welcome to today's encouragement from our daily bread our reading titled thoughts and prayers was written by John Blaze
 you'll be in my thoughts and prayers if you hear those words you might wonder if the person really means it but you never had to wonder when Edna Davis at them everyone in the small one-stoplight town knew of Miss Edna's yellow legal pad page after page lined with named after name early each morning the Aging woman prayed out loud to God that everyone on her list received the answer to prayer they wanted but several testified at her funeral that something god-sized had happened in their life and they credited it to the earnest prayers of Miss Edna
 God demonstrated the power of prayer and Peter's prison experience and the book of Acts after the apostle was seized by herod's men thrown into prison and then guarded by four quads of Four soldiers each is prospects looked Bleak but the church was earnestly praying to God for him they had Peter in their thoughts and prayers what God did is simply miraculous an angel appeared to Peter in prison released him from his chains and let him to safety be on at the prison gate it's possible some may use thoughts and prayers Without Really meaning it but our Father Knows our thoughts listens to our prayers and then acts on our behalf according to his perfect will to be prayed for and to pray for others is no small thing when we serve the Great and Powerful God
 today's our daily bread devotional scripture reading is from Acts chapter 12 Verses 4 through 11
 after arresting him he put him in prison handing him over to be guarded by four squads of Four soldiers each hair it intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover so Peter was kept in prison but the church was earnestly praying to God for him the night before Herod was to bring him to trial Peter was sleeping Between Two Soldiers Bound 2 Chainz and Century stood guard at the entrance suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light Shone in the South he struck Peter on the side and woke him up quick get up you said and the chains fell off Peters rest then the angel said to him put on your clothes and sandals and Peter did so wrap your cloak around you and follow me the angel told him Peter followed him out of the prison but had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening he thought he was seeing a vision
 they passed the first and second guards and came to the Iron Gate leading to the city it open for them by yourself and they went through it when they had walked the length of one street suddenly the angel left him then Peter came to himself and said now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his Angel and rescued me from Harrods clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen
let's pray Jesus thank you for the opportunity we have to bring the needs of others to you when we commit to praying for others may we be faithful to do so thank you for the assurance that when we pray you listen and are faithful to meet our every need in Jesus name we pray amen
 thanks for listening today I'm Steven and today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries