Praying for Our Future Pastor

A few months after Pastor Harry’s passing, we were still staggering from his loss. One night a dream came to me with these words, thoughts, premonitions - whatever. It was as if in this hopeless, floundering time the Lord was comforting my pain with this hope.
The Deer Creek Church is like a worm being transformed in due time, protected by a surrounding cocoon. This is the time I am preparing you, the church, for what I plan in days to come. When the time is right (in my time) says the Lord, you will erupt into a beautiful butterfly.
The PNC committee is not hopeless! We have faith that God has someone else in their own cocoon, preparing them as the person He desires them to be to become our shepherd. In the meantime, we await in trust that the day will come when the match made in heaven will occur.
At 5:00 AM on Sunday, August 23rd, the Lord’s presence was felt by me and He gave me a prayer to share with this church. But before I share it, I need to back the story up to July 12th when Pastor Dan Reece was the pulpit fill of the day. At the end, before the benediction, he encouraged us with these words. “You need to circle up and pray to God for a new pastor and ask him to ready us for the coming of a person of His own choosing.” He told us of an incident that the church in Lafayette had done this to be financially strong enough to survive if the other group that was renting space with them ever left. Their prayers were answered.
I was sitting in the pew and thought, well let’s get started doing this right now! But I felt the restraint of the Holy Spirit holding me back from blurting that out. Thoughts started racing through my head of the seven times for Naman. He was told to go to the Jordan to bathe and be healed of his leprosy (2Kings 5:1-19) but he had to do it seven times.
Also seven times, Joshua led the army around the city of Jericho (Joshua 6). They marched silently for six days with priests blowing horns. The city fell on the 7th day with only the army’s shouts upon Joshua’s orders and the priests blowing horns. I knew God was instructing us to pray seven (7) times for our need of a pastor.
I wasn’t going to take the prayer God gave me on the morning of the 23rd, but His urging caused me to go back into the house to get it. Tobe Leazenby’s sermon was exactly on point, but I felt reluctant until I felt the nudge at the Joys and Concerns prayer time.
God sometimes has bizarre battle plans and at first they seem senseless from our human perspective. How many times do we give up on God because he doesn’t do his work according to our plan?
It all boils down to simple faith. I have faith that God’s answer to our prayers is simply pray seven (7) times for our needs to find a pastor. The prayer that was prayed on August 23rd follows on the next page.

Your Sister in Christ,
Susie Dyke

The Prayer for Our Future Pastor

Oh Almighty Heavenly Father, we bow before you in this moment. We are in awe of your holiness and power. We lift our praise before you in worship and song. We thank you for your steadfast presence with us. You’ve been with us for 190 years since you raised Deer Creek Presbyterian into being. Your Holy Presence has been with us in many times of joy and growth, and has sustained us in times of loss and sorrow. We love you Lord and we feel your Holy Presence with us today more than ever. Giver of hope and peace, you hold us in the palm of your holy hand in good times and hard times.
We thank you for providing us with what we have needed in the past two years of being without a called pastor. You have been so faithful in providing people to fill our pulpit, you have graciously raised up faithful members to lead this church. You have bolstered relationships and faith among our people to carry on your work. We feel the eyes of the community on us, marveling how we are pressing forward to do your work in this place.
Lord, we desire to glorify not we ourselves, but you and your power through us. You continue to fill us full of your Holy Word to prepare us for what you plan. Go before us and prepare the way. Give us hope, show us a way when there seems to be no way. You’ve done it before in times past for your people and we trust in your promise in the Holy Word when you say you will be with us always. Increase our trust this day.
Open our eyes, our ears, our hearts to hear your instructions. Forgive our shortcomings. Give us hearts for obedience. Help us wait in strength and not grow weary. Increase our Christ likeness.
We pray for our PNC. We pray for your church worldwide. We pray for our country. Lord, we desire your grace and mercy We know you shall prevail in all things.
We have faith that you are tending and grooming a special person to become our shepherd and we give you thanks. Aid us in being able to discern your will when that special person appears before us.
We thank you for all the times and ways you’ve faithfully answered our prayers and we’ve seen your great faithfulness to us. Continue with us on our journey. In faith we are asking and in faith receiving whatever your will for us in this place.

In the precious and almighty name of Jesus Christ, our Savior, all this we pray,

Amen.