Category: prayers from a broken heart

Ask God for Mercy

 

Please pray for Africa when you wash your hands again today for the millionth time.

How the discomfort of chapped hands is getting old, I am sure!

And what a blessing to have fresh water that you didn’t carry on your head back to your home.

What a blessing to have soap. Any soap at all! Let alone ones that smell so lovely.

Ask God for mercy to protect the poor who would wash their hands with soap if they could.

(some local “toilets”)

 

Please pray for Africa when you take your extra vitamin C and daily vitamins.

I know we’re all doing what we can to avoid sickness.

And what a blessing to be able to avoid HIV and tuberculosis as a baseline before this virus.

What if HIV weren’t a choice? What if vaccine access was inconsistent?

Ask God for mercy for the immunocompromised people.

Please pray for Africa when you avoid public places.

Going from busy days to quiet hours can be maddening, I understand and have been there. It takes time to adjust and find new purpose in the quiet.

And what a blessing to be able to avoid crammed public transport – the very transport to get to the hospital after walking an hour to get to the pick-up spot.

Ask God for mercy for fellow Africans to be able to get to COVID-19 testing facilities, that the facilities would be equipped, and that those sick would not infect the entire transport vehicle.

America, my words are sincere.

I understand the legitimate challenges of this virus. This inconvenience and even this fear.

The beauty I have seen as you all make the sacrifices to protect the vulnerable is admirable.

Our African brothers and sisters are praying for your sick and your vulnerable populations.

Please pray for Africa too. Ask God for mercy.

No one gets to pick where they’re born. Ask God for mercy.

My heart is broken for you, brothers and sisters, there in America.

And my heart is broken for our brothers and sisters waiting here in Africa.

Viruses aren’t population selective.

The challenge is different and strong all over the world.

We’re praying for you, America.

Please pray for Africa.

Ask God for mercy.

 

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My Revival (in the ICU)

These are the songs that I listened to on repeat in the ICU. I cranked these truths high, sometimes playing them for the nursing staff so Matt and I could listen together during those quieter NG tube visit (it was really hard to talk) days.

These particular songs brought tears to my eyes as I let their truths sink in.

I can’t tell you how many times I listened to this song on repeat and just let the truths of God’s Word soak in. Sometimes it felt really dark and I wondered when I would make forward progress steps, so I would just repeat the chorus: “You are my revival. Jesus on You, I’ll wait. I’ll lean on Your promise. You will renew my strength.” I repeated it again and again in my head when I couldn’t even speak that truth around the NG tube. I repeated it when the hours seemed to stand still and even move backward. And my heart cried it out with Lauren Daigle with tears streaming. “You ARE my revival! Jesus on You, I’ll wait!!! I’ll lean on Your promise! You WILL renew my strength!” And sure enough, I found my rest in His Everlasting Name.

He took all that was wrong and made it right. Sometimes I had to repeat that truth in my head when things weren’t going that great. I will stand my ground where Hope can be found!

Though I must confess that my favorite time to hear these songs, bringing tears to my eyes, was their playing in the car ride home from the hospital on January 4th. There was no more beautiful sound than hearing my children sing along to the truths God had breathed so deeply into my heart throughout the previous 11 days.

So if you happen to see Lauren Daigle ;), tell her thanks for being used of God to encourage me through my long hours in the ICU.

And since I was kind of stuck there for a while in the ICU/hospital, I used my time to pray this over our people group and two that God has laid on my heart for months that I am desperately praying come back to the Lord.

I’m still crying out to those dry bones and dead hearts to come alive in the Name of Jesus Christ, whether I’m in Mozambique, in the US, or even in the ICU in South Africa. I will not stop calling out for the Holy Spirit to draw these precious souls out of the ashes into Life in Jesus Christ. Let us see an army rise in the beautiful name of Jesus!!!

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