05/14/2025
Prayer | Wednesday, May 14, 2025
As children, many of us grew up seeing the words "To serve and protect" emblazoned on the side of police cars — a promise of safety, help, and guidance. We were taught that when we were lost, scared, or in trouble, we could go to them.
But as adults, where do we turn when the trouble is deeper? When we’re not just lost on the street but feeling lost in life? When the pain we carry is hidden behind a pleasant smile, and no one sees the struggle?
What if, like those police cars, the words "To serve and protect" were written above every church door?
Would our children — and we, as adults — grow up knowing that the church is where you go when life feels heavy?
Not just as a symbol, but as a calling in action.
The cross on every church means more than the sign of Christianity — it’s also a reminder that this is a community, a congregation of people who strive each day to live those very words:
To serve. To protect.
To love. To uplift. To carry one another when the road gets hard.
Let’s remember that the church is not a building of stone, but a body of people — neighbors, friends, even strangers — who have chosen to be here for one another in Christ's name.
"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." — Mark 10:45 (NIV)
Let Us Pray:
God of compassion and purpose,
Thank You for sending us Jesus, who came not to be served but to serve.
Help us, as Your people, to carry His message — to be the ones who welcome the lost, comfort the weary, and protect the vulnerable.
Let our churches be places where those struggling feel safe to fall apart and supported to rebuild.
Let us wear not just symbols of faith, but carry its mission — to serve and protect, with hearts like Christ. In Jesus' name, Amen.
