Asides

Praying in Power

Prayer definition: a solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God or an object of worship. An earnest hope or wish.

Oh! I think of prayer in so many more terms than this! Supplication – the action of asking or begging for something earnestly or humbly. Petitioning: make or present a formal request to (an authority) with respect to a particular cause. Other words that spring to mind are desperate, faith-filled, answered, persistent, connection, love, hope, and faith.

I have always understood prayer from my early years when I cried desperately to “God” to help me before I actually met Him. I cried out often as a young believer for His wisdom for situations; His guidance in my life; for the man I was to marry: for the children He blessed me with and those who don’t know Him personally; for situations of deliverance and healing for many around me who needed miracles! It is the breath of my life as a believer.

However, it is not easy.  I have struggled with regular prayer times or with praying consistently or even knowing how to pray in situations.

This isn’t a study in prayer: That is for a book or indeed many books! This is just an encouragement to pray; to cry out to our Creator, Father, Friend, Lord; to communicate with the Maker of Heaven and Earth! With the One who knows you and those around you so intimately. It is my heart communicating with His Heart! I have seen so many testimonies and answers from the power of prayer!

As a child I was what I would call persistent, others would call it petulant! Either way I was determined to get my own way! It was an unpleasant quality in many ways but as I have grown older that persistence and inability to accept certain things is something I am thankful for. There are certain things I will not give up on!

My family; my friends; those who have been under our ministry and in our lives; the many issues I see surrounding me that cause me to grieve as it does the Father; for leaders of our nations; for fellow believers; for non-believers; for harvesters for the harvest field; and the list goes on! We have so many things to pray and believe for.

Some question that we even need to pray saying everything is preordained by God anyway. However, He tells me that we are co-workers with Him! That working together comes together as we believe the promises of God and pray for those things He has instructed us to: Like Abraham believing for what he couldn’t see!

I see how prayer has saved the lives of my daughter and grandchild facing severe illnesses, and other tragic situations within our family. Not everything goes as I think it will or I think it should, but ultimately, I believe it will all work together for good!!!

I call and He says He hears and answers! I never speak to the Universe! I speak to the Creator of the Universe! Much more powerful!

However, as I said I have struggled at various times with not being regular or consistent enough in my “prayer times”. So hear are a few tips to staying in an attitude of prayer ALL the TIME!

