“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.” – Psalm 19:1

Adoration: Through Your creation, Lord, we see the work of Your hands. Romans 1:20 declares, “For since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what was made…” You alone deserve honor and glory as the author of creation.

Confession: Forgive us, Father, for failing to properly humble ourselves and surrender before You, our Creator. 

Thanksgiving: Thank you, Lord, for Your plan and purpose. Through Your mercy, humanity’s hope reaches beyond the garden.

Supplication:

Global: Help us, Lord, to value Your creation. Grant us wisdom as we seek to honor and cultivate the world around us.

Local: Give us eyes to see how we can help protect and advocate for the dignity, worth and value of those in our churches and community.

Personal: You, Lord, created me with an opportunity to participate in Your story. Show me how to glorify You in my present circumstances and relationships.

 Is there a challenging relationship in your life? Take a moment to pray for those people who seem difficult to love. Ask God to let you see them as He does: with dignity, worth, value and as the part of His creation that He intended them to be.  

“Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’ ” – Genesis 1:26

Adoration: We praise you, Lord, the intimate God, who uniquely designed every single person in your image and breathed life into our beings. Your image gives each human life dignity, worth and purpose.

Confession: Lord, forgive us when we fail to see Your imprint on one of Your image-bearers and use shallow measurements like economic status or skin color to assign value to someone’s life. Convict us when we rob any human being of their unique status as Your image-bearer. Forgive us when we value our comfort over the welfare of others and choose to remain silent in the face of injustice. 

Thanksgiving: Thank you, Father, for stamping Your image on me and every single person You have created. Thank you for making us more alike than we are different – all like God in our being, capacity for worship and divine purpose. Thank you, Jesus, for Your sacrificial death to redeem all people. Thank you for the beauty of the gospel that unites people of all colors and nations. 

Supplication:

Global: Acts 17:26 says: “From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth …” Father, in light of this truth, help us to love and accept people who look, speak and think differently because of what binds us together as Your image-bearers. Raise our passion as the body of Christ to alleviate the atrocity of racial injustice in the nations. 

Local: Lord, help us to remain vigilant against Satan’s hand at work in our local churches and BSF classes, many of which remain divided along ethnic lines. I pray against racism in my community; I pray for unity, peace and justice, starting with my church and my BSF class.  

Personal: As my Creator, You know me fully and intimately. Search my heart, O Lord; open my heart’s eyes to my blind spots that I covertly or overtly ignore. Help me to turn from any poisonous root of racism I justify or do not recognize. Show me where I fail to see others as Your image-bearers and instead marginalize others because of the color of their skin. Embolden me to use the influence You’ve blessed me with to affect change that unites Your image-bearers in my church, community and BSF class.  

 When was the last time you had meal or coffee with an image-bearer of God that was of a different race or nationality? Take time this week to seek out and actively listen to their perspective in an effort to promote interracial communication.

“If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” – Genesis 4:7

Adoration: You alone, Lord, are holy and righteous. Your judgment is good and Your mercy is pure.

Confession: Forgive us, Lord, for growing seeds of bitterness. Like Cain, we’re tempted to hide our sin from You, saying, “I don’t know; am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9) Forgive us for hard hearts and a desire to deceive.

Thanksgiving: Thank You, Father, for Your endless mercy. Cain’s sin may have impacted generations, but Your sacrifice, Jesus, stretches into eternity. (Genesis 4:17-24)

Supplication:

Global: Many people around the world live apart from Your presence. We ask You, Lord, for revival. We pray that men and women of all nations will join together in repentance, seeking Your glory and to uphold the value of all people, no matter their race or nationality.

Local: Knowing Cain’s sin, You provided an opportunity for repentance in Genesis 4:9-10. Help us, Lord, to seek the lost as You do. Fill Your Church with a passion to pursue those in our community who haven’t experienced Your grace.

Personal: Cain elevated himself above all else. Help me, Father, to value You above my comfort, my pride and my desires. Only You can provide the freedom I often seek on my own.

 The Lesson 4 notes share, “Life often takes us to a crossroads – pivotal points where our response determines our way forward. How we respond to what happens matters. The same event that could soften and grow us, could also anger and harden us.” What is a current “crossroads” in your life? Take a moment to pray about that situation. Ask God to soften your heart, reveal your sin and grant wisdom in resolution.

