Tuesday SHINE....

Today's Reading: Lamentations 2

Happy Tuesday, SHINE girls!

So, how was your first day of the 40 day prayer challenge yesterday?

Isn't it the coolest thing to live each moment in prayer? It totally changes everything, doesn't it.

Folding laundry, cooking my dinner, checking the mail....my thoughts were completely melted into praising Him and carrying a full-on conversation with my Heavenly Father.

Indescribable Joy.

Let's do this again.


Day two here we come.

Be blessed by Teddi Holt's post today. She began a website called Women who pray, and she truly lives a praying life. You will see by her post.

Pray, girls, pray.

Praying the Word:
by Teddi Holt

I was so honored…and thrilled…and a little anxious after I got started…to share what praying the Word has meant to my life.  I mean this is the 2^nd draft…the other was 7 pages…lol!!!! :D!!!!

Whew!! That’s right! I know you’re glad that I’m not giving you what I’ve spent the last say 3 hours typing…instead I’m going to give you an analogy…in fact, several.  The LORD wrote in parables…picture stories… and analogies are the same. As a linguist and Biblicist…fancy huh?? …lol…just means I know and love English and my B-I- B-L-E…yes, that’s the book for me…I stand alone on the Word of God…the B-I-B-L-E!!! Woo Hoo!!! That says it all!!!

We, the Church, have made it hard! It is not hard! It is disciplined but not hard!

Like, to play the piano…I need only know that there are 7 notes! A-G! There are flats and sharps of those notes.  There’s Teble and Bass Cleft.  Easy info.  Is that enough to play a recital? Of course not! What does it take?  P R A C T I C E

What about singing? Same notes..Do a deer a female deer…Re a drop of golden sun…Mi a name I call myself…ok I’ll not sing it through…but if I can sing the scales up and down …lalalalalalalalala….etc., then can I perform on stage with Sandy Patti? O course not! Why? What must I do?  P R A C T I C E

Now, let’s answer both questions…it takes what? 

PRACTICE!!!!

How often must I practice? Once a week?  Are you kidding? I need to practice how often?  That’s right…every day! What about to be in the Olympics? How often do those winners practice? You getting my drift?

Practice!    Practice!!    Practice!!!

What’s the old saying say? Practice makes what??? Perfect!!! That’s right.  I’m asked how do you know so much Word?  I practice the Word!   I proclaim it!!   Daily!!!

I see a lot of people today exercising …and many are doing it every day…why? To stay fit is what I hear. Now, what does the Word say about physical exercise? It clearly says that it is not as important as your spiritual exercise.  Now, how long are you to exercise…I mean some say just a little while or  you can get by with less time…but for the most part …those who see real gain spend about an hour a day…running…or working out. 

In fact, most programs are for a week, and you exercise different parts different days. 

Time spent on getting a tan…or keeping up with soap operas…or fb…or reading a novel…even this takes the practice of keeping up.

Most of us set aside an hour…even if we split it into 30-minute increments…to exercise or relax…

And, how much time is spent on baths, massages, hair-styling, hair-cutting, pedi and manicures…I mean a lot of luxury…and to stay looking the same we have to practice. Today, we let experts do these things and pay but we have to keep up with schedules, etc. 

Keeping house takes time if we want to share it with others as well as please our husbands and children…and all our hobbies…crafts, gardening, cooking, etc.  All takes practice to do well!!!

Now, when we are praying, why pray the Word? Or, better yet, how do we pray the Word?

Let’s just talk about it for a few minutes…do we know what it is to us?  Let’s remind ourselves …even if we do…

The Word is a lamp to my feet.  The Word is a light unto my path.  The Word is my shield and my buckler. The Word is Health to all my flesh.  The LORD sent the Word to Heal.  Jesus is the Word made flesh.  I hide the Word in my heart that I not sin against God. Great peace have I who loves the Word (His law)and nothing shall offend me (cause me to stumble).  He keeps me in perfect peace when my mind is stayed on Him. 

How do I stay my mind on Him? I meditate on the Word…when? He says, “Day and Night to prosper.”

I have found that if I only pray at night, then I don’t pray much.

If I begin my day with an hour or more of prayer, then, that Word comes up in me throughout the day and keeps me in peace.  If I need re-filling at night…at least it’s only to re-fill…not to begin filling.  I need to be full of the Holy Spirit as I walk through these last days…much trial and tribulation on every hand.

The LORD showed me that I’m an ox.  He also said that my prayer partners were oxen who were in a ditch and that I had to go help them out.

Well, we started with 2 of us and we have joined ranks…there is at least 4 every day…only once in awhile are we as low as 3 …these days…but we might gain and have had as many as 7 on before we finish.  And, 7 chases one billion! I’m mathematical.  I love multiplication! And the LORD’s multiplication table is better than the world’s system.

The LORD says that one chases 1,000 and 2 chases 10,000.  In the world each would chase 1,000 when they pray and praise God! So, if 30 prayed separately, they would be chasing 1,000 each…so 30,000.  But if you use God’s multiplication and 30 prayed or praised in agreement the Word of God together…corporately…one chases 1,000; 2 chase 10,000; 4 chases 1 million; 7 chases 1 billion! Etc., and etc. ( If you haven’t heart Will You Be My Praise Partner by Judy Jacobs, you must!  Such a blessing!)

