Prayer with a friend

Dear friends,

I have a friend and we talk sometimes and meet sometimes.
She is a Christian as well and we met under very strange circumstances and GOD even let us cross paths in the huge city where we both live (almost 9 million inhabitants!) – 3 times!!! – we would have lost contact otherwise because of a lost phone and other things… to cut a long story short, it is very clear to both of us that GOD wants us to be friends and to look out for one another.

We don’t see each other too often.
We had a get together scheduled for the day before yesterday, but we both had to cancel and then decided to meet on Saturday, which was yesterday.

She came to my house and we started talking and telling each other mutually about our struggles and hopes and dreams, we were sharing deeply… and then we prayed together.

To be honest with you, she is the only friend I have I ever prayed with, even though I know more and more Christians – privately and in the work place (and my job is very challenging at times even though I love it very, very much!) – but when we discuss something and I ask them if they would like to pray about it, normally they don’t accept the invitation… there was one other girl at work and we prayed together… and another one in the team where I was before… but only on 1 or two occasions and I thought they were a bit embarrassed – and I never worked anywhere where I could install or initiate praying every day together, first thing in the morning even, that’s what I would like to do!

In fact, it is what I do at home and I even lived in a place for a while where I did it together with my colleagues every day –  it was a Christian Community and we had a morning service (and an evening one as well) where we had prayers and commanded our day to GOD, it was quite beautiful and even though there were many things which were not so beautiful in this Community and also not so Christian at all, I really liked this routine and also the philosophy that we do not pray or offer our service to GOD in church, but that everything we do all day long, all our lives long, is an offering to HIM and all is dedicated to HIM and all we ever do is so that HIS name will be glorified.

Me, I live like that every day and the first thing I do every morning is “check in” with my FATHER, I read a chapter in the bible, I listen to what HE is saying about it, what THE HOLY SPIRIT is teaching me from this reading and I hear if there is anything JESUS wants me to do with my day… and I pray as well… but I find that I don’t know many Christians who do the same – or even without asking around or inquiring about it (because I don’t even think that someone’s prayer life is any of my business really), they are telling me that it’s been so long that they have prayed…

I can’t say that my prayers are the same every day –  they don’t have the same length or intensity or depths or even topics every day –  and sometimes, I, too, find it hard to pray… but I would miss something if I didn’t pray in the morning and most times in the evening and of course a few times during the day as well… for me, it is a communication I want and I need and that has become so dear to me, like talking to my best friend, my best advisor, my best source of knowledge and wisdom.

But like I said, outside of church, I don’t very often pray together with someone else.

But yesterday made me decide to do this much more!

When we talked and poured out our hearts to each other, I had this feeling that THE FATHER was there, that THE HOLY SPIRIT was prompting us to ask what we desire and we started praying – in fact, my friend was the one praying and I was agreeing and also praying along in tongues… not soon after we started, the tears started to flow in both of us… and then, we both felt something lifted from out of our chests… and we both felt so happy and excited when we came to the part when we were asking for what we desire from GOD for next year… it was almost indescribable, I don’t think I have ever had a prayer session like this before… and I know that GOD even initiated this, HE called us for prayer and HE was waiting for us to come so that HE could bless us.

After this prayer, I was jumping around, singing, we were laughing and all our heaviness was taken from us –  we kept talking about our “issues”, but from a completely different perspective, from a position of strength and hope and knowing that GOD will make a way!

I was thinking, perhaps we don’t always encounter GOD in our prayers like we did yesterday (I have had strong encounters with HIM during my prayers, differently than the one we had yesterday, but also very powerful and I will never forget them) – and I have been pondering about this so much lately, especially have I wondered about our desires and where they come from – Me, I believe that GOD puts yearnings and desires in our hearts and then HE makes us want them SO much, makes us fast and pray for them…

And I know that the enemy puts desires there as well and I am not talking about desiring a man, at least not in a carnal way…
I have an example for what I mean: my job.
A little more than a year ago, I had no idea I was going to work in this sector, the Criminal Justice Sector, that I would be working with offenders.
Even though I have a law degree and also have had training as a therapist, it never even crossed my mind to work in prison.
In fact, I was trying very hard to get into the homelessness field –  which was very difficult as I had no experience whatsoever with working with homeless people… so I was praying and crying out to GOD for a job where I would be given a chance with my current background and experience and where I would be able to attain a starting position… not long after, my first prison job offer came… and when I started working there, I knew that this is what GOD wants me to do, where HE wants me…
As you may have read, it was never easy since that day –  at least not for a long time and not without fighting through a lot of spiritual warfare with the help of THE HOLY SPIRIT, pushing through by faith and taking down strongholds and “high things” exalting themselves… failing, pushing through, keeping my eyes on JESUS and on HIM alone when it didn’t seem as if it would ever be good, but HE promised me this job and HE was faithful. And HE brought me back into prison… where I have now been happily working (and withstanding some obstacles in the job as well with GOD’s help!) for a few months now…
What I learned in retrospect is that I never wanted anything so bad as this job, I have never fought for anything regarding my career this hard and this long – I would have given up long before I finished successfully if it hadn’t been for MY FATHER, if it hadn’t been for THE HOLY SPIRIT reassuring me again and again that this job was MINE…

