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Written by Laureen Henegar, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Colorado
“And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of Him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem."
Luke 2:36-38
When I was asked to write a blog about Anna, I wasn’t quite sure how to even start, but as I read the verse over a few times, I began to relate to her in a very personal way. I lost my husband seven years ago. Scripture tells us that Anna had been alone for 77 years. But, as a widow or a widower, are we really alone? No, we are not. Psalm 68:5 tells us just that. God is, “Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.”
I have talked with several people who have lost their spouses and it’s interesting that each one mentions that since the passing of their spouse, they have drawn closer to God. Is it possible that in our sorrow and trials God actually provides us with a blessing? I think so. God helps us understand that life is not over. God ALWAYS has a plan for us. It’s our responsibility to trust Him and wait on His timing.
Anna was the daughter of Phanuel, a godly man whose name meant “Face of God.” She was from the tribe of Asher. She appears to have been raised in a Godly home. Married for only seven years, she spent the rest of her life devoted to God in all she did.
I have learned two things in studying Anna and writing this blog. One, God provides us with the strength, courage and comfort we need to get us through the trials and challenges of this life. The more time I spend in prayer and fasting, the closer I draw to God; but I must also spend time listening to His response to my prayers. Second, not only must I spend time praying, fasting and listening to Him, but I must wait for His time for prayers to be answered and I must trust Him to answer my prayer in His way, not mine.
Anna was a woman devoted to prayer. She knew God was faithful and that the promise of a Savior would be fulfilled. I’m certain that, not only did she spend time in prayer, but she spent time listening, listening to the Holy Spirit’s soft whisper. Many times, when I pray, I find myself ending my prayer and then immediately throwing myself into whatever my plans are for the day. I don’t take time to listen, to listen to the soft whisper of the Holy Spirit, communicating back to me, providing me with words of strength, wisdom, and courage to face the day. I believe Anna not only spent time in prayer and fasting, but she also spent time listening. Listening to His words that drew her closer and closer to God.
Can you imagine how she must have felt when she first saw Jesus and held Him in her arms?! Here was the promised Messiah, the answer to the Scriptures, the Son of God sleeping in her arms! I don’t imagine there are any words to describe the joy she felt and the urgency to tell others that the Messiah had come. She knew the Messiah would come; she knew it would be in God’s time and she knew the minute she saw Him that He had arrived.
She rejoiced in the fact that Israel’s prayer for a Messiah had been answered and she immediately began to share the Good News. Sometimes we get so caught up in our worldly plans that we miss seeing prayers answered. Yes, we see the big ones, such as when a loved one is cured of cancer. But do we notice the small ones, the blessings God gives us each and every day? Do we share how those prayers have been answered and how wonderful our God is? I think Anna noticed all of God’s blessings, saw God all around her and shared God’s love with whomever she met.
My prayer for us is that we become more like Anna: That we spend more time in prayer, fasting and listening to God. That we take time to step away from our busy lives and look around at this beautiful creation. That we recognize, acknowledge, and give thanks for the blessings God showers upon us every day. That through our daily prayer time we draw closer and closer to God. In Scripture, Anna’s life story is but a few short verses, but she is an inspiration. Her story provides us with important lessons that give us an opportunity to have an amazing, lifelong relationship with our Lord and Savior.
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Written by Katie Forbess, IRSM Board President
February is Prayer Month for IRSM and has been for the last eight years. One of the greatest examples in my life of fervent prayer is Iron Rose Sister Ministries itself. Our mission to equip women to grow closer to God and one another more deeply was an answer to the desire of my heart. At a time when I thought that I was crying out to God and He wasn’t listening, He was putting things in motion that I could never imagine.
When my heart was broken, leaving Bolivia to return to the states, I had many ideas and thoughts. In my original plan about how I wanted to help women grow closer to God and one another, it was for the state of Arkansas. IRSM is international in our reach, and this year, we have added a third language: Portuguese!
I think one of the amazing gifts of fervent prayer is that it transforms us when we open our hearts and say with purpose and with power—the power of God—what we need and what we want.
God knew when I walked across the stage at a World Mission Workshop that I wanted to dedicate my life to Him. I wanted to be a missionary in a foreign land. He knew what that meant, and He knew more even than I did why. My spirit was talking to His Spirit. That was a fervent prayer. I didn’t know how God was going to answer that.
God is listening. He is listening to our fervent prayer, just as when a baby cries and everyone must listen to hear the tone of the cry. Or the child that repeats over and over again, “Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy,” until you have to say something. You have to answer. Someone has to answer. In the same way that a teenager does little things to get your attention and if you are paying attention, you totally see them, especially if it’s your nephew or your son. You know! Those are fervent pleas and that’s what we do with God. When we do it transparently, we grow, and we change, and we know that God sees the desires of our hearts.
This year we are studying Our Story and it’s only making me look back and think more and more about how my prayer life has been changed through praying for IRSM. Everything from the inception and the deciding 501c3 vs for profit to last week deciding the theme for something or a computer program that we need to use because we are growing, and we need to be able to communicate effectively within the organization and outside the organization. There are so many ways that I know that God is hearing our cries.
I have called myself a glorified cheerleader but maybe I should change that to a glorified fervent prayer warrior because sometimes when I can’t do all the other things that I want to do for Iron Rose Sister Ministries, what I can do is pray.
And that prayer can be for anything. It can be for a sister I don’t know in another country. It can be for Michelle for many different reasons. It can be for any of the team members, the board members, for a project we are starting, or for a conference we have. The prayers are unlimited, and the importance of those prayers is that they are fervent and that I believe that there is power behind them.
God wants our passion. Hannah showed so much passion that Eli thought that she was drunk (1 Sam. 1:13). Passionate may be a good word for me since I have been described as “a little extra” in my life. A little extra for people who can't take me the right way. They don’t understand me or think I’m a little much. I have learned how to handle that better, but God wants me to be to be “a little extra.” God can handle it, especially in prayer!
With Job, the beautiful talk between God and Job when God says, “Well, hey dude, but remember who you are,” God never says, “I don’t want to hear you.” He never says—now He does say be quiet—but He never says, “I don’t want to hear you, I don’t care about what you're saying, I don’t want you to share your thoughts with me.” But He does say, “Hey dude, I want to remind you who I am.” And that is what happens through fervent prayer: you spill out your passion and your thoughts and your feelings and your everything else, and then you remember who you are praying to, and you say, oh, yeah, “He’s God…” And it puts everything in perspective.
I want to leave you with one last thought: I can only pray fervently to and be passionate about a God that I know and love. That’s another thing that that fervent prayer does. It brings my first love to mind, and it reminds me what is actually important and what is actually going to be powerful and Who will make things happen.
Finally, when it comes to fervent prayer, Hannah is a beautiful example. I could have talked about my own example of miscarriage, but the thing that I think is most effective is to tell you about how prayer is an integral part of Iron Rose Sister Ministries, Ministerio Hermana Rosa de Hierro and the Portuguese version that I may or may not be able to pronounce. We all want and need fervent prayer. This ministry is not based solely on my fervent prayers. I am one piece of a team of a multitude of people who have prayed and wanted and needed IRSM before it even began and have carried IRSM through their own passion and their own fervent prayers. Thank you for being a part of that! God is listening.