Prayer Prompter for November-December 2012

The greatest temptation that assails Christians is that in effect, for most of us, the Gospel has ceased to be news. And if it is not news it is not Gospel: for the Gospel is the proclamation of something absolutely new, everlastingly new, not a message that was once new but is now two thousand years old.... The message of the Gospel when it was first preached was profoundly disturbing to those who wanted to cling to well-established religious patterns, the ancient and accepted ways, the ways that were not dangerous and which contained no surprises.—Thomas Merton

Nov. 1-15 let us pray for:

1)  Pray for Terry Shue with Mennonite Church USA as he travels to New Orleans Nov. 2-5 to install a new conference minister, attends Gulf States Conference meetings and preaches in several congregations.

2) Ministry Development Team (MDT) of Ohio Conference meets Nov. 7

• Pray for the Gifts Discernment Ministry as they invite persons to terms of service with Ohio Conference.
• Pray for the Holy Spirit’s guidance as they design programs and discern budget needs.

3) Nov. 11 is Mission Sunday in Mennonite Church USA

• Share the love of Christ with someone today.  Pray for your congregation as you celebrate Mission Sunday or Mission Month. Check out the “Mission Sunday” link on the Mennonite Mission Network website: www.mennonitemission.net.

4) Pray for Terry Shue, Nov. 10-11, as he brings messages at the Franklin Conference delegate sessions in Chambersburg, Pa.

5)  Camp Luz, Andrew Michaels, Director, Kidron

• Pray for our Youth Retreat, Nov. 9-11.
• Pray that God calls out the staff we need for next summer and that they listen to His call.
• Pray for the 514 campers that came through the summer program this year, both that they remember what they learned and that they continue to be fed spiritually.
• Pray for the 600 campers that we plan to minister to in 2013.

6) Cluster Meetings, Five meetings are scheduled in November.

• Pray for the Ohio Conference delegates and Conference leaders as they share together on how best to be a missional conference, on expectations of Conference membership, and being a people of generosity.

  

Nov. 16-30 pray for:

1) Sonnenberg Mennonite, Pastor Mel (Dottie) Hathaway, Kidron

2) Chaplain Kent Morgan, County Adult Detention Facilities, Painesville

3) Chaplain Jacqui Rozier, Hospice of the Western Reserve, Cleveland

4) Chaplain Vickie Yoder, Doctors West Hospital, Columbus

• I so appreciate your prayers!

5) Chaplain Gordon Nisly, Hospice of Stark, Tuscarawas and Carroll counties, Uniontown

6) Open Arms, Pastor Haroldo (Esmirna) Nunes, Kidron

•  Juan Carlos has not been able to work for two months due to a back pain.  Pray for healing and well-being for him and his family.
• Mike Mast, Ryan Troyer and I will be traveling to Guatemala Dec. 3-12.  Pray that we will follow God’s guidance as we minister and discern the needs of the brothers and sisters there.

7) Pray for Terry Shue as he facilitates the annual Conference Ministers meeting in Arizona at the end of November.

  

Dec. 1-15 pray for:

1) Smithville Mennonite, Pastor Todd (Rebecca) Martin, Smithville

Pray for:

• Wisdom as we continue to discern our educational wing — now in pledge mode.
• Quiet times in the lives of our busy people so that they can find rest in Jesus.
• Awareness that we as a people keep inviting our friends and family who don't know Jesus or have a church home to join us in worship every Sunday.
• Blessing over the ‘Cleanse my Soul’ ministry that gives out cleaning supplies to those in need. Thanks for your prayers.

2) Martine Audéoud and Gary Wittig, teachers, from the Gilead congregation serving in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire with Mennonite Mission Network (MMN)

• Pray that through our teaching we are able to empower African church leaders to respond effectively and creatively to the challenges of the 21^st century urban African context.

3) Camp Luz, Andrew Michaels, Director, Kidron

• Pray for clear vision and leading of the spirit at our board’s long-range planning session, Dec. 8.
• We give thanks for the 60 years of ministry that we will be celebrating in 2013!  And for God’s blessing as we follow our Lord into the next 60 years (or more).

4) Annual Conference Assembly (ACA), March 8-9, 2013

• Pray for the ACA planning group and the many volunteers already giving their time in preparation for our worshipful work together in March.
• Pray the theme for this year’s assembly “Signs of the Kingdom,” and read John 20:30-31.

