Wisdom in Community

Thank you, Greenhouse Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision on behalf of our mission. As we transition into summer let us pray for wisdom in navigating our relationships, our travel, and our ministry opportunities. Receive this nudge to consider reading and praying through Proverbs with your family, a friend, or other loved ones this summer. 

Pray for God’s wisdom to flow throughout the Greenhouse community: faculty, staff, students, and parents. Pray that our community will be strengthened as we grow in wisdom. As you prayerfully read the Proverbs, ask the Holy Spirit to prompt you in what…

• to grow personally

• to act on within our community

• to humbly receive from someone else.

Proverbs 1: 1-7

The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:

for gaining wisdom and instruction; for understanding words of insight;

for receiving instruction in prudent behavior, doing what is right and just and fair;

for giving prudence to those who are simple, knowledge and discretion to the young—

let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance—

for understanding proverbs and parables, the sayings and riddles of the wise.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

At the Year-End Celebrations last week, Grammar 2 students recited Saint Patrick’s prayer. Pray these words over ourselves, each other, and the Greenhouse community on our adventures this summer. Consider praying this daily.

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,

Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ on my right, Christ on my left,

Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise,

Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,

Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,

Christ in every eye that sees me,

Christ in every ear that hears me.

I arise today

Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,

Through belief in the Threeness,

Through confession of the Oneness of the Creator of creation.

The Power of Blessing

Thank you, Greenhouse Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision on behalf of our mission. As we prepare for the end of the school year and transition into summer let us pray through this ancient and timeless blessing from Numbers 6.  We invite you to pray this blessing over the Greenhouse community, students, faculty, and staff. 

Numbers 6:22-26

“The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying: Thus you shall bless the Israelites: You shall say to them:

The Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;

the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.”

When you think about praying this over someone, who does the Holy Spirit bring to mind? Consider praying it aloud, or better yet, in-person?

Act in tandem with this blessing. Contemplate in what ways may God be inviting you to extend His heart to bless, keep, shine upon, be gracious to, lift up his countenance upon, and offer peace?  To whom is the Spirit nudging you to offer such blessings in the Lord?

Perhaps the same Lord who spoke to Moses is pressing other blessings upon you to pray over our community. Consider Ephesians 3:14-21 for example. Let us build up our community through pronouncing and activating blessings! As we bless each other in the name of the Lord, may we see new growth in our community as we see it all around us in creation.

Love Each Other

Thank you, Greenhouse Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision on behalf of our mission. As we prepare to celebrate the passion and resurrection of Jesus, let us use His poignant words to pray over the Greenhouse community this month. 

Consider the iconic image of Christ washing Peter’s feet (below).  In John’s gospel this scene transpires in John 13 at the Last Supper. Ponder what it would be like to have Jesus kneeling on the floor before you with His hands holding and washing your bare feet.

Ford Maddox Brown Jesus Washing Peter's Feet

Now as we pray these words from John 15, let the reality of Jesus’ sacrifice add gravitas to His admonition for His disciples, for us, and for the Greenhouse community to “Love each other.” We have broken up the passage and highlighted some phrases for deliberate reflection as you pray. After you read what Jesus says, let the Holy Spirit guide you to reframe those words into a prayer for yourself, your family, and the Greenhouse community. Consider speaking Jesus’ words and your prayers out loud. Note how the Holy Spirit may prompt you to act as you pray these prayers. Take note of what Jesus says about action and love throughout this passage. 

John 15:9-17

“I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love.” 

‘When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.” 

“I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!” 

“This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you.” 

“There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” 

“You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.”

“You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name.” 

“This is my command: Love each other.”

May you remain in the Father’s love and may your joy overflow during the culmination of Lent and into Eastertide.

Bearing Fruit

Thank you, Greenhouse Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision on behalf of our mission. As we anticipate the growth, life, and newness of spring, let us pray Psalm 1 over the Greenhouse community.

Psalm 1:1-3

1 “Oh, the joys of those who do not

follow the advice of the wicked,

or stand around with sinners,

or join in with mockers.”

There is joy when one does not fall within the sway of evildoers. Let us pray for our community to hold fast to truth in these tenuous times.

2 “But they delight in the law of the Lord,

meditating on it day and night.”

