Bingo Bango Bongo!

Greetings from Malta!

Yesterday in the Rome airport I was walking by a shop and I saw a set of bongos.  The Lord said to buy the bongos.  So I went in, and without asking the price, I bought the bongos.  It turned out that they cost a lot less than I had thought they would they would.  When I told the rest of the team about the purchase, they got excited.  The dancers on the team especially got excited about the bongos, hoping that we can prayer walk/dance in the streets to the beat of bongos.

It wasn’t until later that I remembered the team leader’s teaching about the power or rhythmic drumming, hand clapping, and movement as a prayer tool.  Ha!  I couldn’t help but smile!

As we waited for boarding time, one girl asked if she could play the bongos.  I said, “Of course!” and handed them over.  She played a little while, but quietly there in the noisy airport.  I encouraged her to really give them a good thumping, but she kept playing quietly.  I think that perhaps, like me, she is not very experienced with bongos, and just wanted to try them out.

When we arrived, I couldn’t believe how pretty Malta is.  With ancient sun-bleached stone buildings, it looked very much like we were landing in the Holy Land, but with water all around.  And I guess that’s what it is, since the Apostle Paul was shipwrecked here, and the island embraced Christianity since that time.

We are 3 teams composed of many nationalities, many of whom, like me, live in a country other than their country of origin.  The 3 teams are an evangelistic team, a prayer team (which includes me!), and a dance team.  The prayer and dance teams will be working in and around the Mediterranean Regional Prayer Center here in Valletta, while the evangelistic team will be out on the streets all over the island.  The MRPC is also known as a House of Prayer, but they gave the name Malta House of Prayer to others.

The prayer and dance teams are being hosted by locals who have rented what I can only describe as a magnificent (and magnificently furnished) 3-storey villa overlooking the bay toward Valletta (the capital).  The basement and roof are also in use, giving the villa 5 working levels in all.  Last night we were welcomed with a BBQ feast and party on the roof.  As the sun set over Malta, the building facades were lit up, becoming even more beautiful, with the light twinkling off the dark water.

I brought the bongos up from my room in the basement and handed them to Celeste because of the way her face lit up when she saw them.  She played around on them a while, then when 2-year-old Jilly came over, she taught Jilly how to play, encouraging her to really pat them hard enough to produce sound.

This morning when Jilly saw the bongos, she boldly came and played them like a little expert, grinning in delight.  If it had been only for that moment, it was totally worth buying the bongos.

At the prayer house, I felt led to go out of my comfort zone and sign up for the very first overnight shift—way, way out of my comfort zone!  I am expecting God to do great things!  Go bang some bongos for the Lord and step out of your comfort zone.  You will discover what I’ve been saying all these years: God is good!  Oh yes!  God is good!

Prayerlife Revolution

Greetings from Romania!

I was telling my hostess (Clara from my book, “Look, Listen, Love”) about how my prayers have changed over the past year.  But actually the change goes back before that.  I was divorced in 2008, and the thing about divorce is that it messes up your mind.  I was having trouble praying because every time I closed my eyes, my mind went back to the divorce, chewing on it like a dog with a bone.  So I got a notebook and started writing out my prayers.  For two years I wrote my prayers in notebooks, then little by little I was able to spend time in prayer without a notebook: five minutes, then ten, and supplementing those prayers with written prayers.  Finally about a year ago I was able to pray without using a notebook at all, and started spending more time in prayer.

Then I went back to the US last fall and stayed with my mom for five months.  Mom invited me to her centering prayer group.  I hadn’t heard of centering prayer, so I was intrigued.  Centering prayer is also called contemplative prayer, and could also be called meditation.  Christian meditation, unlike other meditation, does not involve emptying your mind.  Instead, it is contemplating God or an aspect of God’s character.  Actually, centering prayer has been practiced for centuries, and like many good things, the devil has his counterfeit version.

I went to the centering prayer group and found that it wasn’t difficult at all to pass 20 minutes contemplating God.  In fact, in later sessions I found myself disappointed at having to stop after only 20 minutes.

During my time in the US I went to a missionary conference in Tucson.  I stayed an extra day because I had never been to Tucson.  So I went to the Botanical Gardens and late in the afternoon I was just entering the Saguaro National Park.  There, just as I was entering the park was a sign: Desert House of Prayer.  I was intrigued, so I hooked a U turn.  I was welcomed and invited to evening prayer.

After evening prayer I returned to my original itinerary, Saguaro National Park.  By then it was sunset, and seeing the majestic saguaro cacti at sunset was absolutely spectacular.  There was a reverent feeling of being in a natural cathedral.

Since returning to Europe, I’ve continued centering prayer by myself.  I have found that in those times when I don’t bombard God with petitions, but just sit quietly at His feet, are the times of great emotional healing.  If you’ve never tried centering prayer, I recommend it.  Here is the official centering prayer website where you can find out more about it: http://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/.  But really, the best way to learn about it is to do it.

Here’s a website for the Desert House of Prayer: http://www.deserthouseofprayer.org/.

And here’s a website for Saguaro National Park: http://www.nps.gov/sagu/index.htm.

God is good!

