The theme of Realife this year is Prayer. Realife has always believed that prayer changes things, that is why we have pre-service prayer for wednesday and sunday night, early morning prayer on the days leading up to an outreach event, we pray for retreats and camps months in advance...We know that prayer changes things.
But how often in our personal lives do we let prayer slide? We don't give so we can get out after service and eat a burger? Too often.
I know that in my own life, I was very challenged by giving sacrificially...Last year, I was in college, newly married, we didn't and still don't have any extra money laying around. So just making the commitment to give was hard, but God provided in so many ways that we didn't feel the strain and we made lifestyle changes because of what we were sacrificing to give.
Prayer, I was filled with anticipation when I heard what our focus was this year. My whole body responded to the news with joy and excitement, it felt as though God was saying "Just wait, just wait to see what I'm going to do...You won't believe it..." Since we've begun this focus, there has been illness, loss of jobs, deaths, accidents, big changes, lots of negative possibly blinding things that have happened in the lives of people involved at Realife and with those they are connected. Blinding things...the things that could cause us to lose focus, some of those being what Pastor Curt talked about on Sunday night in 1 Kings 17:17-24. We could be blinded by a crisis, criticism in a crisis, failure, or even success; those things can keep us from prayer, our focus.
We can't let it. We can't be blinded, because we need to pray, especially when we are attacked, tested, or going through a trail. Prayer is what we will keep us sane, strengthened, and will bring us out of it energized.
Prayer and Generosity, God's reminders that He is there...He was there...He will always be there...
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