Share
If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and forgive their sin and heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.
2 Chronicles 7:14-16
Feb. 2004
"My
heart and eyes will always be there." God, where were you tonight? I
prayed with the prayer team, and I walked down the rows of chairs, but
I couldn't shake the feeling that this was all mechanical. I know you
are here, but sometimes I feel so alone. People think I'm a prayer
warrior. I am not. Obviously, I don't have the power to do anything,
and can only hear you when you choose to speak. So speak Lord, your
servant is listening. The power is yours.
Feb. 16
Lord,
I'm tired of people telling me they can't pray. Sorry to be such a
whiner, but don't they understand the privilege of prayer, or do they
think the prayer falls on deaf ears? Our concept of love is so little,
so far from how you love us. How you long to hear our prayers, silent
or otherwise. Free our hearts to the possibilities of prayer. Break our
hearts so we can not help but pray for ourselves, and for each other.
March 2004
God,
you know I want a prayer room in this city that is open all the time. I
want the party girl from 6 th Street to find us and to find You as she
stumbles into a room downtown that is filled with your presence. I want
it now. Teach me patience and perseverance. I have the faith that moves
mountains, and I believe you will bring revival to this city. It's
because of you I have this faith, so I'm begging you to do it. I'm
asking, seeking, knocking on that door. We can not do anything less or
more but to seek you, to ask you to do this in Austin. Look upon this
city with favor, with mercy, and do not forget your faithful.
March 11
Thank
you for our prayer meeting tonight at Jenny and Suzanne's house. As we
prayed for this church, you sent your sweet Spirit to be among us and I
am so overwhelmed by how much You love us. It was so good to pray in
unity with my brothers and sisters in Christ. (Isaiah 58:12) And to
sing praises to you with "Holy and Anointed One" with tears in our
eyes, as your Spirit was so strong here tonight. Thank you.
March 12
Lord,
it seems the more I pray, the less words I have. You keep breaking my
heart for this generation. Tonight at the Newsboys concert, I felt your
presence so strongly. I spent a good part of the night bent over in my
seat weeping. I think our youth group thought I seriously had lost it
for good. It's such a privilege to be in your presence, let me never
take it for granted.
I think about Beth Moore and her
persistence to have a quiet time with you in the roughest period of her
life. Sometimes for her it meant setting aside her bible and just
crying in your presence. Even in the times I don't have the words, you
still hear my prayer. Thank you for loving me so much.
Easter Sunday evening
God,
let me never worship anything but you. I want not a heart for prayer,
but a heart for you. Today you reminded me of that image I had of you
holding me tightly, white robes enfolding me as I heard you yell a
fierce battle cry, Jesus. I feel protected and safe every time I think
upon this, knowing you are fighting the battle, Jesus, not me. Send
down your angels, and protect the faithful in this your town, O Lord
God.
April 14
Thank
you so much for what you are doing in Austin. Send more of your light
to this town. Lord, I am weary, I am broken, and I am nothing. Please
Lord, I do seek your face above all else. Break through this darkness
and find your faithful waiting. Pierce our hearts with our desperate
need for you. Lord, I ask you to speak to your people about prayer.
Teach us, Lord, how to pray. As Elijah climbed to the top of Mount
Carmel, bent down to the ground and bowed before you in prayer, I ask
that you give me more faith in the un-seen world. Seven times he sent
his servant to look for the rain you promised to send and it did come
the seventh time. I will keep on asking Lord. To persist without
wavering, Lord, is what I ask you to strengthen in me.
April 18
Today
was an awesome day with you God. Thank you for the women of this church
and the breakfast meeting today at Central Market. Thank you for my
boys' laughter during the stupidest movie ever made. And thank you for
tonight as you poured out your love on our church. It was an answer to
prayer to see so many people coming forward to pray with each other, or
finding you alone as they stayed in their seats. It's what we have
prayed so long for; I ask for more and more, Lord God.
May 6
Continue
to show us ways to love this city, Lord. In my dream of dreams Lord you
know I'm expecting someone to show up in Austin and be "the" prayer
room person full of your vision for your revival for that. Please do
that Lord, make it a kindred spirit to those of us in Austin who want
this. I wish I could do more, but I know you require no more than what
you ask of us. Tonight it was so good to walk on South Congress during
First Thursdays and pray with Anita, Lisa and Cherie. May the people
who noticed Anita praying as she walked take it to heart. Just the
freedom of going anywhere and praying is so great, so freeing Lord.
Give us your eyes and heart to see the broken, the hearts searching for
truth. I'm longing for that day when the dancing in the streets of
Austin is for you alone, when the cry of "Holy, Holy Lord God Almighty"
is on every tongue.
Anne is passionate about her husband Steve, her boys Syd and Ben, and about prayer. People call her a prayer warrior and she is. Anne thinks prayer led by the Holy Spirit is not laborous, but a beautiful thing and is our one and only means in communicating with our Abba Father. She wants us to remember that He is faithful to hear and answer when we are faithful to ask. Anne loves what Martin Luther said about prayer: "We don't understand that what we pray about is more important than we can comprehend. We think small, but the Lord is great and powerful. He expects us to ask for great things. He wants to give them to us to demonstrate his almighty power."