Delight in the Scriptures helps us eschew evil. As you pray this verse, what Scripture comes to mind? With whom can you share it?  What does it mean to “delight” in God’s word and to “meditate” on it?  Practice this.

3 “They are like trees planted along the riverbank,

bearing fruit each season.

Their leaves never wither,

and they prosper in all they do.”

Pray for the Greenhouse community to bear fruit this spring. Pray that our faculty, staff, and students will “not wither” in the power of the Holy Spirit. Pray that the Lord will prosper His work through us for His Glory. 

Armor Up

Thank you, Greenhouse Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision on behalf of our mission. As we settle into 2023, will you commit to pray through these verses daily for the month of February?

Ephesians 6:10-18

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

How can we focus on fighting our real enemy and not each other?  What does it look like to model this for the students at Greenhouse and in our workplaces, churches, and communities?

Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. (Or, for shoes, put on the readiness to preach the Good News of peace with God.)  In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.  Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Prayerfully ask yourself: How can I “armor up” every day?  Pray for the students and faculty as they “armor up” each day.

Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

Consider these last two sentences not as suggestions but as admonitions for us this month.

Let’s do it!

The Spirit of the Lord

Thank you, Greenhouse Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision on behalf of our mission. As we start the new year, we invite you to pray through the start of Isaiah 61. Jesus read from this passage at the beginning of His public ministry (Luke 4). He read this in the first person, as the fulfillment of the ancient prophecy.

Ponder what it means for us to be more like Jesus. Consider these Scriptures as you pray: “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher.” (Luke 6:40), and “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love as Christ loved us..." (Ephesians 5:1-2). Now, pray through Isaiah 61:1-3

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me,

     for the Lord has anointed me

     to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted

     and to proclaim that captives will be released

     and prisoners will be freed.

He has sent me to tell those who mourn

     that the time of the Lord’s favor has come,

     and with it, the day of God’s anger against their enemies.

To all who mourn in Israel,

     he will give a crown of beauty for ashes,

     a joyous blessing instead of mourning,

     festive praise instead of despair.

In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks

     that the Lord has planted for his own glory.

Pray it again asking Jesus to help you and the Greenhouse community to be more like Him in 2023.  Sometimes when you pray the passage, change the “me” to “us”. With whom can you share this prayer and good news this month?  It is an active passage. How can you act on what you have prayed?

Rescued & Transferred

We so appreciate your faithful prayers, promotion, and provision on behalf of Greenhouse as a Builder.  In preparing to celebrate Christmas, we invite you to pray Colossians 1 with us. The season of Advent is a time of reflection, a time of gracious giving, and a time when light illuminates the darkness. So we particularly invite you to reflect on the final words of this passage: “he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son.”

 Colossians 1:9-14

So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. 

O Lord, grant to the people of Greenhouse–students, parents, teachers, staff, Board, alumni–spiritual wisdom and understanding.

 Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.

May our daily lives—the work of our hands, the conversations of our mouths–be not only fruitful, but pleasing and honoring to you, dear Father.

 We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. 

Strengthen us, Lord, with your power. Fill us with your joy. Grant that your light may shine in us and through us as your people.

 For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.

We praise you, that in the midst of encroaching darkness, your light breaks in. Thank you for rescuing us and transferring us into the Kingdom of your Son, our Savior. May we use the freedom he has purchased for us for good and holy purposes in our families, our workplaces, our churches, our neighborhoods, and within Greenhouse. Amen.

Persecution & Praise

We so appreciate your faithful prayers, promotion, and provision as a Greenhouse Builder. In this season of gratitude, reflection, and celebration, let’s pray through more themes from Matthew 5. 
Matthew 5:10-16 (NLT)

“God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

“God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. [Rejoice and be glad!] …For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

“You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.  No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.” 

Come to Jesus through His word, and prayerfully reflect on His promises: the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs – a great reward awaits you in heaven – it will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless – everyone will praise your heavenly Father. Pray that His Spirit will teach and guide you to greater understanding of Kingdom building action.

When have you been persecuted for doing right? In what new ways did you experience the Kingdom of God as a result? Who else do you know that has suffered opposition for doing right?  Pray for them. How might you help them see the Kingdom of God in their experience?

