Prayer for Families ~ January

THANK GOD for families. They are the bedrock of both society and of the church.
Matrimony and family are God’s design, and as divine institutions there are no substitutes. Fundamentally, our global cultures and societies need a moral counter-revolution. Families have never been as fragmented as they are today, and our modern culture continues to wear away at the core unit of society. People are treated as commodities through media e.g. parents are encouraged to show their love for their children by buying gifts for them; the image of ‘father’ has been denigrated and their role reduced to financial provider; the role of ‘mothers’ has been demeaned. Satan knows that if he can destroy marriages, and thus the family, he can destroy the very fabric of any society.

• DECREE that marriage will remain the foundation of the family unit.(Gen 9:7) Pray against the covenant-breaking spirit which manifests as divorce and open marriage. Marriage, other than that ordained by God as one man plus one woman, is treated as fornication in God’s Word (Hebrews 13:4, Isaiah 40:8)
• PRAY against abortion, transgenderism and euthanasia and declare that the Family Mountain stands for life. Gen 1:27, Ps 139 13-16.
• RENOUNCE family curses from previous generations and release blessings upon the next generation.
• PLEASE PRAY for those families and marriages affected in any way by drought, imprisonment, floods, financial insecurity and fire – their ongoing needs are many – including people’s finances, employment/livelihood, businesses, homes, health, access to services and support and relationships, which can all suffer.
• THANK GOD that so many have been moved selflessly to reach out to them.
• GIVE THANKS for the many testimonies of the power of God at work restoring/strengthening relationships, providing for needs.
• PRAY for families in general, and particularly the healing of broken relationships in marriages and families, especially among believers and those in Christian ministry.
• PRAY for strong, open, life giving communication, reconciliation, and restoration in families to help them heal from any anger, unforgiveness, shame and blame.
• PRAY for marriages of those close to you and for those of Christian leaders including politicians. Honouring one another (Romans 12:10)

• PRAY for parents to be bold to instruct their children to live according to God’s ways and humbly take their place as the authority in the home and model godly behaviour.
• PLEASE PRAY that parents would wholly trust God and not be intimated by laws enacted that seek to prevent them from sharing the Word of God with their family.
• PRAY that children would be obedient to and honour their parents. Deuteronomy 6:6, Ephesians 6:1-3
• PRAY that parents and children regularly pray together through the week for each other, the family unit and other matters.
• The elderly often face difficult challenges without complaint, and many have no one to help them in times of need. Each one is made in the image of God and comes from a family. They are of value. PRAY that all generations will respect the unique gifts and wisdom of the elderly and love them. Proverbs 16:31
• PRAY by name for disabled people you may know at church or in your neighbourhood. Also pray for their family members and caregivers & all those who help loved ones with special needs - especially pray for their marriages, if married.
• PLEASE PRAY that all people are shown that their lives are valuable and not seek to end their own life nor take the life of another.
  An increasing number of families are seeking help from local homeless shelters because they have no place to live. Many homeless, who often suffer from mental illness or addictions, sleep in parks etc.
• PRAY for the well-being of the homeless and especially that the Church will rise up to help meet this growing need.
• PRAY for families to exercise good judgment and display proper balancing of finances. Luke 14:28
• PRAY that government legislation and judicial decisions would be enacted to reflect the value and importance of the natural family unit as the bedrock of a strong society as officials also deal with families that do not fall into that category.
• PRAY that governments would work to ensure that basic housing would be provided at a substantially lower cost than the many 'luxury' homes that are currently being built. That they ensure such low cost homes would remain available and not be available for investment purposes.