We’d be off the charts with 30…and yet, that’s what’s happening as those on our fb page pray the prayer blanket around the world.  In India, as of Saturday, Vijay presented the prayer blanket …2^nd printing of 1,000 copies…to be passed among the people.  The LORD says it is a blanket…a comforter of light…being spread over that nation of darkness.  India is like only 1 or 2 % Christian.  To God be the Glory!

You don’t have to get up and join me at 5:25am, but I will tell you , if you do, you will be very blessed…just to experience the Secret Place of the Most High in such a way. 

You may receive the prayer blanket from us and pray when you have the hour and at least ½ to do it alone…it goes quicker with more than 1…

Or, you could join with your prayer partners and pray…at a different hour. 

Some have tried this…and let me warn you of pitfalls.  If you don’t keep to your time limit…if you socialize at all…there’s not time to finish…and people usually feel unsuccessful.  Or, if time is spent on many details of one’s needs and another can’t say their needs…one may be hurt or just feel unimportant. 

Also, it’s hard to get people to commit to beginning at a certain time and end at a certain time…if you lead a Bible Study or you attend one…you notice that very soon the focus is not on the Bible or the teacher who’s prepared to teach the Word…or Jesus Himself as it is during our prayer time.

We even take prayer requests by email or phone or fb and then, we lay hands on them and pray over them all at the same time…even  we remember and ones we’ve forgotten.

We’ve had several times people who tried to change our focus and our time…but the LORD has won us over to a disciplined prayer life.  Actually, I would not change what He’s done in me…a very undisciplined person about time and prayer, etc., for any amount of money or anything in this earth.

I’ve seen many miracles…many strongholds demolished…and I declare daily that I’m expecting many more.  The LORD is our focus…His Name and His Word which is above His Name!!!

Many of you have heard or read from Joel Osteen.  I knew of his father, John, through books and ministry.   Well, I have not heard one sermon that has not lined up with what I’m saying today.

Joel confesses only the Word about himself, his family and his ministry.  He trains his church and his outreach to do the same.  They proclaim only the Word of God over themselves and into their lives. 

Last Sunday’s message was about not settling for good…but reaching out for the best!  Joel …like Beth Moore…talks about our Promised Land! They remind us of who we are in Christ…how our gifts were given to us…and though we may not have reached what we had hoped  for,  yet…that we’ve just not been standing in Faith long enough! Either the best is about to happen…or we’re doing rabbit trails while we wait instead of keeping our eyes on Jesus.

Remember the art of jump roping girls? When others held the rope, and we had to jump in.  We had to watch for that door of opportunity…totally focused.  If we became distracted…we missed our opening.

Don’t be distracted, girls. That’s our message.  When we pray the Word, we pray the answer! We pray the finished picture.  We proclaim things that are not as though they are! We walk and talk by Faith believing.  It’s not Faith if we see it. 

Faith is the substance of things hoped for…the evidence of things not seen!

We declare ourselves healed…how? By His stripes we are healed!

We declare ourselves prosperous…how? We are the redeemed of the LORD and we say so! We are the head and not the tail!!!  We’re like trees planted by the rivers of water, who bring forth their fruit in season. Our leaves do not wither, and whatever we do prospers!!

It is God’s will that we prosper…as our soul prospers!

We are to rejoice always! Why? The Joy of the LORD is our strength! To have Joy, we clap…stomp…shout for it!

When we’re afraid…we trust in the LORD! We begin to sing and praise the LORD, and He inhabits our praises…we are resisting the devil , and the devil has to flee!!

Woo Hoo!

My challenge is that you allow me to send you the prayer blanket and you begin praying the Word over every aspect of your life.  If something is not covered…you find it in the Word and add it…we’ve edited…addending it several times.  The Prayer Blanket…like the Word is a living document!  We don’t add to the meaning but translations and studies have made our understanding deeper.  It is life-breathed and life-giving.

Rhizoo in the Greek is our word rooted and means established, fixed, and grounded. The LORD spoke it to me today…Rooted in the Word.  I actually thought I saw it, but when I looked for it, and I had Emily help me look…we did not find rooted in the Word.  Google found for me in Colossians rooted in Christ and we know from John in chapter 1 that Jesus is the Word made flesh.

In order that the Word be rooted in me, the water of the Word must pour into me daily and I must proclaim it daily.  As I do…inhaling and exhaling…I am being refined…perfected…in Him.  The seed sown by the side of the road in the rock…received joyfully…but the seed (the Word) did not bear root and was yanked up.  Root that Word, Girls!! Much watering of the Word to Root that seed and allow it to grow up and bear fruit…so that we are like trees planted by the river of water …whose leaves don’t wither …and whatever we do prospers.

Be armed, Girls!! Gird up our loins with Truth…the Word is Truth.  Put on the breastplate of righteousness…the righteous meditate on the Word day and night.  Our feet are shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace…the Word.  Our shield of Faith…the Word is our shield and buckler. Our helmet of salvation…the Word is nigh in our mouth that we confess Jesus as LORD…and our sword is the Word that we wield as we pray.

Glorrrryyy!!!!   I get excited.  No more lying down and trying to pray as I go to sleep…only for re-filling not for filling.  No more falling asleep as I try to pray …because I’m too tired to think of all I need to pray for!

No more of the enemy winning out in my prayer life!!

Up and attem!!! Hitting the floor armed with the Word!!! Taking the day…instead of the day taking us with all its ambushes.  Glory, LORD!!!

Thanks Jill…

Aunt Teddi