Prayer and thankfulness for 2023

Every week

• We thank God (among other things) for saving us through the death of his beloved Son, Jesus Christ.
  ”Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:12-14

• We confess our sins and thank God for his sure forgiveness.
  ”If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.” 1 John 1:8-10

Preaching of God’s word

“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.” (Eph 1:17)

This year on Sundays and in small groups we read and heard from Isaiah, Romans

Being a body

We enjoyed fellowship with the Lord and each other over many gathering this year, including the Guess Who’s Coming to Lunch, the Dedication of Claire and Kenzi White,

Ministries

• All the small groups as they dig deep into Isaiah, that God works in us by his spirit to grow us and know him better. Thanks for the small group leaders and that they lead and care for their groups well.

• thanks for our admin team at Southern (Richard, Ali, Terry, Geoff, Jarod) and all the work they do behind the scenes in finance, systems, policies and more. Pray for their continued diligence and available time and energy to serve our church in this way.

• the music team and Bek as she leads it, especially as they prepare for Christmas.

• for all the people leading teams at Southern.

For our church this year

• for friendships to develop and flourish for all people at Southern, to lean on each other, help carry each others burdens and for God to sustain us in all things.

  Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:2)

• for those suffering serious and/or chronic illnesses, for healing, energy and deep reliance on their Lord Jesus.

• for us to grow in our knowledge of the love of Christ.

  I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:16-19)

Outreach and Community

• Southern Play, Southern Kids Club and Treasure Hunters.

• Christmas on the Coast and the Indoor Carols by Candlelight service.

• the Halloween door knocking.

Marty and Jenny Foord (CMS WA)

Marty and Jenny serve at ETC Asia, a Bible college in Singapore, by training future Christian leaders. Southern supports their work through CMS WA.

October 2023 prayer points

Give thanks:

• For Mike Raiter’s (from Australia) visit and his compelling lectures and his challenging preaching in chapel.

• For the visit of a pastor / evangelist from North India, and also a couple who train evangelists in a nearby nation, and the inspiration and encouragement they brought to the ETCAsia community.

Please pray:

• For the recent chapel series on 1 Corinthians, that the ETCAsia community would have soft hearts to hear from this book that is so relevant for Singaporean culture.

• For the faculty, that we would all model humility, faithfulness, and kindness. 

• For the students, that they would be wise in the priorities to family, college, and church.

• That God will provide more space or a new location for out college as we have well and truly outgrown our current premises.