September 2019 Prayer and Praise

There is hope! Is that a truth you need to be reminded of today? You are not alone if you do. Life is tough. The situations we encounter in our care of others, the stories we hear, the experiences we live can be draining. But we are not in this alone. We have a Mighty Warrior who fights for us! In fact…we know He has already won the war!

This is the beauty of Nurses Christian Fellowship. Relationship! Hope in Jesus Christ! We have connections with nurses who understand the struggles we experience in our practice. We can encourage and remind each other of truth. We pray for one another. We are present with each other when times are tough.

This past week, I was in a place where I needed a reminder of that truth and hope. A dear friend who is a part of my local Nurses Christian Fellowship group shared these verses with me from Zephaniah:

            “The Lord your God is with you,
                      the Mighty Warrior who saves.
            He will take great delight in you;
                     in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
                     but will rejoice over you with singing.”

            Zephaniah 3:17 (NIV)

I have meditated on these verses for days. They have changed my mindset from a sense of loss and despair to one of hope and renewal. We are not in this struggle alone. We are led by a Mighty Warrior. He is with us! He delights and even sings over us. 

Do we hear His song? Do we fight knowing that the war has been won? Do we sense His hope? As you reflect and meditate on these verses, my prayer for you is the same as the prayer of my friend for me. May you be encouraged in whatever situation you are facing. May you sense you are not in this alone. May you sense His delight and song over you.

Know that you are prayed for by each member of NCF’s staff. Know that your prayers for NCF also sustain us. It is a privilege for us to partner with you in your practice and to be reminded of the hope we each can claim as believers in the one, true Mighty Warrior!

Christy Secor RN, DNP, CDWF, NCF Professional Ministries Director

You can download the September Prayer Calendar here

September Prayer Calendar

  • September 1 – Pray for NCF student groups as they launch this month. Pray for boldness for the students as they give invitations to new students. Pray for students who don't know Jesus to take a risk and explore who he is and how he sees and cares for them. 
  • September 2 – NCF is working hard to integrate different computer systems to serve students, nurses, and our members better. Please ask God to guide the tech developers and use technology for His glory and goodness! 
  • September 3 – Pray that many nurses will take advantage of the Fall19 20% off membership special. Ask God to guide nurses to Facebook and to use the email blasts to help nurses connect and join NCF. 
  • September 4 - Thank God for our new NCF Student Ministries Director Jen Wojtysiak, and her gentle, wise leadership. Ask God to give her great wisdom and multiply her time as she serves nursing students and NCF chapters. 
  • September 5 – Pray for the new nurse group queries and student group queries that NCF receives regularly – ask God to bless and lead and guide as NCF staff interact with each one sensing the call to plant NCF where they study, live, and work. 
  • September 6 - Please pray for new reviewers and authors for the Journal of Christian Nursing so we can increase our available pool.
  • September 7 – Pray for our professional nurse groups; many who are having fall kick-offs. Pray for encouragement as these nurses lead their groups throughout the year and look for ways to engage more nurses.
  • September 8 – Praise God for the new NCF Bible study at a nationally leading Ohio nursing school, after resistance to implement an NCF group last school year. Pray for Ken and for the NCF faculty advisors; ask the Holy Spirit to bring many students who want to connect faith and practice, and who are spiritually seeking. 
  • September 9 – Pray for our social media pages to be a light in the midst of darkness. Pray that our efforts to engage the nursing community would be met with response and that ultimately Christ's name would be made great in nursing.
  • September 10 – Pray for new students who know Jesus to say yes to coming to an NCF group where they can be encouraged in their faith as a nurse.
  • September 11 – We give Jesus praise for Jessica and Leanne, our NCF marketing staff, who work tirelessly to create attractive, positive NCF communications. Ask the Holy Spirit to strengthen them as they work for NCF and care for young children and have other jobs. 
  • September 12 – Ask Jesus to bring in needed resources for NCF to support more student chapters, nurse groups, and JCN work. He is LORD and will do what He wants through NCF ministry!
  • September 13 – Pray for NCF staff all over the USA who serve whole-heartedly to bring the Good News to nursing students and nurses. Ask God to bring discernment, a balance of Sabbath and rest, to bless their time in His Word, and to fill each one with the Holy Spirit. 
  • September 14 – Praise God for nurses who are stepping forward and seeking God’s guidance as they consider starting a professional nurse group. Pray for them to find other like-minded individuals to be a part of their leadership teams. This past month there have been conversations with nurses from Davenport, IA; Baltimore, MD; Gulfport, MS; Meridian, MS; Saint Cloud, MN; Cleveland, OH; Houston, TX; Huntsville, TX; and Gainesville, GA.
  • September 15 – Pray for the faculty and student leaders of our NCF groups that they would be sustained during this busy time of year. Pray they would be encouraged as they see Jesus at work around them. Pray they would be filled with courage and creativity to reach out to those around them. 
  • September 16 – Thank you for continuing to pray for National Director, Kathy Schoonover-Shoffner, and her husband Richard. October 12 marks the one-year anniversary of Richard’s accident and severe TBI. Ask Jesus to help Kathy balance work, time with Jesus, and time with Richard as he is home full time and continuing recovery. 
  • September 17 – Pray for Skip McDonald, NCF’s campus staff who serves the southeast, as she speaksat Middle Georgia State University’s nurse practitioner program today.
  • September 18 – Please pray for the Journal of Christian Nursing’s editorial team as we revise author guidelines and onboard new contributing editors.
  • September 19 – Pray for educators, nurses and students to respond to God’s call on their lives and to live their faith deeply as they teach in clinicals and in the classroom, care for patients, interact with co-workers, and learn with their classmates.
  • September 20 – The Virginia Commonwealth University NCF student chapter will be attending a fall retreat September 20-22. Pray for this to be a time of rest for nursing students away from campus where they can connect with the Lord! 
  • September 21 – We praise God for the relationships being built through the Twin Cities mentorship pilot. Pray for God to continue to grow these relationships and bless graduates across the country as they take their boards and begin working.
  • September 22 – Pray for wisdom and discernment for Skip McDonald as she researches and develops a faith-based mental health curriculum and writes a LifeGuide Bible study for InterVarsity Press on anxiety.
  • September 23 – Bless the Lord for how He is using Professional Ministries Director, Christy Secor, to start more NCF Nurse Groups around the country. Ask God to give Christy much strength and grace as she serves so many nurses and groups. 
  • September 24 – Pray for unity in NCF’s ministry. We have many different areas of focus and want to ask for God to continue to bring His vision to the forefront. Pray for us as staff to continue to work together well to accomplish His will for NCF.
  • September 25 – Pray for non-Christians to be involved this year in NCF and to say yes to Jesus for the first time this year. 
  • September 26 – Pray for nurses who are struggling to find their purpose and have become disillusioned with the profession. Pray for healing that’s needed physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
  • September 27 – Pray for God to continue to bless the work of the NCFI World Congress that will be held in Denver, CO in July 2020. Pray for barriers to be removed for delegates from around the world who wish to attend.
  • September 28 - Pray for NCF members that God will use them mightily for His Kingdom – that God’s will would be done on earth in their nursing practice, just as it is in heaven.
  • September 29 – Pray for us to turn to the one true Healer in both times of need and times of gratitude.
  • September 30 - Pray for students coming into contact with NCF groups who do not know Jesus. Pray they would be drawn to NCF and the community it affords as well as to Jesus the reason for the hope and encouragement the NCF students have.