DREAMING GOD SIZED DREAMS: REBUILDING FAMILIES IN 53206
Dear Calvary and Friends,
Join me this week in fasting during this Holy Week from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, as we prepare ourselves to remember and honor the death and sacrifice that Jesus made for each of us on the cross and to celebrate His resurrection defeating Hell and the grave. This is a sacred and holy time for Christians. Let us not rush through this week in anticipation of the good food and fellowship that we will enjoy with friends and family. Let us walk through this week remembering and reflecting on each step and event that our savior lived through asking God to give us insight and revelation that we would come to understand and appreciate what our Savior did and went through on our behalf. May this week bring you closer to Him and may you see and experience the love and glory that He has bestowed upon you through His life, death, and resurrection.
As we move into the days, weeks, and months after Easter, I encourage you to live out the resurrection message in your daily life, finding new ways to serve and love, and embracing the hope and joy of Christ's risen life. Remember, Easter is not just a one-day event but a constant source of inspiration, revival, and renewal for our everyday lives. Our faith should not center around just attending worship on Sundays or meetings, but it should be about actively living as disciples of Christ in our private thoughts, our lives with our families, on our jobs, when we are on the bus, hanging out with friends, at a game, in everyday conversation, etc. Each day, I implore you to seek God’s guidance and make yourselves open to the Holy Spirit’s leading. Remember no matter what you may be experiencing in your everyday life be intentional about finding hope, strength, and joy in Christ’s resurrection.
There will be some who will live through Holy Week and Easter and go on about their lives as usual, little will change in their lives. Don’t make that your choice. The blessed and wonderful news is that you can live out your resurrected life in Christ through your personality, gifting, hobbies, etc. If you are in the food industry, serve your customers well and make extra for those in need. If you are a teacher, pray over your students every night. If you are a lawyer, speak with truth and love. If you are a mother or father, share God’s message with your children through words and actions. Seek every opportunity to bless others and pray for them. Embrace and seek after an authentic life in Christ where you will work each day to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. And whenever you think that this is asking too much of you, remember what Christ did on the cross for you. After all, you never know who will be in heaven because you truly lived out the Great Commission.
“And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation" (Mark 6:15)
Pastor John R. Walton, Jr.
Reverend Dr. John Richard Walton, Jr.
The Reverend Doctor John Richard Walton, Jr. is a native of Cleveland, Ohio, and has served as the senior pastor of the Calvary Baptist Church of Milwaukee for the last 22 years. Pastor Walton is well-respected and sought after as preacher, pastor to pastors, lecturer, and spiritual, biblical, and academic authority in the training and discipleship of deacons and church leadership.
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PRAYER DEVOTIONS:
May 2025 Focus:
Developing a Conquering Faith by Recalling, Mediating on,
and Praising God for Past, Present, and Future Victories In Christ
Click here for May Scriptures.
Dear Calvary Members and Friends,
May these prayers feed your soul and spirit! Each prayer this month was inspired by a passage of scripture.
Let us pray with confidence and boldness knowing that He hears and is faithful.
Greeting O God, our strength, our light, and reason for life! Today’s a new day, a chance for a new start to live out our faith in You to the utmost and to give You glory Thank You for this fresh and amazing opportunity to serve You today. Thank You for the victories and blessings You have instored for us this day! Yesterday is gone and with it any regrets, mistakes, or failures we may have experienced. However, we do not want to forget or neglect to praise You again for the triumphs, grace, and mercy we were gifted with yesterday. Thank You! Thank You! It’s a good day to be glad and give thanks, and we do, Lord. Thank you for today, a new opportunity to love, give, and be all that You want us to be. Father, renew and refresh us for the new day’s challenge and chance to develop and pursue a closer and more intimate relationship with You. Thank You for reminding us life is not always easy, but that we have encouragement of how You have blessed us in the past to lead us and motivate us to move forward through this present day, and into the future. Bless our hearts to be held back by nothing as we seek You each day. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
God, help us love and cherish the blessings and divine opportunities of the life we live right now. Show us the benefits weI often overlook and help us be content with what we have been gifted with in You. The opportunity to worship and serve You, our God, in how we speak, think, work, play, live, and breathe. Forgive us when we compare ourselves to other individuals, families, churches, etc. Forgive us for longing for things outside of You, Your Kingdom, and Your Perfect and Divine Will. Mold and shape our hearts, minds, spirits, thoughts, words, and the work of our hands in closer and direct alignment with Your Word through prayer, study, meditation, and fellowship. Help us not look at this world, what we think, or what we feel for our guidance and direction. Lead us to look solely and directly to You. Jesus, You are our victory. We claim You today over every area of our lives. For the places we feel confident in, thank You for giving us that assurance. For the places where we feel absolutely weak, thank You for the future victories that we are going to have in You. We cannot win our daily victories on our own, but we can do ALL things through You who gives us strength. Hallelujah and in His precious name, we say Amen.
