Thank you for walking through this forgiveness series leading to Easter. When God provides revelation about the key to effective prayer, I’m urged to share that we all may walk in this life journey in greater victory.

Today, on Good Friday, the greatest miracle happens for us. Observing Easter when Jesus surrendered his life through His blood, we were completely forgiven. Our failures, wickedness, ignorance, selfish ambitions… all of it completely washed away.

Today, we are going to make this real. This is a prayer exercise that I find is effective. Relax and allow your imagination to help you with this process. 

Okay? Here we go.

I want you to envision your life book (Psalm 139:16) laying open before you on a table. It’s a very large book and there is writing on both sides. Jesus is standing there with you. The accusations of your life mess-ups and sins are scribbled upon these pages along with the acts of faith and love.

Jesus looks with love into your face then turns toward your book. He touches the top of it and his blood slowly flows over the pages. As it flows top-to-bottom, many of the words wash away and that which remains, is now shimmering-glowing.

This is the forgiveness of sins. This is the miracle of the New Covenant. All accusations are washed away and that which remains, the shining faithfulness of your life. That is your record in heaven. It's beautiful and life-giving to see from heavens viewpoint.

Now, we have one final act to forgiveness to walk through. Here is the last question.

Q: Jesus, do I need to forgive God?

This is a deep question but don’t ignore it.

God can handle your disappointments. He will comfort your need to know why. He is able to listen as you share your anger and pain. He will help you work through the secret hurts and disappointments you may hold against Him.

At Easter, what a perfect time to fully walk in Forgiveness and become fully free! Forgiveness, is a golden Key to the Kingdom of God.

Happy Easter. He is Risen…. Just as He said!

This Easter, I’m undone as I consider the forgiveness of Christ. I can’t help but to feel all the feels every time I read about the crucifixion of Christ.

As we ponder this week, let’s ask Jesus a few questions. I believe it’s this Easter that He is walking us into greater freedom and hope. Sit in your prayer time with your journal. Take each of these questions that I'm posting below to the Lord. Then just listen and follow the prompting in your heart.

Pray: Jesus, thank you for the new covenant. Thank you for your precious blood that sealed my deliverance and freedom 2,000 years ago. Thank you for the stripes upon your body that heal my body. Thank you for showing me the way to live and love.

Jesus, I want to experience greater freedom this Easter and live in your promises. 

Q: Jesus, I want to start with me. Do I need to forgive myself? Do I need to forgive any past offence, shame, guilt or action that is keeping me in bondage or regret? (Write them down and the confess, repent and ask for forgiveness. Then joyfully say: I receive your forgiveness. Then ask again until nothing else comes to mind.)

Q: Jesus, are there any past offences, pain, or hatred I carry toward another person? (Repeat the process above.)

Work your way through this process in the quiet of your prayer time.

Now here is the REAL TRUTH. This type of prayer takes work. This process takes time. I find most Christians won’t do it on their own. It takes courage and often tears to work through this. It takes significant effort to really pray effectively. So my question to you is, will you do it?

Here is the REAL, REAL TRUTH. This process works. Make the time. It’s worth every effort of prayer to step into greater peace, greater freedom, and GREAT LOVE.

On Friday we will look at the last area of forgiveness that most believers don’t know they need.

Okay, please someone share with me. Is this series helpful? I know it’s deep but it is truly the Christian life. This is the path of wisdom. This is the path toward freedom. This is holiness.

See you in the comments. Blessings, great encouragement and love, Lynn

The Forgiveness of Easter

SUMites, what if we prayed and we witnessed supernatural healing? What if we pray and we send back a hurricane? What if we pray and demons flee, or we pray and see life return?

I want all of these things to occur when I pray and I believe we are able to participate in these miracles because I’ve experienced most of them. I share some details about these stories in the book, Enforcer.

What does forgiveness prayer really look like? Could our unsaved spouse perhaps be saved? Do we need to forgive our unsaved spouse, family member, unsaved neighbors?

It appears obvious that when we look to the cross, we witness the forgiveness of our sins. We know, as believers, that Jesus died, shed His blood, making atonement, that we are forgiven by the Father. Our Father then welcomes us home from the badlands of prodigal living and rebellion.

But I want to direct our study to another person that day on a cross. A criminal, a guilty man, who was crucified next to Christ.

Luke 23: 38-43 And an inscription also was written over Him in letters of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew:

THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

39 Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.”

40 But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.” 42 Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”

43 And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”

Remember earlier in the day Jesus says this, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” Luke 23:34

It's mind blowing to me that as Jesus hangs, tortured on the cross paying for this convicted criminal’s sins, he's asking the Father to forgive him. And in a simple response to the man who asks to be remembered, Jesus says to him, 

The law of forgiveness is in full effect and demonstrated here. And what is fascinating is this man didn’t need to make a profession of faith. He wasn’t baptized or sprinkled. He merely asked to be remembered and Jesus speaks, assuring him of his eternal salvation in that moment.

This implores me to pause and consider the great compassion of our God. It makes me ponder just how wide and long and how far-reaching is the forgiveness of Christ. I’m compelled to consider that there may be many who are saved but not living like we expect but Jesus loves them and we will see them in heaven.

Jesus hung on a cross for them. He shed His blood to redeem many. He came to show us the way and many will find their way even if we don’t understand how this works here on earth.

Hmmmmmm, the things that make you ponder the Kingdom of God and our Lord Jesus this Easter.

