Love your hometown through prayer!

We do something for love, one person at a time. But how about loving your whole hometown? How do you do it? Do you know that more than half of the world now lives in urban areas? How do you love a whole city?

On Wednesday before lunch, Lee Ann at my church sent me an email to ask if I'd seen the Facebook update of our local homeless shelter. I hadn't. She pasted it on the email, telling me about the crowds there this week & the great needs. I emailed one of our partners at the Ministry and got a list of needed items within an hour. I sent an email to hundreds of women at my church, and within 24 hours, a pile grew in the church foyer ... baby items, Clorox wipes, medicines, feminine products, games for children, and so much, much more. 24 hours after the first email, I was driving to my city with the gifts of my church family.  As Jacob and I carried the bags up the stairs, a man called out, "Did you give all this stuff?"  "No. It's all from my church.  We love you!"


More importantly, JESUS loves us! Giving to meet practical needs is a beautiful way to show His love.  What fun to get to be the driver of the delivery car!!!


Another beautiful way to love your hometown  is to PRAY.  On the last Monday of every month in 2011, believers in our area are meeting at various area churches for an hour (noon - 1 pm) just to pray for our city. It's called Pray for Awakening.  We'll ask God to show Himself clearly, to meet needs, to reach people, to turn hearts to Him, to give hope, to change us. I've called this city my "hometown" for almost seven years. We're praying for our city, because we love it. We love the people in it. It's something we can all do for love, wherever we live, urban, suburban, or rural. Do you love your community?

 Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. 

 Jeremiah 29:12-13

If you're in my area and would like to gather with us to pray, just come to Northstar Church (Info HERE). There's no program or agenda or welcome or bulletin, just prayer out of love. And if you love our city with me and wrote a post about this chance to Pray for Awakening in Knoxville, feel free to link your post below to help get the word out.

And if you're just one of my sweet readers of Come Have a Peace, but you have your own hometown, leave a comment here or comment on the CHP Facebook page to let me know where you are, and we'll pray for God to move there, too. Please join us on Monday as we love our city and Pray for Awakening. As we wrap up a month about "the things we do for love," it's a great way to finish!