5) Southside Mennonite, Tim Conrad, Springfield

• Thanks for this opportunity. Our request is as follows: 
• The food pantry has been a ministry of Southside Mennonite Church since 1982.  The present leaders are experiencing the need to step down, and because we are a very small congregation it will be a major change.  Pray we will have the wisdom and courage to know what God would have us to do in the very near future.

6) South Union Mennonite, Pastor Jeff (Brenda) Bartlett, West Liberty

Dec. 16-31 pray for:

1) Springdale Chapel, Pastor Ova (Darlene) Helton, Cincinnati

2) St. Johns Mennonite Chapel, Linda Durst, Logan

3) Brazo en Brazo, Paul and Ann Conrad

• “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” —  Psalm 34:8.  Marianyely tasted and liked what she tasted.  She told her foster mother that she did not want to miss the Brazo en Brazo services.  Marianyely is a vivacious teenage Spanish speaker who is learning English.  Pray for Marianyely as she is delighting in the goodness of the Lord and sharing it with her family.

4) Mennonite Mission Network,  Dean Heisey

Pray about people you believe might be called to international service. Encourage them to inquire via the Mennonite Mission Network website: www.mennonitemission.net.

Praise God for new workers in process for Mongolia.  Pray for yet more workers to join the Mongolia Mission Partnership of Ohio Conference churches.

Pray for these young adults from Ohio Conference congregations who are presently in new Christian Service assignments: 

—    Meredith Thomas, from Bethel Mennonite, West Liberty, in Mennonite Voluntary Service,

San Antonio, Texas

— Josiah Dahl, from Lockport and Pine Grove Mennonite, Stryker, in Service Adventure, Philippi, W.V.

—    Caleb Waidelich from Lockport Mennonite, in Mennonite Voluntary Service, Kykotsmovi, Arizona

Compiled by Mattie Marie Mast, mmmast@zoominternet.net.

Prayer Prompter can be found on the Ohio Conference Web site: www.ohiomennoniteconference.org.

Go to “Resource Teams” and select “Prayer Ministry.”

Prayer Prompter for September-October 2012

Sept. 1-15 let us pray for:

1) Pleasant View Mennonite, Transitional Pastor Jim (Debby) Sutton, North Lawrence

u Thanks for praying for Pleasant View and for including us in the Prayer Prompter. Please pray for our fall outreach to our neighbors in the North Lawrence community in September. Pray as we seek God to grow His church. Also, pray for the Pastoral Search team as they begin the search process seeking a long-term pastor.  

2) The cross-cultural opportunities through the…

            Sixth Intercultural Fiesta, Sept. 8 at Central Christian School, Kidron

            Ninth Fiesta Familiar, Sept. 9 at Lima Mennonite Church

•  May these be rich times of getting to know each other and building meaningful relationships.

3) Ministry Development Team (MDT) of Ohio Conference meets Sept. 12

•  Pray for Norma Duerksen, chair, as she facilitates.
•  Pray for Holy Spirit and group discernment as MDT plans programs and allocates funds to different projects.

4) Alfonsina Oyanguren, Argentine mission worker supported by Pike and Sonnenberg churches

•  Praise God for protecting Alfonsina during a difficult pregnancy. Pray for a healthy baby, scheduled to be born by cesarean section Sept. 14. May God bless the entire family as they continue to serve in the Argentine Chaco.

5) Let us pray for Bob Wengerd, Pastor at North Lima Mennonite Church

•  Would you pray for renewed strength and energy for me.  I'm trying to bounce back from a sudden illness that hit me on July 20.  Supposedly it was a virus. The recovery has been slow. I've preached the last three weeks, but sitting down.

6) Norma Duerksen reminds us to pray for all the food pantries in our Conference churches as they try to meet the needs of a growing number of people in financial crisis. May God guide these food pantries as they make decisions about how to stretch a limited amount of funds to meet the most needs.

Sept. 16-30 let us pray for:

1) Salem Mennonite, Pastor Paula (Darrin) Snyder Belousek, Elida

•  Please pray for Salem MC, Elida, on Sunday, Sept 16, as we host our annual outdoor service and fun day on the church grounds.  Pray that friends and neighbors will join us and encounter the love of Jesus through this event.

2) Resourcing opportunities for congregations with multiple staff members

            Sept. 19, at Camp Luz, Kidron

            Sept. 26, at Widewater Retreat Center, Liberty Center

•  May these be times of enrichment and team building.

