Greetings Friends!

I am excited to begin this journey with you in prayer for the Spirit to alert us to its work in our communities and the culture we are living in. I have much to learn about our conference, your contexts, the needs our people have and the resources they’re hoping for. Each week I’d like to ask for you to be in prayer for a specific thought together, in addition to the situations, people and ministries God has put on your heart.

WEEK 1 – GRACE – Grace is one of the many tools in our Wesleyan toolbox that we have to offer the world. Grace for people who aren’t yet aware or paying attention to the activity of God in their midst, grace that Jesus can transform a person’s heart (and again, and again), and the grace that we can continue to grow in our faith and become more for God tomorrow than we are today. Also, the grace to make mistakes. The grace to be forgiven. And the grace to have time to figure things out. I will need loads of grace to attempt to do this job well and to serve others well. Lord, may I offer the grace to others I wish to be given.

WEEK 2 – ARRIVAL – It can be easy to believe we have arrived in various portions of our lives. That we’ve reached the pinnacle. No more to be accomplished. Nothing more to be learned. When we believe our cup is full, there’s no longer any space for God to operate. May our spirit be open, may we be ever coachable … that we haven’t arrived until our time here on Earth is over. Lord, cultivate in me a desire to continue to learn from you and others.

WEEK 3 – SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECY – I ran across a phrase awhile back, “you find what you’re looking for.” It made me wonder – what is it that I’m looking for in life? Do I find what I find because I tend to look for that more than what I would prefer to experience? Do I look for unity or division? Differences or commonalities? Optimism or pessimism? Evil or good? The depravity of humanity is easy to find. But so is inspiration! What kind of energy am I following? Lord, remind me to look for your activity and presence in the world around me.

WEEK 4 – NOISE – I am a person who loves to be surrounded by stimuli. I play music in the office, listen to the radio in the car, will put something on in the background when I’m doing laundry and enjoy dinner in places with significant background noise. But it makes me wonder, how can God get through if I’m playing a soundtrack constantly? If I wanted to “be still and know that I am God,” do I create space and time for that to take place? Lord, may I listen for your voice through the noise and create more space to be able to experience your presence in my life.

If I can be of any help to you in any way, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I am praying for you as well.

The best is yet to come, 
Mark Sheets