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Conversation with God Getting Help Prayer Tribulation

An Outrageous Command

2Consider it nothing but joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you fall into various trials.‡ 3Be assured that the testing of your faith [through experience] produces endurance [leading to spiritual maturity, and inner peace].‡

4And let endurance have its perfect result and do a thorough work, so that you may be perfect and completely developed [in your faith], lacking in nothing.

James 1:2-4, The Amplified Study Bible, eBook. Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

This command just isn’t natural. It isn’t natural to rejoice whenever you fall into various trials. It isn’t even natural to be able to do this. Only by faith and with the help of Holy Spirit, can you do this.

Rest in Jesus. Faith is easy.

Ask for such faith and receive it. Ask for wisdom, receive it, and act on the wisdom you receive.

Read on in James 1 if you need help with receiving such wisdom; the directions are clear. Follow the directions our Lord has given us.

What I write here is sharp and to the point. There is no softening of what I call for you to do. Your life is much better when you are doing this. You are not being pampered: go do this.

Your life will change!

Categories
Discipleship Getting Help Leadership Learning Ministry Prayer

Discipling like Jesus

Jesus had a pattern for making disciples. We can see some of it in Scriptures, and we can make educated guesses to fill in some details. How he taught was common to Hebrew teachers, rabbi’s, in those days.

I’ve spoken with seasoned disciple makers and missionaries who’ve done this, and they helped me get an even better practical picture.

First, as with everything, get guidance. Then pray. Pray with clear prayer targets – such as successful disciple making of disciples who make yet more disciples.

The basic pattern is simple: show, tell, and do. Probably even explain, show, discuss. Repeat until they are ready to do.

When you care, being a disciple is easy. (Good Friday by Anita Brown.)

The pattern is not classroom instruction, reading about or learning about things. It’s being shown, discussion before and after. It’s learning to do what you do. With an explanation. It is not learning about things. Theory isn’t nearly enough.

It might have worked something along these lines:

  • First, discuss what you will do, what they will see, especially so they know what to look for, what is significant.
  • Demonstrate in front of them, so they can see.
  • Third, discuss how it went. How it was as you’d hoped and expected, things that were different. Issues and complications, if any; and especially how it went well.
  • Let them ask questions as part of this discussion. Answer.
  • Maybe show them several times. Is often a good idea, especially with something new.
  • Send them out to go do as you did.
  • Have them report back to you. Let them ask questions. Make comments so they learn even more. (If they rejoice that even demons do as they command, give them the perspective that yes, this is good, and that it is even more important that their names are written in heaven – for instance.)
  • Send them out again.
  • Repeat this cycle until all are satisfied that good learning has taken place.

Disciple making is demonstration with explanation. Then they demonstrate, and ask questions, and you give additional perspective as is useful.

Disciple making is not a classroom activity. It is not talking about things. It’s being shown and then doing as shown. With explanations as is useful.

Additional notes:

  • Train disciples in how to make disciples. They will demonstrate. Disciples multiply by themselves, making disciples.
  • Disciples normally go out and minister in pairs. Ministry is normally in pairs. Always minister in pairs when you can. The more senior is making a disciple of the less experienced person. The less senior person assists and helps the more senior. This gives them something useful to do and provides practical help.
  • When ministering, when one talks, the other prays for the one ministering. Results are much better this way.
  • Grab someone out of a crowd who is watching, if you have no one else. Let them assist you and pray for you while you minister. Help them learn and discuss what happened. Not just ministering, always teaching.
  • A prayer support group is even more helpful. Set one up. If nothing else, find local people who are sympathetic and ask for their prayer support.
  • Prayer support is primarily for the minister, so they are more inspired and do well. They will do better. The people praying will pay more attention as they are invested, and they will learn more. Prayer is not primarily for the person being ministered to, as tempting as this may be. It could be helpful, but not nearly as helpful as praying for the person ministering.

Go, and make disciples. Make mistakes. Admit them and discuss them, so everyone can learn from them: we learn a lot through mistakes. Share the learning, and do not hold back such a wonderful opportunity. And of course celebrate what goes well!

This is the pattern that Jesus used. Go, and do the same.

And, there is a next step….

Categories
Ministry Miracles Prayer Presence of God Worship

Worship & Prayer

aaron-burden-lPCu8HnGU2E-unsplash

So…prayer is conversation, two-way conversation, with God.

What is worship?

