Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 5
Community & Accountability

Bethany Dissmore • Connections Coordinator
August 20, 2026

4 Minute Read
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 5 | Community & Accountability

Let’s Do This Together | Bethany Dissmore

"But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray." 'But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life." - Jude 1:20-21
“I’m believing God for ____ ...”

This week of prayer and fasting is an open invitation to fill in that blank. It might be a prayer for your family, a breakthrough you’ve been waiting for, healing, restoration, or just a specific dream God has put on your heart.

Jesus said in Matthew 17:20 that even faith the size of a mustard seed is enough to tell a mountain to move—and it will. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible”.

Faith Needs a Community

There are seasons when your faith feels strong. You can see exactly what God is doing, and you feel confident about what’s coming next. But there are also days when faith feels small.

Days when prayers seem to go unanswered. Days when the mountain in front of you looks immovable. Days when you may be too exhausted to believe for yourself.

This is why we need each other.

Jude 1:20-21 says,“But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life”.

We are meant to build one another up.

That changes everything:

  • It means I’m not just praying for my breakthrough—I’m praying for yours.
  • I’m not just celebrating what God is doing in my life; I’m celebrating what He’s doing in your life as well.
  • I’m not just there for the highlight reel; I’m there when you’re discouraged, grieving, or confused about what God is doing.

Sometimes, God uses someone else’s faith to strengthen our own when we’re lacking.

Don’t Just Look for Support—Become It

It’s easy to ask, “Who is going to encourage me?”

But maybe we should be asking: “Who can I encourage today?”

Who needs that text from you? Who needs a phone call or a seat next to them while you pray together? Who needs to be reminded that God hasn’t forgotten them?

Community isn’t just having people around; it’s choosing to carry one another. As Galatians 6:2 puts it, we “share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ”. That is what the church was designed to be. We are not meant to walk through this life alone.

We carry. We encourage. We pray. We listen. We speak the truth. Putting Faith in Motion.

Maybe you’ve been holding onto a prayer for a long time, but you’ve been quiet about it.

Maybe you’re afraid that if you say it out loud, it sounds too big or someone might think it’s unrealistic.

What would happen if you let someone else stand in that gap with you?

Take a moment. Write down your blank:

I’m believing God for __________.

Then, share it. Invite someone into that space with you. Ask them to pray for it. And then, turn the question back to them: “What are you believing God for?” There is something powerful that shifts when we move from “my prayer” to “our prayer.”

We don’t have to prove ourselves to God or to each other. Instead, we can be honest about the struggle, share our dreams without comparing, and celebrate someone else’s breakthrough without wondering why ours hasn’t been answered.

As Susie Griffin reminded us in her message, we don't always understand the why. But remember: someone else’s breakthrough isn't evidence that God has forgotten you. It’s evidence of what He can do. Their story can be the exact thing that strengthens you to keep going—and one day, your story will do the same for someone else.

That’s community. We belong to the body. We need each other.

