1. Then He [Jesus] said, “Everything I told you while I was with you comes to this: All the things written about Me in the Law of Moses, in the Prophets, and in the Psalms have to be fulfilled.” (Luke 24:44). Praise God that Jesus Christ has fulfilled more than 300 prophetic passages in the Old Testament that describe who the Messiah is and what He will do, thus proving without any doubt that He is indeed the Messiah, the Promised One, our Savior. Pray that this truth will affirm our faith in the Bible, that it is the infallible Word of God, and it will further affirm our faith that Christ will come the second time, just as the Bible promised He would come the first time. Pray that this truth will spur us on to read and see the Old Testament as a story of redemption, with Christ saturating every detail. As the fulfillment of these prophecies in the life of Jesus helps build our faith, and points to Him as the Savior of the world, pray that we will be motivated to share the Gospel with people who have yet to know the truth about Christ.
2. Corporate prayer has kept us united during these very challenging times of MCO, CMCO and now, RMCO. Praise God that since March 22, 2020, we had 52 consecutive days of online prayers via zoom, and from May 19, 2020, the prayer meetings have continued on Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays in the mornings and nights. Praise God for all the people who have joined these prayer meetings. Pray that the spirit of prayer in Klang Wesley will continue to be vibrant and strong because “the way to obtain a spirit of prayer is to continue praying … and the less we pray, the less we desire to pray.” (George Muller). Ask God to enable us to pray with persistence, desiring more and more of Spirit-led prayer, that we will be steadfast, both in our closet and corporate prayers. Pray that we will pray with constant watchfulness, and be vigilant and alert, so as to obtain victory in prayer. Pray that our prayers will abound with thanksgiving to God for who He is, and all that He is doing our midst, especially during this time of the pandemic. Pray that the Holy Spirit will inspire more of our people to join the corporate prayer meetings, as we have seen these virtual prayer meetings as the new norm of God working mightily in our midst.
3. Praise God that the daily Covid-19 infections have generally dropped, though there are occasional spikes. Hence, due to the decline in daily positive cases, Malaysia entered the Recovery Movement Control Order (RCMO) on June 10, 2020. A lot of restrictions have been lifted, and most sectors of the economy are allowed to reopen including markets, barbershops and hair salons, and all government services are now fully operational, but with strict adhering to standard operation procedures, including social distancing and limiting the number of customers / people. Pray that all business operators will comply with all the SOP at all times. Pray that the public will play its part by alerting authorities over traders and businesses that do not practice standard operating procedures at their premises, and to practice social distancing and wear face masks at all times in public areas. Pray that as Malaysians, we will do everything can to prevent the chain of infection, and comply with all the government rules and regulations pertaining to the RMCO. Pray also for wisdom for the authorities as they seek to reopen more social, educational, religious and business activities, as well as economic sectors in the days and weeks ahead.
4. Praise God that our youths and children are able to meet every week via zoom, and the momentum of Sunday Youth meetings and Sunday School is kept going. Pray that the youths will be blessed by these weekly meetings, that God will be real in their lives, and move them from being lukewarm Christians to become God-loving Christians. Pray that there will be consistent spiritual growth throughout the year as the youths see the relevance of God in their lives. Pray for restoration of any broken relationships that might exist between the youths and their parents / siblings. Pray that the youths will find ways to be generous with the things God has blessed them with, e.g. their time, their things, gifts and talents, and to use them to bless others. Pray for the Sunday School teachers to connect well with the children during the online lessons, and for God to grant them creativity and ideas in their online lessons. Pray that as schools will be reopened in stages (beginning with Forms 5 & 6 classes, and students facing international school examinations on June 24, 2020), the heads and hearts of the youths will be prepared for when they do go back to school, and that they will be responsible to follow the SOPs diligently.
5. Praise God that with the implementation of the Recovery MCO on June 10, 2020, Malaysia’s domestic tourism sector has started to resume operations, interstate travel is allowed, and the operators of hotels and tourist attractions are ready and eager to receive visitors. The hotel industry has seen a surge in bookings and reservations for hotel rooms. Enterprises and employers are readying themselves to reopen and revive their businesses, and some businesses have started offering jobs to people. Pray that all this will begin to revitalise the economy in our nation. Pray that in the coming months, enterprises and businesses will see positive results. Pray that the rakyat will continue to be alert and vigilant with the new norm of social discipline, that tourism and hotel operators, enterprises and businesses will abide strictly to the SOP set by the authorities. Pray that families going for vacation and other permitted activities will practise the new normal and self-discipline as the battle against the coronavirus is not yet over. Pray also for wisdom and creativity upon the government as it makes plans to spur and revive the economy. Pray that with more freedom of movement for the public, God will protect our nation from a second wave of infections.
6. As the Covid-19 situation in the nation is stabilising, pray that God will stabilise the political turmoil in the country. Pray that all politicians will put rebuilding the nation, and reviving the economy as their top priority. Pray that God will raise up men and women who are united in purpose to return Malaysia to the path of righteousness and justice. Pray that the Lord will grant our nation political stability, sustainable government, transparent leadership, accountable leaders, and servanthood politicians. Pray for the justice system, that God will instruct and direct, and grant wisdom to the Attorney General and his staff, the judges, magistrates and lawyers when they are arguing a case in court or deciding on a verdict. Pray that judges will have the courage to hold fast to their righteous conviction and administer justice without fear or favour. Pray also for the churches in Malaysia to rise up to pray in unity urgently for the sake of this nation. Pray that the Lord will sharpen the spiritual acumen of His people to have tenacious faith and persevering prayer to revert the demonic onslaught upon Malaysia.
7. While countries across Europe are slowly lifting lockdown restrictions and reopening borders, more than 1.5 million people have been infected with the coronavirus in Central and South America – 70,000 of them are already dead – with no signs of the disease slowing, especially in hard-hit Brazil, and possibly provoking the region’s worst recession in history. In the United States, the number of cases has soared past 2 million, with the job market destroyed in every state, and mass protests for racial justice continue to sweep across the country. In India, the coronavirus disease is spreading across the country at a rapid pace, and it is the nation with the highest number of infections and deaths in Asia. Pray for these countries that are the hardest-hit by Covid-19 now, that God will give the governments of these countries divine wisdom, discernment and guidance to process all the information they receive about the virus, courage to make the right decisions and do what is best for their respective countries. Pray also for the medical scientists in the world to work together in unity, and share their expertise, to quickly discover a vaccine to combat the coronavirus.