I remember someone telling me that worship is giving highest worth. Highest Worth-ship. So putting the Kingdom of God first is very close to, related to, or maybe sometimes even the same as worship.

This seems to be correct, as I easily found this:

“The most commonly cited definition of the word “worship” is based on the etymology of the English word: “Worship” is derived from the Old English word “woerthship.” So, when we worship God, we are proclaiming (or giving him back) his worth.”

https://thinkingworship.com/2011/04/25/worship-theology-101-whats-in-a-word/

“So, when we worship God, we are proclaiming (or giving him back) his worth.” Wow.

And the experience of worship helps us experience our relationship with God more intimately and closely.

Worship is actually very simple. Powerful. Good for us. Has wonderful side effects, including:

Prayer – two way conversation with God is easier and more powerful.

As we gaze upon Him, it gradually transforms us into becoming more like him.

Healing and other ministry is easier in such a context.

Miracles come more easily in such an atmosphere.

Fellowship and brotherly love increases, easily.

The Presence of God is much more powerfully experienced.

Baptism in Holy Spirit easily changes people forever.

We experience heaven and being in the Presence of God with ease.

The Aaronic blessing becomes real to us!

23 “Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, ‘Thus you shall bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:

24 The Lord bless you, and keep you;

25 The Lord make His face shine on you,
And be gracious to you;

26 The Lord lift up His countenance on you,
And give you peace.’

27 So they shall [a]invoke My name on the sons of Israel, and I then will bless them.”

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers+6%3A23-27&version=NASB

Having God’s face shine upon you and his countenance on you is, I have been told often, a way in Hebrew to talk about the Presence of God.

Experiencing God face to face – so intimately and personally, is this not the essence of being in heaven? Being in the Presence of God so intimately and personally, with such closeness? What can be better?

Categories
Conversation with God Joy Prayer

Do You Seek Joy?

The day began with thick clouds and fog but as the sun rose they parted to reveal the peaks of the Continetal Divide. It was an absolutely glorious spring morning in Moraine Park.

You want more joy—most of us do!

What you seek, look for, and are alert for – you will find more of.

Old survival habits have conditioned us to look for danger, problems and difficulties. It is good to be alert for such.

AND when we look for reasons for joy, we can have more joy. Today!

This is an important reason so much prayer begins with praise and thanksgiving. Done sincerely, joy increases. Give thanks for a few things in your life, now – and notice what you experience!

So pray for joy. Pray for more joy! Receive more joy by faith – habitually.

Praying for joy and experiencing joy is a valuable part of the normal Christian life. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!”, Philippians 4:4, NASB.

And – there are practical benefits to joy: when full of joy, it is easier to hear God. Easier to have a two-way conversation: prayer!

When you are full of joy, it is easier to experience the Presence of God.

When you are full of joy, it is easier to experience being full of Holy Spirit.

And when you are full of joy, Holy Spirit and you can powerfully change the surrounding atmosphere. You can transform the atmosphere so others can experience more of the Presence of God, be more easily full of Holy Spirit, more easily hear God and pray well. Miracles happen more often in such an atmosphere.

Follow Holy Spirit, and experience more of the Fruit of the Spirit. Including joy! Experience more of the Kingdom of God, and experience more righteousness, joy and peace.

Practice joy! One of the more important spiritual disciplines – and this can transform your life. You can be contagious with joy and help transform the lives of people in your sphere of influence. Your ministry is often more powerful and effective when done joyfully.

So pray for joy. Pray for more joy! Receive more joy by faith – habitually.

Categories
Conversation with God Prayer Prayer Targets

A Discovery that Surprised, Amazed, and Made me Glad

How to REALLY Reach Your Target Readers and Sell More ...
Target your Prayers

Yes, we believe in prayer.

We are also privately and secretly too certain that most prayer is too seldom answered. Of course, the word, “never” is so strong that we would not say it out loud. Many of us do not even say it to ourselves.

But there it is, lurking, underneath. The fear of yet more unanswered prayer.

No wonder so few of us are eager to pray! No wonder so many of us hesitate to pray. We have a terrible secret: it too often does no good.

Oh, we have reasons for this. Maybe God isn’t good. Maybe he’s mad at us. Some preachers act like he is. Full of judgement and anger, even. At sin. At how horrible we are. Even though we say otherwise in public, and often we say better than that to ourselves. Maybe we just do not understand his mysterious will nearly enough.

