Chadwick's response to 9/11 was to pray. More than that, she writes, “He was calling me to become an active prayer warrior for a hurting and broken world that He deeply loves.” (4) As her prayers expanded, she tried to be faithful and listen to God.
She saw a pattern develop and soon began teaching others the six steps to developing a deeper and more effective prayer life. The steps are interrelated – they depend on each other. The steps that she has laid out in this book have revolutionized her prayer life.
Be Alert to God and to the needs around you. You must be intentional at this, she says. She tells of the life changes she made to help her hear the quiet voice of God.
Be Specific, specific enough to recognize the answers as they come. She makes lists of her prayer requests and gives space in the book for readers to do likewise.
Pray With Authority, praying God's Word into situations. She provides a 21 day experiment to discover how God's Word can add power to your prayers. She shows how the prayer Jesus taught His disciples provides a well-balanced prayer diet.
Agree With Others in Prayer. Learn the power of agreement. It seems to ignite prayer with extra power.
Arm Yourself with Spiritual Strength for spiritual as well as earthly battles. Chadwick has learned that her prayer life works best when she is alert and self-controlled. She takes steps to connect with Jesus throughout the day.
Answer God's Call to go into the world with the good news of Jesus Christ and share His love. You will see the hurting people and the needs in the world. You will share in the sufferings of Christ.
Chadwick shares many stories of her own experiences and those of others. They are incredible and really encouraging. Chadwick shares what she has learned, the footprints she has left in her journey with God.
There are several added “bonuses” at the end of the book: personal reflection questions (useful for group study too), a leader's guide for discussion groups (great for novice leaders), a quick start guide to using her card system, and a list of additional resources chadwick has found beneficial.
This is a great book for any Christian who wants to see their prayer life rise to a more effective level.
Marilynn Chadwick is the cofounder and principal speaker of Women Under Construction, an outreach of Forest Hill Church, where her husband, David, is senior pastor. She has a BA in journalism and a master's degree in counseling. She also founded Seeds of Hope, a nonprofit providing education for kids with limited resources. Marilynn and her husband have three children and one grandchild.
Howard Books (a division of Simon & Schuster), 241 pages.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review.
No comments:
Post a Comment