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From this Collection: Pastoral Letters
August 22, 2026 • 5 Minute Read
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 7
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 7 | Trust Pastor Dennis Griffin "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths." - Proverbs 3:5-6 Sometimes a dad tells his young son or daughter, ‘Jump, and Daddy will catch you’. It takes most kids some coaching, but they will finally take the leap of faith. They trust that daddy will catch them. And of course, he does. The dictionary definition of trust is to believe someone is good and honest, and will not harm you. The Bible definition of trust is to have a bold, confident, and sure reliance on God. The Lord wants us to trust Him. Scripture tells us that God is for us and we can trust Him. He is good and honest and will not harm you. He will catch us just as a dad catches his child. John Sammis wrote a hymn called “Trust and Obey.” The chorus of the song says, “Trust and obey for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.” Jesus had to trust and obey. Philippians 2:8 says He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even a disgraceful death on the cross. He trusted that God would raise him to life again and he would fulfill God’s purpose. My life verse that I fall back on any time I am stressed or confused, or don’t understand is Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not unto your own understanding, acknowledge him in all your ways, and he will direct your path.” So many times, I just can’t figure out with my human mind what God is doing. So I have to trust Him just as my life verse says. When I was growing up, there wasa TV show called “Father Knows Best.” After 50 years serving the Lord, I can truly say “Our heavenly father knows best.” But I will also say that the answers to my prayers or even the words the Lord speaks to me are usually not what I imagined or expected. I don’t think David imagined he would need to hide in caves and run from Saul before God’s promise to make him king came to pass. I doubt Joseph expected to be a slave and then a prisoner before God exalted him over his brothers. I am sure Abraham didn’texpect to be 100 years old before his promised son came along. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego certainly did not expect to be thrown in a fiery furnace, yet they determined to trust the Lord even if he didn’t deliver them. What is amazing is that the king saw a fourth man or what appeared to be the Son of God in the furnace with them, yet there is no indication that the three men saw the fourth man. They were trusting even though they couldn’t see anyone with them. At some point in life, every Christian will face a fiery furnace. You might be in a fiery furnace now. A fiery furnace is where you have no control, no power, no answers, no solutions. The only thing you can do is trust God. He will never leave you or forsake you. He is there in your furnace even if you don’t see him. A couple of years ago I faced a fiery furnace in a hospital in Florida. I was in the emergency room with a heart rate in the 20s. I was hooked to monitors and at one point passed out. I was transferred to another room and Susie wasn’t allowed to come for a short time. I was all alone with monitors and tubes and crying out to the Lord when all of a sudden, peace filled my heart. Nothing really changed, but I had a peace that I was going to be OK. I had peace that I could trust Him. I had peace that he was a good father and would catch me. I received a pacemaker the next day and God restored me to health. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your path.” He directed my path that day. Jesus trusted God’s plan and was obedient unto death. He trusted that he would rise again and fulfill God’s plan. He trusted that his father knew best and that if he trusted, God would direct his steps as my life verse says. All of you will face situations where you need that bold, confident trust in God, the good father. You may need some coaching just like the little child at the beginning of this message. Remember your heavenly father knows best. Trust Him, take that leap of faith and JUMP!

