This month my teammates and I have been playing a lil game we like to call, “I challenge you.” It goes a lil something like this…"hey julie, I challenge you to hug a person a day," or "yo michelle, I challenge you to not drink coffee or eat sweets today." Sometimes the challenges are kinda ridiculous and other times they are more serious.
Not only have my teammates been challenging me, so has the Lord.
He has dared me to wrestle.
Intercede.
PRAY.
Beg on others' behalf.
One of the first days in Romania I was led to the passages in Genesis 18-19.
Most of us know the story of Sodom and Gomoorah. God is so disgusted with their sin that He is going to destroy the cities entirely. But Abraham interceded on behalf of the people. He stood before the Lord begging Him to have mercy and spare them from destruction. "Lord, what if you find 50, 40, 30, 20, ok 10 righteous men will you not sweep away the city?”
He was bold. Courageous. Persistent.
So if you read on, you’ll see that God could not find one righteous man, giving him reason to spare the cities.
But, ready for the clincher? Please flip to verse 29, “So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot has lived.”
Did you catch that?! But God remembered Abraham, and Lot was saved. It wasn’t for his own righteousness that Lot was saved, but because of Abraham’s intercession on his behalf.
Abraham’s prayers saved Lot's life.
The day I read that under the tree was the day the Lord dared me to be an intercessor. He called me to wrestle, beg, fight, cry and plead on others' behalf.
For my family- my team- my church- my nation- the world.
It’s crazy to think that my prayers can save. But it's true. My prayers can bring freedom. Power. Love. Life. Hope. Restoration. Redemption. Protection. Mercy. Grace.
And I want the Lord to one day say… "and I remembered Michelle."
When I think of my prayers having that kind of effect- it changes everything. It changes the way I pray.
So I challenge you today to pray. Pray without ceasing. To wrestle for another. And to not give up. Stay in His presence until He shows up and meets with you. Pray so that He remembers you.
And while you’re at it, I dare you to give up your computer for the day and meet someone new. Play the challenge game and dare yourself and your friends to do the things you normally wouldn’t want to do. I know kinda cheesy, but kinda fun. Embrace it.
Feel free to comment below and tell me about your experiences. WINK.
aaaanndd… because I can't have a blog without pictures, here's a lil slide show of the latest dare I gave myself at a polka festival we went to. Yep, I hopped into a random babuska's placenta making trailor.
and now I have a new friend named Anne.
