Prayer Walking Today

Come to Zion this morning between 9 AM and Noon to walk and talk to God inside the halls of Zion. Spend as much time as you wish walking, stopping at one or all of the four stations set up for you to reflect on “Community”, and listening to meditation background music in the sanctuary.

March 15

Matthew 26:36-75

36Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane; and he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and agitated. 38Then he said to them, “I am deeply grieved, even to death; remain here, and stay awake with me.” 39And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want.” 40Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter, “So, could you not stay awake with me one hour? 41Stay awake and pray that you may not come into the time of trial; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 42Again he went away for the second time and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” 43Again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. 44So leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words. 45Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46Get up, let us be going. See, my betrayer is at hand.”

47While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, arrived; with him was a large crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. 48Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; arrest him.” 49At once he came up to Jesus and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed him. 50Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you are here to do.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and arrested him. 51Suddenly, one of those with Jesus put his hand on his sword, drew it, and struck the slave of the high priest, cutting off his ear. 52Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. 53Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels? 54But how then would the scriptures be fulfilled, which say it must happen in this way?” 55At that hour Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest me as though I were a bandit? Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did not arrest me. 56But all this has taken place, so that the scriptures of the prophets may be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.

57Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest, in whose house the scribes and the elders had gathered. 58But Peter was following him at a distance, as far as the courtyard of the high priest; and going inside, he sat with the guards in order to see how this would end. 59Now the chief priests and the whole council were looking for false testimony against Jesus so that they might put him to death, 60but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward. At last two came forward 61and said, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days.’” 62The high priest stood up and said, “Have you no answer? What is it that they testify against you?” 63But Jesus was silent. Then the high priest said to him, “I put you under oath before the living God, tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.” 64Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you,

From now on you will see the Son of Man
seated at the right hand of Power
and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

65Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has blasphemed! Why do we still need witnesses? You have now heard his blasphemy. 66What is your verdict?” They answered, “He deserves death.” 67Then they spat in his face and struck him; and some slapped him, 68saying, “Prophesy to us, you Messiah! Who is it that struck you?”

69Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. A servant-girl came to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” 70But he denied it before all of them, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about.” 71When he went out to the porch, another servant-girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72Again he denied it with an oath, “I do not know the man.” 73After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you are also one of them, for your accent betrays you.” 74Then he began to curse, and he swore an oath, “I do not know the man!” At that moment the cock crowed. 75Then Peter remembered what Jesus had said: “Before the cock crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

March 14

Matthew 26-27 are given here for the next three days as preparation for Palm Sunday. The story of the passion of Christ presents fulfillment of scripture and obedience to God’s will. Jesus goes to the cross so that a new covenant in his blood may bring forgiveness of sins.

Matthew 26:14-35
14Then one of the twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15and said, “What will you give me if I betray him to you?” They paid him thirty pieces of silver. 16And from that moment he began to look for an opportunity to betray him.

17On the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Where do you want us to make the preparations for you to eat the Passover?” 18He said, “Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, My time is near; I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’” 19So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the Passover meal.

20When it was evening, he took his place with the twelve; 21and while they were eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.” 22And they became greatly distressed and began to say to him one after another, “Surely not I, Lord?” 23He answered, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. 24The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that one by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that one not to have been born.” 25Judas, who betrayed him, said, “Surely not I, Rabbi?” He replied, “You have said so.”

26While they were eating, Jesus took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; 28for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29I tell you, I will never again drink of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

30When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

31Then Jesus said to them, “You will all become deserters because of me this night; for it is written,

‘I will strike the shepherd,
and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’

32But after I am raised up, I will go ahead of you to Galilee.” 33Peter said to him, “Though all become deserters because of you, I will never desert you.” 34Jesus said to him, “Truly I tell you, this very night, before the cock crows, you will deny me three times.” 35Peter said to him, “Even though I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And so said all the disciples.

March 13 by Minda Squadroni

Day 40

Ephesians 5:19
Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord.

To me, the language of the soul is the language of music.

My acts of
Praise,
Supplication,
Adoration,
Forgiveness,
and Meditation,
are all expressed through lifting my voice to God in song.

Somehow my soul is stirred through this act of music,
making my communication with God real.

As a community of believers,
we make connections with each other through our communal singing.

We speak to each other of our
Joys,
Sorrows,
Praises,
Blessings,
and Trials
as we lift our voices together in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.

Music is in our hearts and connects us with who God is and who we are.

God is in our music,
God speaks within our music,
And God brings us closer to Him and each other through our music.

Lord, we sing and make music in our hearts to you. Help our musical expressions bring us closer to you and to each other. A song of praise is on our lips as we ”Make a Joyful Noise unto the Lord” (Psalm 100). Amen.

