The week I didn’t talk to God

I didn’t talk to God for 5 days, following a powerful encounter with Him during the final session of a Healing Rooms training day.

It didn’t seem to be a remarkable moment, this rushed conclusion during which every participant was anointed with oil and prayed for.

What happened? Well, let me just say that childhood encounters with electric fences on my uncle’s dairy farm pale in comparison to what struck me in full force at that moment.

After 5 days of stunned silence, I thought I had better get back on speaking terms with the Lord—and only then because I was leading a prayer meeting at our church that evening.

I drove out to the beach, planted my feet in the sea and uttered just 3 words:

‘WHAT WAS THAT?’

The response was immediate, and very clear:

‘You asked for it.’

I had to admit, the Spirit of God had me there. I had encountered the power of His presence after praying a big, bold prayer. ‘Lord,’ I said, I’m not here for healing, and I’m not looking for a healing ministry, I want to help raise up an army of healers!’

When we pray for God’s Presence, do we know what we are asking for?

I believe it was Tommy Tenney who reflected on the annoying way that some small dogs chase after cars. What would the dog ever do if it caught the car? Does it ever enter its mind?

In the same way, we ask for God to move, and seek His Presence, but do we really know what we are asking for?

I have thought about this again this week, because The Hunk and I have experienced a series of miracles, and a heightened sense of God’s Presence.

I found myself overawed, conscious of an urge to draw back from Him.

When heaven invades earth, when God shows up, when miracles break out—we will not always respond the way we expect to, or would like to.

I draw reassurance from accounts in the Bible that show I am not alone in my weak and imperfect response to God’s Presence:

When God showed up:

• Moses and Gideon argued with God (Exodus 4, Judges 6:11-15)
• Saul was blinded (Acts 9:1-9)
• Daniel fell and lost his strength (Dan 11:15-18)
• The Apostle John was told not to be afraid (Rev 1:17)

When Jesus came to His disciples walking on the water, the disciples did not recognise Him, thinking He was a ghost! He told them not to be afraid, for they were terrified.

God does not always show up in the way we imagine, or at the time we expect.

If the greatest saints in scripture struggled in their response to God’s Presence, what makes me think I can?

The Unfamiliar God

God is not ‘safe.’ That is—He is not safe to our pride, our dignity, our sinful nature, our puny ideas or plans. He is more than we can handle and He is beyond our control.

In the Narnia Chronicles, C S Lewis wrote stories of the lion Aslan, King of Kings of Narnia. Aslan’s subjects had a saying about him: ‘He is not a tame lion.’ He was majestic, terrifying to his enemies and redeemer of his own, powerful and unpredictable. Yet the child Lucy would run to him with joyful familiarity and bury her face in his mane.

At times, I respond as Lucy did. At other times, struck by God’s power and unpredictability, I draw back. I have wandered into unfamiliar territory in my relationship with Him.

God did not disqualify Moses, Gideon, or His disciples, when they did not respond well to His Presence or the message that He brought them. Instead, He showed them patience and brought comforting reassurance.

As I recall these things, I do not feel so bad about my own response. I decide to receive His grace and reassurance too.

Ps 103:13-14 says,

As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.

The challenge we face is to continue to press in, to continue to pray the bold prayers. To take a deep breath and be honest with Him about how we feel, that He is overwhelming, that we are not certain that we can take any more of His Presence, and yet are afraid that He will draw back; that we cannot live without Him, and yet need His strength to live with Him.

I think I will go and do that right now.

If you have any thoughts on this topic, or have had any experiences like this, I would love to hear from you. Click on this and leave a comment at the bottom of this post.

© Helen Calder    Enliven Publishing

In the face of so much tragedy as we have seen this past week in the earthquake-ravaged nation of Haiti, how can we respond?

It is far too easy to take the role of a global bystander.

I have to admit that my first response has been one of helplessness. But I have realised that there are some things that I can do:

• I can contribute to the aid effort by donating financially
• I can join with those who are petitioning and acting for justice
• I can also pray and speak prophetic words of life

Those of us who have prophetic gifts, and gifts of prayer have a unique offering that we can add to the efforts being made on Haiti’s behalf. In addition to taking practical action, we can pray and prophesy life-giving words.

I came across an article about praying for Haiti, where a reader scathingly responded that we should give money, not waste our time praying.

And yet prayer is the most valuable contribution that we can make.

As Christian believers, we have the privilege of taking the needs of the people of Haiti before the very throne of God, the highest authority in heaven and earth. We have the ability to petition the Most High God, who is also our Father, to release heavenly resources on the nation’s behalf.

Your Prayers Can Impact A Nation

Daniel prayed for his exiled nation after reading from the writings of Jeremiah concerning God’s plan for Judah to return to Jerusalem.
He had been praying and fasting for three weeks, when he had an angelic visitor who said,

“Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. Dan 10:12

This angel spoke of an invisible war taking place in the spiritual realm, for the nations of the earth. The angel, and God’s answer, had come in response to Daniel’s prayer, overcoming powerful opposition along the way.

This week, this one phrase is challenging me: ‘I have come because of your words.’

The Bible demonstrates that the prayer of just one person can impact a nation. Look at Daniel, Nehemiah (Neh 1), and Elijah (1 Kings 18).

