bright lights

God has been training me this past week on how to pray. I kind of feel like i'm going through some kind of prayer boot camp; wake up at 5 every morning to go to morning prayer, and then spend some more time (or really try to..it's been so hard) at 10pm every night. You know, i used to think that when people talk about "prayer life" or "i'll pray for you" meant brief prayers for several minutes at church, or prayer meetings, or those designated times. but i'm learning, as i should have long ago, that prayer needs to be incorporated in our daily lives. Praying is hard, it's even hard for my dad to read and pray everyday, but it's not something that we add to our lives if/when we have time; it is necessary that we do.

It's so hard to put this into words, but this morning while i was praying, the inside of my eyelids suddenly became very bright and i had a very strange vision, if you will, of the heaven's gates opening and light shining down right onto our church. Our church is all in chaos and Satan's footprints are all over the problems this time. He doesn't like it when a church is in harmony and is trying to be revived. But the light gave me the sense that God was telling me everything was going to be okay. And not just with the church because God already had his plans in motion to heal, but also with my future and the next crucial couple weeks.

It's amazing how one annoying church issue can lead you to finding assurance and hope and peace for your own personal future. I was praying specifically for one problem, and God was not only answering that problem but other problems as well. God works in such mysterious ways...it's mind-boggling. I pray and pray for persistence, diligence, and to not fall into the temptations of being idle and lazy in prayer and meditation. If you don't read the word, how are you supposed to know what and where God wants you to do/be?