Praying for General Conference
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus!
As we draw closer to the time of conversation and discernment at the specially called General Conference on February 23-26, the Annual Conference calls us to a season of prayer and fasting. Prayer and fasting is part of our piety as United Methodists, harkening back to the leadership of John and Charles Wesley during the early days of the Methodist movement at Oxford.
Over the next week and a half, we want to encourage you to spend a few minutes each day preparing for General Conference in prayer. In the attached file, you will find a concert of prayer service that can help you and your congregation be in prayerful posture during General Conference.
Many United Methodists are taking time to pray for General Conference at 2:23pm every day. As you pray daily during this time, ask God for grace, discernment, and God’s leadership throughout this upcoming time of conferencing. Specifically, please pray for our bishops, our delegates, and our church leaders.
We also want to share with you a liturgy for a concert of prayer service specifically aimed at praying for General Conference. You may use this in your local church or in a small group.
Over the next week and a half, you will receive a daily Scripture for reflection with the practice of Lectio Divina. Lectio Divina is a way of prayerfully reading the Scriptures and listening to the voice of God as you pray through the text.
Finally, if you feel called to a season of fasting, you may want to consider a Wesleyan fast. A Wesleyan fast begins after your dinner on Thursday evening and continues until you eat lunch on Friday. Fasting reminds us that we are reliant upon God and gives us the grace of humility during times of discernment.
May God grant you peace and grace in the days ahead. Know that Jesus is faithful to the Church and we go forth in Christ’s Spirit in the days ahead.
Peace of Christ,
Kentucky Annual Conference Prayer Team.