I hope this helps you to ponder the depths of forgiveness and what happens when we choose to forgive others. Perhaps our forgiveness opens the door for a person to receive Jesus.

Wow, just Wow.

Oaky, thoughts? See you in the comments. Blessings, Lynn

Significant Key to Prayer

Hope you read last Friday’s post about prayer because you need that background to unlock this powerful and effective key to answered prayer. Also, all of this teaching is leading up to Easter….. Just wait until I make that connection!!!  It’s stunning.

Okay, let’s read on.

The commonality came to me in a moment of revelation at 5 am on a Sunday morning a few weeks ago.

So here is the summary and the key. Both of these passages in Mark and Matthew are Jesus teaching His disciples how to pray. They have nuances that are powerful and should be followed and language that is effective and works. I know this because I’ve prayed it myself and have watched the answers arrive.

The key here is the interesting and seemingly ignored sentences that follow BOTH of these different instructions to prayer.

And that key is forgiveness.

Mark 11:25-26, Jesus says, “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”

Matthew 6;14, Jesus says, “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

These prayer models are undergirded by forgiveness. Our effective prayers must begin with forgiving those who have betrayed, those who are cruel, those who anger us, and those who should have protected, but didn’t.

Forgiveness isn’t easy. But it’s necessary. Forgiving others releases ourselves from a spiritual prison we have erected int he spiritual realm. We move from a victim to an overcomer. And in the Kingdom of God, overcomers wield great power and authority in Christ.

What’s challenging is that in our marriage, family, work life, ministry, etc, forgiveness is an ongoing practice. Grrrrrrrr. Sometimes we have to forgive over and over and over. Sometimes we forgive and then set a boundary or establish space between ourselves and an unsafe person. And there are times we need help with forgiveness because our wounding is deep. (Healing Prayer with Lynn Donovan.)

Genuine forgiveness is the key to these effective prayer models.

Let’s now consider something utterly astonishing as we look upon Easter. And it’s not our forgiveness by Christ, (which is utterly astounding) but something else quite interesting. Join me next Friday for the next installment in this series about Easter and Prayer.

Please take two minutes to share with me your thoughts regarding this connection in the comments. Have you prayed through Mark 11. Do you use the Lord’s prayer to pray. What has happened when you prayed this way? See you in the comments. Blessings, Lynn

Image credit: Chatgpt, Lynn Donovan

Greetings SUM Nation. Lynn Donovan with you. I’ll be with you every Friday now as I’ve settled back into a routine and the Lord is encouraging me to write on the blog regularly again.

Easter Sunday is April 20th. So, for the next few Fridays, let's consider the weeks leading up to Easter and how we can look to this season as prayer prompts for our families and for us as well.

Today I want to teach you about "Launch Prayers."

I'll give you an example because it happened today. Last July my son lost his job when his company went through a round of layoffs. Ugh. Hard, I know. He took some time off but began to earnestly look for work in January. He started applying with gusto, yet no responses, until there was one. After a great interview, they hired him but then suggested a better position which would also be competitive to obtain. He threw his hat in the ring and then he waited.

He waited.... and waited... And waited.

Well while on the phone with him this morning (March 6, 2025), I asked him about the employment situation. And you have to know that my son believes in Jesus but isn't a regular church goer. Also, I have come to realize my adult children aren't keen to hear from their mother about some kind of faith topic either. Ho Hum.... In other words,... "Mom, don't preach." Okay, okay.

My son responds to my questions, "Mom, this is really becoming stressful. I haven't heard from them about this new position. And they haven't responded about the initial job that they said I had."

And this is where a launch prayer happens.

Without warning launch into prayer and I say, "In the name of Jesus I declare there is no more delay. This job belongs to my son. And he will hear about it now. In Jesus name. AMEN"

"Okay, son, well I'm praying about it. I know you want to be working, and can I send you some money?"

He says, "Thanks mom. I love you." We hang up.

And now, I kid you not, within an hour he sends me a text message: It's a photo of a text he received: You are the top applicant. Expect communication in your inbox. Congratulations.

I called him back immediately. I shouted, "Prayer works."

SUMites. Launch prayer is so cool. It must be spontaneous. It must be quick and to the point. Finally, after saying amen, move on with the conversation and/or change the subject. This beats the devil, as you prayed over someone and they didn't have time to go into unbelief or doubt. 

I love launch prayers. I pray them often and over many people in different situations and circumstances. Even complete strangers. I launch into prayer.

Okay, what do you think? Want to practice. Just take one courageous step and open your mouth. And then move along. 

Please, (((anyone....))) Share with me in the comments. What do you think about launch prayers? Also, I have a challenge for you leading up to Easter. Start to practice launch prayers. Come back here and share with me when you try this out. I read every. single. comment.

Blessings and hugs, Lynn

The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16 NIV

Praying for your family or praying while they listen in an unequally yoked home is challenging. But I've found a prayer model that works. 

So tune in tomorrow and I'll explain Launch Prayers. 

Are you curious?

Today, I bless you in the name of our Lord Jesus with hope. Great BIG and life-changing hope. In Jesus name. Amen

Love you, Lynn

Ann here.

Whenever I'm praying for an unbelieving husband or wife, I've got a particular prayer I pray. It's this:

In the name of Jesus, I pray for [name] that --

God will set His eyes on him/her for good, and will bring them back to Him.

God will build him/her and not pull him/her down.

He will plant him/her and not pluck him/her up.

He will give him/her a heart to know Him, that He is God.

