“And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.””‭‭Luke‬ ‭4:1-3‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/luk.4.1-3.esv
All,
This stands out because it says Jesus was tempted by the devil. It doesn’t say a evil force, etc., it says the devil. Spiritual warfare is real and the more we trust God and do His purpose the more temptation we will receive. Satan asks, “If you are the Son of God”. Isn’t that the same way we are tempted? Satan tries to create doubt in God’s promises, so we will depend on something other than God. Please pray that we and our friends seek God and realize how real spiritual warfare is. Please pray for Robert and Jim’s group. 

“As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”‭‭Luke‬ ‭3:15-16‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/luk.3.15-16.esv
All,
This stands out because John says, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” The Holy Spirit enables us and encourages us to do God’s will. Anything God puts on our heart is possible with the power of the Holy Spirit. Please pray that we and our friends believe this power is there when we begin to fear a nudge from God isn’t possible. Please pray for Cheever and Steven’s group. 

“After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.” And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart.”‭‭Luke‬ ‭2:46-51‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/luk.2.46-51.esv
All,
This stands out because it says Mary, “treasured up all these things in her heart.” Imagine being Mary and KNOWING that Jesus is the Son of God, but life still occurs and she may start to “forget” that the Messiah is her son. How often do we know the promises of God and trust them, but then life continues to happen and we “forget” that God is in control. Please pray that we and our friends seek God daily and talk to Him about our circumstance so He can give us the peace that only He can give. Please pray for Newt’s group. 

“When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.”‭‭Luke‬ ‭2:15-16‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/luk.2.15-16.esv
All,
This stands out because God made it known to the shepherds first. Why shepherds? When Christ was resurrected, God made it known to the women first. Both times God made huge events known to “disrespected” people of the day. God seems to chose those who think they can’t offer anything as opposed to the prideful. Please pray that we and our friends know that God will use us for His purpose whether we think we are worthy or not. Please pray for the Buckhead City Leadership Team. 

“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.””‭‭Luke‬ ‭1:76-79‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/luk.1.76-79.esv
All,
This stands out because Zechariah says, “because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” God wants to awake us to present conditions that are not great for us, but we have become accustomed to. As we seek Jesus, He will reveal areas in our lives that we don’t realize are hurting us. They are probably the very things that we think “brings us life”. Only Jesus can “give you life, life to the full”(John 10:10). Please pray that we and our friends “ask God to reveal any areas of unconfessed sins”, as Ken Boa says. Please pray for Jeremy and Gary’s group. 

“And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!”‭‭Luke‬ ‭1:41-42‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/luk.1.41-42.esv
All,
This stands out because Elizabeth speaks truth that she doesn’t really know until the Holy Spirit reveals it to her. When we walk with the Holy Spirit, He reveals truth to us in ways we couldn’t dream of before. He may connect dots that we never saw connected before and may still not know the full implication of our part in the overall process. Please pray that we and our friends follow the nudges God puts on us through the Holy Spirit today and speak. We may be the very Word that person needed to hear. Please pray for Michael and Steven’s group. 

“And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large.”‭‭Mark‬ ‭16:2-4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/mrk.16.2-4.esv
All,
This stands out because they said, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” They did not let a huge obstacle stop them from wanting to see Jesus. How many times do we wait for convenient times or “most opportune” times to seek Jesus? They rose “very early” and didn’t let the obstacle stop them in their pursuit. Please pray that we and our friends seek Jesus period without letting “obstacles” prevent us from just walking forward. Please pray for Robert and Jim’s group. 

“Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, took courage and went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.”‭‭Mark‬ ‭15:43‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/mrk.15.43.esv
All,
This stands out because the ESV words this as, “who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God.” I can only assume that Joseph was in a high position because he truly pursued the Kingdom of God as opposed to being exalted himself. His peers became caught up in their position, but Joseph stayed true to his relationship with God. Please pray that we and our friends continue to seek the Kingdom of God and not just look for comfort in this world. Please pray for Christian and Josh’s group. 

“And he answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barabbas instead.”‭‭Mark‬ ‭15:9-11‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/mrk.15.9-11.esv
All,
This stands out because the crowd still asked for Barabbas to be released. Jesus is about to die for the crowd that would rather chose a real criminal over Him. As we live in the world, the world gets comfortable and we enjoy our “things” and especially our friendships. As we saw with Peter, it’s easy to get caught up in our worldly stuff and deny Jesus. Please pray that we and our friends spend time with Jesus today and be wary just now easy it is for us to chose the world over Jesus. Please pray Tyson and Donny’s group. 

“And immediately the rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept.”‭‭Mark‬ ‭14:72‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/mrk.14.72.esv
All,
This stands out because it says Peter “broke down and wept.” It combines the beatitudes to a real life situation “Blessed are the poor in Spirit because theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven”. When we FINALLY realize that we can’t follow Jesus in our own power and yield to God’s power, we move towards heaven. Peter had to realize this breakdown in order to truly be a part of God’s purpose and just think how his life turned from this moment. Please pray that we and our friends realize our shortcomings and yield completely to God today. Please pray for the Cobb City Leadership team.