Is it a checklist? “My leader told me to pray, so I need to pray.”
When I only encounter difficulties??
For me, prayer is simply communicating to God daily. Pray to give thanks for what He has done in my life. Pray for healing for friends, family or even myself. Pray for directions in life. (And the list just keeps going on............)
When I was still young in my faith, I would talk very little to God. Doesn’t God know everything? Why do I need to even tell him? Then I realised the power of prayer as I grew more in my faith. Even though God knows everything in our lives, through the act of prayer, it shows that we acknowledge God is our helper and prayer is a petition to God. It is about the requests to God. “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” -Luke 11:9-10 Through the years, when I go through transitions (from sec to jc, jc to uni, ministry transitions, etc) I will pray and ask the Lord for directions. For I want God to be part of my decision making moments. Each time I press on, He did not reveal to me immediately but He reveals only when the time is appropriate. The timing He reveals the plans, it is never too late nor too early. It is just nice. On top of that, He will affirm the things He spoke to me. Before I know it, everything falls into place. “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” -Jeremiah 29:11-
The power of God through my prayers amazes me. So what is your definition of prayer in your life? If you had not found it, quickly discover it. It is never too late to start now! (:
LAst week, Ms. Pray, Ms. Weeth & Mr. Faith were really busy.. They receive a directive from the BIG Boss up there to reach Ignyters all over PL. Their mission is to show the way, the truth and the Life of prayer!
We were hot on their heels and we've managed to catch them in action! Take a look at this...:)
" To pray is to draw near to the Reality that is bigger than yourself and what you know. Most of all, to be found in a private place, quietened down and talking to God is a posture of intimacy with Him. - The One who holds everything together. So desire Him today...! "
Reality Prayer Blogging - Separate the Urgent from the Important
It's been a really busy past week, with a work-based event on Friday and Sis Gwen's wedding. (CONGRATS Gwen & Uncle! so so so happy for both of you! your thank you speeches made a lot of people cry too...)
So yes, it was really a busy and tiring weekend for me, both physically and mentally. I was rushing from one thing to the other, one place to the next... many things running through my head - what I need to do, what I need to remember, what I need to bring along, what I need to wear(!!), what I need to prepare, who I need to talk to and settle things with ... and the list goes on... but I realized one thing was missing through most of my "list of things to do"... this one thing so important, this one thing that would have empowered me for everything else on the list, one thing I really needed - and this one thing was solid prayer.
On Saturday evening, someone dear to me sms-ed me, "Separate the urgent from the important."
Perhaps that was the Lord's way of reminding me of what truly matters – but I must admit, I missed it by not immediately working on it - I didn’t realize the significance of the message until the end of everything - Sunday night when I finally got home, feeling exhausted and worn-out.
In retrospect, I realized how important Prayer is to me. I need to pray – it is for my own good because I can’t do anything without Him.
On 22 July, I was preparing for a major presentation in school when I suddenly started coughing. Brushing it aside, I just prayed and continued with the presentation.
Amazing fact no.1: Throughout my entire presentation, I did NOT cough once, but spoke fluently! Praise God! Later in the day, my condition got worse and I went to see a doctor, who diagnosed me as “suspected H1N1”. As soon as I heard it, my heart sank, and all the what ifs came attacking. “What if I have to be hospitalized?” “What if I really die?” Despite my fears, I prayed, and many others prayed for me too, believing that God triumphs over all sicknesses.
Amazing fact no.2: Two days later I went back to the doctor for a second checkup, and he said I’d “made remarkable improvement” because I’d taken Tamiflu vaccine early, which prevented further spread of the virus. The doctor attributes my speedy recovery to the medicine, but I say, “It is all because we prayed, and trusted God to heal me!”
So THANK YOU God Almighty who hears the prayers of his children and heals the sick. And thank you too, leaders who prayed for me, and family and friends who cared J
I get up, and prepare for yet another day, beginning with TAWG.
In a sense, routine is both good and bad. It instills discipline in those willing to integrate it into daily living; on the flipside, it too can bring about a sense of mundane-ness (for lack of a better word).
What better time than now for the Lord sent me a timely reminder of what it means to be His disciple, what it takes to run the race, what it all boils down to when it comes down to the wire:
“In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be My disciple.” ~ Luke 14:33
Personally, this is a big challenge, having grown up amongst overachievers who are currently carving excellent little niches for themselves in the corporate world. In a sense, the need to own that luxury car, that expensive bag, that exclusive credit card has been imbued in me since my days in secondary school and later, junior college and university.
