stockbridge boiler room

Near: An Invitation to 7 Months of Unbroken Prayer

Dear Friends,

God has been teaching us so many things about prayer over the past two years.  One of the enduring lessons from 24-7 Prayer is that when we draw near to God, He draws near to us (James 4:8).  And when the Lord is near, Kingdom things begin to happen—things like the reconciliation of a marriage, the deliverance of a friend from crack addiction, the experience of falling in love with the Lord for the first time, or leaving one’s job behind to serve and depend upon Father.  We have learned that we are at our best when we are most dependent upon Him in prayer.  

To be truthful, we have no involved pyramid scheme for the Kingdom breaking forth.  We have no foolproof program for Westside-wide salvation.  What we do have is a knowledge of the goodness and the faithfulness of the Lord.  His word says, when He draws near, “the Lord adds to their number daily those who were being saved.”  When He draws near, “the blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.”   This is our hope in drawing near.  

As we partner with the Bridge Street House of Prayer and Crossroads Bible Church, we are asking for you to join us on an 24-7 adventure for 2010.  We’re simply calling it Near.  God has planted the dream of unbroken prayer with friends for seven months from January 24-July 23.  Clearly, such a dream is beyond our small community’s capacity.  

We need you and we’re asking you to prayerfully consider if you could join us on this crazy adventure of prayer.  We are looking for 154 people to take one hour a week for 28 weeks.  We need people who are willing to pray for one hour faithfully.  This one hour could be in the middle of the night, on the weekend, at the beginning of the day or even during the 11a Sunday service.   

You will be booking an hour where you spend time with the Father.  We hope you will consider signing up as house churches, as families, as youth groups, as elder boards, as LTGs, as accountability groups and as individuals desperate to know and love our Father more deeply.  If you are so moved by the Spirit, consider taking multiple hours of a day each week to share among multiple members of your group.  

Each day during this season, we will have community prayer at 8a and 8p during the week (except Wednesday at 7p in the 5th Street Hall),  7-10p on Saturday and 8p on Sunday where anyone who wants to come can join together as part of this praying community. We will also have a monthly time of corporate worship and prayer.  

Pentecost came to a prayer room. Paul urged the Thessalonians to "pray constantly." The early church "joined together constantly in prayer."  In the 18th century, a small community of Moravians began a 24-7 prayer meeting that lasted for over a hundred years, mobilized 3000 missionaries and converted John Wesley!  We are asking you to consider this opportunity to join with 153 brothers and sisters adding to this eternal murmur of prayer still going across the centuries.

A practical scheduling note about our partnership with Bridge Street House of Prayer. BSHOP will open up their Tabernacle at 1055 Bridge Street NW as the prayer room from Friday at 9p to Sunday at 9p.  So if you sign up for a time between these hours, plan on praying at the Bridge Street House of Prayer.  Sunday 9p-Friday 9p  come to Stockbridge.  

We are so excited to see what God does.

The Stockbridge Boiler Room Leadership Team for Near

 

Nitty Gritty Questions and Answers about Near

How do I get my brain around committing to 28 weeks of prayer?

Consider yourself a season ticket holder to the symphony or to your favorite sporting team, only better. You commit for the season, but occasionally something comes up and you cannot attend, so you find a friend to go in your stead. That’s also how it will work for this season of prayer.

Why come to the same room, why can’t I just pray at home?

A Prayer Room helps build a sense of community and ownership throughout the season of prayer.  We aren’t all in the room at the same time, but our prayer footprints are left in our writing on the walls, in our pictures and other imprints we leave behind.  It also provides a built-in accountability as people need to turn up on time to ‘pick up the baton’ from the person praying before them. Having a specific room with arts materials and suggestions for prayer creates a very conducive and creative environment. As the room begins to fill with people’s prayers and heart cries, it can reveal what God is doing in the lives of our prayer community.

Who’s going to sign up for 3a prayer?

Jesus often took the last watch of the night for prayer.  Those of us who pray in the middle of the night can testify that this can be a powerful time of meeting with Father.  Truly, we do NEED people to sign up for middle of the night slots.  Already some small groups have talked about signing up for three different slots during the week (one of them being the middle of the night) the others during morning and afternoon hours.  The members will then rotate their times weekly. People often say they feel energized after praying in the middle of the night. Consider challenging yourself to give God the very first, precious fruits of the day.

What about safety at night?

Stockbridge has folks on duty and on call day and night; we have parking right next to the prayer room, and are installing new lights to better illuminate the yard.  We’ve developed a simple safety procedure for coming to and leaving the prayer room.  Before this season commences, we’ll send out details, as well as post them in the garage.

How will we keep up with others who are praying?

