How was Faith Walkers?

It happens every year, you get back from Faith Walkers and your brain and heart are full. You are encouraged, challenged and need time to think and process through all the information, love, and Truth that was just given to you, and your friends want to know "How was Faith Walkers?" I always answer, "AMAZING!!", but that doesn't even begin to do it justice. So this year, I'm going to try to analyze it a bit better...

"God grab us by our chubby faces and look in your eyes. Get our attention and tell us of your love." 

     A pastor started the conference off with a prayer like that. At least that's what my heart prayed with him...And my goodness did God deliver!

    Last year was a very VERY hard year for me, so I went into Faith Walkers asking God to show me His pursuit of me in love and I was not disappointed. 

     During one session God pursued me so intensely that I had to skip the second one just to be with him. In the session, I was "Randomly" sitting in the chair with a silver dollar under it and won it. I was given verses that spoke directly to my heart and the speaker was looking directly in my eye as he said the verses. All the while I had the sense of being intensely and lovingly stared at, by God. He literally grabbed my chubby face and told me of his love for me.

     If that wasn't enough, God also answered 3 of my prayers. I've been persevering in prayer for a year and a half for a friend and watched as God answered the prayer before my eyes. I've also been praying for another friend for a few weeks now, and watched as God answered that one too. The last prayer was in passing. A friend looked weighted down, and I knew they had taken a vow. I prayed and asked God to release them from it, and then got to see them freed. Filled with joy and a grown understanding of God. 

     This was such a big deal to me not only because my friends' lives are closer to God than before, but because in answering those prayers God answered several more for me personally, affirmed me and challenged me. I had recently been wondering if my prayer was even worth it, or useful. I had seen God do big things with my prayer in the past, but lately I had been feeling like God just wasn't listening to me, so it wouldn't make a difference if I stopped. Then bam!! He answered those 3 types of prayers and that's important to me because those are the only kinds of prayers I pray. I am like the persistent widow for the duration of the need, pray for something coming up, or I pray something once or twice in passing. These prayers I had been praying were good examples. 

     I don't know if I've been on my knees for a believer more than the first one I mentioned, and the last one was a prayer from an observation I had made, simply as I walked by them in the hotel. I don't know if it would have turned into a persistent prayer, but I doubt it, and will never know, because God answered me with a resounding yes.

     God does hear us and he does answer us. Sometimes the answer is no, and sometimes the answer is yes. But don't stop asking.

"We pray all to often for what we want. Instead we should be praying for what we already have (the Holy Spirit)."  

I asked for things that the Holy Spirit could deliver, because in different words for each of them I was asking for the Holy Spirit for them. I have been encouraged to continue in my prayer, challenged to pray for more of the Holy Spirit and challenged to pray more often, and more consistently for people.

     All of the messages were great, and these men who spoke have True hearts for God. Please take the time to go find and listen to the messages. I cannot do them justice and can only share what God spoke to me through them, and while that is valuable, I bet God wants to tell you something else through those messages.

     So, how was Faith Walkers? It was a great time to meet with, hear from, and grow in Christ. My brain is full, my heart is encouraged and I am tired...Faith Walkers was AMAZING!!