“I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.”  – Genesis 9:11

Adoration: You, Oh Lord, are the author and sustainer of life. In Genesis 8:21 You said, “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans … And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.” You alone hold creation in Your hands. 

Confession: Too often, we doubt Your plan. We’re tempted to force our own solutions instead of trusting in Your provision. Give us faith like Noah to endure life’s storms and then patiently wait on You. (Genesis 8:15-19)  

Thanksgiving: Thank you, Father, for keeping Your promises. Just as You remembered Noah during the Flood, You remember us. During seasons when we feel adrift, You never leave us and You never forget Your promises. 

Supplication:

Global: As natural disasters plague nations around the world, comfort Your people, Oh God. Help us to remember Your sovereignty and Your promise to Noah in Genesis 9. Let all rainbows remind us that Your covenants are binding, and our faith is secure. 

Local: In Genesis 9:3-6, You established boundaries and laws. Once again, You upheld the sacredness of human life, which was created in Your image. Give us wisdom when we see people abuse Your creation. Convict us, God, to protect all life, which is precious to You.  

Personal: Noah’s faith was a gift from you, God. Give me that same measure of hope and assurance in Your plans. When I struggle to trust You with my present circumstances, please remind me of who You are. 

 Noah and His family were at God’s mercy during their time in the ark. Apart from trusting Him, there was nothing they could they do. Are you facing circumstances that feel out of your control? As days turned to weeks, Noah waited patiently for God’s rescue. Take a moment to list ways God has been faithful to you in the past. Praise Him for His character and ask for patience to wait as He fulfills His plan.   

“The Lord had said to Abram, ‘Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you.’ ” – Genesis 12:1-2a

Adoration: You, Lord, determine our years and our lineage. Just as You directed Abram’s genealogy in Genesis 11, You are sovereign over each family and every generation.  

Confession: Forgive us, Lord, for twisting Your promises and polluting Your plans. Like Abram, whose faith faltered in Genesis 12:10–20, our own weakness causes sin, self-reliance and destruction. Have mercy on us and deliver us from our sin that quickly multiplies.

Thanksgiving: Thank you, Father, for including us in Your plan. Just as You made Abram into a great nation, You also invite us to participate in Your ultimate design for salvation and restoration. 

Supplication:

Global: Like Ur, the land Abram left behind, and Canaan, the land he entered in Genesis 12, our world is full of idolatry and false worship. Give us the wisdom to see through these lies and resist the temptation to conform to the culture. 

Local: Make our churches like the Israelites, who modeled faith in You to surrounding people. Let our Christian communities and BSF classes reflect Your priorities to a watching world.

Personal: Help me, Lord, to place Your will above my own comfort and security. Like Abram, teach me to evaluate life’s risks and rewards according to Your standards and not the world’s. 

 The Lesson 8 notes state, “Abram and every person face the same defining decision – ‘how will I respond to God?’ ” At some point, God calls each of us to leave our comfort zones to serve Him faithfully. How might God be asking you to put your faith in Him? Take a moment to ask God to clarify His desires for your next steps. Ask for faith that will move you forward according to His direction.  

“Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.” – Genesis 15:6

Adoration:  You, Father, are trustworthy. Just as You fulfilled Your promises to Abram, You keep Your promises today.

Confession: Forgive us, Lord, for our impatience. Too often we substitute our plans for Yours. Forgive us for the times we blame You and say, “The Lord has kept me from …” as Sarai did in Genesis 16:2.

Thanksgiving: Just as Hagar said, “You are the God who sees me …” in Genesis 16:13, we trust that You see us, even in shame and despair. Thank You, Lord, for Your endless compassion and mercy.

Supplication:

Global: You, Lord, heard Hagar’s cry of misery in Genesis 16:11. Help us, as the body of Christ, to hear those who are desperate for Your love and mercy. Give us compassion and understanding for pain of others.

Local: In her jealousy, Sarai cast Hagar out of her home while Abram avoided the conflict. Too often, Lord, we’re tempted to deal harshly with those who are closest to us or ignore conflict altogether. Give us the wisdom and courage to focus on Your will when facing conflict. Cultivate peace in our churches, BSF groups, neighborhoods and homes. 