We find that each time you return to the prayer room you can read the new prayers that have been posted and written on the walls.  We will also have a community journal where participants will record Holy Spirit impressions and prophetic words.  It is our hope that monthly prayer gatherings as well as daily community prayer can be be places for us to strengthen encourage and exhort each other.  Finally, we will have a prayer coordinator for each day of the week and this coordinator will be in regular contact with the 23 people who are praying on that day.  

How can I get my ministry group involved?

Invite us to come and talk to your people, write us at stockbridgeboilerroom@gmail.com  

Prayer : Sign-Ups

Log onto: www.google.com/calendar

   Type in E-mail: stockbridge247    

   Type in Password: 247prayer

Click on the hour you would like to begin praying

In the "what" space, type your name and e-mail address

    (example: john doe : jdoe@yahoo.com) 

Click on the Repeats drop down menu and select Weekly.

Click "Save" and you are now registered.

::Please remember to log-out after registering your hours::

Questions? Contact us at stockbridgeboilerroom@gmail.com

 

 

do not hold back

 Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. (Isaiah 54:2)

As it fell down all around her yesterday, Charla didn't realize at first that she was part of a battle that was not against flesh and blood.  Soon though she figured out what was up.  And she did not hold back.  

---

A year and a half ago, Kathleen had shared this prophetic word above from Isaiah 54 for the Boiler Room.   At first, we thought it was leading us to physically enlarge the Boiler Room.  We imagined connecting house and garage.  As we've learned from our interactions with the city government, our housing tent is the right size for where we are.  

Last summer, we began to look for more ways to pray for and around our neighborhood.  Michael helped us to think about ways we might worship and intercede at various intersections and buildings.  This fall, we thought that it would be wise to prayer-walk with more intentionality.  Prayer-walking one day with Danmike and Jordan, we talked about extending our territory for intercession.  It wasn't until later that I recalled Isaiah 54 and started to realize that our tent was extending over the Westside.  

We began with a focus between 4th Street and 7th Street as well as between Alpine and Davis.  We are now focusing between 4th and 11th Streets as well as between Turner and Stocking.  You can get a visual here.  

----

Charla has been praying for 8th Street.  In order to not freak out any of the neighbors, she goes and stands at the bus stop to pray for the street.  Yesterday, she asked God to give her a visual of what to pray for on 8th Street.  

As she was praying for the house right across from the bus stop, she noticed two scraggly-black starlings, lingering around the house, diving and circling.  As she focused on them, she got the distinct impression of the spirits of anger and distraction settling on that house.  She began to pray for the Holy Spirit to bring peace and unity to the people of the house.  

In that moment, a whole flock of scraggly-black starlings swooped into the tree above Charla at the bus stop.  They seemed to be screaming.  Undeterred, she kept praying noticing that it had started to hail;  until she noticed that it wasn't hail.  The birds were dropping on her.  Then it became clear someone did not want Charla praying for the peace of this house.  It became clear that God had answered her prayer and had given her a visual of what what happening in the spiritual realm on 8th Street.  It became clear that this enlarging of our tent was a threat.  

And she declared out loud in the midst of the screaming and the dropping, "8th Street is the Lord's Street.  He reigns and He is the Supreme one over all streets."

Then it stopped.  The scraggly-black starlings swooped away.  Out of the tree.  Off 8th Street.   

And Charla walked home.  

May you strengthen our stakes Father as we will not hold back.  

::tony::

all circumstances

pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not put out the Spirit's fire (1 Thes 5:19)

It was raining tonight as I walked by the Basilica (I didn't have a camera with me, so here's Brooke's picture from the spring to give you some context).  I was thinking of the pumpkin pie leftovers (that I'm now eating as I write).  I was remembering telling my college buddy John the story of the Boiler Room.  We had both driven halfway across the state to talk and catch up on Tuesday.  

Tonight I was struck by how beautiful this building is in the rain, with the security spotlight shining on it.  And I thanked God for this architectural beauty in the midst of the spiritual war-torn west side.  This pumpkin pie with it's slight spicedness and firm texture is Joy after a day of feasting.  My friend John is a man of integrity who loves his wife and daughters well;  he is reflective, sincere and fun.  That the power of social networking brought us back together, I thank God for.

Give thanks in all circumstances.  

Lately, we've been unable to tell the stories here.  Something we hope to change.  And I'm convinced that we're all missing something as we don't acknowledge the day to day grace and humbling that God administers to us.  I noticed that as I strung together the story of our community over the past two years for John.  So much grace.   All circumstances have something.  Even lately.  