To me, “everything” refers to the material comforts which are highly prized by my peers and myself. It connotes prestige and to a certain extent, acceptance.
As the Lord challenged me to let go, and surrender these aspirations in exchange for something better – His divine will for my life – I was reminded also to look not to man for acceptance, but to God.
The process of complete submissions is still an ongoing one, but I am proud to announce that it gets better every day as I seek Him and pray through the process of letting go of everything and letting God.
Reality Prayer Blogging - Believing for breakthrough
As some of you might know, I’m currently doing my internship in a particular organization, in a particular department. Things have been going well in the department (in terms of relationships) and it was really like a family unit here – thank God! I felt so blessed here. But recently, out of the blue, one of my colleagues got upset with my other colleague and a cold war started in this once-close-knit department. It really affected the life of our department! (By the way… both of them are fellow believers… which made me even more sad.)
At first I just couldn’t comprehend how it even started… the reasons that presented itself were just so minor! As I spoke to the Lord about it, I felt in my heart that I needed to ARISE and PRAY. And so I asked the Lord to remove every seed of discord sown by the enemy, I prayed for restoration of relationships, for forgiveness from both parties, for life to return into the department. AMEN!
In the midst of the few days of praying (yes, things didn’t change overnight!), the Lord reminded me to be a peacemaker (Matthew 5:9).Ok… so what am I supposed to do???Well, I didn’t really have to crack my head about it because the opportunities just arose for me. One of my colleagues opened up to share about how he felt about the whole matter, and I had the opportunity to “minister” to him – encouraged him to pray and just commit the matter to God. As for the other colleague, though he distanced himself from us, I made sure we continued to include him in our tea-time snacks and made sure he knew he was welcomed back to join us anytime.
Today is about day 4 since I started praying over this matter, and I’m VERY glad to say that things are starting to get better. I am believing for breakthrough and complete restoration! I am convinced that God can make all things possible.
After my 1st post, I'm certain many of you are asking, "So Sister Gwen, how do we walk through such difficult times???" Well, the answer is found everywhere in John 15 – Remain/ Abide in God Remain/ Abide is to stay in God’s word/promises/commands/ instructions. It’s not a ‘weng weng’ thingy, it’s not a manipulative emotional roller coaster either. It’s the simple lifestyle of humility and inviting God into your life constantly.
With His word/promises/commands/instructions inscribed in our hearts and minds, going through life difficulties would be much easier and joyful. Amen?
Try this – count the number of ‘remain’ or ‘abide’ in John 15:1-12.
John 15:4-12 (NIV) Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. 8 This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. 9 "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
You know God really means it when He repeats the value of remaining in Him in almost every other verse or sentence in this short passage! So IGNYTE ministry, don’t give up and be discouraged when life seems to be going no where. Perhaps God wants you to just remain in Him.
James 1:2-5 (NIV) Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
How many of you love gardening? **umm I don’t see many hands risen up**
Jesus taught an important value to His disciples through the parable of The Gardener and the vine. Let’s look at John 15 to explore more on the value of remaining/abiding in God.
John 15:1-12 (NIV) "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. 8 This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. 9 "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
God wants us to be fruitful. However, to be fruitful does not always mean going through a smooth and easy life most of the times. Every victory in life comes with a battle, no matter how big and small. But today we can rest assured that it is God’s promise for us is to bear fruits (= [abundant living], and so what do we do then??? The answer is in John 15 – REMAIN IN GOD.
Every plant that bears fruit would first need to go through the process of pruning or change in their life cycle. The flower petals have to drop and wither; the branches with weeds and algae need to be cut off so that healthy fruit can be bear.
Likewise, it is the same for our lives. Sometimes, God will allow us to face difficult situations; not to torment and make us suffer, but to give us the opportunity to make Godly decisions and grow from it. The result of pruning/molding is FRUITFULNESS. Fruitfulness =Abundant Living = Godly Character and a Blessed Life.
So don’t shrink or run away when you have storms in your lives. But know that such situations are inevitable, yet we don’t resign to it, but start to see such occurrence as God pruning our character, pruning our lives so that we can fulfill His purpose in our lives.
God bless! Sis Gwen!
p.s. stay posted for "Part II" of this blog entry yar!
