On Sunday at our Ballard campus I met a 40-year-old man who has struggled with a cocaine addiction for a decade now. He’d attend church twice a year or so, but it wasn’t until this week that, by God’s grace, he came alive to Jesus and his desperate need for help. The road ahead will be full of snares so please pray for him. As the month continues, here are some other prayer requests heavy on my heart and in the hearts of many Mars Hill pastors:

Ongoing Relief Efforts in Haiti

Attention dedicated to the fallout from January’s earthquake is now fading from many front pages and homepages, but we want to continue pressing forward in prayer and through the work of Churches Helping Churches. Be sure to read Pastor Mark’s recent updates about CHC’s work on the ground and how you can help spread the word.

Pastor Michael Van Skaik

Michael Van Skaik is a volunteer pastor who serves at our Bellevue campus and on the Mars Hill Board of Directors. On Friday he was buried (along with two friends) in an avalanche while snowmobiling near Jackson, WY. Everyone survived, but Pastor Michael is now dealing with a shattered left shoulder blade. We’re glad God spared his life, and we pray for a full recovery.

Good Friday Preparations

As Pastor Mark wrote earlier today, a lot of hard work is going into this year's Good Friday and Easter services. Pray for our creative team, which is currently in LA working on the project.

ReTrain This Month

The students of the Resurgence Training Center convene for another round of classes in two weeks. The instructor this time around will be Pastor John Piper, who is also speaking to the general public Friday, February 26, and preaching our Sunday services while he's in town. Please pray for the men of ReTrain—who are all future church planters, campus pastors, and church leaders.

Mars Hill Giving

Church giving has been strong over the past two weeks. The biggest difference is that the number of givers has increased—1,354 donors on January 24, up from 856 the week before. This is very encouraging because it means that more people are joining us on Jesus’ mission and helping to carry the work of ministry. Pray that we as a church would continue to mature in this way.

Buildings for Shoreline & Bellevue

The search continues for more permanent locations for Mars Hill Shoreline and Mars Hill Bellevue. These two campuses are maxed out and in need of a more accommodating base of operations that can be used for additional regional efforts and more campus and church planting.

Community Group Leaders

Well over 350 community group leaders go above and beyond to care for our people, serve the church, and lead the mission of Jesus in their neighborhoods. These are faithful people juggling a lot of responsibilities and who dedicate many volunteer hours for the sake of the gospel. Hebrews 13:7 says to remember your leaders so lets pray for and thank our community group leaders.

Pastor Matt Chandler

As you may have heard, Matt Chandler (frequent guest at Mars Hill and pastor of The Village—an Acts 29 church in Texas) suffered a seizure on Thanksgiving Day. Brain surgery in December yielded a malignant tumor, and Pastor Matt is presently enduring a few rounds of chemotherapy. His story was recently featured by MSNBC and you can watch video updates on The Village blog. Please pray for our brother Matt and the church he leads. God is a God of grace and miracles. We have faith in prayer—not because we can manipulate God but because we trust him as a good Father.