When have others spoken evil things against you, mocked, persecuted, or lied about you specifically because you follow Jesus? How did Jesus respond to similar treatment? Has your response mirrored His description in this passage?  Why or why not?  Who can you encourage--speak courage into--today that has suffered for following Jesus? 

Ask Jesus what it means to be salt and light in your home, Greenhouse, and our larger communities.  Prayerfully read John 15 with section of the Sermon on the Mount in mind.

Please pray for the Greenhouse community to lovingly act on these words of Christ. With our neighbors and in Greenhouse, may we become those who persevere, encourage, shine, and abide through the power of the Spirit. Pray that the love, humility, and joy of Jesus and a spirit of gratitude will be evident and bear fruit in our lives individually, as families, and as a learning community. 

Mercy, Purity & Peace

We so appreciate your faithful prayers, promotion, and provision on behalf of Greenhouse. Thank you for being a Builder. As autumn settles in, pray with us through more themes from Matthew 5.  

 Matthew 5:7-9

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.”

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.”

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”

 Coming to Jesus through His word, prayerfully reflect on these promises: “They will receive mercy – they will see God – they will be called children of God.” Believing His promises, in what ways can you show mercy, pursue purity of heart, and make peace this month? Pray that the Holy Spirit will guide us in exercising mercy, purity, and peacemaking in our homes, in Greenhouse, and in the community at-large.

•  Look up a definition of mercy. Consider when have you received mercy … and when you have shown it. How does showing mercy reflect the heart of God? Prayerfully ask the Lord to whom you can show mercy this month and ask Him to grant you courage to live full of mercy.

• Purity comes in many forms. Reflect on what Jesus means when He says blessed are the pure in heart. Contemplate Psalm 51, in which David asks the Lord to create within him a clean heart. What is to be learned from David about inviting God to clean our hearts? 

• “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” (Romans 12:18) In prayerfully reviewing the last few years, do certain relationships or circumstances surface in which you could pursue peace, which was lost or stolen?  What might it mean for the Greenhouse community– as “children of God”–to be peacemakers in our current milieu? 

Intercede on behalf of the Greenhouse community that we will act on these invitations from Jesus. May the beauty of mercy, purity, and peace be evident and bear fruit in our lives individually, as families, and as a learning community. 

Mourning & Meekness

We so appreciate your faithful prayers, promotion and provision on behalf of Greenhouse. Thank you for being a Builder. As we start the school year and usher in autumn, we invite you to pray through the some more themes from Matthew 5.  

Matthew 5:4-6

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. “

As you come to Jesus, prayerfully reflect on His promises: “They will be comforted – they will inherit – they will be filled.” Based on His promises, consider how can you participate in mourning, meekness, and pursuing righteousness this month. Pray that His Spirit will teach and guide you. 

• What grieves your heart? For what do you mourn in our culture? With whom can you mourn? How does such mourning reflect the heart of God?

• Meekness shows itself primarily in humility before God, and self-controlled strength and gentleness toward others. To what degree does meekness characterize your relationship with the Lord, and your fellowship with others (including your family)?

• For what do you hunger and thirst? What soul-level desires drive you? Ask Jesus to show you what it means for you to hunger and thirst for righteousness.  What does that mean for the Greenhouse community?  

Please pray for the Greenhouse community to act on these invitations from Jesus. In Greenhouse and with our neighbors, how can we be those who comfort, those who share an inheritance, and those who fill others through the Spirit?  Pray that the beautiful attitudes of mourning, meekness, and desiring righteousness will be evident and bear fruit in our lives individually, as families, and as a learning community. 

Embrace Your Poverty

We so appreciate your faithful prayers, promotion and provision on behalf of Greenhouse. Thank you for being a Builder. This summer, and into the fall, we invite you to pray through several of the themes from Matthew 5 which we briefly cited last spring.

Matthew 5:3

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Ask God to help us to embrace our poverty of spirit, in which we come to Him empty-handed and longing to be filled with His Spirit. Pray that Greenhouse will mirror that posture of joyful and expectant dependence while preparing for the new school year. Ask for God’s protection from the temptation to rely on our own understanding and our own righteousness rather than His. Pray that the kingdom of heaven will be evident in our lives individually, as families, and as a learning community.

You will go out in joy...

