Start where you are ...

I love Sunday's! They are most definately my favourite day of the week! We were talking about prayer again in church this morning ... a subject I love just now. We were looking at one of David's prayers and about praying and seeking God through and in life's disappointments.

Brian came up to me though, and gave me this little laminated card that he had meant to give me on Wednesday at our meeting. Thought it was a wee thing for me. Here's what it said:

"For who hath despised the day of small things?"
Zechariah 4v10 (KJV)

'Everything big starts with something small; all God needs is something to start with! Have you ever noticed what the disciples said to Jesus just before He feed the 5,000? Listen: "There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes; but what are they among so many?" (John 6v9 KLV). Is that how you feel today? The challenge is too big and you are too small. Notice, the miracle of provision only began when they took what they ahd and put it into the Master's hands. As long as you try to claim or control it, it will always be limited. But the moment you make what you have available to God, it will begin to multiply. Imagine, just a boy's lunch; all God needs is something to start with. The prophet Zechariah wrote, "Do not despise this small beginning, for the eyes of the Lord rejoice to see the work begin..." (Zechariah 4v10 TLB). Do not be afraid to take small steps. Just make them steps of faith and God will walk with you.

Jesus said, "... I will build my church ..." (Matthew 16v18 KJV). Build it with what? Twelve flawed people just like you. But when He poured Himself into them He was so concentrated in them, that if just two of them got together they could turn any town upside down. "But I have so many weaknesses", you say. We all come to the Lord damaged and in need of repair. The good news is, you can be strong in certain areas and struggling in others, yet God will still use you.'


Think that really is a word from God for me! Thanks Brian! Thank you Jesus!

Today ...

I've had a great day. Headache is almost gone! Work was great fun today, was in a really good and chatty mood. Love the folks I'm working with, they really are cool. Just need to keep praying for grace towards one or two of them though, sometimes they stress me out or annoy me. But cool being in a work place where the thing thats expected in that kinda situation is that you pray about it and ask God for help! Discovered one of the guys favourite films is 'Beauty and the Beast', which totally made my day ... so he scores major points, as he's a real blokie bloke, not a 'nice' guy, and seems really Godly!

Have also been so excited all day because of the girlie prayer thing we're starting tomorrow. I had a picture of how diamonds sharpen dimonds (can you believe only diamonds sharpen diamonds!) and shared it with Alison and Jo as I got them to pray for me. Although God brought other stuff out as they prayed, I had known right from the start that God was speaking to my need and desire to get some girlies my age to walk alongside one another. By the end of the night six of us had decided to meet on Saturday to walk, share life (really honestly, struggles, warts, joys ... everything), and pray together. We think we're even gonna make it a weekly thing. I've been quite excited all week, but have become even more so today. I guess thats pretty cool that I have a real sense of expectancy. I'm not sure what it's gonna look like or turn into, but I know it will be great, and that we all agree we need it!

BB was fun tonight. The younger ones still can't concentrate much, but the stuff I did with the older ones was cool. Could really see them connecting into it and God really speaking and moving. Hopefully some of them might even come to Alpha. Don't have a venue for that (24-7 taken the one I thought we may have), so don't know where it's gonna be yet, but it starts on Thursday. Ordered the books today which I got really excited about. I'm well scared, but so looking forward to it all at the same time. Before I get any more excited, or write anymore rubbish about my day, I'm gonna go for a bath and head to bed ... once again an early night failing to be achieved!!!

Why pray? ...

I have had a killer headache for the past three days now. Nothing seems to be helping it, praying was my first wee port of call. And I'm still praying! As a secondary option I've been taking both paracetemol and ibrufen as often as I can! Nothing is touching it to lift it. So am going to write this and go to bed and try sleeping again. It's the kind where my eyes ache, behind my eyes ache, and my head just thumps and pounds with no let up. Don't know what it is, but would like it to disappear. Really had to pray for strength to stay happy and postive in work today - found it hard to be bright, cheery and chatty which is quite unusual for me.