March 12 by Mary and Dan Abramowski

Day 39

1 Corinthians 16:2
On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made.

Budgeting is never any fun. Whether the money is going for the mortgage, the college fund or the church offering plate, it sometimes feels downright painful to watch it go! But making a church donation “budget” is God’s expectation of us. Our lives are blessed, and God expects a portion of our financial blessings to be earmarked for the Church and the Lord’s work. Consider yourself blessed to be able to contribute!

Dear Lord, Thank you that I have the ability to make a financial contribution to the Church and your work each week. And even though you have given me directions to give, help me to do so with a willing and loving heart. Thank you for your many blessings, dear Lord, today and always. Amen.

March 11 by Karen Swenson

Day 38

Acts 1:14
They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

After Jesus’ Ascension, we can only imagine his mother’s grief, and his disciples’ loss of their best friend. Previously they had been able to personally talk to Jesus, touch him. Now, contact had to be through prayer; so imitating what Jesus had taught them, they ‘devoted themselves to prayer’.

Prayer – instant communication with God – no wires, no power outages, no expensive fees –Instant, immediate connection. It doesn’t get any better than that.

Mary and the disciples set the example; we must devote ourselves to prayer – prayer for everyone.

Lord Jesus, help us daily to commit ourselves to communicating with you through prayer. Give us the spirit and strength to pray for greater understanding of all your people. We pray that Zion’s 40 Days of Community will reawaken in all of us a greater love, compassion and understanding for each other. Amen.

March 10 by Howard Burgdorf

Day 37

2 Chronicles 12:14
He did evil because he had not set his heart on seeking the LORD.

Here is a sad commentary on the life and reign of Rehoboam, son of Solomon and King of Israel. It was under his reign that 10 tribes rebelled and began the downfall of all Israel. Our Bible verse tells us why this happened; he did not set his heart on seeking the Lord. Someone has written, “Those who don’t study history are doomed to repeat its failures.”

Rehoboam, forsook the Lord and all the people followed him. What a sad commentary.

God has made each of us rulers of our own little kingdom. He blesses us. He gives us free choice. He gives us the opportunity to choose. We can do as King Rehoboam did and go our own way or we can set our hearts on seeking guidance from the Lord.

As parents, what better choice can we make than to seek the Lord’s guidance in raising our families. As young people, making choices for life, what better guidance than to seek the Lord? Can we be wise and learn from the examples God has given us or do we have to make our own mistakes? The Old Testament is replete with object lessons, real people in real situations in real life. Let’s not be “slow learners.”

Dear Lord, thank you for giving us freedom to make choices. May we look to You for guidance in all the life choices we make. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

March 9 by Paula Brecht

Day 36

Leviticus 23:3
There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD.

In this passage we are given the freedom by the Lord to rest, recharge, and restore ourselves.

First we are told to work for six days but on the seventh to rest. Second we are asked to save a day for sacred assembly. We can take this quite literally. In our fast paced world, full of fast foods, express check-out and all the other time saving avenues our society is actually more stressed then ever. Statistics show 60-70 % of the population is stressed or suffering from mild to moderate depression. All of our technology has not saved us from mental drains at all.

When we hear this passage, be reminded to save time in the beginning of the day to make time for the Lord. Pray for a peaceful day. That does not mean your day will be peaceful and uneventful but you will be taking on those obligations with a clear mind. Sunday is considered the Sabbath sacred day of assembly but consider being involved with church family in other group settings Bible studies, music groups, or volunteer groups. So many activities for our children are now held over the Sunday morning services. We must make conscientious decisions on our own activity and choose where the Lord fits into our schedule.

The Lord does not ask to be put into your busy day but for you to plan your life accordingly to being rested and able to assemble with others in the faith family and mostly your own family. With the Lord’s help there is time in the day to be productive and also have time for meditation.

Lord help us to say no to so many of the demands in society that take away from the peace you are offering us. With your help I can find all the time in a day to moderate my obligations to include rest, time with family and most importantly time with you. Amen.

Prayer Walking Today

Come to Zion this morning between 9 AM and Noon to walk and talk to God inside the halls of Zion. Spend as much time as you wish walking, stopping at one or all of the four stations set up for you to reflect on “Community”, and listening to meditation background music in the sanctuary. Prayer walking continues each Saturday until March 15.

March 8 by Cheryl Mager

Day 35

1 Corinthians 3:9a
For we are God’s fellow workers.

God’s work involves many different individuals with as many different gifts and talents. We are part of a team each performing a different role in our outreach to others. We use our talents and abilities not to be praised by others; but to praise God.

Heavenly Father, be with each of us that we use our talents and abilities to be your helping, caring, and comforting hands reaching out to others in need. In Jesus name, Amen.