Honourable David Eggen - MLA for Edmonton-Calder

Heavenly Father, we thank you for MLA, the Honourable David Eggen, Minister of Education and Culture and Tourism.  Lord, surround Mr. Eggen with clarity of the issues that stand before him as he makes decisions that will affect future generations in his community and in this province.  May his thoughts and plans be guided by You and give him discernment to know what is of importance to bring about the changes that are important in these portfolios.  Give him solutions to the issues he faces on a daily basis. Provide him with all the resources he needs and also the relationships he needs to see his goals fulfilled.   Bless his family with health and an understanding of his commitment providing him with good support on the home front.   Above all, Lord, may he feel your presence as he works for the people of Alberta.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen

Minister of Education

Minister of Culture and Tourism

David Eggen was sworn in as the Minister of Education and as the Minister of Culture and Tourism on May 24, 2015.

Mr. Eggen was elected as the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Edmonton-Calder on April 23, 2012 and again on May 5, 2015. He previously represented the constituency from 2004 to 2008 and served as the ND’s critic for energy, education, environment and sustainable resource development. He currently serves as the ND Opposition House Leader.

Mr. Eggen has served as a member of the following committees:

• Standing Committee on Families and Communities
• Standing Committee on Legislative Offices
• Standing Committee on Alberta’s Economic Future
• Select Special Chief Electoral Officer Search Committee
• Select Special Ethics Commissioner Search Committee
• Standing Committee on the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund

Mr. Eggen was educated at the University of Alberta, where he received a bachelor of education degree in 1984. He then went to Zimbabwe, where he taught for three years. Upon his return to Edmonton he taught at a number of local schools from 1990 to 2004.

Mr. Eggen has also worked in the field of public health care as executive director of Friends of Medicare. He is also a member of the Canadian Health Coalition’s board of directors.

In addition to his contributions to education and health care, Mr. Eggen is a trustee with the Forum for Young Albertans and a chair leader of the Canadian Paraplegic Association.

The Eggen family has lived and worked in northwest Edmonton for more than 20 years.

Honourable Joe Ceci - MLA for Calgary-Fort

Heavenly Father, we thank you for MLA, the Honourable Joe Ceci, Minister of Finance and President of the Treasury Board.  We thank you for the experience he brings with him and pray your blessing on these leadership skills.  We ask, Lord, that you give him vision and direction as he deals with complex issues and that you would give him ability to make wise and good decisions which will restore trust and integrity in our government.  May your hand guide his life and bless his work.  Give him strength of character, integrity and an understanding of the complex issues that he will face on a daily basis.  Help him see clearly the issues that stand before him as he makes decisions that will affect the people of this province now and into the future.  Bless him and his family with wisdom and good health so they can be his support group and we pray that they may be aware of Your presence in their lives.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen

Ceci was born in 1957 in Toronto and attended the University of Western Ontario, receiving a degree in social work. He moved to Calgary shortly after graduating. He also attended the University of Calgary, where he received a Master's degree in social work. He previously served on Calgary City Council as the alderman for Ward 9 from 1995 to 2010. In his 2004-2007 term he was a founding member community safety councils in Inglewood-Ramsay and Forest Lawn.

Honourable Oneil Carlier - MLA for Whitecourt-Ste. Anne

Heavenly Father we lift up to You in prayer today, Honourable Oneil Carlier.   May he find his new position of Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry a position where he can use his talents and gifting’s to the full benefit of the people of Alberta.   Bless and guide him as he faces the challenges of serving the people, may he do so with wisdom and fairness.  We ask that Your peace rest upon him as he begins his day.   In Jesus Name, Amen.

  

Carlier was raised in Val Marie, Saskatchewan, where his family has kept cattle and grown crops for four generations. After high school in Val Marie, he lived in Regina and Saskatoon before moving to Alberta.

Carlier worked for twenty years with Agriculture Canada as a geo-technician, assisting with construction quality control on several large projects including the Bassano Dam Rehabilitation Project and the Crawling Valley Irrigation Project, both in southern Alberta.

He became involved with his union, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), while working for Agriculture Canada. He became a regional representative with PSAC, advocating for workers' rights and social justice issues. He represented members from various agencies, including the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Environment Canada.