[Name] will say about God 'He is mine, and I am His'.

And he/she will return to God with his/her whole heart.

I pray this because several years ago God gave our ministry the verses from Jeremiah 24:5-7 - which contained the above words. He said that is what he is going to do for our spouses.

Every time I pray these words, then, I make a declaration of belief, and I know that I am praying in line with the heart of God.

Today, shall we all pray the above words over our spouses? Let's lift our voices to the heavens in unison!

Love you all, and I wish you a beautiful Friday.

Ann

It’s Election Day in America. I’m drafting this post with the last polls on the West Coast soon to close. By the time many of us read this post, a winner may have been declared. Or not. 

I wanted to keep this post brief. I was reading Ephesians 6 the other day for a prayer meeting at church and these words flashed in bold in my mind. You might be expecting me to share the great words about putting on the armor of God which, as many of us will know, is perhaps what this chapter is best known. But no, it wasn’t those verses, it was this short but direct statement made in the next verse:

“With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” (verse 18b NIVUK)

I thought this particularly pertinent at this moment in history. The world is a scary place at present with all that is going on and we all live with much uncertainty. It is at this time when we as lovers of God can call on Him in all His faithfulness and glory to encourage and protect all people. But we want ALL the Lord’s people to be joining us in such prayer. It is such a time as this where we, the Lord’s people, can be encouraging each other to be praying, interceding for our marriages, our families, churches, neighborhoods and countries.

I invite us all to pray along these lines:

Loving Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. You love your people so much and we love how you love us. Thank you that you want to give us MORE of yourself. Help us to want ALL that you have to give us.

We pray for our fellow lovers, those who call you Lord, to be filled with more of you. Saturate each of us with your love and light. Bind all discouragement and negativity that tries to keep us from communing with you. Break our hearts with what breaks yours, Lord. Strengthen our faith, may be become people who love reading your Word, fellowshipping with other believers, and encouraging each other to walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh.

May your people arise with the one voice, we need you Lord, come, have your way and may your Kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

In your loving and mighty Name, Jesus, we pray. Amen

Go well, dear friends.

SUMites, Ann here.

When I read scripture, I find the words of God so creative. 

I sometimes like to take them and turn them into a prayer for my home, or a prayer for someone I know.

Well, today, in that spirit, here's a prayer for our homes. How about we all pray this together? There is power when we speak in unison.

Lord, make my home like Eden, like the garden of the Lord, that it will be full of joy and gladness, thanksgiving and the voice of melody.

(Inspired by Isaiah 51:3)

Amen!

Ann

Photo courtesy of Arina Krasnikova and Pexels.com

Following on from Lynn’s post, I too felt led to write a similar post after reading something earlier in the week.

As a result of both Lynn and I being led to write similar posts, I’m sensing there’s some of us are feeling discouraged. We’re believing these posts will help shoo away ALL discouragement and fill each of us with renewed vigour to pray for our spouses, family members and other loved ones who may not yet know the Lord.

I’m not going to say much more but simply share this short testimony of one man’s intercession for friends of his. The man, George Mueller is known for building an orphanage in the 1800s on the back of daily prayer requests that resulted in sufficient moneys, food and other items being delivered to his home daily. It’s a wonderful story of one man’s faith and God’s faithfulness.

“More than a century ago George Mueller, that prince of intercessors, began to pray for five personal friends. After five years one of them came to Christ. In ten years two more were born again. Mueller prayed on for 25 years and the fourth man was saved. For the fifth, Mueller prayed until the time of his death, and this friend came also to Christ a few months afterward. For the latter friend, Mueller had prayed for almost 52 years.” – James McConkey¹

I was greatly encouraged after reading this and felt a shot of renewed hope and belief for my beautiful partner and other family members. I hope you might too.

Keep praying. Keep believing.

Go well, dear SUMites.

Note: 1. Nick Harrison, Magnificent Prayer, 366 Devotions to Deepen your Prayer Experience (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 2001), 328-329

Similar prayers are in this book.

Hi, Lynn Donovan here,

I want to share a short but powerful prayer when we are standing in the gap for someone in the spirit. 

Lord, let me stand in the gap for_________________. So that his eyes will be opened, and he will be freed from demonic bondage, so he can see his need for, You, Jesus.  I also forbid any affliction, illness or attack to come against me, my family and all under my love, stewardship, jurisdiction.   And I also forbid the same for the person whom I’m standing in the gap for.  In Jesus name.  

Pray this aloud. 

Print this out. Place it somewhere that you frequent and then pray it aloud whenever you see it.

Blessings and hugs, Lynn

PS. Thanks for the prayers for Mike. He is in remission, and we are awaiting a donor for a bone marrow transplant that is in the near future. I'll drop an update when we have more info.

I LOVE YOU. I LOVE JESUS. LITTERALLY, HE HAS SAVED ME AND MIKE OVER AND AGAIN!

SUM family, Ann here.

Our hearts are with Lynn and Mike, having heard the news that Lynn shared last week. 

The leaders of SUM recently wrote out some prayers for Mike and sent them via WhatsApp to Lynn. I've written these prayers out below, and if you have some time I wonder if you would speak these prayers out for the two of them?

It would be an amazing thing for us to stand as an army, speak out prayers jointly, and fill the bowl of incense of the prayers of the saints in Heaven for Mike! (Revelation 5:8).

