The Inner Man

"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith." Ephesians 3:16-17a

Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by all the prayer needs I see around me, how about you? There are our families, friends, unsaved neighbors, the country, our city, the unreached, and the list can go on forever. Aren't we glad that Jesus lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25)!! I think a very important aspect of prayer that we easily neglect is prayer for ourselves. As women we want to take care of everyone and often put other's needs ahead of our own, and sometimes we just run out of time for ourselves.

In Ephesians 3 Paul prays for the inner man of the believers in Ephesians. I think this is such an important area that we cannot neglect. Prayer for ourselves helps to deepen and strengthen our love for Jesus. I want everything that I do to flow out of that place of love in my heart for Jesus. When I pray for my inner man not only am I deepening my love for Jesus, I am also inviting him into every area of my life, my mind, my heart, and emotions. As I bring these areas under the love of Jesus he begins a transformation in my spirit. This transformation can enable and equip me to walk closer in step with the Spirit so that I can discern where he is leading me in my place of intercession.

I have come to the conclusion that I cannot possibly pray for every prayer need every day. I look to Jesus to lead and guide me in my prayers. It is so awesome to see how he leads me to pray for just the right thing at the right time. How he moves me to pray may be different than how he leads you to pray. This is the beauty of the body of Christ!

I want to encourage you this week to take some time and pray for your inner man to be strengthened. A great place to start is Ephesians 3:16-19.

Father,
I pray that you would strengthen us in our inner being. That would would enable us to grow in a deeper love and knowledge of your Son, Jesus. That the ladies at Oldham Campus would be lovesick for you. That as we pray and seek you our hearts would expand with love. I ask that you continually transform us into people who are walking in step with you. That we would always be tuned into you and to what you are doing in our situation. I thank you that you are awakening so many hearts to you. Take us deeper and farther in you than we ever thought we could go. You have so much for us. I don't want to miss one second. May things and earthly pleasures pale in comparison to our love for you and your love for us. Your are beautiful beyond any description. May you look upon us with your eyes of fire and burn us with your love this week and beyond!

Your are so worthy, Jesus!
Amen

P.S. Don't forget Holly will be available to pray with you ladies this Sunday, October 30. She will be in the Cafe after the 9:00 service until probably around 11:45!

YES !!! Thank you Sherry and Jan for the reminder on encouragement. I thank each one of you as christian sisters (new creatures) for encouraging ME daily. This morning in my devotional with the kids it clearly talked about something soooooooooo similar. I love it when the Lord reminds us of these things near to the same time as our others sisters and brothers. CELEBRATE was the key to the devotional this morning. Of all people, we should be the most free, alive, and interesting. After all--think about Jesus as he rejoiced so fully in life-- As you are discipling your new friends I know they see confetti all over the room and experience mornings /evenings of celebration because YOU ladies have a savior that is alive and well in each of you. Thank you for the hours you devote weekly to your small group. I cannot wait for CELEBRATION ---a time where you and your ladies can share just exactly what HE has been up to over the last weeks. A time for you to be filled up and refreshed as well. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!

Coming up ---

Desert day preparations ----prepare them the week before their desert day (with the material I passed out during summer leadership--connecting with the almighty). Share your personal experiences with your desert days and pray with them in advance that the Lord will open their hearts, ears to hear from Him.

Celebration---Friday, November 18th from 6:30-8:30. We will have a time of worship, prayer, fellowship and vision casting---- AND desserts and coffee! If you can get the rsvp total to me that would be very helpful. Remember, each group will bring 3 desserts that can be picked up and eaten without utensils (ex. cookies, bars, etc).

DL commitment for next semester----- I will be calling you all this week to get a good handle on DL's that are ready to go next semester. Many of you have asked to keep your group and take them through the next studies. Absolutely----YES! You can most definitely do that. It makes perfect sense with all that we have studied about discipling. You have built relationships with these ladies and it would be an honor to take them through the other 2 studies they have not yet completed.

