Week Three
Monday 21st to Sunday 27th September 2026
Every week we will follow a rhythm where we’ll be praying for a different theme each day.
On Mondays our prayers will focus simply on God.
On Tuesdays we’ll pray for Exeter Vineyard Church.
On Wednesdays we’ll pray for the Church - whether here in Exeter, in the UK or around the world.
On Thursdays for Exeter and the surrounding areas.
And on Friday we’ll pray wider, for our nation and the world.
Over the weekend there is no set devotion, but on Saturday there’ll be a reminder to take time to reflect on anything that might feel like a God-prompt from earlier in the week.
Monday 21st September
On Mondays we focus on God as an act of devotion and worship.
Today we are reflecting on Jesus - the cosmic King of the universe.
The story of the Bible shows us that from creation to eternity, Jesus is Lord. There is nothing he can’t overcome, nothing that makes him anxious, nothing that surprises him. He had it all and yet gave it all completely up for us. And, in doing so, was exalted to supremacy.
These cosmic ideas can feel too grand, especially when we look at our lives, often facing challenges that feel insurmountable, often anxious, often surprised by the random struggles thrown at us.
But the Bible makes it clear that, once we trust in Jesus, his cosmic power works in our messy lives. Today, reflect on this truth, although it may feel hard to believe and echo Paul’s prayer here, for us to see his power and find hope and peace in this.
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Ephesians 1:18-23
Tuesday 22nd September
On Tuesdays we’re praying for Exeter Vineyard Church.
Today we’re praying for everyone in our church family suffering ill health. No one likes being unwell, but where a health condition is chronic, it often is totally life changing, perhaps meaning even day-to-day living can’t be planned, anticipated or counted upon.
In our church family there are people with serious diagnoses and/or people told there is no medical hope for recovery.
One of the names God has given himself is “I AM the God who heals you” (Yahweh Rapha from Exodus 15:26) and it is to him we are praying today.
Let’s pray for supernatural healing, as well as prayers of thankfulness for medicine, the NHS and people working in the health industry.
For our Bible passage today, we’ll look at a specific time Jesus healed a child by casting a demon out of him. This one feels like a good passage to reflect on, because it captures the desperation of ill health, echoes our struggle to believe in things we don’t see, and yet it reminds us Jesus is bigger than our faith or lack of it.
So they brought the boy. But when the evil spirit saw Jesus, it threw the child into a violent convulsion, and he fell to the ground, writhing and foaming at the mouth.
“How long has this been happening?” Jesus asked the boy’s father.
He replied, “Since he was a little boy. The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us, if you can.”
“What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.”
The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”
When Jesus saw that the crowd of onlookers was growing, he rebuked the evil spirit. “Listen, you spirit that makes this boy unable to hear and speak,” he said. “I command you to come out of this child and never enter him again!”
Then the spirit screamed and threw the boy into another violent convulsion and left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, “He’s dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet, and he stood up.
Mark 9:20-27
Wednesday 23rd September
On Wednesdays we pray for The Church - capital “T”, capital “C”.
Today we want to pray for the global Church, across the world. There are around 2.4 billion Christians worldwide, from a wide variety of denominations, traditions and styles.
Today, pray for unity - that we would recognise there is far more we have in common as we follow Lord Jesus, than the things we disagree about. The polarisation of society is infecting the church and one of Jesus’ final (as yet unanswered) prayer was for the church to be unified. We can join with his prayer and, through our own generous and loving attitudes, be part of the answer.
I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
John 17:20-21
Also let’s pray that the global Church would be hope-filled and hope-overflowing. In a world that has so much anxiety about the future, let’s be praying that the church would be the one place where people see, hear and experience hope.
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13
Thursday 24th September
On Thursday we are praying for our local area.
Today we’re praying for our education and the local economy.
Let’s pray for schools, colleges and the university. Pray for staff and students, that Christians in these institutions would be change-makers, peace-bringers and Kingdom-carriers.
Pray for the recognised challenge of a growing number of NEETS (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) who might find meaningful ways of moving forward and finding a place for their unique skills and talents.
Also pray for the local economy, for security in jobs and businesses. Pray for big employers, like the NHS, the Met Office and the University, as well as small independent businesses. Pray for innovation and entrepreneurship that, beyond the economy, might also work to improve our local area and even the world.
Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.
Jeremiah 29:7
Friday 25th September
On Fridays we pray for the world.
Today we are praying for injustice and poverty.
About 10% of the world’s population live in extreme poverty - this is less than £2.25 per person per day. It’s hard to grasp that we live in such growing inequality that this is less than we would spend on a sandwich or coffee.
Let’s pray today for 3 things.
For God to protect the provision for people in poverty - clean water, food, medicine, jobs, safety, education and so on. That these essentials wouldn’t become less scarce, but reach more people.
For systemic inequality - that governments and organisations would work not just to help those in poverty but also work to stop the reasons people are in poverty. Thank God for initiatives like FairTrade and B Corp that work to make positive change.
For us to find our hearts to change - drawing us out of the world’s obsession with owning and consuming, so that we can be generous with all our resources and be part of the solution.
Today’s passage comes from Jesus explaining what success in God’s Kingdom looks like:
“For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.”
Then these righteous ones will reply, “Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?”
And the King will say, “I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!”
Matthew 25:35-40
Saturday 26th September
The weekend is a chance to think back over the week.
Was there something that stuck with you? A topic you felt connected with you? Some prompt to do something as a response?
We want to be people who don’t just say prayers, but listen for God’s reply and act on it.
As a summary, this week we prayed about:
Jesus as The Cosmic King
For everyone in EVC who has a health challenge
For the global Church - to be unified and a place of hope
For education and the economy in Exeter and surrounds
For global injustice and poverty