October 22, 2024 • 38 mins
Imagine finding an anchor in the stormiest seas of life. Michelle Mitchell, Jo Beth Ellis, and Cindy Ritter have each discovered that prayer can be this anchor. As integral members of the Rise Up Conference prayer team, they share how their devotion to prayer has shaped their journeys. These women exemplify how prayer transforms lives, offering hope and resilience.
The power of personal prayer is woven through the experiences of Jo Beth, Michelle, and Cindy over the past decade. Jo Beth speaks candidly about prayer as a source of strength and the importance of constant communication with God, even when life feels overwhelming. Michelle shares her journey through a challenging period that deepened her spiritual growth, making prayer a constant companion rather than a mere task. Cindy recounts how as a new believer, she could barely say a 5-minute prayer, but through the process of building an intimate relationship with God has come to realize we can have long conversations with God and how they can transform our daily lives. Their stories inspire us to integrate heartfelt, genuine prayer into every moment, transforming daily experiences and perspectives.
This week we discuss the powerful impact of praise and confession as we shine a light on how these elements invite the presence of God into our struggles. Drawing from biblical stories and personal insights, we reveal how praising God—regardless of circumstances—shifts focus from self to God. Regular confession is portrayed as a pathway to humility, clarity, and a strengthened relationship with God, providing peace during uncertain times.
Visit our website at www.itstimetoriseup.org for everything about the Rise Up movement and for information on how to contact us. We pray you are blessed by this week's episode!
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Kim McIntire (00:09):
Welcome to the it's Time to Rise Up podcast.
I'm your host, kim McIntyre.
Thank you for joining us thisweek.
If you're not familiar with ourshow, check out our website at
itstimetoriseuporg.
There you will find our socialmedia links and for our podcast
platforms, you'll find us onYouTube, apple Podcasts, spotify
(00:30):
and anywhere else you find yourpodcast.
We would humbly ask you tosubscribe, leave us a comment,
give a thumbs up or, even better, leave us a five-star review on
Apple Podcasts.
Thank you again for joining ustoday.
The Power of Prayer is the titlefor our show today, and with me
here in the studio are threewomen who are mighty in prayer
(00:53):
Jo Beth Ellis, michelle Mitchelland Cindy Ritter.
All three of these ladies serveon the Rise Up Conference
prayer team.
They have each impacted my lifein very different but profound
ways.
What they all have in common istheir passion to live life in a
rhythm of prayer, meaning it'spart of who they are, it's not
(01:14):
just what they do.
Let me introduce you to ourguests and then I'll have them
share a little about themselvesbefore we dive into this
incredible topic of prayer.
Michelle Mitchell, I remembermeeting you at Cindy Ritter's
house for the Bill Johnson study.
Hosting the presence.
(01:34):
It was the first time she hadtalked about you and I'm like
she's like you know Michelle.
I'm like I don't know Michelle,but thankfully now I do, so
that's what I remember aboutmeeting you.
So why don't you tell us alittle bit about?
Michelle Mitchell (01:49):
yourself, michelle.
So I am married to an awesomeman named Michael Mitchell and I
have two kids.
He has two kids and we havefour grandchildren almost four
grandchildren all together.
We have one coming next month.
So we're very excited aboutthat, absolutely.
Congratulations, thank you,we're very excited.
Kim McIntire (02:11):
Yay, family is growing.
That's awesome.
What about ministry work?
Michelle Mitchell (02:21):
What kind of ministry are you doing right now
?
Right now, I am doing a newbelievers class Awesome.
I am part of Rise Up, of course, just also leading a small
group at our house with myhusband and just doing— and
serving on discipleship inchurch Serving on discipleship
team.
Yeah, All the things that theLord has me doing.
Kim McIntire (02:40):
That's awesome.
Okay, thanks for sharing that.
Our next guest is JoBeth Ellis.
I've known JoBeth for 30 years.
In 2025, it will be 30 years.
We met in 1995.
She's my oldest friend, but Idon't mean that as in age.
I mean that as time, like wehave been friends for almost 30
(03:02):
years.
That's incredible, and I loveher so much.
She's taught me a lot aboutprayer.
Why don't you tell us a littlebit about yourself, jobeth?
Jo Beth Ellis (03:12):
I have been married for 40 years.
I have three children, a sonand two daughters, and six
grandsons.
Life is good and God is good tome Amen.
