MICHELLE: Katie, thanks for taking the time to answer some questions about prayer. I know you are a prayer warrior, but I also know that prayer has not always looked the same in your life. Can you describe how it has been redefined for you over time?
KATIE: Where do I start? I have so many things that I want to share about prayer! I have so many notes and thoughts and examples, literally a lifetime of being redefined. I want to share a message of hope and encouragement. But I feel like if I don’t watch out you are going to get my life story through prayer.
My life - literally before I was born - was a prayer.
Me, my marriage, my family, my friendships, my works, Iron Rose Sister Ministries (IRSM) in particular…
The ministry would not be here if it were not for prayer. Prayer can be the alpha and omega of our lives, our days, our decisions and our relationships.
What a beautiful way to connect us with others and with our Father—the mission of IRSM—through prayer!
My prayers have redefined me in many, many ways.
Prayer has changed from a laundry list of requests to an open conversation.
Prayer can look different to many people but as a child of the 90’s in a small-town USA in a church of Christ it looked and sounded just about the same to me. It could be predicted almost as easily as the three songs and a prayer. I know now that there were prayer warriors in the room, one of which, who I never heard pray out loud while I was a child, may easily have been my own mother. She may not have formally prayed with me, but her willingness to listen and teach me to share played a part in my own prayer life.
As a child my nightly prayer was, “As I lay me down to sleep I pray the Lord my soul to keep and if I die before I wake I pray the Lord my soul to take. God bless Mommy, Daddy, Sissy, Gigi, Grandma, Grandpa etc. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.”
My prayers as a child
My prayers in college
My prayers as a young mother
My prayers as a missionary
My prayers as a mother of young children - lots of anger
My prayers as a wife
My prayers as IRSM Board President
For a long time, I found my identity in being a missionary and therefore when that was missing I was scared and angry. I knew my identity was found in Christ, not in anything else… but I didn’t believe it or put it into practice until I was refined through prayer.
Prayer was where I found that identity, when my prayers were authentic and real—that lead to prayers with others that were the same way.
MICHELLE: Is there a facet of prayer that you feel has been especially transformative or redefining?
KATIE: One of the biggest examples for me which also has refined other most important relationships in my life is forgiveness. Unforgiveness in my life created a fear that was manifested as a warning sign of anger. My marriage and family were suffering and I found relief through forgiveness that comes through prayer. Not just prayer and not just forgiveness from God but open conversational, untraditional prayers with prayer warriors of different ages and strengths.
Right now, I am going to focus on the prayer of forgiveness and how it has removed the sin of anger in my life. It was a process of refinement that used the fire of forgiveness to remove the impurities of anger and unforgiveness that redefined the way I pray.
I cannot underestimate what prayer has done in my life. Like so many things in our relationship with God, it’s simple but not easy.
The simplest and most important message for this blog is that through prayer, real conversation with Eloah selikhot, God of forgiveness (Neh. 9:17), we can find forgiveness and transformation. Nehemiah chapter 9 is actually a beautiful example of prayer. My prayers have become conversations and meetings, and laughter, and tears.
MICHELLE: What a beautiful thought, to talk with the God of forgiveness! Is there anything else you have learned from Him?
KATIE: I am close to God when I recognize His presence and I believe “Pray without ceasing” is the fact that God is always with us and we need to recognize that.
I can look at passages of Jesus’ interactions and hear prayers of longing, cries for help and fulfilled promises. He shows so many examples of prayer—even His conversations with the disciples and restoration of sinners are prayers. When He lists the Beatitudes, He is saying these people are the blessed and blessing the faithful at the same time.
MICHELLE: What other blessings have you seen through prayer?
KATIE: Encouraging others to pray has been a great blessing for me. How? By praying in the moment. In a time of COVID one of the weirdest things has been the hesitation to hold hands during a prayer. Connecting to others physically during a prayer.
I would say that praying with you, Michelle, over the last 7 years has been 90% over the phone. But we have had a those very special moments, usually around your kitchen table where we were able to hold hands, many times with others, and pray it up!
We have prayed for peace, strength, births, deaths, thanksgivings, and forgiveness.
Many times, the prayer leads to action.
Being redefined changes the definition. God can literally change the definition of something that I am going through or change me.
Like the transformation of the cross… or the transformation of a butterfly… or the transformation through prayer.
MICHELLE: It sounds like God has redefined prayer itself for you. Would you agree?
KATIE: I have never been a very traditional prayer. My husband has questioned my banter with God. But those who know me well know that I can get lost in a conversation with my Father just as I can get lost in a conversation with others.
Writing this blog has produced pages of notes and reflections and conversations with a couple of my greatest prayer partners. They both agreed that my prayers are like conversation and jokingly that I can get lost in a prayer as I get lost in a conversation. They know that I think a missed opportunity for prayer is like the greatest conversation I never had. They have witnessed the interweaving of how our open and honest relationships combined with open and honest prayers have led to great things.
Iron Rose Sister Ministries is a beautiful example of the power of prayer in my life and in the refining of myself and Michelle especially. I will wait to talk more about that in a future blog.
As far as the takeaways from this moment… Pray. Lay your heart before God and especially when it comes to forgiveness for yourself or others don’t wait. I pray it will be a great conversation!
One final thought: Don’t let prayer be the greatest conversation you never had.