40 Days for Life – Dobra Family Ministry

Why are we here? Prayer, public witness of the church, and proclaiming God’s truth and grace

Memorial for the lost children, Peoria, 2019 Fall 40 Days for Life

Essential Prayers for Life
https://ministry.family.blog/2020/05/13/essential-prayers-for-life/

May 2020, Church parking lots are empty. Gathering and worshipping in Jesus’ name has been deemed non-essential by the civil authorities.

But the killing of unborn children has been deemed essential, and based on how full the parking lot is, they are doing a lot of business. We need to pray!

Prayer, public witness of the church, and proclaiming God’s truth and grace.

Why are we here (in this sin fallen world)?
To bear witness to God and His truth and grace.
To make disciples of all nations.
Matthew 28:18-20

“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them inthe name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”” Matthew‬ ‭28:18-20‬ ‭ESV‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/59/mat.28.18-20.ESV

Why are we here (on the sidewalk outside an abortion clinic)?
To bear witness to God and His truth and grace.
To love the captive soul and to preach the good news!
Romans 10:14-15

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”” Romans‬ ‭10:14-15‬ ‭ESV‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.10.14-15.ESV

What message are we sharing and bearing witness to?
There is a God that created the heavens and the earth.
We humans are created in His image.
We are sinners, we have rebelled against Him, and justly deserve our due punishment of death and damnation.
But God is merciful and loving.
Jesus is God the only begotten Son and He took our punishment upon Himself in our place.
Jesus rose from the dead, defeating death and securing the hope of our salvation.
We need only confess our sins, proclaim Jesus is lord and savior, and repent and we will be forgiven our sins and have life ever after!
Romans 3:10-18, 23
1 Corinthians 15:3-8
John 3:16-21
Ephesians 2:1-10

“because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.”” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭10:9-11‬ ‭ESV‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.10.9-11.ESV

Reform the Church and ReEnchant the World with God’s Truth and Grace!

Enchant (latin: encantio): to speak meaning into.

If the church is not reenchanting this fallen world with God’s truth and grace, then it is being disenchanted with the lies of Satan!

“How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
– Romans 10:14-15

THE GOOD NEWS

There is a God that created the heavens and the earth. We humans are created in His image.

We are sinners, we have rebelled against Him, our Creator. Our rebellion has brought “all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice… envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness” to the world. Romans 1:29-31 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.1.29-31.ESV

Therefore we justly deserve our due punishment of death and damnation, “as it is written: ‘None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.’” Romans 3:10-12 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.3.10-12.ESV

But good news! God is merciful and loving. Jesus is God the only begotten Son and He took our punishment upon Himself in our place. Jesus rose from the dead, defeating death and securing the hope of our salvation.

“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.” 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1co.15.3-8.ESV

““Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”” Acts 2:36-38 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/act.2.36-38.ESV

We need only repent and believe it. Repent: turn away from our sins, proclaim Jesus is lord and savior, and we will be forgiven our sins and have life ever after! “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.”” Romans 10:9-11 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.10.9-11.ESV

There is hope. Believe in Jesus! ““For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.3.16.ESV

It doesn’t matter who you’ve been or what you’ve done, God stands with arms wide open, ready to forgive you. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1jn.1.9.ESV

Household Prayer 9/22/2020

There are a few events happening locally and nationally. So lets focus this week on family and national revival.

Pray that a real spiritual and familial revival will take place in our homes, churches, and America even as the nation seeks to redefine God’s plan for the family. Pray for there to be an increased dependence upon God the Father as we lead our children spiritually, emotionally, physically and academically.

Read Ezra’s prayer of repentance, Ezra 9:6-15.

Pray that a real spiritual and familial revival will take place in America even as the nation seeks to redefine God’s plan for the family.

And now for a little while grace has been shown from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and give us a measure of revival in our bondage.–Ezra 9:8 (NKJV)

The living, the living, he thanks you, as I do this day; the father makes known to the children your faithfulness. –Is. 38:19
ICHE

Events This Week

40 Days for Life

Tonight, 9/22, is the kick-off for the fall 40 Days for Life prayer vigil!

