Praise God for the many different opportunities we have to serve and glorify Him through the work we do. Pray for us all to find purpose and ways to honor God in whatever work we do. Ask God to give us opportunities in our places of work to be a bold gospel-witness and through our work to shine brightly as gospel-lights in our world.

This week we are praying for the Aspire Movement (aspiremovement.org), a local Christian mentoring ministry aimed at growing an environment where everything and everyone can flourish; where there are mutually transformative relationships and support among neighbors; where the local economy is not only healthy, but committed to the flourishing of the entire community; where opportunities are offered alongside true support to youth and families; where the vibrancy and history of Birmingham’s people and streets are celebrated and upheld.

DAY 1: Pray for wisdom for the Aspire board and staff as they consider next steps following an unexpected transition in leadership over the past year.

DAY 2: Pray for more mentors and ministry partners who share the desire to cultivate a flourishing city and community by empowering youth, equipping young adults, and engaging neighbors. Ask God to build bridges between Aspire and Kingdom-minded business professionals who are willing to leverage their expertise, network, and resources for the youth in our city.

DAY 3: Pray for our mentors to persevere in engaging with their students. Pray for the gospel to illuminate their time together. Pray for these transformative relationships to infiltrate into every aspect of their day-to-day lives at home, at church, at work, and with friends.

DAY 4: Pray for new financial partners who are eager to see the work of Aspire grow in the city of Birmingham. Ask God to bring new monthly donors into partnership with Aspire as they seek to build their staff and dive deeper into relationships with key community leaders.

DAY 5: Pray for the students Aspire Movement reaches through their ministry. Ask the Lord to meet the kids where they are, change their hearts and lives, and empower them to see His purpose in their lives throughout elementary, middle, high school, and beyond.

DAY 6: Pray for the families of the Aspire students that are facing hard situations. Pray for housing for those experiencing homelessness. Pray for jobs for those seeking employment. Pray for peace for those experiencing loss. Pray for increased opportunities for Aspire to come alongside these families in times of need and abundance. Most of all, pray the Lord would use these things in their lives to call them to Himself.

This week we are praying for political unrest and other realities in the Middle East.

DAY 1: Political unrest in the Middle East has the potential to undermine church planting endeavors and gospel-advancing initiatives. Pray the unrest would cause people to seek the peace found with God and with one another only found through the blood of Jesus (Ephesians 2:1-22).

DAY 2: Please pray for the country of Iran as their president and other leaders were tragically killed in a helicopter crash earlier this week. Pray for the peace of the land and for new leaders to emerge who are good for the country and the region. Pray for the comfort and endurance of the church in the coming days as uncertainty abounds (Psalm 46).

DAY 3: Pray for the peaceful witness of the church and salvation of governmental leaders in countries in the region like the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt (1 Timothy 2:1-7).

DAY 4: Pray for digital outreach in one major city in the region. Recent efforts have yielded multiple new contacts and many new gospel conversations (over 60!). Pray for the laborers to sustain this effort to be raised up and for the team to have wisdom as they navigate how best to follow-up.

DAY 5: The war in Israel has become a polarizing issue across the globe particularly in the region. Pray for doors for gospel witness to remain open even as the divide on this issue continues to be an obstacle to mutual understanding between different perspectives. Pray for the polarization not to prohibit gospel witness.

DAY 6: Pray for our church planting efforts in the region and for the wisdom of our personnel as they navigate hard conversations. They need gentleness, wisdom, and grace (Col. 4:2-6). Pray the gospel would be made clear even when perspectives on the conflict in Israel remain so divided.