Please find below the notes from the Elder's Prayer from our Christmas Eve Service.

Gracious Heavenly Father, 

We praise you and thank you for loving the world so much that you gave your only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him would not perish but have everlasting life.  

Thank you for the gift of saving faith. Thank you for saving us by your grace through faith in Christ Jesus and that we might walk in the good works that you have prepared for us beforehand. 

 Please bless our international missions involvement in Central Asia. 

• We pray for the workers residency to be extended for another year.  
• We pray for the economic and political stability in the country they live in.  
• We pray for the workers families to make the most of every opportunity to share about our Savior during this Christmas season, and also please help them to reflect Him in their words, attitudes, and actions. 
• We pray for the workers and us to be content and have unshakable faith in God’s providential plans in both small, daily circumstances and life altering ones. 
• We pray for them and us that we will be easily edified and be hard to offend. 
• Lord, we thank you for the brand-new believers in Christ Jesus. We pray that, as they are being discipled, you will help them to grow deeper in the knowledge of Jesus and in His word. 
• We pray that those who have received the invitation to visit Christmas Eve and Christmas services would attend, hear the gospel and come to saving faith in Christ Jesus. 

Lord God, I remember our workers in South Asia: 

• We pray for good health for them, especially for Rachel Angell that you would help her through the rest of the pregnancy and delivery in March also help them in their parenting of Eli. 
• We pray your help and protection in the planned travel over the next several months. 
• We pray that you would strengthen their team leader who received a significant pushback from local Hindu nationalists as a result of the gospel work.  
• We pray for their steadfastness and continue to have amplified opportunities to testify for the gospel of Jesus Christ. 
• We pray for those in their church to have the desire to grow in their faith and be willing and available for discipleship.   
• We pray that you would open up the hearts and minds of those our workers share the gospel with.   

We also pray for our local and national partnerships in the gospel on the Stateside: Our partnership with Elias coffee house and the refugee ministries that they do, our partnership with Crisis pregnancy centers, Women’s Bible Study Fellowship that meets at our facility, church planting arms of our denomination and our very own efforts to prayerfully think through what you would have us do in the coming years in terms of reproducing the disciples locally, nationally and internationally. Please let there be open hearts for the gospel work till Christ returns. Please use Summit Woods Baptist Church for your glory. 

Please use our offering this evening which we give as part of our worship for the extension of your kingdom. In Jesus name, we pray, Amen.