Let's pray:

"Right now, in the authority and name of Jesus, I lift up Mike and Lynn as they stand in this place. I release shalom peace over and into them. I bind chaos and all forms of darkness coming against them. I release all provision into this situation. Peace, healing, right steps forward and His assurance that He is in control. Lord be their shield, and their faith."

"I pray that the chains of leukaemia be broken in Jesus' mighty name. I declare that Mike is a born-again son of the most high God, his name is in the book of life and he is covered by the blood of the Lamb. I speak healing miracles and divine reversal in Mike's body. I bless him with healing and health in Jesus' mighty name. I bless him with perfect peace and pray that he will experience his Father's love like never before. I lift up Lynn to the throne room of Grace, and I bless her with peace and strength, that she will hear God's voice directing her, leading her and encouraging her. I pray the Holy Spirit will fill them both to overflow. I stand with Lynn, I love her and I bless her. I stand on God's word that no weapon formed against Mike will prosper, and I speak life and love over them both.  Thank you, Lord, that you hear every prayer, even when our prayers are groans, and you collect every tear in your bottle. Lord, hold your daughter Lynn close, put your arms around her and gently rock her so that she knows she is held in tight and safe in her Daddy's arms. In your precious name, Jesus, the name above every other name. Amen."

A scripture that one of our leaders prayed over him:

"Because Mike has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver Mike; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with Mike in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy Mike And show Mike My salvation." (Psalms 91: 14-16 NJKV)

"Jesus, Jehovah Rapha ... as said above we are all in agreement with Mike living a long satisfying life, and that You Lord have heard our prayers and pleas! Prince of Peace and Mighty Warrior, fight this battle like only You can. We speak shalom over our sister. We command fear and chaos to leave her now and we bless her to be calm and full of wisdom to make needed decisions. We command all foul, unclean, demonic presence to be out of their hospital room right now in the name of Jesus. We speak Jesus over this leukaemia. It's a trespasser on Mike's holy temple. Jesus' blood flows through his body and it's healing now! We tell the mountain of sickness to be removed and cast into the sea now! Mike will live and not die and declare the works of the Lord. Amen so be it."

And finally,

"May Lynn and Mike be saturated in God's love and life. May the next steps be very clear for them and the doctors. Lord, you know what's going on in Mike's body, please pass that knowledge onto the medical team and give them the wisdom to make the right decisions in regards to treatment and next steps. May all treatments target and hit the leukaemia cells and please supernaturally protect every healthy cell in Mike's body. Lord, we love you, we're in awe of your goodness and faithfulness to Mike and Lynn. Amen."

**

Thank you SO much for praying in agreement, SUMites, and may God pour oil on the flame of these prayers!

With love and thanks to you all,

Ann

Dear SUMites

This Friday, I pray this for you:

In the name of Jesus,

I pray for His comfort to flood your soul.

I pray for the gift of faith for you.

I pray that your faith will be cast-iron solid, unshakeable, unmoveable, unmeltable.

I pray that He will fill the loneliness in your heart, and delight you with His romance.

I pray that your ears will be fine-tuned to hear His voice.

I pray for hope to fill your mind, and your imagination to be sanctified.

I pray that every place the sole of your foot treads, He will give you, and I pray that your faith will be catching to others like wildfire.

I pray that you will grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.

And that all these same things will spread to your family.

In His name.

Amen.

**

Have a beautiful weekend, SUM family!

Ann xx

Hello SUMites,

In preparation for our fast that begins on Monday, January 8th at sunrise, I want to offer a few points to help make your fast successful. 

First, figure out what kind of fast you will be partaking. This year, I'm praying for a healthy lifestyle of eating. I'm going to participate in a Daniel fast. I began this fast on January 1st. I'm fasting at least 21 days, longer if I can. 

Remember you can fast many different ways, such as fasting from social media, fasting from television, but the kind of fasting in the Bible is a food fast. Best advice is to ask the Lord what He wants this fast to look like in your life.

Remember, stay hydrated. Generally, most people don't drink enough water in a day. I purchased a large jug last year. I drink the entire half gallon a day. 

Helpful tip: Light a candle. Place the candle in your kitchen or someplace where you see it often. It is a light to remind you to pray. Try this. It really helps. I burn a candle in my living room and when I see it, I pray a blessings prayer. I'll share more about those in my book that is coming out soon.

Determine to seek God. 

Fasting is commanding our desires into submission and allowing our spirit to engage with our Father, Jesus, and Spirit. 

Fasting brings clarity. 

Finally, bring your cell phone into submission. DO NOT take it into your daily prayer time. Just sit with God and listen. He won't compete with the phone. I mean it.

Ann and I will be leading the fast with a prayer prompt each morning. I will be focusing on spiritual warfare, as that is what my new book is about. And real warfare is intense. Fasting draws you closer to God and His wisdom and protection. Which we certainly need if we are going to battle the demonic for ourselves and family members.

Okay, any questions? Leave me a comment.

Are you participating? Please leave your name, where you are from and any prayer requests. I WILL pray over all of them during our fast.

I love you, my dearest, brothers and sister. I hold you deeply within my heart. 

I declare VICTORY for our community. VICTORY. It's finally time to experience God's victories in our lives. I can't wait to hear how God is moving in your life in 2024.

Love and hugs, Lynn Donovan

What a great introduction we’ve had from both Lynn and Ann on this wonderful epistle of Paul’s. Ann mentioned how much I love Ephesians and one of the reasons is that Paul is prayerful throughout it. It starts with a prayer, includes a couple of great prayers (chapter 1 and 3) and then ends with prayer. And I love to pray!