Sleep well tonight~Hugs and love

Marcie

John 15:5-8

Encouraging One Another

Hello Ladies

It was so nice to see many of you Sunday at our Coffee and Danish fellowship. We are hoping each of you received prayer and encouragement from some of us and are preparing to finish strong as we complete these last weeks of study together. We were talking about how marvelous it is that as Christians we become "new" a "new creature", not just remodeled- but brand new!

Our mind, will and emotions are changed by God. 2 Corinthians 5:7 We are praying that as you study God's word and encourage one another that you continue to grow in the knowledge of God's love for you - his new creature!

I was reading a study on encouragement recently and loved the way Nicole Johnson spoke of encouragement in the foreword. I want to share some of her words with you:

"Confetti is a tangible expression of our intangible emotions. It is like happiness you can see and throw someone's way. Encouragement is to a relationship what confetti is to a party. It's light, refreshing and fun. It's cheer you can throw someone's way. But even deeper it is the assurance you are there, that you are standing behind them and supporting them. The time it takes to gather little pieces of love, grace, strength and hope is well worth it when you see what happens as you shower those gifts on someone else. It's like spiritual confetti and it is the ultimate encouragement.

As we encourage others, the Father encourages us. The two are interwoven. We can encourage others from the overflow of God's encouragement to us. It's not until we start throwing the confetti on others that we realize how much is landing on us . So grab a handful of confetti and jump in. But, be careful you are liable to find little pieces of it stuck on your clothes for weeks!"

(Nicole Johnson)

"I'm eager to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours. In this way each of us will be a blessing to the other." Romans 1:12 NLT

Love you all,

Jan & Sherry

It gave me great joy to be with each of you yesterday at the coffee and danish gathering. I know I speak on behalf of the team as well. It is always so good to see your sisters face to face isn't it? Time together is so valuable and we just don't get to sit and visit and pray together as often as we would like. SO, thank you for connecting and making that happen. For those of you who were out of town for fall break, we were jealous but still hoping the "son" was shining bright on you and your sweet families!

Heather, thank you for letting us know about Holly Dillon being in the atrium to pray for any of us in your last prayer blog. Mark your calendars for October 30 and find Holly in the atrium for some personal prayer time. She will be there after the 9:00 service until around 11:45:)

Hopefully you have sent invites to all of your ladies in study regarding CELEBRATION! November 18th -6:30 to 8:30 (read recent blogs for more information if this is the first you are seeing of celebration) we will ALL gather as a large group to celebrate all the Lord has done over the last 13 weeks of study. This will be our culminating event--they will have a chance to learn more about next semester studies with vision casting from Kristen , fellowship, pray, worship and eat. ENCOURAGE each of your ladies to come---it is a part of the commitment and I know the Lord will be glorified as we join and praise Him together. Each group will bring 3 "finger" desserts.

Desert Day is approaching for all of your groups. Remember to use the handout I shared and went over in our summer leadership training. Prepare them the study before desert day so they have an "idea" of what to bring and how to pray and prepare for the time. Let them know it might be uncomfortable and seem long initially. We cannot wait to see what they say afterward:) Our goal is for them to settle in and listen to our father. We want them to have TIME for the spirit to move. Some will have tears, some will radiate with what they heard and others will wrestle with issues etc. IT is ALL great!!!!!! Please do not shorten the time simply because you feel they might feel uneasy. It is okay---we all need more QUIET time with Him. Several of you have shared on the blog already about your personal desert day. Thank you ---share with your ladies--excite them. Praying they will mark their own desert days in on their calendar after this.

I just want to leave you with the words He shared with me this morning. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 reads, But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why for Christ's sake, I delight in weakness, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak then I am strong.

When we are seeking after Him with our whole heart and discerning his voice in all things and fully dependent on Him then we not only feel His power and presence but we channel that on to others ---lots of power in that . SO as you GO and make disciples, shepherding those around you remember in all of our many weaknesses He is strong.

Much love ~

Marcie

Good morning!

Don't forget~ the team wants to serve you and your family Danishes and Coffee in the morning at church. Please come by before or after you worship for fellowship:) Go into the cafe, pass the coffee bar on the left and then head up the stairs to find us. We want to see you THERE!