Father God, we ask today for more of Your Holy Spirit and direction in our lives. Lord, it can be easy for us to become consumed with the fears, trails, and temptations that surround us in life, but we know that just as Your eye is indeed on the birds of the air and the fish of the sea, so also do You see us, your children. Teach us today to become more reliant on You. Bring us into a better understanding of how You operate, so that we may come to have deeper discernment that all we see with natural eyes is not all that is. Today we ask for eyes to see Your hand in all matters, and hearts open to Your Will and Your Way, and a determination to follow Your Holy Spirit through faith and remembrance of where You have brought us from and where You are leading us to go. In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.
Lord, in Your Word, You are the one who goes with us and ahead of us to fight on our behalf against Your enemy to give us victory each and everyday. You are faithful to each of us everyday. You have been faithful in the past, You are faithful right now, and You will be faithful in the future. Morning by morning, new mercies we see. You provide a way out of no way time and time again. You have provided us with Your full armor so that when the days of doubt, discouragement, and trial come, we may be able to stand our ground, and after we have done everything, to stand. Thank You that these are not just just words of encouragement; Thank You that these words are living and active. They are powerful and have great meaning. Lord, change any situation today that may move us away from You. Move the mountains that stand in our way, or give us the determination and focus to climb those mountains in faith with You. When we feel hemmed in and cornered on every side, remind us that You are bigger than any mountain in our lives. In Jesus name, Amen.
Good morning, Lord! Today’s a new day, a chance for a new start. Yesterday is gone and with it any regrets, mistakes, or failures we may have experienced. It’s a good day to give thanks for You and for all the blessings that You give us each day. Thank You for each new opportunity to love, give, and be all that You want us to be individually and as a church family. As we greet and welcome this new day, please let us be filled with Your spirit. Let us spread the Fruit of Your Spirit everywhere we go and in everything we do, especially in situations that don’t suit us or that challenge us. Help us desire things that please You and renew our spirits so much more than the worldly desires and sin that tempt and at times pull us away from You. Awaken in us a desire to meet with You and to hear You speak words of affirmation, assurance, and wisdom over our lives in Your Word and in prayer as we move forward into each new day. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Lord, Thank You for your abundant, abounding grace. Thank You that we don’t have to earn the grace that flows freely for us today. Thank You for the unexpected, unmerited favour You’ve showered over our church. Help us put ourselves in the path of Your love and grace. Help us not to neglect spiritual disciplines we need, to meet with You in green pastures and still waters. Thank You that Your compassion is renewed every morning. Great is Your faithfulness, O Lord fill us with Your Holy Spirit, Father. Energize us for Your work. Awaken each day to the jobs of Your salvation, and quicken our spirits to the reality and blessing of Your work in our lives and in our church. Lord, help us to stop striving and to trust that You will give us all that we require to do the work You have designed for us to do. We know that You will be faithful to complete the work You’ve started in us almost 130 years ago. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.
Lord, open our minds that we may recognize Your presence in our lives.
Open our hearts that we may offer You all our thoughts. Open our mouths that we may talk with and pray to You throughout the day. Help us to do Your will, every hour of every day. We don’t know what the day will bring, but do know that You are the creator of all things and everyday. We know that in every trial and every situation, we have victory awaiting us in You. We know that You are our rock and our fortress. You are our God in whom we trust. Teach us how to stand strong in You and choose only Your way today. Help us walk in Your Word and not by our feelings or our intellect. Help us to walk not by what we see but by who we know You to be. Help us to embrace anything that comes our way as an opportunity to see You at work, as opportunity to point others to You, and as an opportunity to honor and glorify You. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