The Apostle James used Elijah’s example to remind you and me,

The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective’ (James 5:16).

Our natural response in the face of tragedy is to feel powerless. But the Bible tells us that our words, spoken to God, have power to impact nations.

• Through financial giving, we help release ‘on-the-ground’ resources.
• Through prayer, we release heavenly resources.

**Prayer launches angelic help, as God speaks His word of command in answer to our prayers. (Ps 103:20-21)

**Prayer can reach places that we could never go, and impact people and situations our finances may never reach

**Through prayer, the effectiveness of humanitarian aid can be multiplied; through prayer Haiti will find favour with world leaders and decision-makers, and so much more…

**Prayer is like the currency of heaven, releasing heavenly resources

Let us be generous givers, in both word and deed; praying, acting, giving, petitioning.

Some Ways We Can Help Haiti

Here are some links that you will find useful as you pray and give to the needs in Haiti. Over the next few days, I am going to work through each one—I invite you to join with me.

8 ways to specifically pray for Haiti

http://helpresources.net/operationsafe/blog/2010/01/8-specific-ways-to-pray-for-haiti/

6 ways to pray for Haiti and organisations you can give to

http://www.examiner.com/x-15670-LA-Faith–Community-Examiner~y2010m1d15-Six-ways-to-pray-for-Haiti

Here are a list of organisations you can give to from Australia and New Zealand

http://www.yahoo7answersblog.com/b4/2010/01/14/haiti-earthquake-how-can-you-help/

Advocacy—A petition you can sign online, asking for world leaders to cancel Haiti’s debt and for assistance to be provided by way of grants, not debt-incurring loans

http://one.org/international/actnow/haiti/?rc=haitifb

© Helen Calder   Enliven Publishing

In the early years of our marriage, my husband Malcolm and I wandered far from God. During those years, my mother-in-law would often say to us with a twinkle in her eye, ‘God has got His net over you.’ Sure enough, the day came when, weary of our backsliding, we recommitted our lives to Jesus, going on to passionately serve Him in Christian ministry.

How did my mother-in-law know God had His ‘net’ over us? She knew because she was praying. Her prayer for our recommitment and salvation made the net of God’s grace inescapable.

Some Things Only God Can Do

Before we can exercise life-changing prayer, it is vital we acknowledge that between where circumstances are now and where we believe God wants them to be, is a gulf that we cannot cross. This gap means that no matter how hard we try, or no matter what we say, we are powerless in ourselves to make the desired changes happen.

• There are things that you believe to be on God’s agenda for your life, family and others you care about, that you are helpless, apart from God, to make happen
• There are people you care about who are far from God right now, whose hearts will only be changed by the power of God’s Holy Spirit
• There is no way by natural means that person who is dear to you will have that addiction or bondage broken over their life.

Let’s take a moment right now to stand together at that chasm and let the realisation sink in. Take a good look at the distance that you cannot leap across without help.

Now imagine there is a bridge, suspended between this natural reality and the seeming impossible fulfilment of God’s Will. Stepping up to that bridge you see a sign that reads, ‘Ask in My Name—Jesus.’

In John 15:16-17, Jesus said,
‘You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit-fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.’

God’s Plan for Prayer

Jesus taught us to pray, ‘Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.’ He revealed that the will of God must be ‘asked’ into being. And He didn’t just teach that, He demonstrated it. In the book of Luke especially, we see that Jesus lived a life of prayer.

It was God’s plan from the beginning that His people rule in the earth, under His authority.[1] God has designed prayer to be the means by which we exercise that authority and partner with God to fulfil His purposes. This is also true of His plan to bring salvation to people.

Watchman Nee once said that prayer is to the will of God as railway tracks are to a train. A train engine can have tremendous power; it can go a thousand miles a day, it can pull a heavy load. It can have all the potential in the world, but unless there are tracks for it to go on, it’s not going anywhere. The train and tracks are designed to work together”[2]

I heard the testimony of a woman who was very dry and religious in her faith. She was admitted to hospital with a ruptured, infected appendix; her condition was so severe that she died. As her spirit was leaving her body she saw her father rushing into the hospital. He uttered one word of prayer—‘Jesus.’ She saw that prayer beam up to God’s throne like a shaft of light. That single word of prayer was answered; she lived and her faith was transformed.

Like that beam of light, your prayers and cries to God are significant and powerful. You can be a Supernatural Christian and make a difference in the life of those you care about. Your prayer can help bring them to God.

The above is a brief excerpt from my new e-book: Pray for the Lost: Impact the Eternal Destiny of Your Loved Ones Through Prayer.

In this book, I explore a number of things relating to this subject.

There are some tough issues as we examine the spiritual condition of a person who is lost and far from God, or a Christian who is backsliding. But there are also some exciting discoveries about how your prayer can release the resources of heaven, including angels, signs and miracles and the Spirit of God. There is a whole section on some practical ways to pray for unsaved loved ones and some discussion and keys to wage spiritual warfare. You will also learn a bit more about my own story and how I was saved through the ministry of prayer and deliverance.

See also Portal Moments: Supernatural Encounters and Answers to Prayer

© Helen Calder    Enliven Publishing

[1] Gen 1:28,  Dan 7:27

[2] Watchman Nee, Let Us Pray, 1977