Honourable Deron Bilous - MLA for Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview

Heavenly Father we pray for the life of Honourable Deron Bilous, for health and strength for the task before him as he steps into his new role of service to the people of Alberta, as Minister of Municipal Affairs and Minister of Service  Alberta today.   May he sense Your peace, Lord God.   We ask for wisdom, understanding, and clarity of vision for him to work fairly and justly for all peoples.   In Jesus Name we pray,  Amen. 

Mr. Bilous was born and raised in Edmonton and is very proud of his Ukrainian ancestry. He graduated from the University of Alberta with a bachelor of education degree in 2001. For the past five years he has taught and mentored students at Edmonton’s Inner City High School.

An active volunteer in his community, Mr. Bilous has been a member of the Beverly Heights Community League and vice-president of the Boyle Street Community League. From 2008 to 2011 he served as a board member on the Edmonton Aboriginal Urban Affairs Committee.

Mr. Bilous also participated in the Canada World Youth program in 1995-96, working in Edmonton, Saint Jerome in Quebec and Tunisia.

Mr. Bilous lives in Beverly Heights. In his spare time he enjoys playing recreational hockey and other sports as well as traveling.

God Bless Alberta and our new Government

Heavenly Father, we lift up before you today the 17^th Premier of Alberta, Premier Rachel Notley. It is our prayer that your abundant blessing would rest upon her in her role as government leader. 

We bring the newly chosen Cabinet Members before You, Hon. Brian Mason, Hon. David Eggen, Hon. Deron Bilous, Hon. Joe Ceci, Hon. Sarah Hoffman, Hon. Shannon Phillips, Hon. Irfan Sabir, Hon. Kathleen Ganley and Hon. Oneil Carlier, Hon. Lori Sigurdson, Hon. Margaret McCuaig asking that they would be unified and strong. 

As we focus our prayer on Premier Rachel Notley, we ask that You would fill her with wisdom, discernment and insight so she may be effective in bringing positive change here in our province that will make a difference in the lives of people for years to come. Give her the strength and endurance required to carry out the many new tasks set before her. 

We also join together to pray that You would give our Premier innovative ideas and initiatives that will move our province forward into success and prosperity and most important, that through her leadership Alberta would experience Your blessing. Amen 

PrayAB Update

PrayAB Prayer Network continues to be devoted to praying for our MLAs.

We pray for their success and that God would guide them and give them wisdom whether they are returning to their role of Provincial Leadership or newly stepping into it. 

Following the up and coming swearing in ceremony, we will be posting prayers once again for our MLAs.

Look for points in the coming days on Why We Should Pray For Government.

God Bless Alberta

Why Should We Pray for Those in Government?

“That we may live peaceful 

and quiet lives . . .” 

1Timothy 2:1, 2

The Top 10 Things We Should Pray for Government

1)     That God will give them His love for justice

Psalm 72:1-2a “Teach the king to judge with your righteousness, O God; share with him your own justice so that he may rule over your people with justice . . .”

2)    That they would be committed to righteousness

Psalm 72:2b “. . . and govern the oppressed with righteousness.”

3)    That they would have compassion for the poor

Psalm 72:4 “May the king judge the poor fairly; may he help the needy and defeat the oppressors.”

4)    That the fear of God would be present in their lives, deliberations and leadership

Psalm 72:5 “May your people worship you as long as the sun shines, as long as the moon gives light, for ages to come.”

5)    That their leadership would be a blessing to our cities, province and nation

Psalm 72:6 “May the king be like rain on the fields, like showers falling on the land.”

6)    That the godly would flourish

Psalm 72:7a “May the righteous flourish in his lifetime . . .”

7)    That our land would know abundant prosperity

Psalm 72:7b “. . . and may prosperity last as long as the moon gives light.”

8)    That our leaders would receive favour and honour from friends and adversaries alike

Psalm 72:9, 10 “The peoples of the desert will bow down before him; his enemies will throw themselves to the ground.” “The kings of Spain and of the islands will offer him gifts; the kings of Sheba and Seba will bring him offerings.”

