Thursday 4th September

Praying for New Life

New Life, Fresh Hope and New Beginnings

Job 14:7-9

At least there is hope for a tree; If it is cut down, it will sprout again, and its new shoots will not fail. Its roots may grow old in the ground and its stump die in the soil, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth shoots like a plant.

Ezekiel 11:19

I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 37:4–6

Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.”

Prayer Guide

In Ezekiel’s vision, the Spirit of God brings new life and new hope into a lifeless place. Who are the people in your life, your community and church who need new hope and new life?

  • Begin to fill a plant pot with soil and pray for God to prepare the hearts of people to listen.

  • Put a few seeds into the soil and ask God to speak into the lives of the people you are thinking about. Say their names as you plant each seed.

  • In this passage, the Holy Spirit is described as a wind. Elsewhere in the Bible, he is also represented by water.

  • Set the pot down on the tray and water it, asking the Holy Spirit to come and flood into the lives you are praying for, bringing his life.

  • Take the plant pot home as a reminder to keep praying for new life and new beginnings.

Liz Wilson