Dennis Griffin

Church Treasurer

August 21, 2026 • 6 Minute Read
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 6
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 6 | Praise & Thanksgiving Pastor Matt Mason "About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them." - Acts 16:25 Today as we continue through our series in believing God for ________, we are talking about praise and thanksgiving. We are talking about worshiping while we wait. We know that we’re supposed to worship God in every circumstance. We know that our praise isn’t supposed to be determined by our emotions or what we’re going through because God is always worthy of our praise, but just because we know something to be true doesn’t make it always easy. It’s a lot easier to worship God and thank Him for what He has done in the past or what He is doing currently right now as we witness God’s goodness, but am I really expected to worship God when things aren’t going well? Before The Gathering, I was a worship leader for many years going back to leading worship in my youth group as a high schooler, leading worship at my parents’ church as a young adult and becoming a worship pastor throughout college and into adulthood. I’m guessing you can imagine that through high school, college, and young adulthood you can have quite the range of emotions. Highs and lows and everything in between. There are times when life is great and it’s a joy to get to worship and lead people into a time of worship. But not every week is a great week. Sometimes you have a week when you get in a car accident and you have to figure out your finances. Sometimes you deal with drama among friends. Sometimes you go through breakups or not loving working at Taco Bell (hard to believe, I know). And yet, every week, Sunday comes around and you have to be ready to get up there and lead people in worship and you’re struggling on the inside. It can cause you to feel fake. Why am I up here when my life feels off right now? How can I encourage people to sing and lift their hands when I feel discouraged? Talk about imposter syndrome, right? Thank goodness I never feel that way now when I preach (please read that sentence with the sarcasm it is intended to have). It took me a while to realize that when I worship, whether I’m off or on the stage, I’m not attempting to hide everything that is happening in my life or pretending like I have everything together and therefore I can worship God and lead others. Instead, I am choosing to worship God and trust Him despite the fact that life isn’t perfect. I can acknowledge I’m not in the best place or situation in my life and choose to worship anyway. This isn’t being fake. It’s choosing to have faith and worship anyway and believe that God is going to turn things around and that my life as it stands now is not a permanent situation. I’m worshipping because I choose to continue to believe God is going to move despite my current feelings or problems. When I think of people who didn’t have a reason to sing, I think about Paul and Silas in Acts 16. It’s a very casual story of two men heading to a prayer service and along the way they run into a girl who is demon-possessed and follows them around everywhere crying out that they are servants of the Most High God. This girl continues to yell for days following them around until Paul gets annoyed (you would be too) and casts the demon out of her. The owners of the servant girl get angry because they were making money on this situation and now the girl is no longer lucrative because Paul took her fortune telling abilities away. So, these men grab Paul and Silas and take them to city hall to accuse them of disturbing the peace of the city. So, Paul and Silas go from heading to a prayer service to getting beaten with many blows by rods, thrown in prison, and hung up in the stocks. What would you do in this situation? You did nothing wrong. You were headed to a prayer service for crying out loud! You were going to go pray to God, and you’re beaten up and thrown in prison? No way would I want to shout, “I raise a hallelujah!” or sing “Your goodness is running after...it’s running after me!” But what did Paul and Silas do? Acts 16:25 - About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them Paul and Silas weren’t ignoring the reality of the situation. They couldn’t hide the fact that things weren’t going well, but yet they praise anyway and the prisoners listened to their continued devotion to God. When we worship in difficult times and worship when we’re still waiting and believing God for something, it’s one of the great sacrifices that we can make and worship is a sacrifice. Think about a demonstration of your love to someone, you are willing to make sacrifices for someone that you love. Are you willing to sacrifice your time, energy, and passion to worship God when things are difficult? That’s what Paul and Silas did, and God honored their sacrifice because the next verse tells us that suddenly there was a great earthquake that caused the foundations of the prison to shake, and all doors were opened and all chains were broken. I want to challenge you today as you are believing God for ________ to take the time now to worship Him in the middle of the waiting, the hurt, and disappointment. I thought I would give you a song suggestion to listen to that talks about what happens when we wait on God and believe in Him. Hope this helps you wait and believe that He will renew your strength.Listen Here!

Matt Mason

Lead Pastor

Currently Reading
August 20, 2026 • 4 Minute Read
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 5
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 5 | Community & Accountability Let’s Do This Together | Bethany Dissmore "But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray." 'But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life." - Jude 1:20-21 “I’m believing God for ____ ...” This week of prayer and fasting is an open invitation to fill in that blank. It might be a prayer for your family, a breakthrough you’ve been waiting for, healing, restoration, or just a specific dream God has put on your heart. Jesus said in Matthew 17:20 that even faith the size of a mustard seed is enough to tell a mountain to move—and it will. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible”. Faith Needs a Community There are seasons when your faith feels strong. You can see exactly what God is doing, and you feel confident about what’s coming next. But there are also days when faith feels small. Days when prayers seem to go unanswered. Days when the mountain in front of you looks immovable. Days when you may be too exhausted to believe for yourself. This is why we need each other. Jude 1:20-21 says,“But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life”. We are meant to build one another up. That changes everything: It means I’m not just praying for my breakthrough—I’m praying for yours. I’m not just celebrating what God is doing in my life; I’m celebrating what He’s doing in your life as well. I’m not just there for the highlight reel; I’m there when you’re discouraged, grieving, or confused about what God is doing. Sometimes, God uses someone else’s faith to strengthen our own when we’re lacking. Don’t Just Look for Support—Become It It’s easy to ask, “Who is going to encourage me?” But maybe we should be asking: “Who can I encourage today?” Who needs that text from you? Who needs a phone call or a seat next to them while you pray together? Who needs to be reminded that God hasn’t forgotten them? Community isn’t just having people around; it’s choosing to carry one another. As Galatians 6:2 puts it, we “share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ”. That is what the church was designed to be. We are not meant to walk through this life alone. We carry. We encourage. We pray. We listen. We speak the truth. Putting Faith in Motion. Maybe you’ve been holding onto a prayer for a long time, but you’ve been quiet about it. Maybe you’re afraid that if you say it out loud, it sounds too big or someone might think it’s unrealistic. What would happen if you let someone else stand in that gap with you? Take a moment. Write down your blank: I’m believing God for __________. Then, share it. Invite someone into that space with you. Ask them to pray for it. And then, turn the question back to them: “What are you believing God for?” There is something powerful that shifts when we move from “my prayer” to “our prayer.” We don’t have to prove ourselves to God or to each other. Instead, we can be honest about the struggle, share our dreams without comparing, and celebrate someone else’s breakthrough without wondering why ours hasn’t been answered. As Susie Griffin reminded us in her message, we don't always understand the why. But remember: someone else’s breakthrough isn't evidence that God has forgotten you. It’s evidence of what He can do. Their story can be the exact thing that strengthens you to keep going—and one day, your story will do the same for someone else. That’s community. We belong to the body. We need each other.

