Happy February!

Let this warm winter continue!  All the warm weather of this month is not the only surprise though.  Since coming back to KC, I endured a car accident by hitting a patch of ice but only bent up a wheel.  I am OK. Because of the wreck, God led me to an interesting auto shop owner who hires ex-cons to help them get on their feet and models the love of God to them in practical ways. The owner is a big dude and frankly, a bit scary looking; but he was able to get my Saturn back on track and we were able to talk about God and pray over his shop.

We had a few more surprises over the holidays. One was the 60th birthday party for my mother!  It’s hard to believe she’s six decades young now with all the energy and life she walks in every day. Laura and Becca, my two sisters, and I had a blast throwing the party for her and visiting with old friends one evening.  But that wasn’t the only family change.
Our family has stepped into a new season as we now have three young ones eating finger foods, smiling, and bouncing around over the holiday.  I stayed with Laura and her husband and got to catch up on some lost uncle time with Maya, Micah, and Josiah (Ross and Becca’s boy).

Also, over the holiday break, we had a dynamic time of prayer at the Vineyard Church in Castleton. The gathering blessed me to see the hungry hearts for God and also the prayers ascending for our city.  We had about 60 people present and an open mic with prayers ascending to heaven for over an hour.

[featured]Change of Plans[/featured]

While I initially thought I’d be in Kansas City for a brief internship before returning to live in Indianapolis, recently the Lord has been impressing on my heart to stay in Kansas City for a longer time. He wants me here to prepare and to go deeper with Him. There several ideas about what I am to do here if I stay for a time, but I want to hear clearly from the Lord. Please be praying for me the next few months as I seek the Lord for more clarity. Also, we will be working on our vision and goals in a class starting this week. The class will also reveal what God is directing me to do.

[featured]Some Testimonies — Prayer Works![/featured]

A Muslim woman in America gets visited by God. We got a report back from The Call, a prayer assembly in Detroit last year that we constantly prayed about in November. As you may know, there is a high concentration of Muslims in Detroit. The Call hosted an all day prayer vigil that among many national issues, pleaded with God for the salvation of Muslims in America. Since The Call, they have planted a house of prayer in Detroit and have been actively praying for Muslims. One of the testimonies they shared in our staff meeting last week was of a radical conversion of a “former” Muslim woman. One day, she stepped into the new house of prayer for the first time and announced she had received Jesus as Lord. The week prior, God gave her a dream with both Mohammed and Jesus standing before her. Mohammad, her prophet, looked at her, but then pointed over to Jesus and said, “Follow that man!” The conviction of God fell on her in the dream so she gave her life to Jesus. We are believing God would visit Muslims in our country and reveal Jesus to them. He is more than able. This is something you can pray along with us!

I love my niece. She is a pistol and a lot of fun. My sister, Laura, and her husband have their hands full with her as she loves adventure and constant activity. She also has a very gentle, servant’s heart. This past summer, I felt impressed to tell her she was God’s princess and that I loved her. Later in November, I was praying for her in the prayer room and felt to highlight that issue that she would know God loves her in a very special way, like she was in the position of a highly esteemed princess. Back in Indiana that same week, Laura and Maya were talking. Maya turned to Laura and told her, “I’m a princess”. Laura asked her who told her that and Maya responded, “Uncle Brian”. Wow, how intense is that? Maya was only 2 and ½ last summer but she remembered what I said to her that one time. Our words matter. There is power in our words. God has been challenging me to ask Him what words to speak over my friends and family. I believe He was showing me to that through prayer in our own time, we can strengthen those words of life and destiny He gives us for one another when we are together. What an opportunity to partner with Him as we love each other. So this Christmas, I bought her a tiara we could decorate together and share some time together. It ended up with me doing most of the decorating, but we had fun.

[featured]Roe vs. Wade is Falling & God Making Things New[/featured]

During this internship we go on weekly outreaches. This month, we are holding prayer services outside abortion clinics, asking the Lord to heal our country and repeal Supreme Court Roe vs. Wade. Since this high court decision in 1973, 54 million children have been killed in America.

Besides the tragedy of losing these young ones, many expectant mothers and fathers are hurt under this policy.On our outreach days, we remembered these things as we lined up, placing red tape with the word “LIFE” written over our mouths. It’s a very powerful image. The red tape was our attempt to identify with the silent cries of the unborn. Proverbs 31:8 says, Open your mouth for the speechless, in the cause of all who are appointed to die.

As we prayed, several thoughts struck me. One of the thoughts I had was how helpless I am to change things. My mouth was taped shut. It was freezing cold. My prayers felt so weak, but I kept reminded myself that God hears my prayers and that while they are said in weakness, they ascend in power before God.
This issue is changing in our country. Since establishing active prayer meetings outside clinics in Kansas City around 1999, this house of prayer has seen all but one clinic shut down. Also, this past month one of the leaders for Planned Parenthood said in an article that 2011 was one of their toughest years and that “the sky is falling on Planned Parenthood.”Money and resources are being shaken.

During our prayer service, I was struck by the forgiveness of the Lord and His ability to make things new. Standing next to me in the prayer line was a woman in my small group who had undergone an abortion several decades ago. Three months ago when she shared her testimony in our group, she still was working through some guilt and shame with that decision and was vulnerable enough to share it with us. But on our day of prayer, she was a different woman. She stood in determination. She stood in confident love for those infants and mothers. She stood bathed in God’s love for herself. Something must have happened to her since her testimony. She had received a greater revelation of God’s love for her. The vestiges of guilt or shame were gone. There she was contending in such boldness for those who may unknowingly step into the trap of abortion like she did. She was a sign to me of the power of God’s forgiveness and mercy. It was truly powerful to me at how God is able to make things new for us, even how we see ourselves and how we live. Now that is good news! We can all relate to needing God’s help in redefining our identity to match what He says of us.

If you are interested in praying or reading more about events like these, check out this website and massive prayer walk planned in Dallas in the coming months.  This group needs our prayers.

[featured]Joining Me? – Want to be a part in some way?[/featured]

One of the things I’ve enjoyed most is praying for important issues with a group of people. Here are two of the time slots in which our internship participates if you’d ever want to join us online at ihop.org, Central Standard Time.

Saturday, 10am-12pm: Various national or international issues (human
trafficking, the church in America, etc…)
Sunday, 4-6pm: Revival in America and prayer for our hometowns.

If you’d like to participate in the prayer movement by partnering with me financially, you can mail donations to: Indianapolis House of Prayer; 8383 Craig Street, Ste. 185; Indianapolis, IN 46250.

Thanks again for your encouragement, partnership, and friendship. I love
hearing from you, so please let me know how you are doing and if there are any
ways I can be praying for you.

–Brian