The 6 month prayer challenge March 11-Sept 11th

The evening of the day I was suspended from work I spoke with one of my coworkers on the phone. Knowing that this was a double edged sword for me, blessed I was taken out of a stressful situation, yet at the same time unjustly treated. My coworker said tonight when we are off the phone we will read Psalms 35 together at 9pm. The bold faced lines are the ones that stuck out to me the most:
Psalms 35
1 Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me;
fight against those who fight against me.
2 Take up shield and buckler;
arise and come to my aid.

3 Brandish spear and javelin
against those who pursue me.
Say to my soul,
"I am your salvation."

4 May those who seek my life
be disgraced and put to shame;
may those who plot my ruin
be turned back in dismay.

5 May they be like chaff before the wind,
with the angel of the LORD driving them away;

6 may their path be dark and slippery,
with the angel of the LORD pursuing them.

7 Since they hid their net for me without cause
and without cause dug a pit for me,

8 may ruin overtake them by surprise—
may the net they hid entangle them,
may they fall into the pit, to their ruin.

9 Then my soul will rejoice in the LORD
and delight in his salvation.

10 My whole being will exclaim,
"Who is like you, O LORD ?
You rescue the poor from those too strong for them,
the poor and needy from those who rob them."

11 Ruthless witnesses come forward;
they question me on things I know nothing about.

12 They repay me evil for good
and leave my soul forlorn.

13 Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth
and humbled myself with fasting.
When my prayers returned to me unanswered,

14 I went about mourning
as though for my friend or brother.
I bowed my head in grief
as though weeping for my mother.

15 But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee;
attackers gathered against me when I was unaware.
They slandered me without ceasing.

16 Like the ungodly they maliciously mocked [b] ;
they gnashed their teeth at me.

17 O Lord, how long will you look on?
Rescue my life from their ravages,
my precious life from these lions.

18 I will give you thanks in the great assembly;
among throngs of people I will praise you.

19 Let not those gloat over me
who are my enemies without cause;
let not those who hate me without reason
maliciously wink the eye.

20 They do not speak peaceably,
but devise false accusations
against those who live quietly in the land.

21 They gape at me and say, "Aha! Aha!
With our own eyes we have seen it."

22 O LORD, you have seen this; be not silent.
Do not be far from me, O Lord.

23 Awake, and rise to my defense!
Contend for me, my God and Lord.

24 Vindicate me in your righteousness, O LORD my God;
do not let them gloat over me.

25 Do not let them think, "Aha, just what we wanted!"
or say, "We have swallowed him up."

26 May all who gloat over my distress
be put to shame and confusion;
may all who exalt themselves over me
be clothed with shame and disgrace.

27 May those who delight in my vindication
shout for joy and gladness;
may they always say, "The LORD be exalted,
who delights in the well-being of his servant."

28 My tongue will speak of your righteousness
and of your praises all day long.

Let me break this down in order of how it has happened.

vs19 They gloat over me without cause. My boss since day 1 has had an extra eye on me. I've been singled out and received different treatment from my coworkers. She has pulled others in the office to ask about me. When others have been complained about she asks if I am one of them. I'm not sure why I am her enemy. The only thing I can think of is that I am a Christian, and she is a lesbian, recovering alcoholic, and with a mother that wants nothing to do with her.

Vs 11 They ask me questions I know nothing of. I was being told you did this, this, and this. Wow! I knew I had done my job properly within policy and had no answer or detailed defense other then to explain how I had done it properly.

vs 28 I will sing praises all day long. As soon as she suspended me from work I had never felt so much joy over such a stressful situation before. I was so happy and relieved that I had that day off.

vs8-9 The net set out for others they get entangled in themselves. As soon as my boss decided to terminate me, she went went home sick. Later that day she underwent an emergency surgery. The week after returning to work she would find out she had more health issues that she knew nothing of.

Vs 24 The vindication. I met with her boss on Tuesday, currently I am praying for my fair vindication. To be continued......


Before I continue on I want you to read the following story from chapter 4 of John Ortberg's book, If You Want To Walk on Water Then You Have To Get Out of The Boat.

One of my favorite adventures in prayer involves Doug Coe, who has a ministry in Washington D.C. that mostly involves people in politics and statecraft. Doug became acquainted with Bob, an insurance salesman who was completely unconnected with any government circles. Bob became a Christian and began to meet with Doug to learn about his new faith.

One day, Bob came in all excited about a statement in the bible where Jesus says, “Ask whatever you will in my name, and you shall receive it.”

“Is that really true?” Bob demanded.