• A 20 something group that brought by Thanksgiving baskets on Tuesday for four neighborhood families and who prayed with them.  
• A chance to tell my friend that God wants our first fruits, not our leftovers.
• Our neighborhood church beginning to share each others burdens and meet each others needs.  
• Partners in the Gospel who can, over lunch, dream and plan sustainable ways of depending upon God for the Kingdom to break forth.  
• My disciple who tells a lost friend that it's not enough just to read the Bible, it's to look for Jesus and to listen for his voice on every page. The Word made flesh is a promise to hold on to.   My disciple who inspires me to live more and more boldly.  
• An unbidden prayer that is on my lips for the West side each time I prayer walk these streets, "Return to your first love.  Return to your first love.  Return to your first love."

In each of these things, I have focused on regretting the lost friend rather than the ones who are standing firm with him;  bemoaning how the west side has turned away from the love of the Father rather than the offer of the lost for my inheritance;  being tied up in the task rather than the people beside me;  complaining about the neediness rather than pouring myself out;  being critical about first steps rather than hoping in Him who will bring it to completion;  being discouraged by someone's caution rather than seeing a Gideon or a Moses or a Timothy.

May we have eyes to see and ears to hear.  May we pray continually and give thanks in all circumstances.  And may the Spirit's fire burn brightly in our lives.  

::tony::

Open Your Hand: 247 prayer at the sbr

The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. The LORD is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made. The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. (Psalm 145: 15-19)

We look to Him. 
Join us in asking Him to open His hand for Grand Rapids. 
Join us in opening our hands before Him.
Let us draw near to the LORD and He will draw near to us. 

Signup for prayer slots at www.stockbridgeboilerroom.org. Bring your house church, your family, your accountability group, and your desire for time with our Father. 

Opening Prayer Sunday November 15 8p.
Closing Prayer Friday November 20 8p.
Drop in for Community Prayer each night at 8p.

this is (in) our prior:

 

today at, morning prayer, jenn read john 15.5-17.

verses that seem to be burning in my ears often.

especially verse 7

 

“If you remain in me and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish,

and it will be given you.” 

 

this stirred some thoughts in me I thought I would share.

.

It’s scary how good we are at the

“ask whatever you wish” part…….

and it doesn’t appear that we are all that concerned about

the mighty Words of God abiding in us.

 

…Interesting...

let me ask you a question.

 

can you, like king david, consider the Word of God to be

more valuable than thousands of gold pieces? (ps. 119.72)

 

can you, like Jeremiah the prophet, say that

when you found Gods Word and ate it

that it became, the joy and delight of your heart? (Jer.15.16)

 

can you, like Job, say, in the midst of all your sufferings, that

you treasure the Words of God more then your portion of food? (job 23.12)

 

…and you may ask why they treasure it so much?

because, according to john, the evil one controls

the entire world.

and in this world, the apostle paul says that the Word of God is our sword. (1john 5.19,eph 6.17)

 

because in this world, full darkness and lies, His Word is

a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. (ps.119.105)

 

because john says that you overcome the evil one by having the

Word of God abide in you. (1john 2.14)

 

because paul says,

when the Word of God abides in you

it teaches and admonishes you with all wisdom. (col.3.16)

 

it's not just memorizing the Word.

 

john 5.38, Jesus say’s to the jews,

you do not have the Word of God in you

because you do not believe in the one He has sent.

Jesus continues, and says,

you diligently study the scriptures

because by them you think you posses eternal life.

clearly its more then memorizing scripture.

God teaches us about Himself by His word.

and all the lies that we have been told about God,

by the father of lies, are proved wrong in the light

of His Word being in His people.

hebrews 1 says,

 by the power of His Word he sustains ALL things.

 

man does not live on bread alone

but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.(deut 8.3)

 

Jesus is the word

and whoever eats of Him will never

go hungry again. (john 6.35)

 

do you know this word?

 

does the word abide in you?

::danmike (not my real name)::

so this morning on my way into the garage for prayer, i say hello to paula, who has arrived for prayer and God Story afterward, and i say hello to David, who she is talking to. David is a new friend to us: homeless, seemingly gentle, tremendously fearful. tremendously. 

david goes into the fetal position when the word 'fear' is spoken, he's that afraid. and i don't know his story at all, i don't even know what he's afraid of, but today, this is what i saw from my kitchen window:

that long after prayer ended and all through God Story, paula sat herself down on the back stoop, in the freezing rain, next to david and talked quiet words to him, telling him he didn't need to be afraid. i don't know what all they talked about, but after about an hour, someone brought them both blankets, so there the two of them sat, looking rather homeless, all huddled in blankets and probably quite cold. for three hours she sat with him. she became like him. she would not leave him in his fear, but stayed by this man she barely knows. 

and then i spotted danmike (not his real name, but you know that already), standing before them reading God's very words to david. he read and he read and he read; i washed the dishes and fed v. and drank a cup of coffee and checked email and read a book to ezra, and every time i glanced up, there was our dear prior, and paula, and david, bringing the kingdom of God to a back stoop of a house on the west side on this very grey morning. 

and i thought it was so beautiful that you needed to know about it. 