Have a blessed day,

Marcie

ACTS

Good Afternoon, Ladies! I wanted to give you a little prayer exercise for you to try with your ladies. I did this at a Bible Study once and it was very powerful and not too intimidating.

You use the ACTS format. The leader will begin with Adoration by saying," God you are so..." then the ladies can do popcorn style prayer with one or two words of what God is to them. For example, "God you are so amazing." Then you will move on to Confession. This time the leader can say something like, "God, I am so..." Then once again popcorn style prayer of one or two words of confession. For example, "God, I am so impatient." Then you will repeat this pattern with Thankful and Supplication. It was a very powerful and moving time of prayer, much more so than I thought would be. If you choose to do this exercise try to take your time and not rush through the different sections. I hope this helps you all have something practical that you can do with your ladies.

On another note, Holly Dillion will be available to pray with you ladies on October 30 after the 9:00 service until probably around 11:45. So, if you have any prayer needs please feel free to come meet with Holly. She will be in the cafe area and would love to pray for you all! Of course, you can always call or email us with prayer needs!

Have a super weekend!!

Kyle gave us great instruction this weekend on the word baptism in Matthew 28:19-20. We're so excited to see those who are responding and praying this week as many are, I'm sure, deciding if they will follow the tugging of the Holy Spirit as He works on hearts!

Matthew 28:19-20 is our great commission, ladies. "Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey all that I commanded you." It is the reason we have Women's Ministry at the Oldham Campus. We are here to make disciples.

When you read these verses in the original language you notice that there is one command with three supporting participial phrases:
Command- make disciples
Supporting phrases- 1) go, or literally, as you are going; 2) baptizing and 3) teaching

The way our English translations are written it can appear that there is more than one command. Why does that matter? It's important because we need to be very clear on what God has called us to do so that we can be about our Father's business. He has commanded us to make disciples and He instructs us by supplying three components for getting that job done.

As part of the vision for Women's Ministry at OC we've allotted "extra" weeks for completing studies so that as you are going you can make disciples. We want to give you plenty of "as you are going" time - windows of opportunity for praying, building into, answering questions, looking up verses, modeling, helping make practical applications, sharing God-at-work stories, doing all the one-anothers of Scripture, growing our prayer lives and being led by the Spirit.

Ministry is relationships. Relationships aren't scripted. They happen as you are going.

So just a reminder: it's not about filling in the blanks, completing the assignments, or checking all the boxes. It's about Jesus and people. Christ in you, the hope of glory impacting the women He's entrusted you to shepherd. Now that's exciting!

Try not to stress about schedules and details as we wind down toward the end of this semester of study. I know they're important and part of your job is to oversee these particular needs of your group. Still the best thing you can do for your group is to continue to seek after God with your whole heart daily and then moment by moment. Model that for them. And PRAY. Pray like crazy for God to show up and do His unusual task, His extraordinary work (Isaiah 28:21)!

You are an amazing vehicle for God's grace in this world and we love an appreciate you!

For His Great Glory, Kristen

Prayers of the Saints

"...Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." Revelation 5:8b

I can not get this verse out of my head today as I sit thinking and praying for you and your ladies. Sometimes I am not sure we realize what our prayers really are or mean to God. Here in Revelation it says our prayers are like incense, a sweet smelling fragrance.

If you are like me so many times before I pray I have gotten caught up in my location, who is there, what I am going to say, and a host of other things. Sometimes I get nervous that I will say the wrong thing or what I say will not make sense to those around me. It's almost like the prayers I am about to pray are not really for God, they are for me and those listening. When I get into that mentality it freezes me and I find it so hard to pray out loud. I allow fear and pride to bind me up and render me and my prayers ineffective.

For me the key to overcoming this kind of thinking has been consistent out loud prayer in my tent time. This is the place where I can open my weary soul before Jesus and lay it all at his feet. I sit in silence and let him speak, repent, pray verses of scripture over myself and my family. This is the place where the battle is won. Sometimes I just don't know what to pray. In those moments I open the Word of God, usually to the Psalms, and I just pray/read them. The more we commune with the King of Kings in our secret place the easier, I believe, praying in the public place becomes. It is no longer about me and my image. It's about him and my love and prayers being a sweet incense before his throne.

