Are you willing to give the New Year to God? 

2026 is fast approaching and we would like to encourage our congregation to commit the New Year to the Lord!  To help us all in this process, we will be holding an “at home prayer vigil” on December 31 and January 1. 

We encourage each of you as individuals, couples, or families, to sign up for a daytime 30-minute time slot on to pray for 2026, and commit your New Year to God. 

We have resources to assist you, including a prayer guide for your time slot, ideas for kids, and other ideas to grow your prayer life in the New Year.

Sign up for a 30-minute time slot on Sunday in the Sanctuary or on the website. 

(Online Sign-Up Coming Soon)

Join us weekly for prayer:

• Tuesdays at 11:00 AM, Room 104

• Sundays at 9:00 AM, HCC Library (Located next to the stage)

Download a free worksheet to pray with your kids, put together by our Children's Ministry Director. 

Find it here!

God is so awesome and He is worthy of all our praise. Praying your praise to God in giving him the honor is one way to focus on His character and recognize His many attributes.

Begin by taking  a piece of paper and writing one letter of the alphabet along the left edge, one letter per line. Consider each letter and find a character trait of God. (You could also include a scripture that tells you of this character trait.)

A - Almighty God who is mightier than anyone or anything - Psalm 91:1

B - Bountiful God who does more than we could ever ask or imagine - Ephesians 3:20

Work your way through the alphabet as you offer a prayer of praise for who God is!

Each month HCC highlights a missionary with prayer requests and praises. Take time to pray for each of the missionaries as you hear their update. You can get updated newsletters and requests at the missions corner in the rear of the sanctuary.

Here is a week of prayer requests:

Sunday – Pray for missionaries relationship to God that they would be filled with the Holy Spirit, grow mature in their faith and feed on the Word of God

Monday - Pray for the missionary’s physical/emotional life that they will have good health, victory over loneliness/depression, and safety in the midst of danger

Tuesday - Pray for the missionary’s family - a solid marriage and relationship with children and model family life to those they serve

Wednesday - Pray for the missionary’s communication as they study the language, improve in fluency, and show cultural understanding for those they talk with 

Thursday - Pray for the missionary’s ministry that God would give them opportunities to teach, preach, witness with boldness and prepared hearts

Friday - Pray for the missionary’s relationship with fellow workers as they connect with other missionaries, local pastors and teachers.

Saturday - Pray for the missionary’s country of service - lift up the government, political situation, visas to remain in the country, and open doors in cities, villages and tribes.

Spend time praying Scripture verses to God as an act of trust and faith in God’s Word. Example: 1 Peter 5:7 “Lord, I come before you laying my fears at your feet. Your word says that I can ‘cast all my cares on Him because He cares for you’. I know you care for me and will rest knowing you will help me through my anxiety, fears and deep burdens.”

Close your eyes and take a slow deep breath to fill your lungs. Hold that breath through a brief pause. Slowly exhale your breath.

As you take your next slow inhale of breath, Focus on a truth from God’s Word such as “The Lord is my shepherd”. Hold that breath for a moment of stillness as you focus on the Lord being your shepherd. Slowly exhale your breath as you thank the Lord “Thank you Lord because of you I lack nothing.”  Use the wording that echoes your heart. A few examples would be: 

“Lord, you are the Alpha and Omega” Hold. “The beginning and the end”

“Your name is a strong tower.” Hold. “The righteous run into it and are saved.”

“Be strong and courageous” Hold. “For the Lord, my God is with me”

Version 1 - Use a mason jar and fill it with popsicle sticks. On each stick write someone you can pray for. Examples might include: next door neighbor, teachers, doctors, nurses, principals, police, grandparents, friends, lady at the coffee shop, cashier at store, mailman, farmer down the road, cousins, piano teacher, etc. You can put specific names on the sticks. Take one out and pray for that person asking God to meet their needs, for their faith to grow, and for protection/safety or whatever specific need you may know.

Version 2 - write down short prayers and add them to the jar - at the end of each week or month, read the prayers and record how God has answered them.

What better way to love your church family than to pray for them? You can pick up a paper church directory at the Welcome Desk or use the online directory to pray for folks at HCC. Try praying a page a day to cover everyone in a few weeks! Are they folks you don’t know? God knows even the number of hairs on their head! Become familiar with their names, jot requests from the Email Prayer Chain in the directory, and more!

Do you have a list of Biblical Names for God? If not, take some time to research Bible verses that show us the names of God (the internet can be a great tool for this). Focusing on one or more of God’s names is a great way to worship Him!

David was a man after God’s heart and he showed us through the Psalms that we can worship the Lord through song. Open your time of prayer with your favorite worship song, carol, or hymn. Many of these songs are based on scripture and looking up the story or background of a song can often deepen your worship time.

Confession is something we don’t often talk about, but it is good and right to make it a daily practice. Our hearts are humbled when confession becomes part of our lifestyle, and it helps us realize that we desperately need the Lord just to make it through a day! Here are some things to talk about with God as you take time to confess:

• “Lord, please show me where I need to grow to be more like Christ.”

• “In what ways am I hurting those around me?” (be specific: Spouse, kids, parents, co-workers, etc)

• “How am I failing to treat others with love and respect?”

• “In what ways do I need to improve how I treat the body, soul, and spirit you have given me?”

• “What am I putting before you, Lord?”

We have seen tremendous blessings of God in the past year. We have new members, people coming to Christ and being baptized, and so many contacts to minister to! Please pray for our church, particularly in the following areas, and in any other ways you feel the Lord leads:

• Jesus Christ will always be the primary focus

• Distractions of the world will not keep us from keeping the Lord first

• God will be honored in our words and actions

• Leadership to have wisdom and compassion and balance truth and grace

• Our church body will individually grow in our walks with Christ

• Our relationships as brothers and sisters in Christ will honor Him

• We will disciple those who need discipling and guide those to Christ who have not yet known Him

• Wisdom and direction with the building project

PRAISE: Start your prayer hour by praising the Lord. Praise Him for things that are on your mind right now. Praise Him for one special thing He has done in your life in the past week. Praise Him for His goodness to you and your family.

WAITING: Spend time waiting on the Lord. Be silent and invite God to join you in this time of prayer. Repeat invitations like: “Come Gracious Father,” “Come Lord Jesus,” “Come Empowering Spirit.” 

CONFESSION: Ask the Holy Spirit to show you anything in your life that might be displeasing to Him. Ask Him to point out attitudes that are wrong, as well as specific acts for which you have not yet made a prayer of confession. Now confess that to the Lord so that you might be cleansed. 

READ THE WORD: Spend time reading and re-reading ashort passage or a Psalm. Reflect on the words. What words or ideas from the passage stand out to you? 

MEDITATE: Reflect deeply on the words or ideas from the passage. Ask the Lord to speak to you. Have a pen and paper ready to record impressions He gives you. 

PRAY THE WORD: Take the same words or passage and turn it into a prayer back to God. Pray God’s words back to Him. 

PETITION: Make requests on behalf of yourself. 

INTERCESSION: Make requests on behalf of others. 

THANKSGIVING: Give thanks to the Lord for the things in your life, on behalf of your family, and on behalf of your church.

SING: Sing songs of praise or worship or another hymn or spiritual song. 

LISTEN: Spend time merging the things you have read, things you have prayed and things you have sung and see how the Lord brings them together to speak to you. 

PRAISE: Praise the Lord for the time you have had to spend with Him and the impressions He has given you. Praise Him for His glorious attributes. 

Adapted from Dick Eastman’s book The Hour that Changes the World © 2002 by Dick Eastman, Chosen Books, Grand Rapids, MI.