None of that is true. Yet it sure can seem that way!

And whenever we are suffering, our good answer to prayer seems to take too long.

I used to be like this. Then one day, it all changed for me.

I had been keeping track of prayers, so I would not forget. (I get distracted and forget far too easily and often. Including forgetting to pray powerfully for others. I need reminders.) Holy Spirit must have been guiding me, because I did it so well I made a tremendous and surprising discovery.

I used index cards. Kept track of who or what the prayer was for. When I started, and when I stopped. I prayed for three weeks, 21 days, unless asked to continue by another person or by God. I even kept track of what happened. I put Prayer Targets into writing.

Prayer Targets – visible results. Things noticeable. You can see what happened so well that it’s obvious what happened or changed and what did not.

These index cards helped me remember who to pray for, what to pray about. An enormous advantage that makes a difference.

Then it happened. I reviewed my prayer cards, the ones completed and finished. I made a discovery so unexpected, startling and amazing – that it literally transformed my prayer life.

Most of my prayers were answered. Most prayer targets were achieved. Nearly all of them! And quickly, too; even the speed was surprising. I was delighted. And I was surprised!

And I began to wonder how this could be. How is it that so many of my Prayer Targets were noticeably achieved and so quickly and I had somehow not noticed?

So I reviewed how I had prayed. And it slowly dawned on me: I was so concerned for the prayer targets that I was always praying and asking for something new. Something yet undone. Something important.

I was so focused so often on what was yet not accomplished and that seemed so important that I had never noticed how many Prayer Targets achieved – nearly all of them. With such good speed that, by hindsight, was amazing.

Please do this for yourself; discover and verify – most of your Prayer Targets are successful, and quickly. (And if not, find out the reason why! Good Prayer Target results are – dare I say it? Normal!

Big things like a new job or a new place to live would take – once I asked single-mindedly, about two days before the clue or hint came that led to success. Smaller things like headaches or personal problems with someone improved usually within two hours.

And I had never noticed. Not until I kept written records of Prayer Targets that could be noticed and observed.

I have habitually been focused on what’s needed and missing so many successes that I was not noticing or giving thanks for what God has already taken care of for others and for myself.

Not all Prayer Targets are quickly achieved. A small number of them drag on for a long, long time. I have come to suspect that the issue is often a lack of readiness to receive. When we are not ready, Prayer Target success take longer…until we are ready. Which is sometimes much longer than we realize or accept because we are so eager for good success.

Also important is single-minded faith, as described in the first chapter of James. When I or others are double minded, prayer success is not rapid. When double-minded, Prayer Targets are seldom achieved.

Strangely, it can take a year or two before single-mindedness occurs, especially for major changes. At least for me. I think it happens in this way. We are happy with a job or place we have; we were happy for the improvement. We’d asked for it, sought it out. We become comfortable with the way things are – even while we want yet more improvement. We are double minded and not and not yet really ready for change.

Oh! It’s the same issue!! We’re not ready. And when we are ready and single minded, when we ask for good things that God wills, it can then and most often does happen quickly.

God is good. Better than we think. Even better than many of us hope for much of the time. Better than we dare expect, even.

Prove and test this for yourself. Read the first chapter of James. It’s not long, but it sure makes a lot of points that we all need.

Choose noticeable Prayer Targets that allow you to rejoice with certainty when they are met. Do this in writing.

And discover for yourself, as I have – if I can do it you certainly can, too: most Prayer Targets are successfully achieved, and with wonderful speed.

God is good!

Categories
Blessings Multiply Church Life Discipleship Ministry Prayer

After Disciplemaking – What?

So now they (disciples) have transformed your Christian life through your learning to and the practice of making of disciples. So much changes when we do this. It’s exhilarating, joyous, fun and very, very encouraging. You learn a lot! You grow tremendously. This is a major step on your Christian journey, and this changes your life for the better. You are more rich for the rest of your life when you are making disciples.

What’s next?

  • Continuing to grow in applying Spiritual Gifts?
  • Continuing to grow in faith and applying faith?
  • Continuing to learn to get to know our Lord more?
  • Continuing growth in learning who you are in him?

Yes! All these are not only good, they interact with each other. There is synergistic growth – growth that multiplies and often grows exponentially. These are not only all good, they each provide what can be a wonderful pathway for a lifetime of growth on earth and into eternity.

