sacrifice,
of giving,
all for your name,
for your glory.
And it's in Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.
That's it for this week's message.
Be sure to check back next week
for a new episode.
And in the meantime,
you can visit us online
at willowridgechurch.org
or by searching for Willow Ridge Church
on Facebook,
Instagram,
and YouTube.
Thanks again for listening.