  1. FINDING TIME  AND A PLACE -There are definite times of seeking God including fasting and devouring the Word of God but we shouldn’t be under condemnation if that time includes walking along the beach, sitting in your car (take care driving with this one), under your breath even in the shopping mall (they just think you might be on your phone or from another country as you pray in tongues!) and the list goes on! We should not be legalistic enough believing that there is a certain time or place that HAS to occur. However, finding a “war room or space” in your home and a time that works for you, is still an important aspect of prayer. Don’t get bogged down in details of where and when, just start and start again when life overwhelms you!
  2. WHAT TO PRAY FOR – Recently I heard a young woman speak of how her mother has been an inspiration to her as a young mum in the area of prayer and explained how she prays. She sets aside each day particularly to pray for certain things – e.g. as she is home doing house work she prays. At work she will pray for her colleagues and those around her etc. So she covers a lot of spiritual ground in her week! A prayer journal will help with this and also help you keep track as you see God working situations out before your eyes. It will also help you maintain focus and faith as time works those answers out! There are so many words in the Scripture we are told to pray for: boldness; the labourers to go into the harvest field; leaders etc that we will rarely have trouble filling time in! This doesn’t include the times of prayer reflection where we are not petitioning God for anything other than just to bask in the  presence of the Father – a wonderful place to be.
  3. HOW SHOULD I PRAY?  So many think of praying as the “Lord’s prayer” only. That was just a format not necessarily a chant we need to recite and then walk away feeling as though we have down our “bit”. Prayer is a much more intimate moment than that. The Lord’s Prayer is powerful and does set the form work for pouring in to it amazing prayer times. But there are so many forms of prayer including prayers of warfare, intercessory, supplication, thankfulness, laments, forgiveness prayers; praying the Word and Promises of God and the list goes on. There is also the power of praying in tongues which sometimes will leave you groaning with such deep sorrow in your spirit. There are many types so don’t become religious in form, but let it come out of relationship with our Lord and Saviour! Be honest to Him and yourself! He is your Heavenly Father and longs for relationship with you!
  4. HOW LONG SHOULD I KEEP ASKING – As long as it takes and then some! I have been waiting over 20 years to see the fulfillment of promises I have been praying and believing for. Pray without ceasing! Persistence in a situation will see a resolution one way or the other. Never give up! You shouldn’t see what you see – You need to see what God sees! This is not denial – It is speaking faith! Don’t let the enemy take from you. He comes to kill, steal and destroy, Jesus came to give you abundant life! Never give him ground that belongs to you! You are a mother a grandmother, a wife, a friend, a daughter, a sister – so many need you to stand with them as a warrior woman. You need to find your place of peace in so many situations. Never give up! Be like the might man of David, whose hand, while fighting for a lentil field became frozen to his sword! Don’t give up until you see the victory come to pass! Be like the persistent woman and the unrighteous judge! Keep calling until that door comes open!
  5. PRAY IN THE HOLY SPIRIT – I was blessed as a new believer to be baptised in the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues just days after I became a born again believer. This was His power flowing through me; rivers of living water, compelling me to pray at different times when I didn’t know who or what I was actually praying for at the time. Some of these were life saving events that I eventually found out about! You just need to ask Him to fill you with the Holy Spirit – the Comforter, the Promise; The same Power that Raised Christ from the Dead!

Lord I pray over this article, that the many who read will become so enthused to seek Your face through prayer, and see the power of God unleashed into situations they are facing and may they see the victory come to pass. That they will see you as Abba (Daddy) Father – In Jesus Name – Amen!

Enjoy your prayer adventure about to unfold before you as you look to the Lover of your Soul and begin to commune with Him in a new way!

Blessings Until next time

Narelle

PS I would love to hear from you: your struggles; your answers; your praise points. Your testimony could help others!father cradling a child

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Walking the Camino – How to Prepare

The Camino de Santiago is an 800 km or 500 mile walk through France and Spain. It is a pilgrimage walk that has been around for thousands of years that has many trails originating around Europe. It was said that you could step outside your door and begin the pilgrimage from anywhere in Europe. During the time of occupation by the Ottomans in Jerusalem the Way of St James became a safer pilgrimage and acceptable in the eyes of the church for pilgrimage absolution.

St James was supposedly buried there after having floated there from Jerusalem on a ruder-less boat. I don’t know about that. There are many beliefs surrounding the pilgrimage that many believe or don’t believe but there is one binding factor with nearly all pilgrims who we encountered or spoke to had one thing in common: the sense of being called to walk The Way!

Many including myself when they find out about the Camino Way have a strong sense that not only would they like to do the long walk but there is a strong feeling of “having” to do the walk.

For me it started after I watched the movie, “The Way”, written and directed by Emilio Esteves and starring his father Martin Sheen.  It is the story of a father who completes the trek after his son dies on the Way getting caught in bad weather: something that is a common occurrence as seen by the memorial headstones dotted along the pathways.

Once I saw the film I knew I had to do it. But at the time I was pretty much chair bound with illness and pain. However, within a couple of years I set the date to make the journey.

It was 2 years down the track, the year we celebrated 40 years of marriage and Paul turned 60. Also, it would give me time to gain my health back, while starting to train for the walk.

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In training in the Philippines. Early hours of the morning because past sun rise, the heat was too much.

One of the first thing I did was buy a pair of comfy training shoes. They were light, a size larger then I needed (to help with blisters), and didn’t confine my feet and cause pain. The first pair of shoes that didn’t cause me pain!