And yes, there are other steps after Proclaiming the Good News that Jesus Taught. There is following the progression of things that Jesus taught and showed us so often and so wonderfully well, such as healing the sick & freeing the bound, (cleansing lepers and raising the dead), and the making of disciples of all people groups – all kinds of people. (See The Great Commission at Matthew 28.)

He showed this next step with the 12 and the 70, and more…and Paul showed step this every time he planted a local church.

What is this next step? Community and the expansion of Community. Why? Because it roots all Christian Community into the Trinity Community of Father, Son, & Holy Spirit. Or at least resonates with these Persons. And we all crave community and grow best in community – even us introverts!

Without this next step, churches stagnate and grow smaller. Too many are closing. The lack of this is the major reason evangelization is too often too hard these days, and yields so little fruit with too much work.

Ecclesias! Ecclesias enforce the standards and method of the Kingdom of God and results in the rapid and healthy spread of Christian Community.

Ecclesias made of disciples who encourage, support and edify one another. Who socialize, share Communion, and who serve one another.

Ecclesias are the major driving element that results in New Testament speeds of making new Christians and planting new local churches.

What’s their first gigantic step in serving each other and in serving others, resulting in so much marketplace ministry that the Ecclesias reach so many and transform the people they touch through Jesus and born again into the Kingdom of God?

Prayer. Massive amounts of loving and faith filled prayer. Prayer for one another. Prayer for others they know about. Prayer for community people they network with and can so easily touch. People who need help and have needs. Oh, yes! People with needs who are thus prayer and ministry targets.

What are prayer and ministry targets? Prayer for and ministry to people and situations where you can see the wanted results as the Kingdom of God spreads.

Massive prayer precedes and results in people being sent. Sent to share the Gospel, to minister, to make new Christians, disciples, form Ecclesias that result in the planting of local churches.

Categories
Discipleship Getting Help Intercession Prayer

Prayer & Ministry Targets

joshua-earle-9idqIGrLuTE-unsplash

What are prayer and ministry targets? Prayer for and ministry to people and situations where you can see the wanted results as the Kingdom of God spreads.

Answers to prayer with targets that you can see for yourself. Fruit of ministry that can you can see and and appreciate.

Too few people know this. It’s a sort of secret. More people should know: most prayer gets results, and quickly. With wonderful speed. Most ministry yields good fruit – with very good and rapid results.

Why do not more people know? Why are we ourselves so slow to recognize and see this? Well, for me, it’s anxiousness for wanted results. We focus so much on results we want and do not see that we focus less on our Lord. We focus on so much we do not notice how rapid the results usually are, because we’ve moved on to the next thing we do not have or do not see. And we focus on and remember our pain and disappointments more than on our joy and successes.

It’s sort of amazing that we have enough faith to get so much done. But we look at results so little because we focus on the next thing we do not yet experience or have.

In your Prayer Journal or elsewhere (I used index cards) note what you pray for and what you minister for – and note the results and date each of these. You will be as astounded as I was to discover that most prayer yields excellent results and most ministry bears good fruit. And you will delight at the speed. And you will wonder why this sometimes doesn’t happen – you will investigate and learn.

Categories
Calling Conversation with God Hearing God Prayer Presence of God Vocation

From Quarantine to Swamp

Dorothea finally got outside after having been in her apartment for months because of the quarantine. She’s been waiting for this! She needed to escape!

Stuck with her two children and her husband, who had become cranky. She’s been feeling responsible for them all and for taking care of them. She needed to do something for herself and to get out on her own. She was feeling desperate!

She drove past some stores, and decided to get away from people, so she kept going. Went out of town and finally stopped at a rest stop. Sat briefly at the picnic table and decided she had to move. So she got up to walk.

Starting walking next to the road and wanted to be even more away from people driving by, so she turned into the woods and started to enjoy the trees. The smell of pine, the texture of bark, the soft ground beneath her feet – captivated her senses. Dorothea felt joy.

And kept walking. And walking. And after a long while, had been walking so much she did not yet even realize that she was lost. She no longer had no idea where she was.

Suddenly she noticed that she was surrounded by trees and by forest which all looked very much the same: she finally realized, she no longer knew where she was or how to get back.

Still glad to be outside, she decided to just keep going. She was trying to get back. Humidity was increasing. The ground was gradually becoming more wet.