Bethany Dissmore

Connections Coordinator

August 19, 2026 • 6 Minute Read
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 4
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 4 | Persistence When God Keeps You Waiting | Pastor Scott Watkins "I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs. And I tell you, Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" - Luke 11:8-13 During this week of prayer and fasting, we have been focusing on one thing we’re believing God for. And when we first begin believing God for something, it can be incredibly exciting. Faith rises and hope builds in anticipation. But when time passes and prayers remain unanswered, excitement can give way to frustration, hurt, and disillusionment. So today, I want to talk to the one who has been praying and believing for what feels like way too long. To the one who has asked God...and waited. But so far, there has been no reply. Maybe you have waited for weeks, or months. I know there are some who have waited for years and even decades for their prayers to be answered. Waiting on God can be painful, confusing and disorienting. And after a while, we simply don’t know what to do. So, what are we supposed to do when God asks us to wait? We can find help with this question in Luke 11. Jesus tells his listeners about a man who goes to his neighbor at midnight asking for bread. The neighbor initially refuses, but the man keeps asking. Jesus then says: I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs. And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” In this passage, Jesus tells his disciples to ask, seek, and knock. Then He assures them that their asking is not in vain. Many stop here and see this as the climax of the passage as though Jesus has just revealed a failproof method for answered prayer. If we persist enough, if we are bold enough, if we are convinced enough, then we can have anything we ask for. But if we stop here, we miss the real breaking news of this passage. The paradigm-shifting insight Jesus offers here is that God, the Creator, the Source of Life, and Holy Sovereign is also a Father. Not only that, but He is a good Father committed to doing good for his children. When we grasp that God is our good Father, the answer to the question, ‘What do I do while I wait’ is clear. We keep talking to Him. Not because we’re trying to wear God down, but because He’s our Father and He welcomes our requests, questions, and even frustrations. I know those words can sound cheap to someone who has been asking and waiting for a long time. You’re exhausted. You hurt. Or maybe just numb at this point. You’re out of words. What’s left to say? If that's where you are today, if you've stopped talking to God, or all you have left are complaints, I want to remind you of a few things. First, remember this: maybe today is the day. God is still good. You are still His child. The Holy Spirit will still help you pray. None of that has changed, even if you have been praying for years. So, why not today? But perhaps you hear that and think, ‘I can’t get my hopes up one more time.’ It’s easier to not believe today could be the day than to have your hopes dashed again. Then can I offer you a different hope? While God hasn’t promised to meet every one of our temporal desires, this passage reminds us that he has promised us Himself. Amid our crying out, our lamenting, our petitions and pleading, God will meet us with His presence. He offers us His love, His peace, and His strength. Often, He gives grace in the middle of our journey that we can only receive because we are waiting. God may not be answering our request right now, but He is offering us Himself. But some have waited so long, even this doesn’t sound hopeful. You've prayed, but the answer hasn't come. And you can’t find God’s comfort anymore. You don't feel strengthened. You don't feel God's presence. You simply feel tired. What does persistent prayer mean in those seasons? In these hardest of places, we must remember that every time we cry out to God, we’re participating in a relationship. Even if all we can muster is, ‘Father help’. Those words declare that you are a child who has a heavenly Father. Even if all you can do is give an honest lament of your hurt, you're in the company of many other faith-filled believers like David, Jeremiah, Habakkuk, and even Jesus. Think about writing a letter to someone you love. You sit down, take out some paper and think of the person. You consider what you want to say. And you write because you have a relationship. You write because you know them and are known by them. Before you ever get a reply, something happens just by putting pen to paper. You open your heart and you live, for a few moments, inside that relationship. That is prayer in times like these. Every time you say, ‘Father...’ you are not trying to convince a reluctant God to listen. You are speaking to your good Father who has made you his child through Christ. When we say, ‘Father help’, we are living in a relationship that no amount of waiting can undo. Waiting is hard. Often confusing. But Jesus reminds us: keep talking to your Father. You aren’t waiting alone.

