02.10.21 | No Need Among Us
Last May, we created a church-wide initiative called No Need Among Us. This initiative was based out of a passage from today’s BREAD reading from Acts 4:33-34. In it, Luke writes, “God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them.”
This week’s fasting and prayer focus will be a revisit to last year’s initiative to answer the needs within our own community. If you want to refresh your memory, you can visit the original post here. Below are directions on how to engage with today’s fasting focus.
As you fast today, ask the Spirit to highlight one person in our church that you can reach out to in order to offer support. You can do this in any way you’d like, but here are some optional steps:
- Pause in silence for 5-10 minutes. Consider being alone in a quiet space or setting a timer for focus.
- Ask God: “I want to partner with you to love someone in our church. Will you please bring one person to mind?”
- Be open to being surprised with a name or face you wouldn’t have expected. For example, this person may have no financial needs, but God might be inviting you to support them emotionally or spiritually. In any case, seek to be obedient in reaching out to whomever God puts on your heart.
- Pray blessing: If several people come to mind, pray blessing over all of them. Then ask God to highlight just one person whom He would have you reach out to.
- Faithfully act by making contact with the highlighted person. It might be a simple text like, “I just prayed for you, and I’d love to get on a call to see how I can support you right now.”
Once you have made an initial contact, we suggest taking the time to make a friendly, supportive connection with the person over a phone call. Here are a few very simple questions we encourage you to ask:
- Where are you?
- How is your work going?
- Are there any needs you have that I can help you with? Spiritual or emotional needs? Physical or financial needs?
- What’s a specific way I can pray for you?
At the end of the day, spend time praising God for the way He has provided for you and the way He invites you to provide for others.