Father, we come to you this morning confidently and boldly in the name of Jesus Christ. We come into your presence not based on our goodness, but on your grace given to us; your grace lavished upon us through Jesus, who gave his life up for us; who rose from the grave that we might live with eternal hope and heavenly joy. So we praise you. We praise you for your steadfast love and inexhaustible love. As we just sang, great is your faithfulness. You never change. Your compassions never end. Great is your faithfulness, mercy and love, O Lord. We rejoice and exult and take refuge in you.

And we confess our rebellion against you. Not just in what we do, but in our disordered and misplaced loves. We have loved our jobs more than you. We have loved money and material possessions more than you. We have pursued romantic immorality more than you. We confess our transgressions. We confess that we have been impatient, greedy, selfish, and envious. We have doubted your goodness and dismissed your sovereignty. We repent, O Lord. Some of us been lazy and slothful wasting time; others of us have been too busy finding our identity in what we accomplish. Some of us have placed burdens on our children too heavy for them to carry; others of us have not given enough loving attention to our children. We confess these things. We have abused substances, misused food, given more attention to what others think of us fearing them more than you. Holy Spirit, convict us. Help us not to hide, minimize, or excuse our sin. Work in us deep repentance. Yes, Lord, we repent.

And we praise you, that in Christ Jesus, we are not defined our bound by our iniquities; that in Christ Jesus there is fullness of forgiveness and unhindered reconciliation back to you. On the cross Jesus bore our sin, took our shame, absorbed your wrath. Jesus Christ, God eternal humbled to the grave. Jesus, our Savior, risen now to reign.

We pray this gospel message feeds and fuels our souls so that we might increasingly see and savor Jesus Christ loving him above all else. We pray for A and his family as they seek to proclaim this gospel to Spanish speakers in Columbia Heights. Use Iglesia Biblica Sublime Gracia to magnify your name. Use O and S to spread the aroma of this gospel on the campus of American University. Use C and J and others tonight as they proclaim this gospel tonight at Friendship Terrace.

Father, we praise you for the many faithful students and teachers of your word in our church. We praise you for the teaching of K, L, N and T as they led so many ladies through the book of Zephaniah. We praise you for the dozens of faithful Community Group leaders that lead discussions diving into your word. We praise you for D who strives to help us savor your word through selecting songs that inform our minds and stir our hearts to delight in Christ. Thank you Lord, thank you for the many ways your gospel flows between the members of this church. Holy Spirit, change us. One degree of glory to another. Shape us, mold us, deepen our love for Jesus and for each other. Continue to grant us gospel unity above our personal preferences. Use the members of this church to help each other grow in Jesus, to meet each others’ physical needs, to help each other process emotions and evaluate life circumstances. Develop new relationships and deepen existing ones that we might walk alongside each other, rejoicing with each other, weeping with each other, encouraging and rebuking, laughing and crying as we journey to heaven together. Some of this morning are weak and wounded. Some of us are hurting and downcast. Use us, we pray, to bring hope and healing to each other as we point each other to the sweet sufficiency of Jesus Christ.

We pray for the dozens of other faithful gospel churches in this city. Advance your gospel through Christ our Shepherd, Capitol Hill Baptist, Redeemer Arlington, Restoration City Church, McLean Bible Church. Use the saints at Waterfront Church and Alatheia Church and Anacostia River Church to proclaim the excellencies of Jesus Christ.

This morning we also pray for our enemies. We pray for those who publicly slander Christians and for those who physically persecute our brothers and sisters around the world. Lord, do what only you can do – change the hearts of those who hate Christ Jesus to become heralds of him. Eradicate ISIS and the Taliban. We also pray you would eliminate White Supremacy Groups and any group that promotes evil. Bring racial reconciliation to this country; and cause our church to be a model of what it means to treat all people as being created in your image.

Father, your word commands us to pray “for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.” And so we come praying for those who have been sovereignly elected and appointed to lead this country. Grant wisdom and a sense of justice to all leaders around the world who are charged with serving people made in your image. We pray for president Donald Trump. Bend his heart toward true justice and righteousness for all people. Surround President Trump with men and women who give wise counsel that promotes the dignity and equality of all people – men and women, all races and ethnicities, all religious backgrounds, all sexual orientations, all ages – from the womb until natural death.

Let us, Lord, let us as Christians be a light of hope and happiness. We praise you that King Jesus is on the throne right now and forever more. We praise you that he is reigning and he is soon returning to restore all things back to perfection. We pray rejoicing and resting in his name, the name of Jesus. Amen.