Anyway, this was going to be a short blog before going to bed. Had the next 24-7 prayer meeting with Brian, Karen and Andy last night. Was so, so, so productive and all four of us came away so excited and ... I don't quite know how to describe it, I guess maybe expectant and wondering what God will do is the best I can come up with.

We discussed more solid plans for changing the grotto and creating the stations we feel it's right to have. Looking at our time line for it all to be done, we made some alterations and set new deadlines and tasks etc. And we just talked a lot about what we felt God was saying and where He was leading us with it.

After having gone to bed (still having killer headache) excited about prayer and feeling even more challenged about my own personal prayer walk, I awoke this morning and over my coffee read my Bible thing for this morning. The verse was:

"‘…WHEN A BELIEVING PERSON PRAYS, GREAT THINGS HAPPEN.’"
JAMES 5:16 (NCV)

This is what the wee noddy bit said:

'Why pray? Because nothing lies beyond the reach of prayer. You’ll never know how many people have made it through a tough day because you asked God to encourage them. Or how many are healed because you stood with them in faith. Or how many spiritual runaways have come home because you pleaded with God to get on their case. None of us will ever know the full effect of our prayers this side of heaven, but we know this: God’s kingdom on earth comes through people who pray. Through prayer we’re invited to chat with God; a two way chat that involves both talking and listening. Prayer is ‘talking with God about what we are doing together’ as author Dallas Willard puts it. Have you ever thought that actually, besides all the cool stuff that gets done through prayer, the greatest thing of all is the joining of our heart with God’s heart. Lots of people on their deathbed end up regretting their obsession with work, money, pleasure and power. But have you ever heard of anyone who regretted spending too much time in prayer?

An old minister once said, ‘Prayer does not consist of battering the walls of Heaven for personal benefit or the success of our plans. Rather, it’s the committing of ourselves to carrying out God’s purposes. It’s not bending God’s will to ours, but our will to His. In prayer we tap reservoirs of spiritual power whereby God can find fuller entrance into the hearts of men.’ Why pray? Because everybody knows, you start to become like the people you spend most time with.'


Yahey!!! I text Brian and Karen to share the verse with them as I was on my way to work. Immediately I had a phone call from Brian. He too was about to leave for work and was reading his Bible thing for that morning, which also focused on prayer. We were reading the same thing, but in different contexts. His was:

'...THE PRAYER OF THE RIGHTEOUS IS POWERFUL...'
JAMES 5:16

'Why pray? Because nothing lies beyond the reach of prayer, except that which lies outside the will of God. You'll never know how many people have been strengthened because you asked God to encourage them. Or healed because you stood with them in faith. Or how many spiritual runaways have come home because you prayed for their souls? None of us will ever know the true results of our prayers this side of heaven, but we know this: God's kingdom on earth is established by those who pray. Through prayer we are invited into a relationship with God - a relationship that involves both talking and listening. Prayer is 'talking with God about what we are doing together' as Dallas Willard puts it. In addition to all the other work that gets done through prayer, the greatest work of all is the knitting together of our hearts with the heart of God. Many a person on their deathbed has regretted their obsession with work, money, pleasure and power. But have you ever heard of anyone who regretted spending too much time in prayer? No. Where there is much prayer, there's much love.

G. Ashton Oldham says, 'Prayer does not consist in battering the walls of heaven for personal benefit or the success of our plans. Rather, it is the committing of ourselves to carrying out God's purposes. It is a telephone call to headquarters for orders. It's not bending God's will to ours, but our will to His. In prayer we tap reservoirs of spiritual power whereby God can find fuller entrance into the hearts of men.' Why pray? That's why!'


It all tied in so beautifully and was just such an encouragement and blessing from God today. Have had the verse going around in my head all day ... and will now hopefully have the same as I go to sleep. Who knows, God may even give me some dreams tonight, as thats what I've been praying for!!!