Doug explained, “Well, it’s not a blank cheque. You have to take it in context of the teachings of the whole scripture and prayer. But yes- it really is true. Jesus really does answer prayer.”
“Great!” Bob said. Then I gotta start praying for something. I think I’ll pray for Africa.”

“That’s kind of a broad target. Why don’t you narrow it down to one country?” Doug advised.

“All right. I’ll pray for Kenya.”

“Do you know anyone in Kenya?” Doug asked.

“No.”

“Ever been to Kenya?”

“No.” Bob just wanted to pray for Kenya.

So Doug made an unusual arrangement. He challenged Bob to pray for six months for Kenya. If Bob would do that and nothing extraordinary happened, Doug would pay him five hundred dollars. But if something remarkable did happen, Bob would pay Doug five hundred dollars. And if Bob did not pray every day, the whole deal was off. It was a pretty unusual prayer program, but then Doug is a creative guy.

Bob began to pray, and for a long while nothing happened. Then one night he was at a dinner in Washington. The people around the table explained what they did for a living. One woman said she helped run orphanage in Kenya - the largest of its kind.

Bob saw five hundred dollars suddenly sprout wings and begin to fly away. But he could not keep quiet. Bob roared to life. He has not said much up to this point, and now he pounded her relentlessly with question after question.

“You’re obviously very interested in my country, “the woman said to Bob, overwhelmed by his sudden barrage of questions. “You’ve been to Kenya before?”

“No.”

“The how do you happen to be so curious?”

“Well, someone is kind of paying me five hundred dollars to pray……”

She asked Bob if he would like to come visit Kenya and tour the orphanage. Bob was eager to go; he would have left that very night if he could.

When Bob arrived in Kenya, he was appalled by the poverty and the lack of basic health care. Upon returning to Washington, he couldn’t get this palace out of his mind. He began to write to large pharmaceutical companies, describing to them the vast need he had seen. He reminded then that every year they would throw away large amounts of medical supplies that went unsold. “Why not send them to this place in Kenya?” he asked.

And some of them did. This orphanage received more than a million dollars’ worth of medical supplies.

The woman called Bob up and said, “Bob, this is amazing! We’ve had the most phenomenal gifts because of the letters you wrote. We would like to fly you back over and have a big party. Will you come?”

So Bob flew back to Kenya. While he was there, the president of Kenya came to the celebration, because it was the largest orphanage in the country, and offered to take Bob on a tour of Nairobi, the capital city. In the course of the tour they saw a prison. Bob asked about a group of prisoners there.

“They’re political prisoners,” he was told.

“That’s a bad idea,” Bob said brightly. “You should let them out.”

Bob finished the tour and flew back home. Sometimes later, Bob received a phone call from the State Department of the United States government:
“Is this Bob?”

“Yes.”

“Were you recently in Kenya?”

“Yes.”

“Did you make any statements to the presidents about political prisoners?”

“Yes.”

“What did you say?”

“I told him he should let them out.”

The State Department officials explained that the department had been working for years to get the release of these prisoners, to no avail. Normal diplomatic channels and political maneuverings had led to a dead end. But now the prisoners had been released, and the stare department was told it had been largely because of ……Bob. So the government was calling to say thanks.

Several months later, the president of Kenya made a phone call to Bob. He was going to rearrange this government and select a new cabinet. Would Bob be willing to fly over and pray for him for three days while he worked on this very important task?

So Bob – who was not politically connected at all - boarded a plane once more and flew back to Kenya, where he prayed and asked God to give wisdom for the leader of the nation as he selected his government. All this happened because one man got out of the boat.

My 6 month prayer, along with my coworker began on March 11th. Our prayer has continued to be Psalms 35. She has never been a fair boss to anyone. My coworker who stole another coworkers password, printed off her homework on the job, and turned it in as her own was kicked out of graduate school. My boss wrote her a recommendation to get into another school. Other than that my boss has never treated her employees with grace. We prayed that God will do something radical to remove her from office. He is already moving powerfully. This morning I received a phone call that they are making major cuts and the first to go is going to be management. How mighty is our God?

Excuse me Miss, Do you have a question?

Tonight I was reading a book called Imitation of Christ on the bus. After the bible it has been translated in more languages than any other book. So this woman on the phone put the person on the other end on hold and asks me about what I am reading. I told her a little bit about it then she resumed her conversation with the person on the phone. Right as I was getting off she asked me, "Do you have a question?" I was baffled, didn't know what to say, should I have a question after what I just read? I'm exhausted and deep thought and thinking isn't happening tonight. I didn't have a question then, but now I do.