I want to challenge you and your ladies to try to pray out loud daily in your tent time. It may be awkward or uncomfortable at first, but persevere in it. Try praying a Psalm out loud, or one of Paul's prayers in Ephesians or Philippians. These are great places to start! We already know these prayers are inspired by the Holy Spirit. Remember this, YOUR prayers are like sweet smelling incense to Jesus even if they don't feel that way. He loves to hear your voice! It is lovely to him!!

Dear Father,

Thank you that we can come to you through prayer. Thank you that you hear us when we call to you and that you say our prayers are sweet to you, like incense. I pray that you would help each lady involved in Women's Ministry at Oldham Campus to grow in their prayer life. I pray that wherever they are that you take them one step deeper and closer to you during the rest of this study. That we would become a community of people who pray with reckless abandon. Because you are worthy to receive the prayers and praise of your people! So that we can see your glory manifest throughout Oldham County and beyond. That you would awaken our souls to the truth of how you can and will move if we will come before you and pray. That we would lay aside all that hinders us to run the race toward you and your heart. I pray the enemy would not be able to blind our minds with lies of fear and insecurities. I pray your Holy Spirit would speak the bold truth of who we are in you!!
For the Glory and Praise of YOUR name!
Amen

October 3 ~ Sure felt like winter this weekend but today reminds us of a perfect fall day doesn't it? Crisp, clean, fresh air and the brilliant colors in the leaves on the trees as they fall to the ground and under your feet. One foot in front of the other-walking-walking behind our Father.

Are you finding yourself in step with Him. Are you allowing Him to lead you by His spirit. I need gentle reminders often---to slow the pace down and listen intently and quietly. How are you doing in these areas yourself? Take this moment to access/pray:)

How are your ladies doing? Do they sense trust? Are they opening up more and more each week? Is their tent set ----do they have some God stories to share?

Are they hearing from Him?

These are all questions we want to have some good open discussions on weekly from here on in our small groups. These types of conversations that are focused build our faith because we hear what God is doing among us all. Take note, because you as DL's will encourage your ladies before CELEBRATION to begin praying about casually sharing these God Stories with all of us. CELEBRATION will be Friday, November 18th at Oldham from 6:30-8:30. We will celebrate God's extraordinary works in our tiny little lives, worship together, pray, and have dessert! It will be a fall theme to get us ready for Thanksgiving. Please write an invitation for each one of your ladies for this event. It is our culminating event-----an event we won't want any of them to miss. If you are excited about this night it will be contagious----so talk about it now and have them save the date. Please have your invites out by the end of next week (if you can get them out this week that is super too!) We will need each group to bring 3 finger desserts. We will not be "sitting" so it needs to be items that can be picked up with a napkin and eaten with fingers (ex. cookies, brownies, bars etc).

We have a little over a month before fall study groups end!!!!!! Can you believe it? News is NOT on the streets yet, but we want you all to be in the loop regarding next semester. The number of ladies in study depends on our leaders. We will be offering God Seeker, Discerning the Voice of God, and a new prayer study titled OMBI. Our purpose is to disciple these women and we know that takes time. It would be very powerful to take your group through all 3 studies. *The OMBI study will be available for those who have already been in God Seeker and Discerning the Voice of God. Think about where our ladies will be in their walk after a series of seeking, listening and praying. What an incredible foundation for them to build on and to share with others in their community. Would you like to walk with your ladies through this season of their life? Can we count you in for the spring as a DL? We will be asking for your commitments by October 23rd. PRAY and seek Him in this decision--we want you to be excited about this journey and helping our ladies to learn, live and then lead. (EZRA 7:10)

Looking forward to hearing from all of you on the blog~and seeing you for coffee and danish on Sunday, October 16th!

Praying for each one of you and all that are in your groups that the Lord will rise up, rouse himself, to do his work his strange work and perform his task his strange task in each of our lives (Isaiah 28:21)

Love~Marcie