Sometimes my brother, James, gives the wisest advice. The other night I was on the phone with him, sharing some of my struggle adapting. He basically said, “Jen, you just have to persevere. It’s hard at first, but it will get better and you’ll be a better person for struggling through this. You’re a strong person, Jen...and you can call me anytime.” How I love that boy! He hit the nail on the head – exactly what I needed to hear.
So, I just had a meeting with the guy who is coordinating worship and prayer for the upcoming Ecumenical Advocacy Days conference. This meeting developed as a result of the prayer room proposal I referenced in an earlier post. I’m so excited! It seems like most of the people involved in this conference are (understandably) rather preoccupied with developing their tracks. Therefore, the worship/prayer element has, to some extent, fallen by the wayside. I feel that the worship/prayer element is one of the most important components, so I am absolutely THRILLED to be involved on this front. It seems that there is an open door to invest here and (hopefully) not a lot of red tape/bureaucracy to deal with. Score!
Here's my heart behind this: it seems that in DC there is significant focus on education, changing policy, advocating on Capitol Hill etc. (big surprise, right?) There’s definitely a place for all of this; I know it’s important. However, at the risk of sounding like an arrogant, over-spiritualizing pessimist, if we’re not encouraging people to get on their knees before the God who “holds the hearts of kings in his hand”, I dare say we’re completely missing the point -- especially as faith-based organizations.
I think there’s a unique opportunity here. A wise friend who has a heart for prayer brought up an excellent point:
"...because of the ecumenical nature of this conference, there may be some (or perhaps many) people attending that are not even believers. They are attracted to the "good works" part of religion purely on the basis of their good works...but they really have no concept of the Lordship of Christ and may in fact disagree with that concept if you got into a discussion of it. With this in mind...if it were me...I would want to add one element. That is the element of knowing in my heart that actual intercession that had been pleasing to God and touched his very heart had gone on in that prayer room. I would make sure that I spent time in the room praying in two different ways: 1) for the needs that you have displayed around the room; and 2) for the attendees of the conference to be touched by the heart of God...I would be seriously praying for people to be doing good works...not for the sake of good works...but for the sake of the kingdom of God."
Feel free to join me in prayer along these lines!
So, I just had a meeting with the guy who is coordinating worship and prayer for the upcoming Ecumenical Advocacy Days conference. This meeting developed as a result of the prayer room proposal I referenced in an earlier post. I’m so excited! It seems like most of the people involved in this conference are (understandably) rather preoccupied with developing their tracks. Therefore, the worship/prayer element has, to some extent, fallen by the wayside. I feel that the worship/prayer element is one of the most important components, so I am absolutely THRILLED to be involved on this front. It seems that there is an open door to invest here and (hopefully) not a lot of red tape/bureaucracy to deal with. Score!
Here's my heart behind this: it seems that in DC there is significant focus on education, changing policy, advocating on Capitol Hill etc. (big surprise, right?) There’s definitely a place for all of this; I know it’s important. However, at the risk of sounding like an arrogant, over-spiritualizing pessimist, if we’re not encouraging people to get on their knees before the God who “holds the hearts of kings in his hand”, I dare say we’re completely missing the point -- especially as faith-based organizations.
I think there’s a unique opportunity here. A wise friend who has a heart for prayer brought up an excellent point:
"...because of the ecumenical nature of this conference, there may be some (or perhaps many) people attending that are not even believers. They are attracted to the "good works" part of religion purely on the basis of their good works...but they really have no concept of the Lordship of Christ and may in fact disagree with that concept if you got into a discussion of it. With this in mind...if it were me...I would want to add one element. That is the element of knowing in my heart that actual intercession that had been pleasing to God and touched his very heart had gone on in that prayer room. I would make sure that I spent time in the room praying in two different ways: 1) for the needs that you have displayed around the room; and 2) for the attendees of the conference to be touched by the heart of God...I would be seriously praying for people to be doing good works...not for the sake of good works...but for the sake of the kingdom of God."
Feel free to join me in prayer along these lines!
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