Eastside 21 Days of PrayerSample

DAY 11: A PRAYER OF PARTNERSHIP

Murphy’s Law says, “If anything can go wrong, it will.” That is why followers of Jesus offer prayers of partnership to help protect us from and equip us to face what can go wrong in life. Partners agree to cooperate, to work together to advance their mutual interests.

Today we examine Ecclesiastes 4:10: “If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.”

Have you ever been alone, truly alone? Maybe it was when you were walking down an empty street late at night or awakening to the reality that if something happened to you, there would be no one to call out to for help. It’s true that at some point, each of us will trip and fall. It’s Murphy’s Law; we will each go through some valleys in our lives. This is why God created community, so that when we go through the valleys of life, we won’t be alone. In my life, I have what I call my “3AM friend.” This is the person that no matter what happens and no matter what the hour is, this friend will be there to pick me up. But I haven’t always had this. There were seasons when I isolated myself by pushing everyone away. I spent many nights walking down my own figurative dark and empty streets, knowing full well that when (not if, but when) I fall, no one will be there to help me … and likewise, when something good happens, no one will be there to celebrate with me. Do you have a 3AM friend?  

PRAY

1. Thank God for those in your life who show up for you and pick you up when you fall. If you don’t have a 3AM friend, pray that God will guide you to finding this type of community.
2. You might currently be in a valley in your life, in a spot where you see nothing beyond the dark, lonely path, acutely aware that one wrong step will have you on your knees. Pray that God will lead you into community, and that he will bring a friend to walk alongside you in this season.
3. You might not be in a dark valley now, but perhaps you’ve been there in the past, and God brought you through it. Pray that God will allow you to use your story and experiences to walk alongside someone else who might be in such a valley right now.