Peoria campaign details here https://www.40daysforlife.com/peoria

Memorial to the lost children. Peoria 2019

Illinois United in Prayer

This weekend, Saturday September 26, there is a Illinois United in Prayer event in Springfield.
11:00AM – 1:00PM
Lincoln statue on east side of Capitol 301 S. 2nd Street, Springfield, IL
https://illinoisfamily.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/United-in-Prayer_flier.pdf

The Body of Christ in Illinois coming together in prayer, humility, and repentance as we seek spiritual awakening in our land, and revival in the Church of Jesus Christ. Establishing A Oneness in the Body of Christ, through prayer, that releases Kingdom Authority in Illinois.

Prayer March 2020

Pray for America from wherever you are as Franklin Graham leads a nationwide prayer march in Washington, D.C. The 1.8-mile march through the National Mall stops at key locations from the Lincoln Memorial to U.S. Capitol.

Date: September 26
Time: 12pm – 2pm
Starting Location: Lincoln Memorial
Distance: 1.8 miles

Together, let’s seek God’s forgiveness, healing and intervention in our divided nation.

Watch Live: Prayer March 2020 https://prayermarch2020.com/live/

Pray that God does not leave His church sleeping!

We have been told that we people are the chance result of impersonal chaos working its dark magic on the universe… The outcome of such thinking? Humanity is disenchanted…

But this is not the biblical account of man… God, the beautiful one, made the human race as his capstone work, his corporeal masterpiece (Ps 8:3-6; 27:4) … The imago dei marks out humanity as an enchanted race. Tragically, humanity disenchanted itself by following the anti-wisdom of the serpent…

If we have assumed… that our children learned what they needed to know simply by ecclesial and cultural osmosis, let us be clear that we may hold this assumption no longer. Now is not the time to play down our doctrine of mankind; now is the time to teach it with confidence and with joy, seeking to be witnesses to fellow sinners and guides to all God’s flock.
“Reenchanting Humanity: a theology of mankind” by Owen Strachan

Essential Prayers for Life

Church parking lots are empty. Gathering and worshipping in Jesus’ name has been deemed non-essential by the civil authorities.

But the killing of unborn children has been deemed essential, and based on how full the parking lot is, they are doing a lot of business.

We need to pray!

Day 1 – Friday May 8, 2020

Science, models, and public policy become putrid without open discussion, debate, and dissent being allowed.

“We have been told that we people are the chance result of imperfect chaos working its dark magic on the universe… The outcome of such thinking? Humanity is disenchanted.”

But in reality, “God, the beautiful one, made the human race as his capstone work, his corporeal masterpiece (Ps 8:3-6; 27:4)… God actually made humanity; God actually gave humanity infinite dignity and worth… The imago dei marks out humanity as an enchanted race.” (“Reenchanting Humanity” by Owen Strachan)

“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭8:3-5‬ ‭ESV‬‬
https://www.bible.com/59/psa.8.3-5.esv

Day 2 – Monday May 11, 2020

Perspective, “In California, a state with 40 million people, there have been approximately 2,700 Covid-related deaths. More than that die each year from traffic deaths in the Golden State.” https://www.cwfpac.com/monday-may-11-2020-exposing-communist-china-shutdown-deadly-left-vs-israel

Human rights begin with the right to life!
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…” – Declaration of Independence

Day 3 – Tuesday May 12, 2020

Day 4 – Wednesday May 13, 2020

Day 5

By What Standard? Worried about “tarnishing your witness?” By what standard are you judging the reputation of your witness? By obedience to God and His standard, or by the opinion of men and their standard?

