My Prayer Trip

How can I say a “Thank You, God!”

big enough to cover 8,000 miles and 14 states?

How can I say thank you for the protection God demonstrated to us again and again? Especially, since our car got hit by a truck on the second day of our trip! God kept Wayne safe! “Thank you, Jesus!” The words sound so small, so insufficient to express my gratitude.

 

How do I say thank you big enough, or loud enough, or deep enough to express my deep appreciation for His presence that went with us.

It almost started out as an argument!

I didn’t want to drive. Wayne did. I love to fly. When I complained to God, He whispered “Go Praying.” The long, tiring hours that lay ahead of us now had a purpose.

Driving now had a purpose.

We prayed over schools.

Teachers.

Churches.

Businesses.

People we passed.

And as always, truck drivers! (Some of my favorite peoples to pray for!)

We prayed over four capitol buildings, their leaders and the decisions they would make. We climbed to the top and out onto the walkway around the Capitol rotunda in Topeka, KS. It’s the second tallest capitol in the US. The view was wonderful and the climb fulfilling.

And we had lots of fun.

Wayne is one of the funniest guys I know. And we got to see the other two funniest people I know… Billy Burns and Diane Daniel. You are gonna laugh if you get with those people…and we did! (And we got to spend time with Chris Daniel and Vicki Burns that we love so much!)

 

We saw geysers in Yellowstone and a stinky bison herd with young calves being herded down the road right past our vehicle. We breathed in spectacular beauty as we hiked 3 miles to Avalanche Lake in Glacier Park. We saw mountain goats, pronghorn, mule deer and communities of prairie dogs. My favorite places were Laramie, a little town filled with beautiful buildings and museums, the Little Big Horn Battlefield, Mt. Rushmore and The Crazy Horse Monument.

 

Wonderful People

But the family of believers that I met and served with made my trip life changing:

Mary Bell and Stacy Upton in Kansas. Rich & Kim Greenwald in Montana. Bonnie Pait and her entire team of Girl’s Ministry leaders from Peninsula Florida enriched my life in ways I can’t begin to express.

  

I preached in churches and prayed on campgrounds.

God met us every time. We met people that blew our socks off. God encounters and People encounters that left us awed at what God is doing through precious, faith filled believers everywhere!

 

My life will forever be enriched by the people we met and the stories they told.

We laughed.

We cried.

God whispered.

God prodded.

It was more than just an asking trip.

God answered so many prayers…

Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. Mark 11:24 NIV

And so many of you were praying too…so you received answers to prayer right along with me. Thank you for praying.

My heart was broken by needs everywhere we went:

In Grocery stores.

Museums.

Capitol buildings.

Playgrounds.

Wounded and hurting people.

Lives broken by bondages

and ravages of sin.

My faith was increased

by the God encounters I saw  and the stories I heard of God’s intervention  that literally changed lives.

I met…

Courageous people.

Prayer warriors standing in the gap…fighting on their knees.

Godly people loving the un-loveable.

Fence climbers and bridge builders, connecting with communities…

the weak,

the homeless,

the orphan

the widow.

 

My heart was encouraged by what I see God doing in His church.

I saw talented,

anointed,

passionate people

everywhere we went, that are committed to let their light shine in some very creative ways!

I felt challenged.

How can I do what I do better?  How can I pour love into places where it is needed more effectively?

 

Jason Smith said, “The world is telling lies very well. The church is telling the truth very poorly.”

 

How can I share Truth so well that people will see Jesus and not Words? That is critical, because when they see Truth, they will want Him.

 

And how can I help YOU, not just tell the Truth better, but share and live out His TRUTH in ways that will set people free.

 

I came home with lots of stories that I can’t wait to share with you!

 

And I came home with a heart filled with gratitude. Gratitude to God and Gratitude to you. So many of you prayed for us. Our church family, our friends and people that believe in our ministry. Thank you for praying. Thank you for your love. I can’t wait to share with you all, (I won’t do that to you.) some of the stories from our trip.

God bless you!