3) Ohio Mennonite Women’s Retreat, Sept. 21-23 at Camp Luz, Kidron

4) Chaplain Charles Gautsche, Fairlawn Retirement Center, Archbold

•  In my work I relate to persons of all denominations and some with no church relationship. In our retirement and long-term care community we have 3-5 deaths each month with an equal number of new persons to build relationships with. These end of life relationships often bring a lot of baggage with them. Pray that Christ Jesus will be made known to each one and spiritual healing may be experienced.

5) Chaplain Robert Halfhill, Majora Lane and Holmes County Home, Millersburg

6) Chaplain Tom Michaels, Hospice, Millersburg

• Pray for God's presence to be experienced by our patients in each of our team members. Pray for God's working in the lives of those entrusted to our care.

7) Chaplain Hector Velez, Disciples of Jesus Motorcycle Club, Archbold

Oct. 1-15 pray for:

1) Annual Conference Assembly planning committee meets Oct. 3

•  Pray for Sherah-Leigh Gerber as she facilitates this planning and brings together many details.

2) Primera Iglesia Menonita, Lay Leader Tony (Martha) Ortiz Jr., Helena

3) Salem Mennonite, Administrative Pastor Robert Stuckey, Waldron, Mich.

•  Please pray for congregational decision making regarding expansion of our facilities.
•  Pray for newly formed Vision Leadership Team and Spiritual Gifts Team.
•  Pray for Nick and Shari Ladd family at Hesston College where Nick is enrolled in the Pastoral Ministries Program.  Thank you so much.

4) Salem Mennonite, Pastor Tim (Loretta) Singenstreu, Wooster

5) Sharon Mennonite, Pastor Robert (Vickie) Yoder, Plain City

6) Ross Miller, chair of the Church Planting Resource Team of Eastern Ohio

•  Pray as we seek God’s direction in where He would like us to plant more churches.  Pray for the church plant in Solon, Ohio, and for Larissa Moore, the church planter. Lee Heights Community Church and Robin Miller are overseeing the church plant. Thanks.

7) Jake and Grace Leichty send this prayer offering:

•  One of our big prayer concerns is for the families in our church(es).  With the strong influence of sports in our community, and probably others, little time is left for family devotions and important church programs and activities. Competition is very strong, and I believe, has a greater influence on our churches than we are imagining. I think families are needing to pray for discernment in this area. Marriages in general struggle as well.

 Oct. 16-31 pray for:

1)Mennonite Mission Network and Mennonite Education Agency, hold joint board meetings Oct. 18-21.

•  Pray for wisdom and decisive insight for leaders setting direction for ministries associated with these boards.

2) Central Christian School, Kidron, Bethany Nussbaum, Advancement Director, shares:

Please pray for:

•  Community Service Day (our student-led, service fundraiser) as we transition from the spring to the fall. Pray for energy and enthusiasm for the callers and generous heart for the constituents who receive the call. Our service day is Oct. 19 this year. 
•  Our new students, that they would feel very loved and welcome in our halls and classrooms.
•  Our new international host families as they develop their relationship with the student and learn the joys and challenges of giving guidance to someone from another culture.

3) Laura Schlabach, Mennonite Mission Network (MMN) worker, in Mongolia

•  Pray for Laura as she is on North American Ministry, as she travels, educates people about ministry in Mongolia, and finds time for renewal and retreat.  Laura will speak in several Ohio Conference congregations.

  4) Tom Kauffman, Ohio Conference Minister shares:

•  Pray for the Constituency Leaders Council (CLC) gathering on Oct. 22-24, which includes representatives of all 21 area conferences and the Executive Leadership and associate groups and agencies of MC USA. Sherah-Leigh Gerber, Norma Duerksen and I will be attending from Ohio Conference.

5) LifeSpring, School of Spiritual Formation:  contacts are Judy Ringler at judyringler77@embarqmail.com and Dana Short at mdshort@embarqmail.com. Dana shares this request:

•  Please pray for LifeSpring, as it continues to follow God’s guidance in the spiritual formation of God’s people.  Pray for those who are feeling God’s nudges to travel this inner journey of love.  And pray for the leaders of the school as they discern God’s path.

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Compiled by Mattie Marie Mast, mmmast@zoominternet.net

Prayer Prompter can be found on the Ohio Conference website: www.ohiomennoniteconference.org.

Go to “Resource Teams” and select “Prayer Ministry.”