When I asked him about 2013, I felt him calling into a season focused on spiritual disciplines, such as prayer, bible reading, and scripture memorization. I also heard him saying this season is about intimacy with him and others.
Somehow, at some point over the next few days, I had the idea of starting prayer buddies within my team. I concluded that having a prayer buddy to pray with each morning would bring the accountability I desired, and intimacy would develop through sharing our hearts and praying with each other.
The idea seemed like a perfect match. I pitched the idea to the team, and they all instantly loved the idea too. I was named point person and asked to develop a schedule and cast the vision.
With a seven person team, making a schedule was a bit of a struggle; I decided to "cast lots: and let the Lord pair us up with a partner or two to pray with each week.
Once we rolled out the idea of prayer buddies last week, I had the pleasure of partnering with Elizabeth. During our last morning praying together, this little guy, Pauleong, prayed with us! He's one of the neighborhood kids who's in and out of the house throughout the day.
During one of our sessions at debrief, each team was asked to share what they do well. After thinking about it, we felt that we love others through prayer. No matter what's going on, if someone needs prayer, we drop everything to pray for that person, whether it's life or death, big or small, important or not.
The night I shared the prayer buddy vision to the group and we casted lots, I had another idea to take things one step further. Not only would we partner up within our team, but each of us individually would draw a name from another all-girls team, Joyous Noise. We would each pray for that girl over the next week and ask the Lord for words for that girl to encourage her with. The team loved the idea, and it was definitely a way we could practice what we do well – love through prayer. We planned to reveal our idea when the girls came to visit us for church on Sunday.
After Laura shared a devotional during our church service, I was given the floor. I shared how I was given the idea of prayer partners, how we shared that we love through prayer, and how Jesus told me to put that into practice by praying specifically for them this week. I shared how we put their names in a hat and each drew one and we've been praying for them this week! They were utterly blown away by our demonstration of love and deeply encouraged by our words. They were comforted to know that someone was praying for them, fighting on their behalf, and believing in them. This demonstration of love also opened doors to new relationships that may not have otherwise developed or flourished.
After lunch, we spent quality time with our buddies, shared the words Jesus spoke to us throughout the week, shared additional prayer requests for the upcoming week, and prayed together.
I am honored to be the vessel in which the Lord used to orchestrate such a fruitful idea!
"Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. Are any of you sick? You should call together the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven. Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results." James 5:13-16