Finally, it dawned on Dorothea: she had entered the edge of a swamp. And she was afraid. Panic set in as she knew she was not only lost, she was in danger. Breathing became fast, humidity turned into sweat so heavy it was hard to see. Wet earth pulled at her shoes with a sucking sound when she lifted her feet. And the water became deeper, deeper by quarter inches, but deeper.

Finally, she knew. She was in trouble. She could die here. She turned and turned; if she was lost before and disoriented, she was completely disoriented now.

There is something about disorientation that affects us deeply, strongly, and that is much more strongly than we ever expect.

She tried to catch her breath. To be still. To look and see through the trees something she could recognize. None of it worked, and despite sweating profusely, she was getting cold. It had been getting darker, and she had not noticed. The absence of light coming through the trees was like a dark, heavy wet blanket being thrown over her, and she felt it. Weighed down.

She tried again to orient, to be calm, to see something she could recognize. To slow down…even to just slow down her breathing. Still, none of this was working. The more she tried and failed, the more complete and widespread her panic was becoming.

Desperate, she prayed. Not with good focus, but with urgency and panic. Out loud, she prayed. She heard her voice of desperation…and suddenly realized she had spoken out loud. She was moving into a frenzy.

In the distance she almost heard something, she thought. So she stopped. Listened. She heard it again, a little better this time. She could almost tell that it was a voice. But it was too far away to hear well. Too soft to make out the sounds.

And she realized, suddenly, there were no sounds. It was silence and stillness speaking to her, directly, from inside of her…not from a distance. The delicate whisper-like word she was hearing was Silence and Stillness speaking to her, directly.

Without words out of the stillness she heard. “Stop. Still, be still. Stop and be still” – if the stillness that was speaking so very directly to her were translated into words.

It was soft beyond soft, still beyond stillness. It was Stillness speaking to her without actual words – yet she knew in her deepest being that this was directed directly to her. A sense of accountability was already arising from within her as she began to hear.

“Stop. Still, be still. Stop and be still.”

And she stopped. Became still. Waited, expectantly.

She was realizing, it was coming to her, that she knew which way to turn. Which way to walk. And she had an inner confidence and fortitude that she did not have before. The fear and the lostness were authentic things that she pressed against and resisted now.

One step after another. She did not know where she was was going to, or what it would be like when she got there. Did not know how to get there. But the next step was always clear. Not the one after that, just the next step.

So she walked and walked, into the growing darkness, one step, then another and another step.

Then she saw it. Light! Kept going, almost trudging. She was exhausted. The deep tired that comes after great fear or having been lost and just keeping going on one step at a time.

She saw light coming from a window. Then a cabin. And she noticed that the ground wasn’t wet anymore.

She was home. She knew it. Deep in her bones she felt it and went almost to the door when an older woman stepped outside to greet her with a smile so warm you could bake cookies with it.

The lady took her inside, gave her clean, dry clothes. And she lay down and slept. She knew not for how long.

She woke in the morning light to the sounds of a crackling fire with fresh, dry wood – the fireplace.

The scent of cinnamon tea and something baked filled her nostrils. She was more hungry than a polite person could ever be, and it did not matter. She was given biscuits and tea and she just consumed them.

She told her story and was given answers to questions with no delay, she felt safe. She was surprised how safe she felt. She even told the nice lady this, how wonderfully safe and held she felt inside.

The grandmotherly lady, hearing Dorothea’s name, asked gently and warmly, “Do you know what your name means?” No…I never thought about it, Dorothea said.

The news about her name was surprising.

“Dorothy is a female given name. It comes from Greek Δωροθέα (Dōrothéa) meaning “God’s Gift”, from δῶρον (dōron), “gift”[1] + θεός (theós), “god”.[2] 

Although much less common, there are also male equivalents in English such as “Dory” from the Greek masculine Δωρόθεος (Dōrótheos).

Also, the given names Theodore and Theodora are derived from the same two Greek root words as Dorothy, albeit reversed in order. The name is variously abbreviated to “Dot”, “Dotty” and “Doll”.” From Wikipedia

Dorothea means, “God’s Gift”. Her life had purpose and meaning, and she has a destiny.

The lady told her, you followed Still Small Voice to get here; it was God who directed your steps, one by one. And you heard. And even in the middle of panic and huge fear, you followed…and came here. Of course our Lord takes you to a safe place.

I’ll not tell you more details of how she got home and to her family now, but I will tell you this, instead – which is far better. Without realizing it, she had stepped into a live experience of the Presence of God. She heard his voice, and she followed.

