Our dirt is washed clean. A cathedral being renovated (left side is done).

Denise took this while on a mission trip with Maria to France last month. 

Devoted, alert and thankful.

 ² Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. ³ And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ⁴ Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. ⁵ Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. Collossions 4: 2-6. NIV

By focusing on prayer through the week, I find myself more 'watchful' over the Spiritual needs of others even if the prayer request did not mention this. Often through adversity discouragement grows and wears down our decison making abilities. But a sense of thankfulness swells when praying with expectation, thankful for the mighty work God can do.
I pray for God to open hearts and for the mystery of Chirst to be proclaimed with boldness and lives to be forever changed.  I pray that as we grow in our walk, we as a body would develop our communication skills such that our conversatons with non-believers would be filled with grace and seasoned with salt.

Joyful in the house of prayer

¹² "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command you. ¹⁵ No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. ¹⁷These things I command you, so that you will love one another. John 15:12-14 New American Standard

Friend I read the passages above as God commanding me to pray because through prayer I am loving others, by giving of my life for others and I can bear fruit by praying in the Father's name so He may answer those prayers.  

⁶"And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD,
to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD,
and to be his servants,
everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,
and holds fast my covenant—
⁷these I will bring to my holy mountain,
and make them joyful in my house of prayer;
their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
will be accepted on my altar;
for my house shall be called a house of prayer
for all peoples."       Isaiah 56:6-7 New American Standard

This critical verse explains Jesus will come to save Gentiles as well as Jews and goes on to say (paraphrasing) He will make us joyful in His house of prayer! Appropriately, Harvest's third pillar: 
3. Believing firmly in the power of prayer
"Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints." Ephesians 6:18 
Please join in praying for the body and ministry at Harvest Naperville and share your comments / stories of prayer.