Fervent, Strategy #1: Passion

I have just started reading "Fervent: A Woman's Battle Plan for Serious, Specific and Strategic Prayer" by, Priscilla Shirer.

I must admit, I am not very good at being consistent. I struggle with diligence, but I'm going to push. I AM going to push! I want God to fan the flame in my heart and reignite my passion for Him through prayer.

Ideally, I will be decently consistent, at the very least, with this season of the blog. Clearly, I have many excuses to come up with like a baby, cleaning, knitting, social media, movie watching, me time...you know, really important stuff.

If you choose to read my blog, I welcome your reminders and encouragement to push myself. Please, your accountability would bless me greatly!

I'm trying not to set my bar so high that I get discouraged and don't accomplish anything. That being said, goal number one is to read and work through this book. I desire to sharpen my edge through serious, specific and strategic prayer. However, I also want to share this experience with you.

I anticipate God doing a mighty work in my heart and life. I expect to have many obstacles to overcome. I also expect the victory to point to God. I want to show you He is alive and active! Of course, I need to reminded myself of that too.

Currently, I am still "re-transforming" (if you have read my other posts). Yet again, I have been derailed and distracted. I am so thankful God is patient and always there when I plug back in.

So, here we go!

This book outlines the 10 primary ways Satan seeks to disarm our prayer life. Priscilla describes Strategy 1 (Against Your Passion) as this, "He seeks to dim your whole desire for prayer, dull your interest in spiritual things, and downplay the potency of your most strategic weapons (Eph. 6:10-20)" (page 15).

Prayer, our strongest weapon, is fueled by passion. She begins this chapter by saying "If I were your enemy, I'd seek to dim your passion, dull your interest in spiritual things, dampen your belief in God's ability and His personal concern for you, and convince you that the hope you've lost is never coming back-and was probably just a lie to begin with (Page 25)."

I have let my passion be stamped out. So, here begins my fight. I want my faith to be stronger and deeper. I want to have a closer relationship with my Savior. I want to impact this world and land powerful blows against the darkness in this world.

Along with praying through a acronym (P-praise, R-repentance, A-Ask, Y-yes), Priscilla encourages using God's words in our prayers. I found Psalms 23 coming to mind as I entered the "yes" portion of my prayer today, so I reworded it to fit my life. I used it to remind myself what I know about Him. Here is what I prayed:

"I know You are my Shepherd and You meet all my needs. I know You provide calm and comfort in the storm. I know You save me and lead me for Your glory. I know You protect me from Satan. I know You are with me. I know You provide for me when I am under attack. Your blessings are prefect. I know that life with You is filled with goodness and love, and they will purse me. I can't escape Your blessings. I know Your salvation provides Heaven here on earth, despite the lies Satan tells me. I know this battle, this war, is won and Satan is defeated and powerless."

I have been dulled towards spiritual things and my view of God's power greatly diminished. Today, I've asked God to give me a new heart and spirit. He promises to remove our heart of stone for a feeling heart of flesh (Ezek. 36:26) so, that is what I'm cashing in on. Today begins the journey allowing prayer to release all eternal resources (page 23). That being said, I welcome your prayers.