Why did I meet that woman on the bus? Will I ever see her again? Why was I awoken in my sleep last night to pray for someone? Where am I going in this life? When will it happen? What does God have lined up for me? What will I be as a person at the end of this life? What work will the Lord do in me, and how different will I be in my 80s than I am today? Will I think differently, act differently? Will the Lord save my family? What does God see in me that I don't see in myself? What? When? Where? Why? How Lord? Will all of my questions someday be answered?

The Quiet Games We Play!

If You Want To Walk on Water, You've Got To Get Out Of The Boat!

0

Avoidance kills an inner sense of confidence and esteem.  They become experts at impression management--pretending to be what they think will be acceptable by others.

You play the quiet game when you pretend something does not bother you when it really does; or when you pretend to agree with someone when you really don't; or when you act as if you don't care, but  you really do.  I know of couples who have played the quiet game with each other for years.  They play it to avoid arguments--but they also avoid intimacy.  I wonder whom you might be playing the quiet game with: a boss?  a spouse?  an assertive relative?  a strong-willed child?  an opinionated coworker?  an intimidating authority figure?  Fear always lies behind the quiet game.

Haiti

My exboyfriend's parents are from Haiti.  Before our relationship ended he was set to go to the Dominican Republic and his plan was for me to come there inwhich he would propose to me.  (It was supposed to be a secret from me, but he accidently sent an attached email to an email sent to me.  I almost didn't see it, until I went back to read that email.)  Since Haiti is on the other end of the Dominican Republic island, I said, "Oh can we go to Haiti too!"  He hadn't been there since he was 6 and said it wouldn't be safe for us to go there.

Fastforward a year, and on July 12th I found out that he had moved back to Houston.  I was heartbroken, but my prayer was something like:

 "Dear Lord, I'm not going to try to contact him and if after
6 months I still feel the same way I'll make my move then.
  If your plan is not him and you have someone else for me,
please put them in my path.  I want YOUR Will for my life! 
If not please soften his heart and make a way for us
to be together again." 

2 days after July 12th I started talking to my new boyfriend, and I thought it had been the answer to my prayer.  Christmas Eve he broke up with me, shortly before the 6 month mark, January 12th.  Coincidence or God that the 7.0 Magnitude earthquake would hit Haiti on that day.  Reason and open door to contact the exboyfriend?  I don't know.

My plan is not to knock on that open door or even enter in.  It'll take God and something much greater than myself to have that door opened in another way other than me making contact.  However my prayer now is to go to Haiti in a couple months after the emergency crews have left.  I have 4 years of French in high school and am a nurse, and I want to be able to use the skills and abilities the Lord has given me.  This is my one opportunity to go into a country inwhich I previously would have  not had the opportunity due to safety issues.  14,000 American troops are there, which makes it safer civilian conditions.  Currently I am awaiting the open door of a Christian organization that would allow me to go there as a missionary nurse for a period of time. 
 

Dear Lord, Let the door be opened.  Use me!

Double Fisted Patience

If you come at me with your fists doubled I think I can promise you that mine will double as fast as yours; but if you come to me and say 'Let us sit down and take counsel together, and, if we differ from each other, understand why it is we differ, just what the points at issue are,' we will presently find that we are not so far apart after all, that the points we differ are few and the points we agree are many, and that if we only have the patience and the candor and the desire to get together, we will get together. ~Woodrew Wilson
True patience can be difficult to test.  I never like to wait on stop lights, miss the train or the bus, etc, so when I see the "Don't Walk" light blinking I will run.  If I see the train or bus coming I will run to catch it instead of waiting for the next one.  I like to do things quickly and efficiently.  I like my To Do Lists and organize to get more accomplished in a shorter period of time.   As a nurse I multi-task as I'm with the patient.  My boyfriend however liked to take his time.  When I moved into my apartment I had a list of things he could do to help me get stuff done faster, but to my every 5 accomplishments on the list he was working on one.  I never mentioned it, but it was frustrating to me.  I'd rather get things done so I can enjoy doing the things I really like to do.  He'd spend an hour and a half getting ready, doing what?  I'm the one with the long hair, he's bald.  I apply make-up, he doesn't.  Girls get dressed, and then put on all kinds of accessories such as jewelry, panty hose, switching purses, touching up the nail polish, etc.  I'd be done doing all of that, and still would be waiting on him.  He'd tell me I wasn't a patient person, that I needed to learn patience.

