Easter Prayer Vigil

• Find a quite place.
• Grab a cup of coffee, or come into your prayer time refreshed and ready.
• Print this guide and grab a pen (You can use your own bible if you wish). Plan to write out some of things that God speaks or brings to mind during this time.
• Be ready for your phone call, or, if the chain should be broken, set your alarm so you don’t miss your prayer time.

The following readings will walk you through “Palm Sunday,“ the Sunday before Easter, the day Jesus entered Jerusalem. Jesus and his followers came to the city to celebrate the Passover and the week long Feast of Unleavened Bread. These events commemorated Israel’s liberation from Egypt, when God “passed over” homes marked by the blood of a lamb. The religious leaders knew that Jesus, a rabbi, would be in Jerusalem and conspired to have him killed.

This prayer vigil is your time to make preparations for Easter. This will be a time to ready your heart for the coming week. On Sunday, April 5, we’ll have a devotional for each person/family for Holy Week that will pickup with the story of Palm Sunday and take you through the major movements of the week, culminating in the betrayal, trial, torture, crucifixion, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday. This is the story of salvation, promised and fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

But for now, we prepare. This is not an exercise of study, but of prayer. Don’t get too wrapped up in the readings. We’ll use each of these movements a springboard into prayer- for yourself, for others, for the church and for the world.

Anticipation
Read Matthew 21: 1-11 (See readings below)
“Hosanna” was a Hebrew expression that meant, “Save us!” It became an expression of praise. As you begin this time of prayer, start with praise. Praise God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Now, more specifically, pray over those areas in which you need saved. As the crowd shouted, “Save us,” call to Jesus, “Save me.” Get specific, save my life, my children, my marriage, my job, save my...

Anticipation is different than having expectations. Try to get past your pre-existing expectations for how and where God will work in this time and this coming week. Just anticipate drawing deeper into a relationship with God through Jesus. Anticipate a richer understanding of your salvation that will deepen your relationship with God, your sense of peace and security in the work of Christ, and your awareness of the presence of the Holy Spirit. Anticipate an amazing Holy Week and Easter celebration.


Preparation
Read Matthew 21:12-17
In a fit of righteous anger Jesus drove the hucksters and shysters from the temple. What in you should elicit some righteous anger from Jesus? What does he want to drive out from you? After all, we are taught that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. He wants us to be better at being ourselves!
This is your time of confession. Air your sins. Clear out the dirty laundry. Confession is good for the soul! How have you gone against God? What needs turned over and removed from your life? Have faith that wherever Jesus turns you over and cleans you out, he is also going to set you right and fill you up.

Jesus goes on to teach that his Father’s house will be a house of prayer. Drawing the connection, we should be people of prayer. Read again the simple praise of the sick and the children, v. 14-15. How are you sick? Where do you need healed? Pray about it. Then spend some time in that child-like praise. Keep it simple, honest, real. Just praise him as you might want to be praised by a child.


Supplication
Read Matthew 21:18-22
Now here’s the hard part. Let’s stretch our faith in prayer. Don’t get too wrapped up in studying this passage. Let it inspire your heart-felt prayers. Pray like you can move mountains! Pray it like you really believe it! Make this the bulk of your prayer time. Here are some suggested areas to pray over in Supplication:
Your own relationship with God to grow deeper and closer this coming week.
Blessing and healing for your spouse, children, and other loved ones.
Salvation for family and friends who don’t know Jesus as their Lord.
Blessing and growth at Connections Community Church.
The needs of our neighbors- hurting marriages, broken families, unemployment, sickness, mental illness, AIDS in Africa, etc.
Pray for local leaders right up through to world leaders.
Pray for the end to war- focus on the Israel, Afghanistan and Iraq. Pray for peace.


Adoration
Read Matthew 26:6-13
Think of a time when you were adored. How did it make you feel? How did you respond? What can you offer to God in adoration? What have you been holding back? What would unabashed, unashamed, unrestrained adoration of Jesus look like for you? How can you give Him your all, your best? As your prayer time come to a close, just bask in adoration of Jesus.

___
As your time of prayer comes to a close, if you haven’t yet, write down some of the significant things God spoke to your heart. Very often things will come out of prayer- a call you have to make; someone to forgive; a conviction about giving or serving. If it’s not 3 am, follow up immediate! Otherwise, make the decision now to act on what God spoke to your heart.

Now make your call, pass on the prayer vigil, and be blessed! Thank you so much for your participation. We hope to see you in worship for Palm Sunday. We hope our devotional guide will prepare you each day this coming week. We hope you’ll join us for Easter and bring a friend. We’ll have resources and gifts for everyone who joins us for this very special celebration of the Lord’s resurrection.

________________________________________________________________
Matthew 21
1As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3If anyone says anything to you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away."

4This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
5"Say to the Daughter of Zion,
'See, your king comes to you,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.' "

6The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. 8A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
"Hosanna to the Son of David!"
"Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"
"Hosanna in the highest!"

10When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, "Who is this?" 11The crowds answered, "This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee."
_____
12Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13"It is written," he said to them, " 'My house will be called a house of prayer,' but you are making it a 'den of robbers.'"

14The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. 15But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple area, "Hosanna to the Son of David," they were indignant.
16"Do you hear what these children are saying?" they asked him.
"Yes," replied Jesus, "have you never read,
" 'From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise'?"

17And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.
_____
18Early in the morning, as he was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. 19Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, "May you never bear fruit again!" Immediately the tree withered.

20When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. "How did the fig tree wither so quickly?" they asked.

21Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done. 22If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."
_____
Matthew 26
6While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, 7a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table. 8When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. "Why this waste?" they asked. 9"This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor."

10Aware of this, Jesus said to them, "Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 11The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. 12When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. 13I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."