Now we come to Chapter 3. I want to focus on the prayer that ends this chapter because it’s one of my favourites and one I pray often.

The First Half 

The chapter starts with Paul sharing how God told Paul to bring the gospel to everyone, and not just to the Jews. As we know this caused a dispute with the disciples and Paul (with the Spirit’s help) had to win them over. As Paul states in verse 6, the Gospel is for everyone, and is ‘welcoming to everyone’. I love that notion of welcoming.

Paul sees his role is to help everyone to understand the mysteries of God, ‘to make plain’ what God has been doing all along.

The Prayer

There’s more to learn in those opening verses but I really want to spend time on this great prayer. We’re at the halfway point of his letter and here he brings us back to prayer. The epistle pivots after this prayer.

Firstly, I invite you to read it. Here it is in NIVUK version:

“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”

And simply sit with it. And read it again. IS there a word or a statement that jumps out or shimmers for you? If yes, ask God about it. What might He be saying to you?

A few points that I especially love about it are:

• Paul kneels before the Father, this magnificent Father (MSG version). Straight away, Paul adopts a posture of surrender, acknowledging who He is praying to. It’s simply breathtaking. I’ve been challenged in recent weeks that I’ve been a little too casual with God, adopting the ‘human’ aspect of Jesus’ nature and not reflecting enough on His divinity.
• Paul intercedes for the Ephesian church (and us) with four powerful statements: ‘strengthen you with power through His Spirit’, ‘Christ may dwell in our hearts’, ‘that we grasp how wide …’ and finally, ‘may be filled with His fullness.’ They’re powerful statements to pray. I encourage you to pray these over yourselves, your family and community.
• This is a highly relational prayer. It’s a prayer that demonstrates the prayer, Paul, has a close bond with God. He asks God to give more of Himself to the church of Ephesus. He doesn’t pray for healing, for provision, but He asks God for more of Himself. I think one of the great reasons why we struggle to pray is we’ve grown up with a transactional view of prayer. We ask God for things. Don’t get me wrong, God wants us to pray these prayers but what happens when we don’t receive what we’ve prayed for? We lose interest in prayer? But prayer is highly relational. Paul demonstrates that for us.
• Fullness of God. Wow! How does healing come? How are our needs met? How do we evangelise? How do our spouses find Jesus? With the fullness of God. Think of yourself overflowing with the fullness of love. God is love! That’s His essence. If we’re overflowing with His fullness, we become incredibly attractive to everyone. Because people see God in us!
• What does fullness bring? Immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine! Wow! I want that fullness. It makes me weak at the knees just picturing it. God wants to pour through and out of us with Himself. The fullness of His love.

The prayer ends with a desire for God to be glorified by the church. Church is very very important to God. And therefore, to Paul. The divine and human elements of the church. With His power flowing through us, His community, His church is glorified.

Let me stop there. I could go on as there is so much ion this great prayer. May I invite you to pray it over the next few days. Pray it boldly and with reverence and we might be surprised how God moves us all.

Why not share in the comments what particularly stood out for you as you read this chapter. We'll see you there.

Go well, dear Sumites. Grace and peace.

Pray Instead of Complaining

The people started complaining to Moses, “Give us some water!”
Moses replied, “Why are you complaining to me and trying to put the Lord to the test?” Exodus 17:2 (CEV)

After reading Ann’s post recently about the “deliciousness of a wife”, I posted a comment about how easy it is to give our spouses the worst part of us, especially with complaining. The next morning when I turned to do my Bible study – guess what it was on? Praying instead of complaining! I guess God has more to teach me on this haha.

When we have a problem – our first response should be to go to God in prayer instead of complaining. A key fact: Complaining raises our stress level! But prayer quiets our thoughts and emotions and prepares our minds to listen.

Do everything without complaining or arguing so that you will be blameless and pure, children of God without any fault. Philippians 2:14-15 (ERV)

By complaining, we don’t give God a chance. It’s so important for us to pray and put our trust in Him to handle it. Otherwise, we miss out on the opportunity to see the wonderful things God has for us.

TRUST GOD! Always and in all things.

So then, as the Holy Spirit says, If you hear God's voice today, do not be stubborn, as your ancestors were when they rebelled against God, as they were that day in the desert when they put him to the test. There they put me to the test and tried me, says God, although they had seen what I did for forty years. Hebrews 3:7-9 (GNT)

Remember when we complain, we question God’s goodness. God wanted the Israelites to see that it was not water they needed, it was God they needed.

As I continued to study Exodus 17:2, I learned that God led the Israelites to this campsite for a reason. God wanted them to know that He is always in control – and we are dependent on Him for all things. Ephesians 1:11, James 4:15, Job 1:21 & Psalm 115:3. The Israelites could not humanly get out of this situation of no water. By complaining they were revealing where their hearts were – they didn’t trust God, and that He always wants good for us.

When we see no way out in our situations, let’s not harden our hearts but TRUST HIM. Look back at all the times He has blessed us in situations and seek God to intervene. Give Him a chance to show us that He will always provide for us. God wants to shine His light through us so…

Pray instead of complaining!

My name is Lisa MacFarland and I've been in a SUM relationship for 35 years. We have 4 adult children, one grandbaby and 2 more on the way. We live in sunny Florida on the East Coast. I have been following the Spiritually Unequal Marriage ministry for over 10 years and am so privileged and honored to be a guest writer. I pray that you are encouraged by this post. Thank you for the opportunity to share.

