Prayers Went Up and Peace Came Down

Praise: Thank you for the prayers this past weekend. As I stood at Vital in the praise line, I could feel your prayers rising and God’s peace descending upon me.

It has been a huge step forward this week. I went to Vital with more questions and nerves than I can count. There is nothing worse to make a person feel less nervous than for people to ask if you are nervous. After my total shock of last week in Sunday worship, I feared I would not be up to the double fire hose of the Vital Women’s Conference. 

But, God is so good and faithful. On Thursday before Vital I had a powerful worship time with God. I wrestled with my flesh and spirit trying to decide which one would win out. At Vital, I am happy to say the spirit won out.

I got to spend time with Kathy’s daughter, Keilah, before the conference. Keilah is just a year older than me. We hit it off like we were old friends finally getting time to catch up, which is so much to do with Keilah’s very sweet and tender heart.

Right before Vital was to start Keilah asked if I wanted to go with her to pray with the other district leaders for the speaker of the conference. She said I could follow along and if I decided not to go into the room it was no big deal.

We went backstage to pray for the speaker. Kathy introduced me to other district leaders before we started praying. Let me tell you, prayer is such an element of comfort for me. I jumped right into praying for the speaker. I do believe being part of the prayer circle helped to set the tone for Vital for me.

Keliah also asked if I wanted to sit with her for Vital and I immediately said Yes. The music began to play to start worship. As the music started, I followed Keilah to the front. Her husband was the worship pastor for the retreat. In my mind, I pictured I was hanging out with my good friend and we were just rocking out to her husband’s band.

I did get more serious as I began to praise God for giving me the courage to be in the very place that just a few days before had been a place too scary to approach. While I praised, it felt to me that the prayers of my friends were being raised as God’s peace descended upon me. Being at the praise line was so freeing. At one point I tried to go up to the praise line even when it was not time yet.

The speaker had a powerful message about courage and boldness. So much of the talk spoke into my heart as this week I had been dealing with my fair share of fear. I knew when the altar call came, I had to go to the altar regardless of what the altar call really was for. Fear would not keep me from what God is calling me to do here in Indiana.

I went to front at the altar call. There I stood in what, to an outsider of the Pentecostal ways, would seem like chaos ensued. All around me women were crying, speaking in tongues, and some women were on their knees or lying flat out. I just kept my eyes shut and prayed.

Music started up again, so I began to sing along with the songs. I still did not recognize the songs, but my lips were singing the songs as if I had known them for years. Just when I thought maybe I should go back to my seat three women came up to pray over me.

What the women prayed was a powerful arrow to my heart. Tears began to fall from my eyes as words of truth began to be spoken over me. I found my hands lift a little higher in the praise music. Then before I knew it, the night was over. Kathy made the closing prayer to send us on our way.

For me the difference was so impactful. Kathy took me to introduce me to her parents. There was this sense that tonight, as I got bolder, the tension between Kathy and me was falling away. I could tell she was proud of me for stepping outside my comfort zone.

On Saturday, there was an altar call to end the conference. The women just flocked to the altar all on their knees. Being in the second row I was almost part of the altar, but on this day, I felt God say to me to just watch. As I watched, my heart was prompted to pray. There were no women praying over the group. The message of the altar was to be undone before God. Over the course of the past week, I had been undone by God so much that I was ready to minister to the people from my own experience. I prayed Psalm 54 over the women.

After Vital, I told Kathy that I felt like one of my greatest purposes for being here in Richmond is to pray for Lighthouse. My prayers may sound different, but with all my time I want to be caring for Lighthouse, Kathy and her family through prayer.  Regardless of any other experience I gain here, prayer will be at the wheel steering my way.

On Sunday, I got to church early to pray. I wrote down some visions of what I hoped to see happen at Lighthouse while I am here.  The first two were to have a time of just worship as a church with no sermon and the second to do a prayer walk around the city.

When the music began for worship, I worried for a split second my newfound courage would pass away and I would not step into the praise line at church. But God led my feet to the praise line. As worship went on something was stirring in Pastor Ralph’s heart. He decided we were going to spend today in worship instead of him giving His sermon.

He challenged us to do something different this time in worship than we had before. I thought surely, I had done enough different things this weekend, but I was obediently to do something different. For the first time I prayed in my prayer language at the altar.

Pastor Ralph said if you cannot get crazy expressive of love and excited for Jesus in the safety of the house of God, how can you ever expect to be crazy expressive of love and excited about Jesus outside in the world where people need you to be. This is a challenge to my heart, and I hope to you reading this. Get crazy expressive in your love for Jesus especially in the house of God.

Worship continued until Pastor Ralph asked for a moment of stillness before God (something I had asked Pastor Ralph if he knew how to do earlier in the week). Not long into the silence did people start to come forward to confess sins in front of the congregation. It was so powerful living out James 5:16. Pastor Ralph and Kathy led the charge in praying over those confessing.

To finish off the service we did a march around the sanctuary singing “Surrounded” by Michael W. Smith. We were not done with the service until 1PM. Amazingly, if we had gone longer, I do not think anyone would have cared. Better is one day in God’s courts than thousands elsewhere. 

For Sunday night church, unbeknownst to me, the plan was to do a prayer walk around the city of Richmond. We went and prayed at the jail, courthouse, and schools. In just one day, two of my visions of what I wanted to see happen during my time at Lighthouse happened.

What does this mean? I am learning to dream bigger for God to work. God is limited only by our ability to let Him work. I have seen God move in powerful ways this past week.

My prayers are getting a little bolder. My list of visions has gotten longer. My heart is speaking encouragement louder.

Kathy and I are settling into our roles in this crazy adventure God has given us to live out the next couple of months. We have a plan to look at what my options may be for ordination credentialing in the Assembly of God church (I am not sure this is a direction I want to go but am willing to open myself up for God to lead).

What really has me excited right now is Kathy wants me to do a couple things for women’s ministry. First, to think up possible new names for women’s ministry programs. The second, to plan some social events for women of Lighthouse to gather with others in their generation. We are still ironing out the details.

Last week I thought surely if I do not step up to the praise line I might as well pack my bags to go home. This week I am anxiously anticipating what God is going to do next in and through my time in Indiana.

Here is a link to a powerful song we sang at Vital and at Sunday worship that wrecked the crowd. https://youtu.be/2emelR7lGmw Shane and Shane have written such a powerful song based on Scripture. Give it a listen for a few times through.

Much love to my prayer warriors.