|
|
| |
|
"The
wilderness and the dry land shall be glad; and the
desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose." |
|
|
Isaiah 35:1
American Standard Version |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
"Let us therefore come boldly
unto the throne of grace,
that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time
of need."
Hebrews 4:16 ~ King James
Version |
| |
|
How many times in your life have you felt completely
overwhelmed by the challenges you face everyday? If
you're like many people, just getting up each day and
putting one foot in front of the other may take all the
courage you can muster.
But what if you knew, when you awakened each day, that
God's precious daughters and sons all around the world,
were laying your needs at our heavenly Father's "Throne
of Grace." This is exactly what happens everyday in
Transformation Garden. |
| |
|
"Pray without ceasing."
I Thessalonians 5:17 ~ King
James Version |
| |
|
The first exciting event which occurred at
Transformation Garden when we began our ministry took
place within minutes of our initial posting on the
internet. The first person who responded asked for
prayer and this was a signal to me that God had more
than just the written word He wanted us to share in our
Transformation Garden outreach around the world.
During the last five years, thousands of prayer requests
have been sent to the "Garden," and I've read every one
of them and many of God's daughters and sons, here in
the "Garden," have faithfully joined their voices with
ours in prayer over all these petitions. |
| |
|
"Jesus told them a story showing that it was necessary
for
them to pray consistently and never quit."
Luke 18:1 ~ The Message |
| |
|
Over the last few months, though, something truly
miraculous has taken place, specifically in my own life
and it has to do with the prayer ministry here in
Transformation Garden. Not only have the number of
requests for prayer more than doubled, but the amount of
time I needed to spend in prayer increased, too. I,
personally, found this to be a great blessing in my
life. While I'd like to tell you that all of a sudden, I
had more time each day to pray, just the opposite
happened. Every roadblock I could imagine, and many I
could not even think of, were laid in my path each day.
However, right in the middle of this time, when the
numbers of prayer requests increased, a flood of emails
also arrived with notes that told me about the
individual joys so many of you were experiencing as God
worked, quietly and effectively, to shower His precious
children with His compassionate love. I cannot begin to
tell you what a tremendous reassurance these notes gave
me to persist not only in prayer, but in the daily work
of writing all the devotionals here in Transformation
Garden. |
| |
|
"So let's walk right up to Him
and get what He is so
ready to give. Take the mercy, accept the help."
Hebrews 4:16 ~ The Message |
| |
|
When I began to recognize more clearly the power
available to each one of us through the gift of
prayerful communication with our heavenly Father, the
words in Hebrews 4:16 came to my mind, especially the
phrase, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of
grace." As I shared this encouraging passage of
Scripture with my dear artist friend, Betty Carr, whose
watercolors visually convey the message of
Transformation Garden, she began to pray for guidance
and wisdom in providing the visible inspiration for the
"Throne of Grace," which reminds each of us that our
Father wants us to come to Him with the boldness of one
who is a child of the King. And as our Father tells us,
His throne is accessible to all His children. It is this
spiritual inspiration which is reflected in Betty's
artwork for the throne on this page.
One of my favorite old-time pastors, Charles Haddon
Spurgeon, eloquently wrote that: "When we pray, we are
standing in the palace, on the glittering floor of the
great King's own reception room." Pastor Spurgeon
continues with these encouraging words: "Do not bring
before God stinted petitions and narrow desires, but
remember, as high as the heavens are above the earth, so
high are His ways above your ways and His thoughts above
your thoughts. Ask, therefore, after a Godlike fashion,
for great things, for you are before a great throne. Oh,
that we always felt this when we came before the throne
of grace."
For those unmet needs in your life – the heartaches and
yearnings that should not be ignored, discounted or
forgotten, I invite you to please share them here – at
the "Throne of Grace" – and our prayer team promises to
understand, remember, and above all – pray for you and
your individual needs. |
|
- |
|
 |
|
| When you're feeling
drained, empty or alone, please join us by sharing your
prayer requests. Your name and prayer requests will be
shared within the circle of our prayer team, where we
will leave your needs at our Father's "Throne of
Grace." By submitting a
prayer request, you'll also be added to our
Daily Devotional
email list. Every Monday through Friday, you'll receive
the Daily Devotional
in your inbox. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