We had such a lovely time praying for our community on Wednesday, including our spouses and children. If missed it, you can catch up here. 

... And have a great weekend!

SUM Nation,

Lynn Donovan here. Ann and I will be live tomorrow, Wednesday, May 3rd at 3 PST, on YouTube and Facebook to pray with you live. 

Post your prayer requests and we will share how we would pray. And how to pray for you, your family, salvations and more. See you then.

YouTube

Facebook

By Ann Hutchison 

Attending church is quite the adventure, and I think it can look very different from season to season.

By that I mean this:

Sometimes you have a season of attending a particular church. You're there because God wants you to learn a particular thing. And then when he wants to do something different, he moves you on to a new church.

And:

In some seasons you are fed by the church, while in other seasons you're the one doing the feeding.

So I thought today I might share a little about the different seasons I've had in church.

Season One: Spectator

As a new Christian I started out attending a Bible church of 200 people. I would walk in, listen to the sermon, then walk out. I sat there and watched the body of Christ as a spectator. But the sermons fed me. Did God ever want me in that church? For that season, I think so. I heard the Gospel in that church.

Season Two: Nurtured

Quite soon after that, God seemed to show where he wanted me to attend. This new church was different in flavor. It was charismatic, and a little wild. It had 50-70 people, some of whom were homeless, and a culture of praying for each other.

I had never been in a charismatic church before. It fascinated me. And in that first service when they asked 'who needs prayer?', my hand shot up. After that, I was nurtured by that church's people week after week. I brought all my pain about my spiritual mismatch into that church and was prayed for like crazy. I was the broken and bruised one who was bandaged up and loved.

Season three: Grown up

In that same church, I began to grow up. The pastor discipled me, others discipled me, and I grew ... into something sturdy.

Suddenly I wasn't the one wanting prayer all the time; I was praying for others.

Eventually I was prayed into the leadership team by that very same pastor who'd discipled me. Here I am on the far right of this photo, August 2019. The pastor is the guy in green.

Season four: Quiet support

Well, the above church suddenly closed, and we disbanded! Quite simply, the pastor felt we were to close, so we did, and we all got thrust into new churches. For my part, instantly God showed me a new church to attend. My son, Miles (age 16), miraculously began attending with me, and here's a photo of us on Mother's Day. Can you see my smile at having my handsome boy by my side?

The adventures continued: That church then moved into the school hall where my old church had just closed!!

My place in this new church felt different to the above phases. For a start, the church was primarily young people and, I'll be honest, I've been lonely there. 

How do we deal with loneliness at church? Well in this case I've laid it aside and persevered because I have known that God wants me at this church. 

See, since joining that church I've had prophetic words about God's purpose for it. I have had a burning in my heart to see it succeed. I have prayed like crazy for it. And that's why I've labelled this season 'Quiet support'.

That church experienced a huge crisis in May last year, which nearly derailed it. The pastor left suddenly in fractious circumstances, and we had no elders in place. So, in this uncertain situation I volunteered to work on a task-force with four others to research the topic of elders and figure out how to put elders in place. That was six months of hard work. 

Finally, at the end of last year I stepped into leading the prayer team at this church, and in December had the joy of praying in a brand-new team of lay elders. That's me on the far right of the photo, in the very same hall as the first photo in season three above!

We're still waiting for a pastor, but our church is in good health.

So, what a ride. It has certainly not been a stagnant journey. We learn different things from church ... And then we give. But one thing I know: This present church is my church family.

Hope you like those stories. Have you been through phases in your church life?

Loads of love,

Ann

Stay tuned for more information and how to participate in the SUM Community Fast. January 9-13, 2023

Hello beloved SUMites! This month while I was asking God what he wanted me to write about I felt him say “REST”. I believe he is leading some of us into a time of deep rest, I know he is me! So today I am going to share with you a few things our Father has been showing me about rest. I hope it blesses you as it has me!

When our children are small we prioritize their rest. I don’t know about you, but nap time was taken pretty seriously when my kids were babies! Most days we would arrange our schedule around “rest time” to make sure we were home. During those times my house was transitioned into rest mode. I turned all the lights down low, my phone sound off, and all noise had to be kept at a low volume. Then I would read and sing to my babies while we snuggled up. They didn’t have to sleep, but they had to stay quiet and rest for some time. This was also a big part of how I maintained my sanity in those days! Haha!

So why was rest time so important? Because I knew what would happen if my babies did not get the rest they needed! The longer they went without resting the moodier, more irritable, and downright meaner they became! They would be unable to find joy in the things that usually made them happy, and they would make things harder on the people around them (ahem, me and their dad!). Rest was vital for us!

Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Psalm 62:1

We are not so different from children in our need for rest. Our bodies often crave it, but we continually deny it in an effort to be the most productive. Why don’t we prioritize rest? Why don’t we make it a point to shut off all the outside noise and just sit in silence with the Father for a few minutes each day? I believe even a small change like this could drastically change our spiritual health!

Our Heavenly Father wants rest for us in the same way an earthly parent wants rest for their baby. He sees us overloading our schedules and overstimulating our senses, and he is asking us to stop and sit with him. Just take a few moments each day to rest in him! Just as we brush our teeth every morning, resting in him should be part of our daily routine. We can steal a few moments on our lunch breaks, during the babies nap time, or even in the shower if you find that is the only place you are alone! Once you do make it a part of daily life, I believe you will start to notice a shift in your mind and spirit!

