Welcome to the Prayers of Rest podcast. I'm your host, Ashrida Chuchu, and today we're praying for singles.

That's right. Our friends who are single, you might be wondering, why are we praying about this during tricky relationships?

And it's because those of us who are not single in our adult years,

who are married, it's difficult sometimes to relate to our friends and the challenges that they

face specifically in being single as adults. Later this week, I'm also sharing a conversation with my good friend

Melissa Saldivar as we talk about what it's like to be single and how those of us who are

married can come alongside and love and serve and encourage our single friends. And today,

we start by praying for them. If you're

listening to this today and you're single, I invite you to personalize it for yourself. And if you're

not, ask God to bring to mind the names of a few of your single friends that you can pray for

today specifically by name, and then text them, let them

know that you prayed for them and ask them how they're doing. It might just make their day.

As we begin, take a deep breath as we become aware of God's loving presence around us and within us. Today's passage comes from Ephesians

chapter 4, verses 15 to 16. Speaking the truth and love, we will grow to become in every respect

the mature body of Him who is the head. That is Christ. From him, the whole body,

joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love,

as each part does its work. Let's begin by resigning God's goodness, praising him for who he is, and for what

he's done in our lives. Oh God, you are so good to give us exactly what we need in the body of

Christ. Jesus, you are our head and you have made us members of one another.

And I praise you for your beautiful design to include our single sisters and brothers

in this body of Christ that we are to depend on one another and learn from one another

and serve one another.

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