 Thank you, Greenhouse Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision for the mission of Greenhouse Christian Co-School. During the month of June, we invite you to pray through a section of Isaiah 55 with us.

Let us prayerfully reflect on these encouraging lines as Greenhouse Builders, asking God for safety, growth, joy, fruit, and hope as we head into summer.  We have divided this passage into two parts. The first part invites you to pray for the Greenhouse community that God may accomplish His purposes through His word in our lives.  The second part is a blessing to pray over our community for these summer months ahead.  As you pray these prayers throughout the month, we encourage you to take a few minutes to read, ponder, and pray all of Isaiah 55. 

Isaiah 55: 10-12

As the rain and the snow

come down from heaven,

and do not return to it

without watering the earth

and making it bud and flourish,

so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,

so is my word that goes out from my mouth:

It will not return to me empty,

but will accomplish what I desire

and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

You will go out in joy

and be led forth in peace;

the mountains and hills

will burst into song before you,

and all the trees of the field

will clap their hands.”

To bring Good News...

Thank you, Greenhouse Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision for the mission of Greenhouse Christian Co-School. This month we invite you to pray through Luke 4:14-22 with us. Bear in mind that this passage relates the start of Jesus’ public ministry.

As you read and pray, ask God for His heart, vision, and compassion for those who are suffering in our world even as we experience the life, hope, and light of spring. We have highlighted some of the passage in bold and italics.

When you pray the bolded declarations of Jesus in the passage, we invite you to pray for the vision and mission of the Greenhouse. Pray particularly for the students completing 8th or 12th grade; and pray over the 20th Anniversary Celebration on May 20-22. Consider identifying with the self-declared mission of Jesus by personally espousing the “me” in these statements as you pray.

When you pray through the italicized declarations, we invite you to intercede for the Greenhouse community. Speak these words of truth over our students, teachers, administrators, staff, board, families, parents, alumni, and community, asking the Lord to empower us to act on these admonitions now and in the years to come. Using a Greenhouse directory, you might want to insert various individual names for each day of the month.

This invitation to re-frame these verses is intended to help us take ownership of our individual and collective calling as followers, co-laborers and imitators of Christ (1 Cor 3:9, Eph 5:1-2).

Luke 4:14-22

“And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district. And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all. And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written,

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.

[The Spirit of the Lord is upon ________________, Because He anointed ________________ to preach the gospel to the poor.]

He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed, To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

[He has sent ________________ to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed, To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”]

And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” And all were speaking well of Him, and wondering at the gracious words which were falling from His lips…”

For He rescued us...

Thank you, Greenhouse Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision for the mission of Greenhouse Christian Co-School. We invite you to pray through Colossians 1:9-20 during the month of April.

Reflecting on these beautiful lines as Greenhouse Builders, ask God for His spiritual wisdom and understanding as we celebrate Easter and experience the unveiling of spring.  As you pray through these two paragraphs, you are invited to think of the first paragraph as a prayer for the Greenhouse community, particularly the students this spring. We have highlighted a few words and phrases for deeper contemplation. How often do we pray for these sorts of things?

 “For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. For He rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.”

Now as you pray through the second paragraph, you are invited to reflect on how the truth in these verses make the first paragraph possible. This was true not only when Paul originally penned them, but also and while we are reading them two millennia later. Bless the Lord!

 “For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.”

 As Greenhouse Builders, may we learn to pray for what truly matters in the Lord.

You are the light of the world.

Thank you, Builders, for your prayer, promotion, and provision for the mission of Greenhouse. This month, we invite you to pray through Matthew 5:1-15. 

Prayerfully reflecting on these potent lines as Greenhouse Builders, let’s ask God for His help, His heart, and His vision as spring approaches. Lord, what does it means to be salt and light in our world today? How would you have me build into Your Kingdom and into the Greenhouse community as salt and light? Ask Jesus to help you faithfully embody the beautiful attitudes of His Kingdom. Consider what ways can you let your light shine and what good works you can do this month – particularly as a Greenhouse Builder – that will give “glory to our Father in Heaven.” 

Matthew 5:1-15

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

“You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.

“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven."  

The passage has been subtly separated into seven sections to help you focus on one each day of the week throughout the month, if you would like to do so. May the Spirit of God enrich your prayers.