Intercession, Morning Tea, and Hearing God?.....All in a Day's Work at YWAM!

Morning Tea--aka Cuppa Time!!!  (Kayla, Me, Whitney)

Week two is underway and so far it has been amazing! Each week we have a different speaker and this week it is Ari Sloots, a staff member on the Perth YWAM base on the west coast of Australia. This week has been "Hearing the Voice of God". It is only Tuesday and already God has spoken loads of truth and grace to our team through Ari. One of the things that I've taken away from his lectures so far is this idea that our thoughts about everything (ourselves, others, etc.) have the power to dictate our futures. Yes, God has a plan for us and yes He wants those plans to come into fruition, but He will never ever force them on us. Jesus warned the Pharisees so much about their inner lives because He understood that what we think affects our attitudes, which then affect our actions and our ultimate character.

So this morning, we each spent some time in prayer, asking God to shine a spotlight on those thoughts and attitudes that we hide inside of ourselves that only serve as a barrier between ourselves and Jesus Christ--those things that make it absolutely impossible to hear His voice. After that, we let some things go. It was really freeing to surrender our weaknesses, whether it be mistrust, fear, insecurity, pain, or whatever, in front of our team of students and staff. God was there and the enemy was binded.

An important aspect of our lives on base (though one that was basically foreign to me before I got here) is intercession. For anyone who is unfamiliar with it, as I was, intercession is simply praying for people other than ourselves. We follow a pattern on base while interceding:

1. Confessing Sin

2. Surrendering Self

3. Binding the Enemy from interfering/causing distraction

On Friday, we had base intercession. There are many people outside of my DTS that work for the base and twice a week we come together as one body ( Monday: worship; Friday: intercession). That morning, Bruce Skinner asked that we pray for Cambodia--a country broken by violence and low self-worth. We broke into groups and prayed through the first three steps. Then we were all quiet as we asked God to show us what He had on His heart for the people of Cambodia. What came next was very cool, as people began to share pictures that came to mind, verses that popped into their heads, and words that they just felt God had been laying on their hearts.

This morning, we had DTS intercession (where just the member and staff of the school attended) and we prayed for Sudan. I felt very distracted the whole time. Where things came to mind during the first intercession, nothing happened this morning. So I just began to pray for things I thought might sound good (not an awesome way to pray). But then, as intercession went on, and people began to share what God had been putting on their heart, I felt like God was telling me to just listen to what He was saying through others and to pray for that. I can never hear the voice of God if I'm not willing to listen. So I listened as the themes of justice and restoration sprang up again and again in every group. "Pray for this" I heard. And so that's what I did. And it was good.

 It's hard to articulate everything I'm learning in writing. Personally, I think that's why the Bible had to be inspired. There's no way, man could consistently express the gospel and it's effects so well. =)

I know I do this in nearly every blog...but I cannot even begin to express my gratitude for everyone who has supported me in this journey. Already, God is working on my heart and I know that after this six months, my life is going to look drastically different from who I was before. I have never been more excited about anything in my entire life!!! Thank you!!

I am still short about $4000 to cover the last bit of lecture phase and outreach phase (which takes off at the beginning of December). I need to raise this ASAP. If you are at all interested in supporting me, I would love to have be a part of my life and my journey in this season! Take a look at the "Support" tab above, or shoot me an e-mail with any questions at alyssa.eagen@gmail.com!