ON THE VANGUARD

PRAYER WALK
"Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops."
James 5:17-18

Near the end of May one night, I found myself wide awake in bed at around 1am. My attempt to doze off wasn't working so well. My mind was going a mile a minute, evaluating where I was and where I wanted to be. Honestly, one of the issues I was contemplating was my health. For a while now I have been going to the chiropractor for constant re-adjusting and the realization of my health and the effects of my health on my wallet have caused me a little stress. But as I was in bed, thinking, the song I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) was playing in my head. It was as if a light bulb clicked on and at that moment I decided I would work to walk 500 miles by the end of August. At this point I have already walked 92 miles, which may not seem like much to an avid walker, yet I am pleased with myself because I have continued to make the effort to follow through with my goal daily.
But yesterday as I was walking, I decided to use the time to seek God. Through my huffing and puffing, I blurted out to God things that were heavy on my heart. I also took the time to listen to His heart. Before long I realized I was praying the things that God was speaking, realizing that in essence what I was doing was what has come to be known as prayer walking. I thought to myself, how just like God to move me into this and now have it stir on my heart. About a month ago, while shopping in the local Christian bookstore, I was looking in the discount books and found a book normally priced at $11 on sale for $1.10. I bought it because of the price and this infatuation I have with learning, but guess the title. Prayer Walking, by Dan Crawford and Calvin Miller. When I bought the book I had no idea that I would be walking throughout the summer.
So then, what is prayer walking? To quote the book, it is a "method of intercessory prayer that involves praying while walking at the location of the prayer journey." Simply, it is "a way of being on the scene without making a scene." To some degree I think of Joshua and the walls of Jericho when I think of prayer walking. Although the vastness of the army of Israel created a scene, the fact that they were on location, walking around the walls of Jericho that were at the time so massive and indestructible, was really a prayer walk. And following God's command, the army lifted its voice in great unity for the walls to fall down. I am learning with a hunger inside me that the spiritual walls that have been erected by the enemy need to come down. Because of this, I believe God is placing me in a position to be used for just such a time and reason.
With a task like this, though, it is easy to feel overwhelmed. Granted, God has given me His strength, and through Him I can do all things, yet I still at times question what good my prayers can do. God has an answer for that, and perhaps it is one that you also need the remembrance of. James 5:17-18 reads, "Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops." There is comfort in knowing that Elijah wasn't a god, or deity, or super hero, but rather that he was a man just like us. All he did was pray in faith and God answered him. I feel God telling me the same. Pray. Pray and walk. Pray and walk and have faith. The walls that are built by the enemy in the spirit realm can indeed fall if someone is willing to stand in that gap and extend feet with faith. In this season, I know this person will be me. I wonder, though, if you will walk with me. If one can put a thousand to flight, and two can put ten thousand, then what if we all began to walk?