Scripture: Acts 17:26-28
Devotion
Take a moment to look around your neighborhood, workplace, or local coffee shop. The diversity you see isn’t an accident—it’s by divine design. In Acts 17, we see Paul declare this truth: God “made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth” and has “determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place”
But here’s the beautiful part—He didn’t just randomly scatter people across the globe. He did it so that they might seek Him. That colleague from another country, your neighbor who speaks a different language, a student from across the world—they’ve been divinely positioned in your path. These are people with which we can have intentional gospel conversations with.
Paul reminds us that God “is not far from each one of us.” Despite our different languages, customs, and traditions, every person shares the same fundamental need—to know their Creator. The cultural differences that often make us hesitate are unique opportunities for gospel conversations.
When God positioned people from different cultures in your community, He also positioned you there. Just as He orchestrated their journey, He orchestrated yours. Those cultural differences that may seem intimidating are actually part of His perfect plan to make Himself known. Praise God for his perfect plan, that allows us to encounter and encourage the nations, wherever we are.
A Personal Prayer
- Ask God to give you a heart for the nations, recognizing that He has made them and desires them to be in relationship with Him. Pray for eyes to see and ears to listen intently, so you can help others come to know Him. Seek His guidance to be intentional in your neighborhood today, asking Him to place people in your path and to give you the right words to say as you encounter them in Jesus’ name.
Pray for Our Community: Next Wave
- Next Wave is dedicated to raising up the next generation of disciple-making missionaries, equipping young people to spread the gospel globally. Partnering with local churches and mission organizations, SALT Next Wave prepares students for cross-cultural ministry with a vision to send 10,000 young gospel workers to the nations by 2040.
- Pray for God to raise up a new generation passionate about the Great Commission, ready to make disciples and reach the nations with the gospel.
- Ask God to bless the training of students, equipping them with biblical knowledge, cultural awareness, and spiritual maturity for cross-cultural missions.
- Pray for impactful ministry among diaspora communities in North America, that these young workers would bring hope and build gospel-centered relationships.
Prayer for the Nations: Moving to Middle, TN
- People from over 50 nations, 91 people groups, and 143 languages are now calling Middle Tennessee home, creating an opportunity for the gospel to reach the nations right in our community. Pray that each individual would encounter the love of Christ and find hope and belonging in Him.
- Pray that these diverse people groups would feel welcomed, loved, and valued by the local church and find their identity in Christ.
- Ask for open hearts to the gospel and for God to raise up faithful believers who will share His love and truth with the nations living in Middle Tennessee.