Displaying items by tag: Marriage

The authorities that exist are established by God (Romans 13:1). Pray for the King, Prime Minister, first ministers and all those in national and local government to have heaven’s wisdom. Pray that parliamentarians promote good and restrain evil. Marriage is a creation ordinance given by God for the good of all people. Genesis 2:24 says, ‘A man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife; they will become one flesh’.’Pray that churches faithfully uphold the Bible’s teaching on marriage and sexual ethics. Psalm139:14 says, ‘I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.’ Pray that attempts to legalise euthanasia and allow abortion at any stage will fail. There is pressure to move away from God’s instructions for his world. ‘Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you.’ Pray for the UK's repentance and revival.

John Sentamu, the former archbishop, said, ‘There was an unbelievable depth of Prince Philip’s rootedness in Christ, and Her Majesty is exactly the same. I have not met a couple that are so free.’ He said he had prayed with them both; their prayers were never said aloud, but they would say amen. The royal family are proving they are no ‘different in grief from anybody else. They want to be part of the grieving for the nation, for the many people who died from Covid-19, and for those who have not been able to be present when their loved one is being buried.’ Dr Sentamu joked that Philip would have appreciated his shortened funeral service, because ‘the duke could not stand what he called “long church”'.

Pastor and author John Piper has said, ‘Those who choose to marry non-believers are acting in open defiance of the teaching of the apostles and of God’. Piper is known for strict Calvinist theology. He said not marrying a Christian indicates how deeply compromised the believer’s love for Christ is; Christians who marry non-believers and ignore their pastors’ warnings ‘should be excommunicated from their church community’. Opposers to excommunication might say, ‘You won’t be able to win them to Christ by putting them out of the church’. But elders must be prepared to hear criticism before declaring this is ‘emphatically not what the Bible teaches’. Not everyone agreed with Piper. Twitter comments included ‘quite literally one of the worst things I have ever read’ and ‘I benefited from Piper’s teaching in the past, but this HAS to be the worst’.

Alexey, a middle-school dropout, first went to the missionaries’ church for food when he was a homeless beggar. When he got a job and could feed himself, he stopped attending church. He met Anya and they had a baby boy, but he fell into substance abuse and his income did not cover family costs. When child welfare authorities arrived at their door to take their son away, they successfully pleaded for more time to show they could care for him. Realising his need for God, Alexey took his family to church the following Sunday. He repented and asked believers to pray for them. ‘From that day, a huge change took place in our lives. We got married, I ended drug and alcohol abuse, and we read the Bible daily. Thanks to God for the miracle He has done in our lives.’

We need you prayers at this time here in Australia. Please pass this important Call for Prayer & Fasting 1 – 3 July 2017 for Australia and for the preservation of Marriage in Australia.

YouTube Video with Ps Tim Edwards:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmFs3ioT4D0

Facebook Video with Ps Tim Edwards:  https://www.facebook.com/warwick.marsh.9/videos/10211311607844398/

Much Love

Warwick Marsh 

MEDIA RELEASE

3 Days of Prayer & Fasting: 1 – 3 July 2017

International Prayer Request for Australia’s Government Leaders

On Thursday 29 June, Australian Prayer Leaders, during a national teleconference, confirmed a proposal to call the Christian churches in Australia to pray and fast from 1-3 July 2017 for the nation of Australia, its leaders and government. It is also a call to pray that marriage in Australia will remain between a man and a woman, as it always has been. This prayer call was initiated by an Indigenous Elder working in partnership with a Catholic Christian leader in our nation’s capital, Canberra. 

Ps Tim Edwards, an Indigenous Christian leader, said, “I am deeply concerned about the state of our nation and our government and the revelations that have become known in the last few days. The call to prayer for our nation, our government and for the future of marriage in Australia has been in part motivated by a secret speech  recently given by senior cabinet minister Christopher Pyne MP to the ‘Black Hand’ (left wing) faction of the governing party. He claimed that the left-wing faction is 'winning' and that same-sex marriage could be legalized 'sooner than people think.' This call for prayer is on very short notice, but in a spiritual battle you have to move fast!”

Rev Matt Ransom, Deacon in the Catholic Archbishop’s office in Canberra said, “The biblical precedent for this call to prayer and fasting for Godly government and for our leaders and our broader populace to find Christ as Lord and Savior is found in 1 Timothy 2: 1-3: “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.”

Jenny Hagger, Australian House of Prayer for All Nations, said, “A scriptural precedent for this nation changing three day period of prayer and fasting is found in Esther 4:16. Queen Esther’s call to prayer changed history. This prayer and fasting is above party politics because the church must take responsibility for our nation. We as the church need to engage in a deeper level of repentance for this period of prayer and fasting for our nation to be truly effective.”

David Rowsome, Canberra Declaration, said, “It is great that Australia is able to join with Canada, our sister nation in the British Commonwealth, who is celebrating Canada’s first National Day of Repentance, Prayer and Fasting on the 1 July 2017. The foundation for any national call to prayer and fasting is found in 2 Chronicles 7:14, ‘If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land”.

Warwick Marsh, National Day of Prayer & Fasting team said, “Tim Edwards and I have been greatly disturbed by the malicious persecution of Ps Margaret Court, one of Australia’s greatest sportswomen and a world champion tennis player. She has been publicly vilified very unfairly for her stand for the biblical truth of marriage between a man and a woman. Australia is in desperate need of Godly leadership and that is why we are requesting prayer support from around the world.