Coincidence is Spelled G-O-D

When I had it in my heart two years ago to get an apartment in Milan, the idea was to use it as a guesthouse for visiting missionaries and pastors—the first ever (though I am not the only one to have this idea).  As I started using my first apartment for hosting, there was a lot of opposition—opposition which had a human face, but was clearly inspired by the enemy that is not flesh and blood.  At that time I hadn’t built a team of intercessors for the ministry yet.  That was a classic rookie mistake.  I am still learning how to do this whole missionary/ministry thing.  Anyway, as a result of the opposition, I was led to leave that apartment, go on last summer’s Faith Trip, and spend the past 13 months living out of a suitcase, first here and then in the US.

Upon my return to Italy, I got a green light from God to go look for an apartment.  This time around, the guesthouse apartment project has a team of intercessors praying it through to victory.  This was the second apartment I looked at—and I really only looked at the other one as a courtesy to a friend.

Besides serving as a missionary guesthouse, this apartment will have a second purpose, as a House of Prayer for Europe—the first House of Prayer specifically for Europe.

I am now in the apartment, but nowhere near ready for hosting.  When I moved in two weeks ago, the apartment was empty—even the kitchen was empty, just 4 walls and pipes coming out of one of those walls.  The kitchen is still empty, but little by little the rest of the apartment is being filled.  Here is a list of things still needed for the apartment:

• Refrigerator
• Kitchen cabinets, sink
• Oven, stove
• Beds – 4 (I am sleeping on a folding bed donated by a friend)
• Sofas – 1 large, 1 loveseat (one loveseat was donated by a friend)
• Wardrobes – 5 (a friend has two large wardrobes and one small to give me, but we need to figure out how to get them here)
• Tables – 1 small (2-4 seats), 1 large (8+ seats)
• Chairs – 15, plus folding chairs
• Bedside tables – 3
• Light fixtures – 6 ceiling, 1 wall, 1 with mirror for bathroom
• Lamps – 2 desk lamps, 2 bedside, 2 floor lamps
• Dressers – 2
• Desks – 2
• Bookshelves – 3
• Rolling garment racks – 8

You may be wondering about that last item.  Why on earth would I need rolling garment racks, and why eight of them?  The custodian of the building loaned me a rolling garment rack and it answered a couple of problems for the living room, which will serve as the House of Prayer:  how to display the flags of Europe in such a way that they can easily be taken down, prayed over, waved, danced with, etc.  The racks with flags on S hooks will also help to divide the living room into living and dining space without such division being permanent.

On Sunday I saw two English-speaking friends at church.  One of them expressed a need for fellowship in English.  I said, “Why don’t you come over and we’ll have a Bible study?”  So we set an appointment for the next evening in my apartment.  I contacted the other friend and invited her, too.  She eagerly accepted and asked for my address.  We had both moved since the last time we had seen each other (over a year ago), but I knew that she still lived in the same neighborhood.  When she saw my address she replied, “I live on the same street—girlfriend, we’re neighbors!”

In preparing for the Bible study, I spent time in prayer, inviting the Holy Spirit to be our Teacher.  I love to teach, but I love even more hearing from God.  In introducing these two friends to each other, a lesson flowed effortlessly from the conversation.  The Holy Spirit had indeed showed up and taught us from God’s Word.  And we each enjoyed an evening of beautiful fellowship.

One friend was looking for work, and the other had a wonderful idea for finding plenty of work.

Although the house is bare, and I only had two small lights, a loveseat, and two folding chairs, I was very happy to see the apartment begin its ministry purpose.  This was the first of many such evenings.  And it happened through a series of coincidences, though not really coincidences, if you know what I mean.

Moving In and Moving On

Change is an exhilarating, often uncomfortable thing, but with change comes growth.  Growth is what I see in the future:  Growth for the ministry and growth for my faith.  Change and the resulting growth are part of the law of the Kingdom.  God is doing a new thing!

Changes:

• The organization has had a change of personnel.  Debbie has left to follow God’s call on her life.  Thanks, Debbie, for all your help, and all the best for the future.
• Laurie has volunteered to take over as the interim (hopefully permanent!) Secretary/Treasurer on our Board of Directors.  Laurie and I have been friends for almost 35 years.  She is a woman of big faith and a fierce prayer warrior wrapped in a cute little package.  Welcome, Laurie!  I look forward to a fruitful collaboration.
• With the change in personnel, also comes a change of name.  Barnabas European Ministries will change its name to European Faith Missions.  Our 501(c)3 tax exempt status with the IRS remains intact, so all donations are still tax-deductible.
• I have just acquired the apartment in Milan that God indicated to me back in the beginning of April.  This means the end of living out of a suitcase—after 13 months, I was ready!—a very welcome change, indeed!  But it also means the beginning of several other challenges:
• The apartment is empty and needs everything, including the kitchen sink (really!).
• When the apartment is furnished, I will open it up as a missionary guesthouse—the first ever in Milan.
• The apartment will also serve as a House of Prayer for Europe—the first anywhere specifically to pray for Europe.
• In pursuit of the apartment, I’ve had to cease my travels.  But now I have a pretty busy travel schedule coming up.
• With such a busy travel schedule, I will need a caretaker for the apartment once it is opened for guests.

The Kingdom is always advancing!  God is good!