How do I begin this blog?
By prayer – otherwise I’d be sitting here for hours trying to come up with something on my own. You see, God’s been teaching me a very important lesson recently – the lesson of prayer.
In my life, prayer has often been something I struggled with. What do I mean by that? Well, I have come to realize that I have a hard time praying for long periods of time and keeping my focus (I’m a chronic daydreamer). I also have a hard time remaining in consistent prayer throughout the day.
So why am I so concerned with being a person who can pray for long periods of time? Well, the answer lies in what I’ve learned about prayer.
A lot of it comes down to your perspective. How do you view prayer? Is it just something I do to fit a quota or is it something more? God has been showing me that there is more to prayer. It’s far more than a ritual. It is both conversation and petition. I can speak to God as a friend, a Father, a sovereign provider, and a righteous judge who has taken away all of my condemnation. All of these dynamics come together in prayer and as we speak to him, our very hearts are changed. It’s funny, sometimes you can speak to someone and as you hear their heart for something, you find your heart begin to stir for the same things. It’s the same way with God. Our very hearts are changed when we enter a conversation with Him. We begin to see things differently, we begin to love the same things and the same type of people that He does, making me a more effective minister in the Kingdom.
Let me tell you how God’s worked in my life with this. In the past, when I’m finished with ministry or work for the day and it’s late at night, I usually would watch a movie or read a book or something to that nature before going to bed. But, in the past few weeks, something’s changed. Instead of the desire to veg out on entertainment, a deeper yearning has been placed on my heart. That desire is for prayer. So, most evenings, I find myself going outside by myself to a huge rock that’s near our house. There, I spend time with the love of my life – my Creator and Redeemer.
This passion is not from myself – rather it is a gift from a loving God who is jealous for His time with me. I wish I could describe it to you but my words fail me. It is beautiful; a time of intimate abandon with the love of my life. As I’ve talked with other believers, I’ve found that everyone connects with God differently and their conversations with their Father look differently. As I’ve been practicing the art of prayer, I’ve begun finding my prayer language and dynamic.
It’s interesting that God has been teaching me this over the past month. The first week this month, my team and two others are hanging out in Brasov, Romania. We have no fixed contact or ministry for this week. Instead, we are trusting the Lord’s guidance. Every morning, we spend some time in prayer asking the Lord to give us a ministry for the day. When I first heard about this, at the beginning of the Race, I was a bit nervous. I didn’t think I could possibly hear from the Lord. However, over the past 8 months of practicing the art of prayer, I’ve begun to recognize His voice, in all its subtlety and grace. When Jesus describes himself as the Good Shepherd, he says, “The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.” (John 10:3-4) I’ve read this passage many times but I think it’s finally sinking in. As a follower of Christ, I get to hear his voice. Unfortunately, however, my ears can get so clogged with the things of this world that I have a hard time hearing it. That’s why I have to usually go separate myself to a quiet place to pray – where I can listen to the voice of the Lord. As it saysin the verse, when I am intentional with listening to the voice of God, I can follow Him better.
As I continue to explore this new avenue of connecting to my Creator, I’ve found that a source of life and strength that carries me through each day. When I spend time with God, I notice that I get less stressed and have more joy throughout the day. My heart is gradually being changed through conversation with the one who created that heart and is the only one who can truly fill it. Jesus says in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” Just as a branch needs nourishment, so I need nourishment from the Source. One of the best ways to draw on this source of life (to abide, as Jesus puts it) is through prayer. I can see the change in my life from even a month of concentrated prayer – it’s crazy how much more peaceful and joy-filled I am. Apart from God I can do nothing.
Because I seek to be more like Christ and serve like Him, I pray that I can continue in this passionate and intentional prayer.
By the way, let me give you a quick update on what’s going on. As I mentioned earlier in the blog, my squad and I are in Romania for our 9th month. Wow, the Race has really flown by! In the next few days, we’re heading to a small town called Draganesti, where we’ll be working with a local pastor, specifically with the youth, I believe. I know it’s going to be awesome! And next month, we’ll be heading to Moldova!
Keep praying that we will be effective witnesses and servants and that we would finish the Race strong with only 3 months left to go.
God Bless