Scott Watkins

Administrative Pastor

August 18, 2026 • 4 Minute Read
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 3
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 3 | Solitude Shana Mason "But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray." - Luke 5:16 Solitude / sol·i·tude /ˈsäləˌtoo͞d: the state or situation of being alone. “Without solitude it is virtually impossible to live a spiritual life... We do not take the spiritual life seriously if we do not set aside some time to be with God and listen to him.”– Henri Nouwen In our digital age, are we ever truly alone? Lonely, certainly at times. But I can spend my “alone time” with any number of YouTubers, musical artists, TV show casts, preachers, podcasters, or social media influencers. I’m technically alone, but not solo. I can fill the silence with whatever I want at the click of a button. In the quiet, every screen—perhaps all technology—is making a subtle bid for my attention. In only the last 24 hours, I’ve asked various strangers on Instagram to weigh in on how to prune trees, how to market a book, and how to master the Disney Dining Plan. My silence and solitude is easily-divided, easily-distracted, and easily-disrupted. Jesus did not model this kind of solitude. Luke 5:15-16 tells us, “But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.” A “desolate place” is free of entertainment and distraction. It’s also probably not somewhere you’d be excited to go to for fun. However, our Biblical heroes like Moses, Elijah, Esther, David, or Paul—like Jesus—modeled a very present, intentional, “desolate place” form of solitude. They set themselves apart—temporarily, but consistently. Biblical solitude withdraws from the noise and the demands of daily life to focus on God. A solitude of silence, reflection, meditation, and prayer. This type of solitude is different than the “getaways” that the world offers. It’s not simply being alone or getting a bit of “me time.” In the words of pastor John Mark Comer, “Solitude is a place that’s free of all inputs. The only inputs are God and your own heart laid open before God.” This type of solitude reconnects us to ourselves, rather than distracting us from our own thoughts. It reconnects us to God, rather than drowning out His still small voice. Solitude positions us to hear from God. Sometimes, I think we expect God to shout at us. We fill up all our time; we fill up all our silence. Then we wonder why God hasn’t been speaking to us. We want God to reach us where we are, rather than seeing that we might need to change up our pace, our place, or our priorities. Isaiah 40:31 tells us, “Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” This set-apart time comes with a promise of strength and renewal. How often do we expect to find strength and renewal from just zoning out with a TV show or doomscrolling on social media? How often do those things actually deliver what we’re looking for? God’s ways are always the best ways. Even when everything in us wants to avoid this Biblical form of silence and stillness. Galatians 5:17 tells us, “For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.” If you’re anything like me, you often want to practice solitude and then all of your coping mechanisms start jumping in the way—ideas, responsibilities, entertainment, and smart devices produce an escape. Solitude often puts us face-to-face with the thoughts, feelings, and experiences that we’re avoiding. The things we push down and try to ignore rise back to the surface. Addressing all this with the Lord is what I want to do! And then the internal war rages against it. My flesh and my spirit compete for opposing desires. Solitude forces the fight in a way that gives way to growth, healing, and fulfillment. Solitude is an essential ingredient for fulfilling what Romans 12:2 talks about. “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Do not fear the process by which God will transform you for His perfect plan. So this week, I’d love for you to reflect and try practicing solitude. How do you do with solitude? What renewal are you seeking from the Lord? When is the last time you prioritized silence and stillness? Wait on the Lord today.