Kim McIntire (03:28):
Tell us about your ministry work.
Jo Beth Ellis (03:31):
I am privileged to be on the discipleship team
at church and I love it, andthis past fall, this past fall,
I got to help launch an Abideclass.
Yes, and right now it isabsolutely a joy and a lot of
(03:53):
learning and a lot of leaninginto God and letting Him do you
know what he does best.
Kim McIntire (03:59):
That's right, that's right.
Yeah, jobeth is leading anAbide class, which is our
discipleship piece for the RiseUp Conference, and there are
going to be more classes openingin January.
So more to come about thatlater.
But welcome, jobeth, we're gladyou're here.
And our other guest is CindyRitter.
She's calling in from Floridatoday.
(04:20):
We're thankful she's safe fromall the hurricane things that
have been going on.
I met Cindy in 2020.
I started attending the churchwhere she was on staff and she
took me under her wing.
She's one of my spiritual mamas, although she's 10 years
younger than me.
So just want everyone in theaudience to know never
(04:44):
underestimate someone youngerthan you, because a lot of times
you can learn a whole lot frompeople 10 years younger than you
.
That's right.
Cindy Ritter (04:53):
And so Cindy you are one of my spiritual mamas.
I don't think it's a full 10years.
Kim McIntire (04:56):
Okay, well, I think it's more like five, but
still.
Oh, then I had your age wrong,because I'm not going to say it
on the air but I thought youwere legitimately 10 years
younger than me Apparently not,but hey, that's okay.
All I know is I've learned somuch about leaning into the Holy
Spirit, and a lot of that wasjust from you teaching me,
(05:17):
loving on me and being really,really patient.
So why don't you tell ourlisteners a little about you?
Cindy Ritter (05:24):
Yes, I have been married for 30 years to my
husband, Steve.
We have two adult children.
We don't have any grandchildren, but we have a grand, well, two
grand dogs, so I think they'remy babies.
My husband just a little bitreal quick is the first 20 years
(05:45):
of our marriage.
We were in the Navy, or myhusband was in the Navy, and so
we moved around a lot, so Ireally gained a lot of
perspective in different areasand cultures.
So, but yeah, so married 30years, two kids, two granddads,
living in Florida, safe from thehurricane and loving the
sunshine and the palm trees.
Kim McIntire (06:03):
Yeah, and tell us about your ministry work, cindy.
Cindy Ritter (06:07):
Well, currently I am our discipleship pastor at
our main campus here in Floridaand oversee all of our
assimilations processes forthree of our campuses.
I also oversee prayer team onall of our campuses and oversee
all discipleship groups on allof our campuses.
I also oversee a prayer team onall of our campuses and oversee
all discipleship groups on allof our campuses.
Kim McIntire (06:30):
So you're a little bit busy.
It's a little bit.
A little bit yeah, and yet youtook your Saturday morning to be
with us, so thank you so muchfor that.
I really appreciate it, friend.
So let's go to this.
Let's talk about how each ofyou became history of Rise Up in
episode one.
I'm speaking to the listenersright now.
(07:06):
You might want to tune intothat, because Cindy was part of
the beginning of Rise Up, so whydon't you share about that?
Cindy Ritter (07:14):
Yeah.
So we had been doing some lifegroups and one of my heart of
life group was to raise up women, and so I had been doing some
women life groups.
And I got connected with HollyHoyer, which I actually knew
before this particular lifegroup.
We had served together,administered together, but we
(07:34):
decided that we would love to beable to teach women how to pray
.
We felt there was a need toreally just teach women not just
to pray, but to pray the word.
And so Holly Sawyer and I begana group in her home and it was
fabulous.
People were coming and theywere just pouring out their
hearts to the Lord, and God wasjust really transforming lives,
(07:57):
right?
in her living room and it beganto grow quite a bit actually,
and so we moved it to my livingroom because it was a little bit
bigger.
And during the time that wemoved it to my house, we really
wanted to point it more thanjust pray in the word, but we
wanted to really teach women topray but also operate in their
gifts, which is where you talkedabout hosting his presence by
(08:18):
Bill Johnson.
We did that video episode, butin it it wasn't just teaching
about hosting his presence, itwas also practicing the gifts of
the Spirit.
So we'd have times of video,times of teaching, times of
discussion, but then at the endthere was always time of worship
and always a time of practicingthe gifts, encouraging one
another to flow in those gifts.