Day 6

“I witnessed, while visiting a surgical suite as an OB/GYN resident, the abortion of a fetus that weighed approximately two pounds. It was placed in a bucket, crying and struggling to breathe, and the medical personnel pretended not to notice. Soon the crying stopped…
Some people believe that being pro-choice is being on the side of freedom. I’ve never understood how an act of violence, killing a human being, albeit a small one in a special place, is portrayed as a precious right. To speak only of the mother’s cost in carrying a baby to term ignores all thought of any legal rights of the unborn. I believe that the moral consequence of cavalierly accepting abortion diminishes the value of all life…”
The only issue that should be debated is the moral one: whether or not a fetus has any right to life. Scientifically, there’s no debate over whether the fetus is alive and human—if not killed, it matures into an adult human being. It is that simple. So the time line of when we consider a fetus ‘human’ is arbitrary after conception, in my mind.”
Dr. Ron Paul OB/GYN, “Liberty Defined: 50 Essential Issues That Affect Our Freedom”

Day 7

Women’s Care Center of Peoria, Illinois
http://www.womenscarecenter.org/locations/peoria
7319 N. University Street
Peoria, Illinois 61614

Empower Life center
https://www.peoriarescue.org/womens-pregnancy-center/
(309) 688-0202
1825 N. Knoxville Ave., Peoria, IL 61603

Day 8

Cash-Rich Abortion Giant Received $80 Million Meant For Small Businesses Hurt by Pandemic
https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2020/may/cash-rich-abortion-giant-received-80-million-meant-for-small-businesses-hurt-by-pandemic?fbclid=IwAR0_pmxDjKHPeqG-ibmhzBzASw12mWqgVHz8qSGrn3TBzLUhz1pdu_bqiOU

Romanian persecution comes to roost in Chicago https://onenewsnow.com/church/2020/05/21/romanian-persecution-comes-to-roost-in-chicago#.Xsbcnkir-M4.twitter

“At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12:26-29‬ ‭ESV‬‬
https://www.bible.com/59/heb.12.26-29.esv

Love the captive soul, but rage against the captor. Arise O Church arise!

Day 9

“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭2:1-8‬ ‭ESV‬‬
https://www.bible.com/59/eph.2.1-8.esv

Day 10

“A nation that will cannibalize its babies for parts will abandon its elders to secret abuse and choking, solitary deaths. Such a nation fears death, because it believes nothing comes after. So it also fears life…”https://stream.org/who-dumped-a-violent-autistic-20-year-old-covid-patient-on-this-nursing-home-and-why/

“He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
‭‭Micah‬ ‭6:8‬ ‭ESV‬‬
https://www.bible.com/59/mic.6.8.esv

Day 11

Day 12 – Praise God!

Praise God!

Governor Pritzker has “lifted all restrictions on churches in the state. (We have amazing prayer warriors!!) Peoria area attorney Brian Heller put the development more succinctly:

We won, or more accurately, the Gov. retreated from the field of battle facing likely humiliation.

https://illinoisfamily.org/religious/gov-pritzker-backs-down-before-the-u-s-supreme-court/

40 Days for Life: Walk Worthy

In his book, Fishers of Men, Dr. Sumner Wemp describes what it means to be an ambassador of Jesus Christ, the King of Kings:

God has chosen us (John 15:16)

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
https://www.bible.com/bible/59/JHN.15.16.ESV

We are sent into a world that is not our home (1 Peter 2:11)

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.
https://www.bible.com/bible/59/1PE.2.11.ESV

Our walk must match our talk (1 Timothy 3:7)

‘Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil. ‘
1 Timothy 3:7 https://my.bible.com/bible/59/1TI.3.7

We must abide in Him for daily instruction (John 15:5)

‘I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. ‘
John 15:5 https://my.bible.com/bible/59/JHN.15.5

Know our purpose — to seek and to save that which is lost (Luke 19:10)

‘For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” ‘
Luke 19:10 https://my.bible.com/bible/59/LUK.19.10

We are to reconcile others to God with His authority (Matthew 28:19-20)

‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” ‘
Matthew 28:19-20 https://my.bible.com/bible/59/MAT.28.19-20

Do not let kindness and truth leave you (Proverbs 3:3-4)

‘ Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man.’
Proverbs 3:3-4 https://my.bible.com/bible/59/PRO.3.3-4

Our service is to be grounded and rooted in love (Ephesians 3:17)

‘so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, ‘
Ephesians 3:17 https://my.bible.com/bible/59/EPH.3.17

Pray that we each will walk worthy of the calling with which we were called!

https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/cdn.40daysforlife.com/media/devotional/devotionals%2bfall2019_17-17.pdf