And she knew deep inside that she could always stop and be still and listen, when things were hard. And she would know deep within herself that she would be okay. She would always be okay. Safe. And even rescued, if such were needed.

A lesson you can have in your own heart and in the depths of your inner being. Just stop. Let go of everything else. Be still. Ask.

You will know. God’s help is yours and you have a destiny. So be glad. Even in these times. Especially in these times.

Categories
Prayer

Disciple Making Made Easier

A disciple is someone who learns and who applies and practices what they are learning. It’s a lot like an apprenticeship.

Making apprentices of Jesus who grow into living and ministering more like Jesus is part of your job. (See Matthew 28, for example.)

When you go to minister, take a partner. If you can’t take one, find one on the way or where you are going to minister. Ask them to partner with you.

Explain in advance what you intend to do and what you expect. Discuss afterwards how things went, so you both can review and learn. This is key to disciple making, by the way!

You can ask them to help you with practical details and to help things go more smoothly. Allow them to make a vital contribution this way.

When one of you talks, the other prays. This adds value to the ministry, and hugely. When someone else is praying for you, you can usually notice that you seem smarter, more inspired and more gifted. Do not deny this to the people you are ministering to. Have people pray for you and you pray for other people – see, this can be done in groups!

When you have a group present – ask the people to pray for you, to pray for the person ministering. That you follow Jesus better, and minister with love, faith and power even more effectively. This usually has very noticeable affects. It draws the group in. It helps them help minister to you. It multiplies the power of your ministry. Many effective minsters have people pray before, during and after ministry time. More effective ministry happens: the ministering person is more inspired and inspiring. More gifted. The power of Holy Spirit is more noticeable.

You may notice that you are doing some disciple making with the people in the group.

You can do this even when the group has non-Christians in it or when it’s entirely non-Christian. What a great way to plant seeds and to get people to share in ministry. Remember – when they are with you this way they are more likely for you and not against you and what you are doing.

Be a disciple. Learn and grow into being more like Jesus. Help others do the same – occasionally – and with some people on an ongoing basis.

It’s amazing how much you’ll learn by being a disciple maker.

And…you’ll notice that your life and ministry are never the same again, after you start making disciples – apprentices for Jesus – on purpose. What a great way to more easily and more quickly learn, grow, become a better disciple.

Categories
Anointing Conversation with God Discipleship Getting Help Healing Intercession Ministry Prayer

Experience Ministering with Jesus

So…by now I hope you are praying well – having conversations with Father, Jesus, &/or Holy Spirit: one God, three Persons. Getting answers quickly. Getting guidance and persisting. If you are having difficulty hearing God, doing one thing appears to be especially valuable.

I’ll focus on Jesus – which is easier for many of us and is a splendid fallback position when you are not doing as well or being as resourceful as you prefer. You can talk to one, two, or all of the Trinity – one at a time or together.

This is your genuine family. The root and basis of who you really are.

Remember how Jesus ministers: doing as Father shows him or tells him. You can do the same.

So…to minister with Jesus, or through Jesus when you need to depend on him even more and especially when you are not ready to be more active, here’s how to experience this.

Pray. Talk to Jesus. Listen, sense, watch – receive guidance and answers. Ask how to pray. In active ministry, it’s especially valuable to converse quickly and get helpful responses. Here’s how to get quick and reliable guidance from God about how to pray.

Tell Jesus what’s on your heart. Ask for guidance or how to pray, just as in the links above. Or, when you want to intercede and ask God to help – ask Jesus to take care of what is already on your heart. It’s a brilliant way to intercede. Intercession is asking God to do something for someone – so literally do this!

Minister with Jesus. Minister through Jesus. You can do this. And it’s as easy as having a conversation. Because that’s what prayer is – having a conversation where you share your heart and where you are attentive to and allow Jesus to share his heart with you.

He loves you that much. He wants to minister that much. He wants to minister with you and through you. And he loves it when you minister with him – and when you minister through him. He loves this much.

So minister with Jesus. Minister through Jesus. Love and serve, with and through our Lord and Savior. You can do this! He makes it easy.

Put your compassion to work. Add your faith – you only need a teeny, mustard seed size bit of faith. Or have someone pray with you and allow them to use their faith. This is one of many excellent reasons for having prayer partners. (More on Prayer Partners, soon.)