I walked in rain, in the cold, the heat, the day, the dark, by myself, and with others. The time rolled by as the miles did.

So here are some of the preparations myself and Paul underwent to prepare for the Camino.

  1. Set a date – Setting a date  brings the goal into focus and plans will begin to take shape.
  2. Train – Set up a training program and stick to it. I tried to do at least 6-8 kilometers a day more on others in any kind of weather, wet, cold, hot, everything except for thunderstorms – They were a no go!  I would also recommend stretches to build strength. The one I didn’t do enough of was to door more hill climbs.
  3. Carry a pack – The more I started to walk I would add weights to a pack to increase my ability to carry a pack. I even used coral rock in the Philippines to get used to the added weight.
  4. Study – Increase your knowledge of the paths you will follow. Understanding the terrain and what is ahead in terms of weather, and accommodation. Also understanding how diet and water affects walking.
  5. Purchase the correct equipment –

       –  Pack – We changed Paul’s pack right at the end. It has to have a waist band to                 take the weight and not pull on the shoulders.

–  Rainwear  – A good rain coat is important. We will probably go with the Atalaa next time. Our ponchos were ok but not great. They needed to be longer although they were light weight – always a consideration. The Atalaa people seemed to just cruise by unscathed by the weather on themselves or their packs.

– Footwear – Of course it goes without saying – correct footwear is a must. I was told to go a size bigger and it worked. Two pairs of socks fill the gaps. Duct tape is a must. Prevents blistering!

– Underwear. We opted mainly for bamboo socks and jocks. I would hope for a better fitting pair next time that dried quicker. Also undergarments that wick moisture away from your body too.

 – Poles – this is not last for any reason but they definitely were our definite bring along. Some did walk without them – good luck to them. I would never think of it! They were invaluable. Spring loaded were good but not particularly necessary. We didn’t go very expensive due to financial constraints and it really didn’t seem to make a difference, except the tips do wear out after 40 days of pounding. They can be purchased along the way.

6. Stay the course – There may be  road blocks or at least detours so persevere. Keep focused. Don’t give up!

 

 

 

Auto Immune – It’s not in your head – It’s in your body!

There is so much to write about today I feel a little concerted. I will start with Auto Immune Secrets first though. Auto Immune diseases. As I have said before on a previous blog found here it has taken me years to recover and discover just what was happening within my body. Two burnouts took its toll on my immune system. Finally a diagnosis of Hashimotos and then a realization that food allergies, (night shades) primarily, were creating havoc in my system and finally as I undertook methods to heal with diet changes, medication, prayer, life style changes and I felt like I was a renewed woman

A crisis within my system this past week and a flair up of inflammation caused me to look again at just what is happening and then I found this!  AutoImmune Secrets . If you click on here it will take you to a link that you can join up. So far they are not selling anything except the understanding of what is happening to your body. I related particularly to the story of the first guy Arthur’s story at 1:32. It is my story! Even to the point where suicide became an invasive thought despite my strong belief about that being any sort of option! Praise God He showed me years back how to walk in healing and health that is why this weeks crisis was a real bummer!

I would encourage anyone who is struggling with autoimmune problems such as diabetes, thyroid conditions, lupus, or un-diagnosed issues or been told it is in “your head” when your body is screaming another reality, check this out.

I believe in Jesus as my healer and also believe we need to take care of this body we have been given in maintaining health. This is so hard to do in this day and age with the amount of environmental toxins, and food additives etc, not to mention the stress levels we live under.

But God is good and led me to this site!  AutoImmune Secrets   has come at a great time. I want to see my body completely healed – and this video offers insights and hope to the millions who like myself struggle with keeping on top of  living a healthy lifestyle.

I look forward to Episode 2!

Until next time

I will write the next blog while sipping my golden milk. Thanks Jo Kelvin and Naomi Darg for the recipe!

Blessings Narelle