Posts tagged ‘vulnerable’
What I learned about prayer from my friend Mariah
Korean Style of Prayer
During Proskuneo’s Worship Institute, in June 2011, I was asked to talk about what prayer is like in the Korean Church. One of the things I talked about was how the adults had great endurance in prayer for long periods of time. I saw it as a way of petitioning before the Lord.
I shared Philippians 4:4-9…
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
What I learned…
One of the students, Mariah, talked about her prayer time as she reflected on the teaching. She said that in her bible the word petition has a definition that came along with it, which said: definite request.
Mariah said that she has an analytical mind and this has been a source of anxiety at times. Why? I’m guessing it’s because you’re just trying to figure out everything and then it becomes overwhelming. (My wife is like this.)
Sometimes we go before God with vague prayers about a difficult situation and expect God to do something miraculous. I realize that sometimes we don’t know what to say, but that’s why….
It’s so important to spend some extended time with God. It’s important to share what’s going on in your life with your brothers and sisters in Christ. It’s important to be vulnerable before God. And it’s important to be specific with our prayers with God.
Questions for you
1. What do you need to petition before the Lord?
2. Who can you call to pray alongside you?
3. When can you open up some extended time to seek the Lord?
4. What’s holding you back from being vulnerable with God?
Blog post by Peter Kihyun Park
© 2011, Peter Park. All rights reserved.
My first WIC experience
Last Friday morning was a little different than usual. My son and I had an appointment with WIC.
If you haven’t heard of WIC before, it’s basically a program that provides nutrition education, health services, and food vouchers for low income families. More specifically it’s a program for women, infants, and children up to age five. With my wife being the only one with a regular income we thought we’d ask for help.
The staff there were really friendly. But what I found interesting were the people that arrived there who also needed help.
One woman was a student, possibly a single mom. It sounded like she was having a hard time financially because when the WIC staff tried to call her to remind her about the appointment the phone was disconnected. Hearing that made me feel sad because she seemed so embarrassed by it.
A heavier set man, who was with his son, politely said he could watch my son as I was providing some information to a WIC staff member. The reason why this man offered this gesture was because Gabe can’t sit down for more than a few seconds. (But don’t worry, I don’t let people I just met watch my son.)
Another woman was just anxious to get in an out. She just wanted her food vouchers and leave. I can only assume she had to get back to work.
Then, I saw a very young couple…possibly in their late teens or early twenties. WIC does help people who are pregnant, so again, I can only assume she was pregnant.
As I watched these people come in and out of the office I was thankful for being part of God’s family. He’s been so faithful in watching over my family and providing for us financially. I could see that He wanted us to be at the WIC office to get vouchers to get groceries for my family.
In some ways I was glad to be there. For the first time…the needs of those who are struggling were my needs too, even though I felt like I was well taken care of because of my faith in God.
Are you struggling financially? How bad does your situation need to get before you ask for help? Are you willing to be vulnerable and let someone know your needs?
Share your story and your life…
Sincerely,
Peter Park
Blogger/Worship Leader/Speaker
peterpark@redemptionboulevard.com
(800) 453-3284
© 2010, Peter Park. All rights reserved.