Interesting enough, when the true test to patience came, it was HE who lacked the patience.  He would get upset with everything I said.  I couldn't say anything without him getting mad at me.  All of the sudden we disagreed on everything, there was no compromise.  He was quick to anger.  I however would be over whatever I was angry about in the same day, then everything would be back to normal for me.  In the end he was angry about the same things for 2 months.  There was no seeing eye to eye.  The greatest measure of patience was seen in me then.  I wanted the relationship to end, but I couldn't do it.  I lie in wait patiently praying that God could turn the situation and circumstances around.  I believe in the Woodrew Wilson quote about.  However in the end his lack of patience snapped and he broke up with me.

Lessons to be learned from the Kings!

I have found some Old Testament books to be very dull and boring. For example in Kings, you read about king after king, how he did evil in the sight of the Lord, killed this or that person, and this story repeats itself time after time. I began memorizing the kings in order for Israel and Judah and their own individual significance in history. I began memorizing the prophets during the time, and it seems to tie together much of the OT making it seem smaller. Just how could God speak to me in a book that seems so irrelevant to today.

Much of my character building over the past few months has been from my relationship with my boyfriend. When you are in a relationship you find out who you truly are, and it can seriously stretch and shape your character. There hasn't been too much stress in my life lately other than relationship stress. As I prayed about God's will for me to be in a relationship with this man, God began to show me many inconsistencies in his character. When we met his desire was to be wealthy, so that we could travel the world unhindered and do evangelization in foreign lands. But then he sent me home with a DVD in the MTV cribs style format. This couple in the video talked about their million dollar home, all of their cars, toys, possessions, possessions, possessions as a result of their success in making money. It made me ill. I was thinking, Is this what they call happiness? My fulfillment has been to see how few of possessions I can have, how simple can my apartment look. I want to use my money and resources in expanding the kingdom of God, not on expanding my possessions that bring about the most excitement when they are new.

As I read my bible the next day in 1Kings 10, it talked about how far Solomon had strayed from God's ideal, and got caught up in acquiring huge numbers of horses, having many wives, getting involved in foreign trade, and accumulating silver and gold. To me it was a flag as to whether I should be in a relationship with a person that wanted wealth to further his kingdom or was it to further God's kingdom.Going through this character testing relationship there was a lot of anxiety and depression brought about. Sleepless nights and loss of appetite. So incapacitating for me at times that I wanted to die. I always feel guilty for experiencing depression as a Christian and my boyfriend added to that guilt by calling me manic depressant. Satan working his magic in this world. All the times I have prayed Lord just take my life from me, I'm stuck in a place I can't get out of! Now I know that the godliest of the godly in the bible experienced these same emotions. Elijah prayed in 1 Kings 19:4, "I've had enough Lord! Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors!"

Lessons to Be Learned in First Kings

I have found some Old Testament books to be very dull and boring. For example in Kings, you read about king after king, how he did evil in the sight of the Lord, killed this or that person, and this story repeats itself time after time. I began memorizing the kings in order for Israel and Judah and their own individual significance in history. I began memorizing the prophets during the time, and it seems to tie together much of the OT making it seem smaller.

Just how could God speak to me in a book that seems so irrelevant to today. Much of my character building over the past few months has been from having a boyfriend. When you are in a relationship you find out who you truly are, and it can seriously stretch and shape your character. There hasn't been too much stress in my life lately other than the never ending argument with the boyfriend.


As I prayed about God's will for me to be in a relationship with this man, God began to show me many inconsistencies in his character. When we met his desire was to be wealthy, so that we could travel the world unhindered and do evangelization in foreign lands. I was thinking, Awesome, This is my heart! But in December he sent me home with a DVD in the MTV cribs style format. This couple in the video talked about their million dollar home, all of their cars, toys, possessions, possessions, possessions as a result of their success in making money. It made me ill. I was thinking, Is this what they call happiness? My fulfillment has been to see how few of possessions I can have, how simple can my apartment look. I want to use my money and resources in expanding the kingdom of God, not on expanding my possessions that bring about the most excitement when they are new. As I read my bible the next day in 1Kings 10, it talked about how far Solomon had strayed from God's ideal, and got caught up in acquiring huge numbers of horses, having many wives, getting involved in foreign trade, and accumulating silver and gold. To me it was a flag as to whether I should be in a relationship with a person that wanted wealth to further his kingdom or was it to further God's kingdom.

Going through this character testing relationship there was a lot of anxiety and depression brought about. So incapacitating for me at times that I wanted to die and wake up when it was all over with. I always feel guilty for experiencing depression as a Christian.  Satan was working his magic while I was down. All the times I have prayed Lord just take my life from me, I'm stuck in a place I can't get out of! Now I know that the godliest of the godly in the bible experienced these same emotions. Elijah prayed in 1 Kings 19:4, "I've had enough Lord! Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors!"