Glorious and majestic God, we gather here this morning to worship your holy name. God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit amazingly beautiful in who you are. We honor your glory; we revere your holiness; we admire your greatness; we praise your power; we esteem your wisdom; we treasure your beauty; we savor your goodness; we trust your faithfulness; we respect your justice; we fear your wrath; we cherish your grace; we prize your presence; we love your person. Oh, how amazing you are.

This week as we read your word, would you give us deep, intimate times meditating on your goodness that we might be astounded with you and you alone. Captivate our minds and saturate our souls with the supreme splendor of your lavish love and generous grace. I pray for our brother GP this day – we praise you for the faith you have birthed in his life and we ask that you would make Jesus his greatest treasure and only King. We pray for the older children in here with us this morning. Help these little one savor the supremacy of Christ Jesus all their days.

Father, in the name of Jesus, we ask that you would continue to make our church a place where your name is hallowed. From the oldest to the youngest, from every Sunday service to each Community Group, from every new members class to all those shared meals, from every mission trip to every elders meeting may we exalt Jesus to the glory of your great name. Make us a people who are zealous to share the good news of Jesus with our classmates and co-workers, neighbors and family members. Lord God, for the renown of Jesus, would you bring people to faith in Christ through the direct ministry of the members of this church? Make us a people unified in the gospel of our Lord; that we would put personal preferences aside; that we would be quick to repent and offer forgiveness; that we would generously give financially to this church; that we would actively pray for the other members of this church.

Make us a people who are quick to acknowledge our sin. Father, we know that apart from Christ we have nothing and are marked by selfish desires. We confess that we are prideful and self-righteous. We confess that we get sinfully angry and carry around bitterness in our hearts. We confess that we are greedy. We confess that we discipline our children not out of love but impatience. We confess that we lie to protect our image. “Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent, for the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us based only on the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name.” Yes, Lord God Almighty, use this church, Restoration Church, to be a bright gospel light here in NW DC and beyond.

We pray for HaitiLove and our brother Noah as he spends time training Haitian Pastors. Use his ministry to strengthen churches and start new healthy Haitian Churches. We pray for our mother Church, Northwake. Thank you for their continual faithful ministry; grant the elders and members of Northwake an increasing passion to reach the lost and equip them to become mature and ministering worshippers of you, our great God. Father we pray for the 5000 plus missionaries working through the IMB. From the city of Istanbul to the plains of Africa, from the slums of Bangladesh to the mountain villages in China, you have used the IMB to send men and women all around this globe. Give these brothers and sisters a deep-seated passion for Christ; bring forth fruit from their labors; bring all nations and all peoples and all tribes and all tongues to yourself for your glory and the gladness of their souls.

We also praise you that we are not alone in laboring for the gospel here in our city. We thank you for the faithful gospel presence of Church of the Resurrection and Christ our Shepherd. We praise you for the gospel ministry of The Bridge, GraceDC and Grace Meridian Hill. We thank you for faithful collegiate ministries like Chi-Alpha, CRU and Campus Outreach. Father, we thank you for the American Friends ministry; thank you for our brother K who tirelessly pours into that work. This upcoming school year use American Friends to develop genuine friendship and spread the gospel far and wide.

Father, as we listen to your word this morning, open up our hearts and minds to understand and move our wills to joyfully obey all that you call us to do. In the name of Jesus we offer these prayers. Amen.