And that’s what I mean.
Yes, I wanted this job so bad.
But also, I am sure that GOD has put the desire to do this job in my heart.
It is a job where I can do good and glorify HIM every day.
And I see HIM work and move in every conversation I have, in every single one of the guys’ lives, every single one of them that I talk to is being touched by GOD –  HE is using me… even many colleagues in there are being positively affected by my presence –  and me, I am absolutely aware that it is not MY presence  but the presence of THE HOLY SPIRIT in me that touches these people.
GOD has done mighty things through me in there…

And that’s another thing that I came to see:
when we pray for what GOD wants us to pray for, not only is there a deep, deep sense of satisfaction for us, because HE is pleased about our petition and HE is rewarding us with this PEACE that surpasses all understanding, the only true peace the PEACE OF CHRIST – and HE is giving us this incomparable peace from the very minute when we ask our petition.
But that’s not all.
Not only that, but also does HE hear our prayers!
And does HE give us the strength to fight through and increase our faith in the process.

But that’s still not all!
When HE has given us what we asked for – in alignment to HIS will for us – HE makes us as effective and impactful in this new position, on this new level – as never before!
Which will of course motivate us to more and more align our lives with HIS will, because we know we will have satisfaction, bliss, success and fun as well, because HE knows what and who we are supposed to be in every single area of our lives!

So my friend and I were praying yesterday… we were praying mainly for the area of our lives where we are both having “concerns” and experiencing “issues” at the moment… if you are following my posts, you will know what it is: we are both asking GOD for a godly husband and we both have someone in mind and in our lives and there are some “obstacles” (mildly put!) in the way…
And this prayer time, sister time, agreement time, alignment time, it showed me so much, not only did the prayer itself instantly calm me, reassure me, comfort me, strengthen me and build me up, excite me, heal me and deliver me, but also, I was reassured and it has been confirmed that what I am asking is GOD’s will for my life and that HE will not only do it – even though at the moment things look truly and severely dire! – but also that I will come out happier and more satisfied and fulfilled as ever before in my life, because I have tried to “find my happy” so many times, but this time, this is what MY FATHER has found and this is the man HE has ordained for me.

I am glad and grateful.

Even though I can’t see any of this in this realm, in fact I can only see a lot of evidence for a bad ending and for this not going in a good direction, at the same time, I know who MY FATHER is, I know who has the final say and I know who I am in HIM.

And I know that nothing, absolutely nothing is impossible with HIM and for HIM.

HE has said it and HE will do it.

I will come back here and testify and I will be the wife of this man very soon, in JESUS’ name.

Not because I am so clever or pretty or sexy or whatever –  no, the one and only reason for this dream which will come true is that I have asked MY FATHER for it and that HE heard my prayer and promised it.
That’s all.

When I first became a Christian, I was wondering how I was going to manage living my life and resisting all these temptations of the world, in regards to entertainment for instance, going to clubs, drinking partying, flirting… I would say during my first 2 years I spent a lot of time getting rid of habits (smoking for instance, I had been a smoker for many, many many years! and I swore like a sailor!) and my focus was a lot on what I couldn’t do any longer, what I had to sacrifice… it was hard for me… another big one was all the worldly music for me, lustful music, and I deleted it all… and I didn’t really want to give it up even though I knew I had to…
I sometimes felt as if I had to give up too much…
But then again, GOD made sure that HE always rewarded me and gradually, the shift came… very gradually… and my focus changed… from what I had to give up to what I have gained….  and what I used to enjoy now seems so shallow and meaningless and I get excited over completely different things…

And to just sum up this story, this meeting with my friend yesterday, it was literally life changing!

We overcame an issue together that had been plaguing us for many years now… we are both divorced and have had trouble in our relationships… and now, this is all healed and taken care of…. through our prayer time together… we have changed our destinies… of course with HIS help and in HIS name…
When I compare this to a “normal” meeting with a friend who may not even be a believer and we would have had a cup of tea and some conversations, perhaps we, too, would have cooked a meal together –  but what is this compared to meeting with a godly friend, praying, healing together, changing our lives together?

Not only is praying together sometimes easier than praying alone, these “godly” activities are not only more fun than worldly ones and they also bring forth fruit, healing, satisfaction, removal of obstacles, miracles….how could I ever NOT meet with a friend for prayer?

Dear friends, how about you?
Has THE LORD blessed you with godly friends you can pray with?
Or do you have a prayer partner?
I am curious…

I hope and pray that this will bless and inspire and heal you. And that THE LORD will bless you richly in all areas of your life, that HE will keep you and shine HIS face upon you and bring you peace. In JESUS’ name I pray. AMEN.

photo credit:
https://thephotographicjournal.com/essays/on-friendship/