Personal: Help me to trust You, Lord, when Your answer is different than the one I want. When You ask me to wait, give me the confidence to rest in You. Just as You told Abram to “… Look up at the sky and count the stars …” in Genesis 15:5, help me to look toward the cross and remember Your promises. 

 The Lesson 10 notes tell us that “God met Abram’s needs, not with a timeline or dates on a calendar, but with a reminder of two important aspects of His character.” God told Abram, “I am your shield,” and “I am your very great reward.” Are you currently waiting on God to meet a need or answer a prayer? God asked Abram to trust His character and we can too! Take a moment to list of some attributes of God. Pray them back to Him as a reminder of who He is.  

“So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.”  – Psalm 19:29

Adoration: Your judgment is perfect, Lord, and complete. You alone weigh men’s hearts and actions. You conquer evil and right all wrongs. 

Confession: Forgive us, Father, for our uncontrolled anger. Your wrath is measured and always deliberate. Even in Your destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19, Your judgment was pure and Your motive was right. 

Thanksgiving: You, Lord, are perfectly holy and deeply personal. You called Abraham “a friend” several times in scripture and invite us into friendship with You through Jesus. Thank You, Jesus, for Your redeeming sacrifice that absolves our sin so we can approach the throne of grace freely. 

Supplication:

Global: Help us, Lord, to long for Your righteousness. Like Abraham in Genesis 18:22–33, give us compassion for those who live apart from You. Help us to trust in Your holy judgment. 

Local: Abraham’s compassion for the people of Sodom compelled Him to intercede on their behalf in Genesis 18:22-33. Reveal the areas where we can intercede for our own communities. We long for Your righteousness to transform our schools, governments and neighborhoods. 

Personal: In Genesis 19:15-23, Lot and his family were told to “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back ….” But in verse 26, Lot’s wife couldn’t resist the temptation to turn her eyes toward Sodom. Help me, Lord, to stay focused on You alone. When my thoughts and desires wander, draw me back to You. 

 2 Peter 2:7-8 describes Lot as “a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard).” Does this feel familiar? We too live in societies plagued by sin and lawless deeds. But just how “distressed” or “tormented” are you? Peter goes on in verses 9 and 10 to assure believers that “the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials,” while also warning against “those who follow the corrupt desire of the flesh.”  Take a moment to ask God to reveal those areas where societal sin may be creeping into your own life. Ask Him for eyes to see the world clearly, in light of His holy standards.  

“Abraham answered, ‘God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.’ And the two of them went on together.” – Genesis 22:8

Adoration: Though You spared Abraham’s son Isaac in Genesis 22:12, You sent Your own son, Jesus, as a sacrifice for all. Your mercy and grace extend into eternity and Your goodness offers true redemption. 

Confession:Forgive us, Father, for taking Your sacrifice for granted. Through Genesis 22, Abraham’s faith and anguish become real to us. Help us to remember how precious and costly Your plan for salvation truly is. 

Thanksgiving: You, Lord, reveal Your faithfulness day after day. In times of testing, You never leave us. Thank You for granting us the gift of faith so we will obey when You call our name, just as Abraham did in Genesis 22. 

Supplication:

Global: Genesis 22:23 gives us a glimpse into Your perfect plans, Lord. While Abraham was being tested with Isaac, You were already preparing Rebekah to be Isaac’s wife. As governments change, wars continue and new threats emerge, help us to cling to You. Renew our confidence in You. Your perfect plans stretch beyond our understanding. 

Local: In Genesis 23:7 and 12, Abraham, “bowed down before the people of the land.” Though these weren’t Your people, Abraham approached them with humility and respect, trusting You to fulfill Your promise. As we deal with unbelievers in our communities and workplaces, help us to assume this same attitude. Let our character and faith distinguish us from our neighbors. 

Personal: God, grant me a faith like Abraham. Help me to obey quickly and fully, surrendering the things I cling to for security. Help me to trust Your perfect provision in all circumstances. I want to answer, “Here I am, Lord!”. 

 On page 5, the Lesson 14 notes state, “Abraham’s walk with God offered many opportunities to trust God and prove Him faithful.” We too have opportunities to grow in faith through testing. Reflect on Your own walk with God. Make a list of times when God grew Your faith through difficulty. Remembering those times, ask God to strengthen Your faith today. How might God be asking You to trust Him now?