God of the Impossible: Day One, Week One

As we start praying over our cities, state, and nation, you will notice that when I wrote these prayers, I began with "Lord." That is just my way of addressing God in these written prayers. I recognize that everyone prays differently, so I hope my language choice doesn't trip anyone up. 

I am sure many of us have differing theology and denominational backgrounds. That should not divide us if we are all reading the same Bible and endeavoring to make it to heaven. Accepting differences, just like in a marriage, leads to unity, which we desperately need at this hour. The Lord's job is to lead us into all truth through the unity of faith (Eph 4:13).

You will notice that all scripture references are from the King James Version. I grew up reading that translation, and that is what I know. Please feel free to use whatever translation you feel most comfortable with. 

I also want to stress the importance of saying these prayers verbally instead of silently. All throughout scripture, words were spoken with voice. That sentence might sound redundant, but many people pray in their minds and do not vocalize their prayers. I do that myself at times, and meditate on God's word. But for the purposes of these prayers, I hope you will say each word out loud and speak them into the atmosphere.

To give an example of how powerful a word spoken into the atmosphere can be, look at what the Bible said in Ecclesiastes 10:20: 

"Curse not the king, not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber; for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter." 

We must not only be careful of what we say but also be purposeful in what we pray. With that, let's begin!

Each prayer is to be prayed as the collective body of Christ (we), and the first prayer is taken from Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

We know that God does not fail; failure comes through us; from fear, from unbelief, from weariness, from forgetfulness, and from laziness. We need the strength of the Lord in this hour for various areas of our lives; this has to be more than just words. We must look at ourselves and ask God to reveal the areas in each of us where fear, unbelief, weariness, forgetfulness, and laziness play a role in our prayer life and walk with God.  

Our adversary is the master deceiver, and he is excellent at masking things in our life and calling it something other than what it is. Fear can often be masked by a false state of silence. We think we are wise in not speaking about a topic when it is really fear of what someone will think of us. 

I am guilty of this, especially when I post on social media. I have deleted countless posts for fear that someone would misunderstand my meaning. I am working on this however, and becoming braver with speaking up when I feel it is important. Truth should be non-negotiable, and we can speak the truth in love, and the truth will do its job to set people free.

Unbelief is a slippery slope. It is an especially important topic regarding the prayers we pray. 

Do we really believe God will Redeem California, or are we just going through the motions of the prayer? 

Do we really believe God will heal the sick?

It is easy to let unbelief creep in when often our prayers are delayed, and circumstances look bleak. Belief and unbelief are heart positions. If we know that God is good, that He desires to Redeem California and to heal the sick, the issues don't lie with whether we are worthy for God to answer our prayers, but they rest on the truth of His word and what He has promised. We must know that God can and desires to perform His word. Instead of having unbelief, we must ask Him to reveal what hinders the prayers from being answered. More on that in the coming weeks.

Weariness, forgetfulness, and laziness are also increasing among us all. We have far more stress, debt, responsibilities, and distractions than at any other time in history. 

Now more than ever, we must redeem the time. 

We must carefully and purposefully choose how we spend our time to make sure we are making time to be a vessel for the Lord to use, especially our prayers.

So as you think about the words to this prayer and as you pray it daily this week, think about the areas in your life that you need strength in, that you will be able to do “all things” that He is calling you to do, with Him who gives you strength.

On a personal note, many of you responded to last week's email. It was a great encouragement to me and I really enjoyed hearing more about some of you.

Thank you! 

We are all in this together. The more connected we are, the more unity we will have. 

Please share this email with others who would be willing to join us in prayer.

Blessings to you all,

Kathy Chastain