9)    That they will rescue the weak and needy

Psalm 72:12 “He rescues the poor who call to him, and those who are needy and neglected.”

10)  That They will help the oppressed

Psalm 72:14 “He rescues them from oppression and violence; their lives are precious to him.”

  

How Should We Pray 

1)     Pray fervently! James 5:16 “. . . the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

2)    Pray continually!

1 Thess. 5:17 “. . . pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

What Happens When We Pray for Government

1)     God responds to our prayers

      a.     Surprising things happen when we ask God to impact our leaders.

      b.     Policy changes, direction changes, government changes

2)    God changes our attitudes

3)    God touches our leaders

Day 20

Pray that we are able to discern truth from error as we listen to what all the candidates are saying/promising. 

Father, wisdom comes from You and you have promised to give it to those who ask in faith.  We come to you now and ask for wisdom as we near the end of this political campaign.  Thank you. that You are always true to your promises. Amen

“But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting,…”  James 1:5-6a

Provincial Leadership

Heavenly Father,

We come to you today with thanksgiving for our Provincial Leadership and want to give thanks to our outgoing Premier, Jim Prentice, for his service in our legislature and to Albertans across our province over the past months.

We present before You our new Government Leader, Rachel Notley.

It is our prayer that Your blessing would rest upon her as she steps into her new role. We are grateful for the experience and leadership skills she brings to her portfolio and ask that You would give her the wisdom, insight and discernment required to carry out the tasks now set before her. Guide and direct her as she attends to the important business of choosing her leadership team and may she be surrounded with those who will assist her in moving Alberta into success and prosperity. This we pray in the name of Jesus,

Amen

Day 19

Pray that we, as the people of God, understand and remember where true blessings come from.   

Father, as we seek to vote for the “right” candidates, we remember that You are the Originator of every good and perfect gift and our land will prosper not because of politicians but by Your hand, if the Church, your people, repent and live as we ought to live.  Help us to know what that means and to do it. Amen

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. James 1:17

The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord;
He turns it wherever He wishes. Proverbs 21:1

Day 18

Pray that the individuals and the political party that prevails through the upcoming vote, might hold truth and honour, as pillars for their political party.

Father, being a “truth-teller” is contrary to our human nature but not to the Holy Spirit.  We ask that you work in the lives of those working to be elected, and particularly those who will be elected, that they may commit themselves to be followers of Christ and thereby become truth-tellers, committed to both truth and honour. Amen

Stop lying to each other; tell the truth, for we are parts of each other and when we lie to each other we are hurting ourselves. Ephesians 4:25

A Prayer for the support staff

Pray not only for those who will be elected as members of the legislative assembly but also all the support staff who carry so much of the workload and are seldom seen or applauded for their work.

Father, there are many who make up the government team.  As we come to the final days of this electoral race, we ask for strength and wisdom and your encouragement for all those who will be making up the government workforce over the next several years - not only the elected officials but also the administrative employees and those working in the technology functions. Amen

Day 17

Pray that God will give us leaders for our province who “understand the times” and know what our Province and they as leaders, should do.

Father, we live in a difficult confusing time.  Help us to elect leaders who “understand the times” and the challenges we face, not only economically but also socially, and know what has to be done.  Amen

“These are the numbers of the men armed for battle who came to David… ³² from Issachar, men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do…”   1 Chronicles 12:23, 32

Day 16

Pray for the Church which often seems apathetic toward its societal responsibilities.

Father, being a member of your family is more than a “pass to heaven”.  Help us, your people, to take up the mantle of responsibility to be informed and to take the action of praying and then voting and then continuing to pray for our leaders.  Amen

If you keep quiet at a time like this, God will deliver the Jews from some other source, but you and your relatives will die; what’s more, who can say but that God has brought you into the palace for just such a time as this?”  Esther 4:14

Day 15

Pray and give thanks for those individuals willing to accept the responsibility of leading through their participation in our Provincial government.

Father, being a member of the legislative assembly can be a difficult and thankless position.  However, today we, as Your people, thank You, and we thank these men and women, for their willingness to step into these roles. Amen

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.  (1Thess 5:16-18)