God has been calling me to a place of rest over this last year. And let me tell you, it has been  much harder than I thought it would be! I had not realized how much I had bought into the worlds idea that in order to be successful you had to “hustle”. Your schedule should be packed. That’s how you know you are doing something worth while. Oh man was I wrong! He has slowly been leading me out of my own chaos and into HIS calm. And what I am experiencing is so sweet and so precious. It took months for me to finally listen, to start lightening the load that I had burdened myself with, and fill those spaces with quiet and rest in him. 

I believe with all my heart that this is what he is calling a few of to do as well! Maybe there are some things you need to let go of, maybe you need to get better at saying “no” (this was me!). Whatever it is, I pray that you can make time for your rest with him. He sees how bad you need it, he is just waiting for you to snuggle up next to him and REST!

I would love to hear from you in the comments! What do you feel you need to change in your life in order to make room for rest? 

Love you all, Amanda 

By Ann Hutchison

My friends, I had a reallllly interesting night a week ago. It was one of those nights where you see God move and you drive home with a head full of thoughts.

To tell you the story, I need to backtrack a little. One of our SUMites, Paula Blackie, lives about an hour's drive from me, and every now and again I meet her for coffee.

The first time we ever met in person, we randomly picked a cafe halfway between our two houses. When we got there, imagine our surprise when we saw that the cafe was decorated with model wedding cakes ... Everywhere. 

I meet a SUMite in a place where the walls are adorned with wedding cakes? ... Love it!

But God had more fun for us than that.

A few months ago (sitting in this cafe), Paula shared with me that she'd been asked by God to gather families in her neighborhood on the beach on a Sunday night. She obeyed.

Shortly after that, she was nudged by God to phone a particular man, and ask if she could use his house for these gatherings. Well, he had already been nudged by God about this too, and said yes. So began a little house church.

This house church has grown to about fifty people, and a competent team of four leaders -- amazing, sold-out, on-fire Christians -- have come around Paula to help her. As a team of three men and two women, they love this 'church' as much as Paula does and they run it as a team. 

Can SUMites do this? Well, sometimes God works in unusual ways. The Bible has many stories that demonstrate that.

Having heard all this, I needed to go and visit this house church. For me, this story of Paula's has become a much-loved extension in our SUM family; it's something one of our community is doing and it's exciting.

Here's where it got fun...

I turned up thinking I was going to just eat a meal and enjoy meeting some people; but, Paula got nudged by the Holy Spirit: "Ask Ann to join in with ministry."

They're all sitting in the room on couches, we've listened to some worship and taken communion. Paula sidles up to me and says: "We're going to walk round and give every person a marshmallow and say 'Jesus loves you'. Then, Ann, would you be happy to pray for each person and give them a blessing?"

I'd never done this before with a room of strangers ... but I really was very happy to do it, so said a joyful yes.

Each person in that room was a stranger to me, bar Paula and one other. Strangers yes, but brothers and sisters in Christ. I knelt in front of each person one by one, asked Jesus what to pray, waited to see what popped into my mind, and used that to pray.

Honestly, I couldn't tell if those prayers were resonating with them. But I do know that if you pray blessing over someone with the right heart, your words are powerful. 

It came to Paula, and I somehow got the sense of tears of laughter, so I said, "I bless you with tears of laughter." What a funny thing to pray but it was what popped into my mind.

Well ... I finished, plonked myself down on a dining seat, and turned to someone to talk to them, when snorts of laughter started to emit from Paula's corner. I looked over thinking, "She's being quite loud"... But then I saw the man next to her double over, tears streaming down his face, joy on his face. He looked over at me, said, "I feel the presence of God so thickly," then burst out laughing again. Then, suddenly, the man in the chair next to me leant forward, head in hands, and started to giggle.

It was Holy Laughter! 

Well, when we bless people, the joy of heaven comes. I love the fact the laughter came after that round of blessings. Funnily, I never felt the laughter myself -- so instead I watched them curiously with a smile on my face. 

On the drive home I said to God, "Whether or not each prayer resonated, I do pray that those blessings will come to fruition in those people's lives."

And I, for one, cannot wait to visit that house church again. 

Oh I hope you liked that story, and I wish you a joy-filled weekend, and that the joy of the Holy Spirit will fill you to the brim, overflowing!

Love,

Ann

By Ann Hutchison

I often think it's great to use scripture in our prayers sometimes. That way we know that the words we speak in prayer are spot-on. 

Of course, there are many other ways to pray too, like having a big heart-to-heart chat with God. But using scripture is one creative little thing we can do; it's a specific prayer strategy.

With scripture, what we can do is take certain truths, turns of phrase, or key words, and speak them out. It is powerful to do that.

I remember once in church a minister came up to me and spoke a single line of scripture over me as a prayer. I fell over there and then!! Literally, the power of the Holy Spirit knocked me to my knees. All she did was speak a line of scripture. 

That has never happened to me before or since, but it taught me a big lesson about just how powerful the word of God is.

Anyway, there are all kinds of scriptures that can be used creatively as a basis for a prayer and today I thought I would look at a particular passage that applies to our unsaved loved ones: The Parable of the Sower. 

I say that parable is appropriate to our loved ones because it's all about what's going on in people's hearts when they don't believe. That parable explains why some people don't receive the Gospel, and why some people fall away even after they have been strong Christians. That last one is sobering. I often come back to this parable and re-read it, just to help myself understand.