::jenn::

fruit

pears from our garden. crayons from the box.

for tonight's love feast, the abbott, now fully recovered, cooked cincinnati chili for everyone, with a little help from his friends. it's one of my favorite things he makes.

and there was this holy chaos of noise at tonight's meal: babies crying and children yelling, neighbors chatting, and dave, roaring away at everybody and nobody. 

and i looked at all of it, and saw, in the middle of all that chaos, something growing and emerging that i think is fruit, which, some might recall, i'm quite fond of. and it might be small and not even ready to harvest, but i can see it. God is growing it. and it really is one of my favorite things he makes.

::jenn::

eight

8

As of October 26, morning and evening prayer

are shifted to 8a and 8p in the garage.  

Join us!  Click for full schedule. 

weak

. . . He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.  (2 Cor 12: 9-10)

Nothing like two weeks of pneumonia to bring you to the end of yourself.  

These past two weeks, ambitions were let go.  The first week of 24-7 went by that I did not participate in.  It was encouraging to hear how Danmike and the interns prepared for the week.  It was exciting to hear about how many new friends from Crossroads and others places partnered with us during the week.  It was hopeful to hear stories like "this afternoon" where God moved through people and in people.  But the selfish part of me wanted to be in the midst of this God move.  God moves on, even when I'm alternating between chills and fever spikes.  

That's a comforting thought, when I can get past my pride.  

Too many times during the past two weeks did I have to do lists written down in my waking moments.   Too many times did I have to resist calling, texting emailing to offer guidance.  Too many times did I feel was I radically restless because I couldn't do something.  Have mercy on me Lord.  Have mercy on my drive to achieve.  I want to lay that down at your feet.  

Weakness leads to dependency, so I've learned.   So many times Jenn carried our family on her shoulders, with five of us sick.  And I felt bad for myself, feeling that I wasn't contributing, feeling that I would be in debt, feeling that I was supposed to be taking care of her.  But I came to accept the help.  And her kindness led the way, when I had twisted up her love meant for good, all because of a self-sufficiency, deep and hard.   

Over these fourteen days, I felt God peeling away ambition, chipping off pride, melting my self.  Only recently did I remember that I asked God to make me weak.  "Be careful what you ask for," Jenn reminds me.  

He is good.  He who did not spare His own son, will he not give us all good things?

Weakness.  I really didn't know what I was asking for.  But now I have a way of proceeding, provided by His grace. Reliant, relinquishing, resting.  

I will give thanks in all circumstances.  That much I have learned in weakness.  

::tony:: 

 

i had this whole long post about justice and following Jesus, and i even had a couple of quotes snuck in there, until i came to the end of my words and pressed delete because what i really want to write today is simple and brief:

it's raining, hard, and it's chilly also. 

i have been inside all this blustery day, out of the rain, and i bet you have too.

some of our friends have not. they have no home. 

this is not okay. this is not acceptable. 

and.

i'm not sure what to do about it. 

i'm not sure what justice looks like today.

::jenn::

this afternoon

i dug up shoots of raspberries that we'll plant tomorrow next to the fence at the sbr, so next september our neighbors will have berries to pick and eat.

jordan raked leaves from the sbr yard into a big pile.

which of course needed to be jumped on, hidden in, thrown in the air, redistributed.

charla lay on the leaves and read robert frost to the neighborhood kids.

michael played guitar and took pictures. 

then: mary came out of her house and

jumped

in

(slowly).

mary, who is nearly ninety years old, who has lived in this neighborhood for longer than i've been alive and who lived next to a crack house for so long, silently and angrily enduring neighbors who trashed places and themselves while she toiled in her meticulous garden and picked leaves off her lawn. mary, who cried when i told her we had bought the house and were turning it into a house of prayer, and watched us for quite some time from a distance, 

that woman gives us bouquets of flowers, chats constantly over the fence, has brad and michelle living next to her, cajoles the boys into doing all manner of odd jobs for her, and now, apparently, jumps into leaf piles.

there's joy in this neighborhood that was not there a few years ago.

"things are different here, now that the boiler room's arrived," dave says.

here's what i think he means: the darkness is less dark than it used to be. 

here's what i know: that kind of thing always happens when Jesus is in the neighborhood.

people come out of their houses. they start sharing. things get planted and bear fruit. the hungry find food. 

and.

 some even become like little children and jump right in.

 i love it here.

::jenn::

to those who have been reading this blog since we began the boiler room: i am happy to be writing in this space once again. last year i home-schooled two of our children and grew one more. that was enough. and with me a bit removed from the daily life of the boiler room, the abbot was in a better position to write about it. this fall, everyone went to public schools, so i'm jumping back in.

to those who are fairly new readers: hello, i'm jenn. i'm married to the abbot.