Shana Mason

Creative Coordinator

August 17, 2026 • 5 Minute Read
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 2
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 2 | Confession Search Me and Lead Me | Matthew Harvey "Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!" - Psalm 139:23-24 There's a moment in every serious relationship — with God, with a spouse, with yourself— where you stop asking to be comforted and start asking to be seen. Not seen as you'd like to be seen. Seen as you actually are. That's the move David makes in the final two verses of Psalm 139. "Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me, and know my anxious thoughts. And see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." To understand why this prayer matters, you have to see where it comes from. The psalm opens with wonder: God has searched him, known him, hemmed him in behind and before. Every thought, every word before it's on his tongue — already known. That kind of knowing could feel invasive. Instead, David marvels at it. He can't outrun it either — heaven, Sheol, the far side of the sea, the deepest dark — there's no address where God isn't already present. And in the psalm's theological center, he remembers why this searching, present God is trustworthy: because this is the same God who formed him in the womb, knit him together, saw his unformed substance, and wrote out his days before a single one existed. Belovedness came before behavior. Identity came before performance. Then something shifts. Verses 19 through 22 turn hard toward the wicked — David wants nothing to do with those who rise against God, he counts them enemies. It's jarring after all that wonder. And most devotionals quietly skip past it, because it doesn't fit the warm, comforting tone of the rest of the psalm. But don't skip it. Because verse 23 only makes sense in light of it. David has just spent four verses pointing outward at wickedness in others. And then, almost as if catching himself, he turns the same searching language back on himself: "Search me... know my heart... see if there is any wicked way in me." That word "search" is worth slowing down on. In Hebrew, it's chaqar— pronounced khah-KAR. It's the same word for prospecting and mining: Job uses it for miners digging into rock and darkness, searching out ore "to the farthest limit." It's not a glance. It's an excavation. And here's what makes it land: chaqar is the very same word David used in verse 1 — "O LORD, You have searched me and known me." That's not incidental. Verse 1 is a statement of fact: You have already searched me. Verse 23 is a plea: Search me — do it again, do it now. The passive knowing of verse 1 becomes an active, invited excavation by verse 23. David isn't asking God to start something new. He's asking Him to keep doing what He's always done — except now David is the one opening the door, asking God to dig past what's presentable, down to what's actually buried. That's a dangerous prayer if you don't trust who's doing the digging. But David can pray it precisely because of everything established earlier in the psalm. The One searching his heart is the same One who knit him together before he had a heartbeat. This isn't a hostile inspector looking for a reason to reject him. God isn't searching your life looking for grounds to walk away — He's searching it looking for what needs to be healed, so He can lead you out of it. That distinction matters more than it might seem. Most of us resist being fully known because somewhere along the way we learned that exposure leads to shame. Say the true thing, and you'll be judged for it. So we manage what gets seen. We curate. We keep the anxious thoughts to ourselves, the wicked ways hidden, the real internal weather unreported — even in prayer. But David's prayer assumes something different: that being fully known is not the danger. Staying hidden is. Whatever's buried doesn't disappear because it stays private — it just keeps steering from the dark. The invitation to be searched isn't an invitation to condemnation. It's an invitation to correction, which is a form of care. And notice where the prayer ends. Not "and punish me." Not even "and forgive me," though that's implied. It ends with "lead me in the way everlasting." The goal of the digging isn't exposure for its own sake — it's direction. David isn't asking God to catalog his failures. He's asking to be walked somewhere. The searching is in service of the leading. That's the whole shape of a transformed life. It doesn't start with trying harder in the dark. It starts with opening the door and asking to be searched — not because you're confident about what will be found, but because you trust the character of the One doing the searching. So here's the application, plain and practical: where in your life have you been managing what gets seen instead of inviting God to search it? Is there an anxious thought you've kept off-limits, even in prayer? A pattern you've rationalized because naming it honestly feels too costly? David's prayer gives you a way back in. Not "fix me." Not "hide this from me." Search me. Know me. Dig deep. And lead me somewhere else. That's not a prayer of fear. That's a prayer of trust — the kind you can only pray once you know who's on the other side of the search. So as we bring our requests to God this week — as we believe Him for what's ahead — let's start there: be willing to let Him search you first.