The parable goes like this --

“A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear.” (Matthew 13:3-9, NIV)

Then Jesus interpreted that story:

“Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:8-23, NIV)

It's such a helpful parable, I love it. But it's even richer when we turn it into a prayer strategy. If we take the above truths and turn them into prayer for our spouse, we can pray like this:

"In the Name of Jesus:

• I declare with absolute authority that the enemy will not be allowed to snatch away the message of the Kingdom that is sown in my spouse's heart.
• I pray for a deep root of belief to grow in my spouse so that when they do finally have faith it will withstand trouble and persecution.
• I declare that the deceitfulness of wealth and the worries of this life must not be allowed to choke the word of God in my spouse's life.
• I pray that my spouse will hear the word, understand it and produce a crop that yields much."

Amen!

Dear friends, how about we pray these things for our spouses and children this weekend?

Ann

"Then He withdrew from them about a stone's throw, knelt down, and began to pray, 'Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me - nevertheless, not my will, but Yours be done.' Then an angel appeared to Him, strengthening Him. Being in anguish, He prayed more fervently, and His sweat became like drops of blood falling on the ground" (Luke 22:39-44, CSB).

Jesus felt fear, He felt anguish, He felt overwhelmed, He felt exhaustion. We know this because of scriptures like the one above. But what did Jesus do about it? What was His response to this event He knew was causing all these feelings? Even in the face of pain beyond measure, He told the Father, "Not my will, but YOUR will be done." Jesus had human feelings. That is one of the beautiful things about conversing with Him in prayer, we can be honest with Him and take comfort in knowing He truly understands what it is like to be human. We know Jesus NEVER sinned, yet He did have feelings. It was His response to those feelings that we can learn so much from!

Jesus did not take human emotions lightly. He knew exactly how much trouble they could cause if one gave in to them. I am sure that is one of the reasons He frequently sought alone time with God. He knew He HAD to stay close to the Father, every moment of the day. This was one example He gave us of how to survive in the flesh and not fall into temptations. Constant communion with Father! He also showed us how to fight against Satan, using God's word (Matt 4:1-11), resting when we need to (Matt 8:24), and in the gathering of the disciples He showed us the importance of a supportive faith community!

His simple, yet profound prayer in the garden showed us what we should all do in times of great crisis and pain, times of fear and exhaustion, times of sorrow and anguish, even in times of hope and anticipation: "Not my will, but Yours be done."

I recently had a sort of come-to-Jesus moment in my life. Emotions were running high and I was faced with a hard decision. One that would very much change my life. I could run towards this issue. Face it and work it out. Or I could run and choose the easy way. The calmer waters full of instant gratification and self righteousness. So I prayed, but it was one of those prayers where you THINK God is going to agree with you, ya know those? Well just imagine how I felt when He gave me very clear instructions to do exactly what I DID NOT want to do! Funny how that works isn't it? ;)

So, after crying my eyes out and having a little pity party, I said, "Okay, not my will, but Yours be done." And you know what? The weight of this issue, which before felt suffocating, was suddenly lighter. Peace has been filling me ever so slowly and gently as each day passes that I keep choosing to live in His will. I have not seen the fruit of this decision yet, but the obedience and trust in the Father is more important than the result itself. I know I am on the road God wants me to be on. I just need to quit thinking I know a short cut, because He has the map! ;) "Not my will, but Yours be done." Not my way, but YOUR way Lord!

Is there anything in your life to need to let go of? Or maybe even trying to let go of before God has told you to? Ask God about it today! With a humble heart and listening ears say "Not my will, but Yours be done," and see what peace comes when you walk in His will! I would love to discuss this with you all in the comments. Have a blessed Holy Week my SUM family!

Amanda

Hi SUM family,

It's Ann here, and today I wanted to share some words that we can pray out loud for our families -- Words I'll share in a minute. 

Our families are our land, much like the land that the Israelites fought for. Like the Israelites we have to fight for them, boot the giants out, that's Satan and his minions, and bring the Kingdom to that territory.

"But the land which you cross over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water from the rain of Heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year." (Deuteronomy 11:11-12, NKJV)

It's often a long road to fight for our loved ones, a prayer battle of years. And in battling on our knees sometimes we need new ideas, a little variety, and fresh words.

So here's a creative way that we can pray today. It actually comes in the form of a song. The song is called Lord Send Revival by Hillsong Young and Free, and its words are a prayer and plea to the God of the Heavenly Armies for a particular territory.

Can I suggest you find a quiet corner, put on the song and speak or sing it as a prayer specifically for your family? The lyrics are here, and a video of the song is below. I'll be doing that too this afternoon as this post goes live.

Happy praying, and may our joint prayers come up for a memorial before God (Acts 10:4).

Peace like a river, wash over me.

Immerse me in water as deep as the sea.

Hide me in love your healing embrace.

Peace like a river, wash over me.

As I worship Your majesty,

I worship Your Holy Name,

Jesus my everything,

All that I am is Yours.

Come Holy Spirit, rain down on me (I feel his presence as I type that!)

Break open the Heavens and drench the unseen.

Pour out Your presence as I pour out your praise

Come Holy Spirit, Lord have your way.

Open the Heavens, fling wide the gates

Flood every heart with mercy

Pour out your presence, inhabit our praise

As we cry Holy Holy

Lord send revival, Lord send it now

A move of your Spirit, Heaven break out

Come now in power, cover this land

Like you've done it before

Would you do it again.