40 Days of Prayer and Fasting

Hello Church,

I’m excited to kick off 40 Days of Prayer & Fasting this Sunday. As we enter a contentious season for our culture, we want to give our ultimate allegiance to King Jesus as his people and seek his renewal in our lives, our relationships, our city, and our country.

Jesus gave his life for the unity of the church. On the eve of the cross, he prayed to his Father for us as his disciples, “that they may be one as we are one—I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity.” (John 17:22-23) As Christ prepared for his imminent death, this is what was on his heart: that something of the mysterious unity of the Trinity as a communion of love might be put on display through our unity in love as his people.

Does your heart beat for unity the way Jesus’ heart does? As we embark on this 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting, I want to invite you to pray for a countercultural unity in our lives as God’s people. That his Spirit would elevate us to his higher kingdom that can transcend the tribalized fault lines of our polarized culture. That we would trade hostility for charity, suspicion for curiosity, and antagonism for sacrificial love. Pray that God would preserve and restore relationships in our friendships, families, and churches to the glory of our Resurrected King.

-Josh Butler