Submitted by Dawn Kennedy, International Prayer
PWOC is one of the most amazing women’s ministries in the world! A group of sisters: drawn together by their love for Jesus and their common military experiences. It gives my heart joy to think there are 10,000 of us around the world studying, worshipping, sharing, training, and lifting one another up. As I meet sisters from around the globe, one question haunts me.
Over and over women quietly pull me aside and share that they don’t feel comfortable praying. It is everyone: new believers, young moms, seasoned saints, even women who have been in church all their lives. The good news is God does not condemn you. He is drawing and wooing us and He wants to equip us. And to take liberty with a few words repeated by a little mouse named Ratatouille (use your French accent, please!), “Anyone can pray!”
Praying is simply conversation with God, and conversation is a skill most of us have in abundance. A conversation is not one person doing all that talking. That would be a lecture. Imagine two close friends sipping coffee, pouring out their hearts to one another. One may talk less, one may bubble over with words, but they both share and they both listen.
I have been intercessor since childhood, but I am learning something new everyday. Almost every day I ask the Holy Spirit to teach me how to pray. I confess to Him that I don’t know what I am doing and ask for His comfort and teaching to guide me. Sometimes He leads me in sweet adoration, other times I weep for another’s pain or loss. Some days I am fiery in war and cry out for the Lord of Hosts to come and intervene. And some days I am weary to the bone, and I can do nothing but sit at His feet in silence, letting His Presence soak the dry, empty places in my heart. All of these things are prayer.
There is one type of prayer that we can all do, and it is probably my favorite. I like to find one scripture, read it a few times thoughtfully, and then listen to My Shepherd’s voice as He whispers His mercy, His truth, His Life to me. Fancy words don’t matter. Talking to Him and listening to Him are JOY!
God has been capturing my attention with a scripture found in Isaiah 33:5-6. It says:
The Lord is exalted, for He dwells on high.
He has filled Zion with righteousness and justice.
He will be the sure foundation for your times,
a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge,
the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.
God is a rich store of salvation, wisdom and knowledge. We each come to the end of our ability to fix everyone around us. When we come to the end of ourselves, we have reached the best place on earth: the beginning of His never ending supply. Simple words from the heart are what He desires.
One year I desperately needed wisdom. I did not know what to do. Situations seemed complex and overwhelming. I read Proverbs 9:10. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. During that time, I did not know the ways of the Lord. As I prayed my simple, “911” prayer all year, He began to teach me.
First, He began to set me free from being afraid of Him and afraid of punishment. He removed my false foundation of fear, guilt, doubt and shame. I didn’t even know those things were blocking the true reverential awe of the Lord in my life. But our enemy, satan, knew. He wanted to stop the fear of the Lord in my life so that I could not open the God’s rich stores of salvation, wisdom and knowledge. One simple prayer can change your life. He wants to uproot the shaky places in your foundation too. I wonder what would happen if we began to trust Him with that process? Would removing the false make room for the true? Would you like the key to His treasure? Anyone can pray, even you!
