WEEK 5 - MARGINALIZED PEOPLE
The prayer spotlight falls this week on people who are often overlooked or even mistreated. Pray that the Lord will make us His vessels of love, hope, and justice. Pray for those among our Alliance family who do the important work of chaplaincy—bringing the message of Jesus to people in their most challenging times, when they need to hear that message the most and may well be most responsive to it.
DAY THIRTY-FIVE // THE INFIRM, THOSE IN PRISON, AND OUR INSTITUTIONAL CHAPLAINS BY PHYLLIS FITZWATER
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
- Psalm 46:1
As each day unfolds, we do not know what challenges we may encounter that only the living God can meet. A hospital chaplain may encounter a patient who is suffering from disease or injury. A police chaplain may speak with a law enforcement officer who doesn’t know if he or she will make it home at the end of their shift. A prison chaplain may be called upon to bring “light” into a world of dark depravity.
Psalm 18:6a reads: “In my distress I called to the Lord.” The individuals we meet daily are often in deep distress. What hope can we offer them? We have the presence of the Lord—hope for them and for us as well. Psalm 23:4a reads, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow . . . I will fear no evil.” No matter what that valley may be—suffering, injury, disease, or incarceration—Christ is the only hope. Psalm 27:1b claims: “. . . of whom [what] shall I be afraid?” What shall we fear when we see no way through our situations? Psalm 46:1 is a verse my mentor lived by, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” Scripture reveals that Lazarus’s death was to “glorify God.” What is God doing in your life that He might be glorified?
PRAYER POINTS:
1. Pray for God’s anointing and presence upon our chaplains serving in various fields—including law enforcement, fire departments, jails and prisons, healthcare systems, and hospice.
2. Pray that those whom chaplains serve will be open to God’s presence and power.
3. Pray that God will be glorified in all that chaplains do to serve others.