Monthly archives for March, 2010

Pray Now Bartow Day 26

Mar26
2010 Written by Warner Smith

Jack will soon be released from prison on probation for dealing drugs. He will join the other 154,197 adults who are currently on probation in Georgia.  Jack, like half of those in prison, was raised by his mother. He never knew his Dad. Jack began selling drugs in order to help his mother purchase the things which they could not afford.

Jack and his absentee father typify what is wrong with men in America today.  I teach our men that;

  1. Manhood is in a state of confusion
  2. Confused men create major problems
  3. Confused men settle for less.
  4. There is no vision of manhood that is compelling to men today.
  5. The Bible has insight and answers for all of the above.

Did you know that Georgia has the fifth largest prison system in the nation. Of the 53,558 people who are currently in prison 62% are Black and 37% are White, 40% claim to be Baptist.

While in prison Jack has been visited by men of Muslim faith. They have told him that they would help him find a job when he was released. Pray that God will limit the influence these men can have upon Jack.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew 25:34–40

Pray that fathers will be faithful to their children.  Pray and ask God to move on the men in America and give them His vision of manhood and faithfulness to their own wives and children.  We need to elevate our standard for fathers.  Men need to understand that any male can be a sperm donor, but that it takes a real man to be a father!

Ask God to send Christians to witness to those in prison who will also be willing and able to help Jack and all the men he represents when they are released.  They need godly mentors as well as jobs!

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Pray Now Bartow Day 25

Mar25
2010 Written by Warner Smith

Melissa and Jake are both teenagers and have been dating for several months. On their sixth date, Jake told Melissa that if she loved him she would have sex with him. Although reluctant, Melissa felt compelled to express her true love. Since that first time, sex has become the main activity of their dating life. Now Melissa has just discovered that she is pregnant. How will Melissa and Jake tell their parents? What should they do about the baby? Should Melissa abort or should she keep the baby? What does God have to say about it?

Teen pregnancy rates had dropped between 1995 to 2005, but between 2006 and 2007 they rose 3%. Georgia’s teen pregnancy rate is 54.2 per 1,000 girls (ages 15 – 17) the 10th highest in the country. Bartow county’s teen pregnancy rate is 45.9 per 1,000 girls between (ages 15-17),  That means that this year approximately 150 teenage girls who live in Bartow county will get pregnant.  Do you know one of these girls?  Will one of these girls be your daughter? What would you say to one of these teenagers?

33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.  34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” Jeremiah 31:33-34

Ask God to help our teens abstain from premarital sex. Pray that churches will reach out to teens who are struggling with sexual issues or unexpected pregnancies.  Talk to your own children about sex!  If you know a sexually active teenager without judging them let them know God’s will for their sex life and help them reclaim their own sexual purity.

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Pray Now Bartow Day 24

Mar24
2010 Written by Warner Smith

Are you guilty? Have you ever said things to your children which you later regretted.  If you are a parent I am sure you have.  There are parents however who for some insane reasons abuse their own children.  Sam is such a child.  His dad often yells at him from his drunken stupor such hurtful words as “Shut up, Sam, or I will give you more to cry about!” “I wish you had never been born! You are just a whiny baby,” and often much worse.  Sam, like many other children in the United States has never heard either his dad or mother tell him that they love him.

Almost 14 of every 1000 children in our nation are victimized. More than half of those are the victims of neglect, 1 in 4  suffer physical abuse, 6% suffer psychological abuse, and 2% suffer medical neglect.  Just over 2 in 3 of all children victimized in our nation are White.

10 “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. 12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost. Matthew 18:10–14

If you know of a child who is being abused do something about it!  Remember, Jesus loves the little children of the world, but unfortunately too many do not.  Ask God to change the hearts and minds of those who do not recognize what a special blessing their own children or those children for whom they are responsible truly are.

Pray for all of children like Sam in Bartow county, our state, nation and world.  Ask God to protect these children and to let each of these victimized children know that He loves them.

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Pray Now Bartow Day 23

Mar23
2010 Written by Warner Smith

Maria recently moved to Bartow county from Miami. Maria’s grandparents escaped to the Unite States from Cuba 50 years ago. They still keep in contact with relatives who live in Cuba about the church planting movement going on there. Since moving to Bartow county, Maria’s family has not attended a church because they were unsure how they would be received.

Their reluctance arises from their previous experiences of visiting predominately white congregations in other states which had not been receptive to them. This is unfortunate because people of Cuban heritage tend not to feel accepted in churches comprised of Hispanics of Mexican decent. Therefore they have been reluctant to visit a traditional Hispanic Church.

18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18–20

Pray for the 4,743 Hispanics currently living in Bartow county. Ask God to lead His church to start churches and other ministries which are targeted to all the ethno-linguistic people groups which reside in Bartow county, so they can hear the gospel in their “mother tongue” and worship our Lord in their “heart language.” Also, ask God to convict His people who currently worship Him in existing churches to be more open to receive Maria and all the other immigrants who are coming to live in our communities.

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Pray Now Bartow Day 22

Mar22
2010 Written by Warner Smith

Todd recently turned 18. Todd stopped going to church at the age of 12 when his parents quit making him attend. His senior year in high school has been very difficult. He has struggled to make good grades. Now Todd’s parents are going through a nasty divorce. And just this week, his girlfriend Libby, told him that she was breaking up with him. His whole life is crumbling around him and he feels that no one cares. Todd wonders if life is worth living and has considered suicide. Teen suicide is the third leading cause of death of adolescents and teenagers according to the National Institute for Mental Health.

21 Praise be to the Lord, for he showed his wonderful love to me when I was in a besieged city. 22 In my alarm I said, “I am cut off from your sight!” Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help. 23 Love the Lord, all his saints! The Lord preserves the faithful, but the proud he pays back in full. 24 Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord. Psalm 31:21–24

Ask God to show His wonderful love to Todd and all the teenagers in Bartow county who are contemplating suicide.  Pray for Todd’s parents and all those like them who are struggling with divorce and all of its many consequences. Pray that God’s Holy Spirit will show God’s mercy to Todd and his parents as well as all those in our county and world whom they represent.  Pray for the other 6,500 teens ages 15-19 who call Bartow county home. During your prayer time, ask God to awaken churches and the adults in them to become aware of and interested in the needs and cries for help which Todd and other youth are making each and everyday.

If you know a teenager whose parents are divorcing don’t just ask them how they are doing, take them for a hike, watch them play in their sport or school play and then take them to eat afterward.  Let them know that you care for them and that while they may not realize it you are there for them.  Show them Christ’s love don’t just tell them about it.  You will be surprised how quickly your concern and care will bring positive results to their life.

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