From Mike Maldonado ...
Prayer.
EBC family I must confess that my prayer life is experiencing a dry season. First and foremost, I am apologizing to you for that. It is my call to shepherd the members here at Edgewood, and I have not done as good a job as I should. I have confessed this to God and now I bring it to my church family.
I know that without the gift of prayer there is no way we can live out a gospel centered life. Think about that: What separates us from the World? Both believers and unbelievers can attend church, perform good acts, and have great or bad things happen to them.
What separates us is the fact that we have a supernatural Helper to guide, to convict, to praise, and to comprehend our new life in Christ. The gracious plan of our prayer life is to gain a loving dependence on him to trust and improve on our faith.
To think when my prayer life suffers, I am essentially saying that I am trusting myself to make my paths straight versus trusting in the LORD with all my heart (Prov 3:5-6). When the Psalmist says (Psalm 73:26) that God is the strength of my heart, he is telling us that without our new heart pumping new blood through our new lives we will not be strengthened. Prayer activates this.
I ask for your prayers as the Holy Spirit strengthens my walk in this area. In fact, I’ll end with a prayer for you:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. (Phil 1:2-5)
From Pastor Andy:LORD SAVE US FROM OURSELVES: A PRAYER FOR JUSTICE PEACE Ravi Zacharias, a great apologist and champion for the Christian faith passed away on May 19. He penned the following prayer on July 8, 2008 following tragic events in Louisiana, Minnesota, and Dallas which rocked our nation. His words of sorrow and hope were both timely and timeless and fit the nee...
Keep ReadingWe're stillhere!As we seem to be winding down from sheltering-in-place and can hope to get back to normalcy soon, please know the elders and staff of Edgewood Baptist continue to lift up in prayer you and your family. And, we look forward to returning to our regular fellowship time and ministries very soon. From Jonathan Merritt ... In 1776, John Newton wrote a letter to...
Keep ReadingWe'rehere!Sheltering-in-place can be and has been a real challenge! Please know that the Edgewood Baptist staff and elders have been praying regularly for our church family and so look forward to returningto live fellowship. Let me share a good suggestion that came from Allan Beeber who is one of the missionaries our church supports. Alan has been a full-time missionary w...
Keep ReadingFrom Andy Johnston ...During this unusual time, a scripture verse that has given me strength isPsalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God, I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted among the earth." As I call and speak to people on a daily basis, I leave them with this verse! Psalm 46 encourages us to find hope and to trust in our Maker. He is in control. A...
Keep ReadingFrom Jonathan Wilson ... Hey everybody, I pray everyone is doing well and finding rest and peace in Christ during these bizarre and uncertain times. It's easy to get caught in the flow of depression, hysteria, and confusion of the world around us. It reminds me of the passage in Mark 4:35-41. In the midst of the storm, when everyone else is in panic, we find Jesus asle...
Keep Reading