Matthew Harvey

2026 Board Member

August 16, 2026 • 5 Minute Read
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 1
Week of Prayer & Fasting - Day 1 | Proclamation Pastor Rick Mason "And Jesus answered them, "Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours." - Mark 11:22-24 As we begin our week of prayer and fasting with the focus on having faith for something, our emphasis today will be on the power of proclamation. From a biblical perspective, proclamation, confession, and to preach are closely related words. They all relate in some way to saying what God is saying. When we speak out loud what God has said or is currently saying, it sharpens our focus and helps to eliminate distractions. It activates our faith as our spirit, called the inner man in the Bible, hears our prayer. Scripture tells us that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Even the centurion in Matthew chapter 8 understood this principle when he said to Jesus, “Speak the word only, and my servant will be healed.” He was well aware of the place of authority when words are spoken. Those spoken words carry tremendous power when there is authority to back them up. That’s where confession comes in and how it relates to proclamation. The word confession means to say the same thing as. In our case, it means we need to say the same thing that God is saying. When we confess with our mouth God’s Word, we position ourselves to receive the full backing and authority of Jesus. Hebrews 3:1 says that Jesus is the High Priest of our confession. If I don’t confess God’s word, there is no authority backing my words, no matter how forceful or how loudly I say them. If we remain silent on earth, we silence our Advocate in heaven. Therefore, the more we confess God’s promises, the more we release His high priestly ministry on our behalf. A key element in this process of proclamation is that we need the Word of God and the Spirit of God working together. In Genesis chapter 1 we see the Spirit of God moving and the word of God spoken and thus creation came into being. The Hebrew word “ruach” means spirit or breath. We need breath in our lungs in order to speak words. We cannot enunciate words without breath in our lungs. Outgoing air from our lungs pushes past our vocal cords so they can vibrate and with our mouth, tongue, and lips we produce words. In the same way, we need the Spirit of God to give us God’s words to proclaim. It is essential that we say (confess) what God is saying about a circumstance involving our personal lives. That is why Jesus could boldly say in Mark 11:23-24: “For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that these things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore, I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” How can He say that?! That is one very bold declaration! The key is found in the verse before. In Mark 11:22 Jesus says, “Have faith in God.” That’s where the confidence comes from, by saying what God is or already has said. A great example of a godly proclamation is when Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were threatened by King Nebuchadnezzar. They refused to serve and worship the Babylonian gods and were threatened with being thrown into a furnace if they would not bow down to the foreign gods. Their response was very bold and decisive. In Daniel 3:16-18, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” They declared their faith in the true and living God of Israel. No matter how God answered their situation, they were going to put their full faith and trust in their God. Whatever you are believing God for this week as we seek Him through prayer and fasting, know that He will answer that prayer according to His perfect will for your life. As you proclaim the promises of God over your circumstance, rest assured that God will answer according to His perfect timetable concerning your life situation. We have the promise of Isaiah 55:11, which states, “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” Thanking God in advance for all that He is about to do in our lives and our church this week and the weeks to follow. Remember to hold fast to the promises of God by continually and consistently speaking them over your circumstance.

Rick Mason

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