In the beginning of July, Hannah and I were blessed with the privilege of attending our 4^th Journey to the Heart. The Lord used those 10 days of self-examination and time alone with Him, to reveal Himself to me in great and powerful ways! I found myself asking the first day, “Lord why am I here this week? What are you going to teach me? Why is Your Word not coming alive to me today like it should?” It was as if I took a step forward, and threw all my burdens before Him in a huge tangled mess. He spoke to me in a quiet voice that morning. He said, “Ye receive not, because ye ask not…” Such a simple answer! God is not a God of intellect or human reasoning. He doesn’t care how you word your prayers, or if you sound “put together” when you come before Him with all your worries. He much prefers a child that is desperate for Him, lost without Him, and no longer concerned about anything but Him. He wants you in your lowest, weakest state – the REAL you – void of all human strength, empty of all self. That is when He draws near and whispers in your ear the perfect answer; that is when He fills you up with Himself; that is when He provides a solution that heals every problem and destroys every burden.

My Father taught me to pray at Journey. He didn’t whip out a gigantic list of problems that I had, and tell me to fix them all so that He could wipe away my tears. He simply said, “Ask, and ye shall receive from my hand…”

So I asked!

Prior to the Journey, the Lord had placed on my heart a tremendous burden in an area that required fervent, incessant prayer. That first day at Journey, I felt the Lord saying, “Sarah, you have not received, because you have not asked.” I knelt by the bed in my room, all alone, as my team members were to arrive all throughout that day. I found myself pouring out my heart before the Lord. He gave me peace as I laid it all at His feet! I was able to cast my cares upon Him and spend the remainder of the day rejoicing in His love and feeling a new awareness of His presence! It was only one day later, as I talked by phone with my younger sister Bethany, that the Lord proved His awesome power to me. She shared excitedly the miraculous story of how God had been at work, even in the very hours I had been praying. He had been answering my prayers even as I prayed them, and I had been absolutely unaware of it at the time! “Ask, and ye shall receive…”

The Lord showed me all throughout those 10 days at Journey, that life is a process!!! By this, I mean that every day we face new decisions, new choices, that bring freedom or bondage. Yes, I can choose to believe the truth in place of Satan’s lies. But this is not a one-time commitment or breakthrough. Rather, it is a daily, even moment by moment choice I must make to replace wrong with right, bondage with freedom, death with life. Mr. Norvell, one of the Godly older men who spoke at Journey, shared this with us: “Even after the bell stops ringing, it still gongs a few more times…” I discovered that the key to healing past hurts is not just saying “I forgive you.” But it is making a decision each day to emotionally release that offender when Satan triggers a painful reminder of that past hurt. In other words, when something comes to mind that has hurt me deeply (because Satan WILL bring it to mind sometime again), I must choose then and there to believe the truth, and to let love overpower the bitterness that would have its way in my heart. The pain will become less and less until the wound has healed and there remains only a scar… and these scars are reminders to us of man’s weakness, God’s unfailing love, the power of genuine forgiveness, and the freedom that comes by believing the truth! And because of these scars, we have a testimony to share of Jesus and His love, with all people and to all nations.

Perhaps the greatest lesson God taught me at Journey is this: Solutions to my problems do not come by a method, but by a relationship with Him. On Friday evening in the Northwoods, 6 teams (64+ girls) had gathered to pray in the upper prayer tower. For the first time in 4 Journeys, I witnessed the one-accord power in prayer throughout an entire group of girls and not just a single team! I watched as young ladies committed and re-committed their lives to Jesus, confessed hidden sins, cried out for freedom, and laid their requests at the feet of their Maker. During this time our team cried out for salvation for lost friends and family, healing for the sick among us, and various other needs. The Holy Spirit was present among us that night!!! Others who were far beyond the walls of the prayer tower testified that they had heard us crying out to Jesus – a noise like thunder.

Later on in the week as I waited to see how the Lord would answer our prayers, Satan attacked me with discouragement. I found myself questioning God, “Why do you not heal the sick that we prayed for? Why do you not save the lost that we lifted up to you?” It occurred to me that I had been looking to this one accord moment as the key to all my problems. I had been convinced that if we reached that one accord power in prayer, I could simply lay every prayer before the Lord and He would grant it all for me just like that. God taught me a powerful lesson on drawing near to Him, and persistently, fervently praying without ceasing. Prayer is not a one-time act. God instructs us to pray day and night, without ceasing. Furthermore, we do not use it as a tool to just check off every problem and solve every trouble. Prayer is a means of drawing us near to the heart of Jesus, and of fellowship between believers and their Heavenly Father. It is meant to be the vital part of our relationship with our King and Creator, and thus the most effective weapon in that way. God is ever teaching me that He knows my every need, and He desires me to be in full fellowship with Him, that I may trust His perfect will whatever that may be – without doubt or worry, or anxiety.

As a result of what the Lord taught me, I DID see Him answer my prayers! He didn’t always answer them the WAY I wanted, or in the timing I had expected. However, even as I prayed every day for the group from HQ that had gone to Peru, the Lord was at work. We arrived back from the Northwoods around the time the Peru team arrived back at HQ. They testified of heart transformation, and the salvation of many key leaders in Peru – the very leaders we had been praying for by name during the course of our Journey. God DOES answer prayer! But since prayer is fellowship with our Heavenly Father, we must come to the point of total and complete surrender - where we have no will of our own, but only that of Christ’s will, our will.

It is with great humility that I share with you the valuable lessons God has been impressing upon me, and urge you to draw near to the heart of our Heavenly Father! Lay every burden at His feet and cast your cares upon Him. He will open His hand to pour forth untold blessings upon you, if you simply ask in faith, believing.

For more pictures, click here.