p.r.a.y.i.n.g...c.r.e.a.t.i.v.e.l.y.

Last Monday was a day of hard work, and we have nothing tangible to show for that work... for now. Oswald Chambers once said, “Prayer does not fit us for the greater work; prayer is the greater work." On Monday, that is exactly what we did, but it may not have looked as you might expect.

To be honest, when I saw that the entire day on Monday was set aside for prayer, I had to mentally prepare for a loooong day.  What a pleasant surprise it was to find out that no one had the intention of sitting around in a circle praying through a bullet-point list.  Not only did we spend hours praying together, but we were also creative, artistic, and laughed quite a bit!

Worship started and concluded the day.  Throughout the day four people shared reflections from Matthew 4, the temptation of Jesus.  Each of these reflections was followed by a unique time of prayer.  (See photos below)

There was time to visit each of the prayer stations and pray silently.  In another room there were tables set up with paper flames to write out prayers for whatever country or issue was on our hearts.  These flames were then displayed together to show the power of prayer.  

The white board made up the Thailand prayer station with photos, a map, and prayer points--
all things that symbolize the Thai culture and needs in society.
The Philippines prayer station is the table on the left.  

The Indonesia prayer station, again with photos and
items symbolizing the Indonesian culture.  

Prayer station for South Korea and Japan

The next prayer activity that I participated in was modeling our prayers with clay.  This could be depicted in abstract or concrete designs.  Below are some of the prayers that resulted from our group...

A prayer for those in Islamic nations to experience the presence of the Lord and be freed from Islam.

Person praying, connected by a chain of prayer to the Bible.
Depicting confidence in the Word of God, and the desire to be
more faithful in prayer.

Coin in open hands with dual meaning...
1. Everything we have we give back to the Lord
2. Our hands are open to our Father who meets all our needs and provides for us

A prayer to flourish in whatever place and situation
the Lord places us in.  

A prayer for the various denominations in a specific country
to be unified through the Holy Spirit, calling out with one
heart in prayer, growing and reaching out to those around
them, with roots growing deep into Christ.

M&M prayers - take a small pack of M&Ms and pull them out one at a time.
Each color corresponds with a bowl filled with prayer requests.  Take a
request to pray through and then either place the M&M on the paper or eat it!  :)  

As much fun as this day was, I believe that there are some important take-aways.  

Relationships in our day-to-day lives are often filled with fun.  We do all kinds of fun things with our kids, friends and family members, but we are not usually creative in our interactions with God, the Creator of fun.  These photos are very exciting to me... I truly believe that our relationships with Jesus could be richer if we spent fun and creative time with Him.

I love the verse in Exodus 35 when Moses is explaining how the LORD has filled and gifted Bezalel,

"Then Moses said to the Israelites, “See, the Lord has chosen Bezalel... and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills— to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic crafts."  (Exodus 35:30-33)

This is a great illustration of how much our God values creativity.  I'd like to encourage you to go out on a limb and revamp your time with Him - especially if you're feeling spiritually dry. 

Being creative in time spent with the Lord takes work for me.  I have to really think of activities that would enrich me spiritually.  But I want to encourage you... "Longdoo!"  That's the Thai word for "try"... try being creative with the LORD sometime, and let Him surprise you by how He moves.