(08:38):
And so from there we completedthat group, but then the Lord
called us to move to florida and, um, so when we did, I think
really, kim, you were reallytransformed in that group, like
that's.
During the time, you werefilled with the holy spirit and
god just really began speakingto you and I just remember
saying I don't know what allthis is, but I'm hungry and I
(09:01):
want it.
If it's God, I want it, andthat's really always in my heart
as well.
If it's God, I want it.
And so I know at that time whenmy husband and I moved,
everything kind of transcendedover to your living room and
then of course, it grew even outof that and then you began
(09:22):
meeting.
I believe it was God's Resort,which I did not have a privilege
to be a part of that, but Ihave remained in connection with
Rise Up because I've just feltlike this ministry was birthed
out of our living rooms and it'sso powerful.
It wasn't just something oh,let's do this.
No, it was bathed in prayer andGod began doing a work in women
(09:44):
and it began to grow and grow.
And so every year you have theRise Up Conference.
I feel compelled, like I needto go back.
I want to see what God's doingin this ministry.
It's almost like, okay, it wasbirth and you have a baby for
all you mamas out there, but youwant to see it grow.
And it's just been incredible,even from a distance, to be able
to hear of all the things thatGod is doing through the
(10:06):
ministry and then being able tobe a part of the actual
conference.
It's just been amazing to seewhat God is doing and what he's
going to continue to do, and Ijust believe it's going to
continue to grow for years tocome.
Kim McIntire (10:18):
I just think back to that time in your living room
and how I was so out of mycomfort zone, and I feel like
this would be a really goodplace to insert this.
You know, if you become part ofa community of women who pray
and read the Word and seek theLord, you're probably going to
be uncomfortable.
If it's a good thing, becausethe enemy doesn't want you to be
(10:40):
in those atmospheres, and soI'm really thankful that I
fought through the uncomfortablethat I experienced, because
everything was new, and so Idon't have the words to thank
you for inviting me into thatspace, but it's definitely been
hugely impactful in my growth inprayer.
So thank you, Cindy andMichelle.
(11:01):
How did you become part of theRise Up Prayer Movement?
Michelle Mitchell (11:06):
So I was actually one that came from the
very beginning.
I was there.
I believe it was Cindy that hadinvited me to see women coming
(11:28):
together, praying for oneanother, believing for one
another, a community of womenthat truly wanted more of God
and just being in that.
It's powerful.
It's powerful.
It's life-changing Very much soVery life-changing, yeah, how
about you, jobeth?
Kim McIntire (11:42):
When did you jump in?
Very much so, very much so.
How about you, jobeth?
Jo Beth Ellis (11:44):
When did you jump in.
I would say I jumped in whenthe ladies started meeting at
God's Resort.
Okay, and I will say this I sawsuch a change in you and it
stirred up a desire in me.
I wanted that, thank you, andyou know, I saw what God was
(12:09):
doing in you and it made mehungry for more.
That's amazing.
Kim McIntire (12:15):
That's so good.
Yeah, Contagious.
Yes, we talked about how wewant to be contagious, Like when
people are around us, let it bethey see so much Jesus that
they— want more.
Like what do they have Tasteand see that the Lord is good.
And we were talking on the carride over here to the studio.
(12:35):
Michelle and Jo Beth were withme and we were talking about how
it's our heart and I know it'sCindy's heart too when people
hear us, let it be they hearJesus.
Let it be they see Jesus.
And that's a prayer God willhonor, you know, when you ask
Him.
So here's something I want usto talk about.
I don't know who wants to start, so just anyone who wants to
(12:57):
jump in.
If you could just share withour audience what your journey
of prayer has looked like overthe past years, when did it
begin and how has it grown to bewhat it is today, If everyone
could just take a couple ofminutes to share about that.
Cindy, do you want to start?
Do you want to lead out withthat?
Cindy Ritter (13:16):
Yes, I actually love talking about this because
I believe, no matter where youare, this would encourage anyone
.
So I did not grow up in churchand so when I gave my life to
the Lord when I was 25, myentire life turned upside down
and from the very beginning Ifelt such a pull towards prayer
(13:40):
and intercession, and the churchwe attended at that time had an
intercessory prayer team and Iwanted to be a part of it.
So bad, and at the time Ididn't know why, but I know now
it was the Holy Spirit callingme and at the time I didn't know
why, but I know now it was theHoly Spirit calling me and I was
terrified.
If I'm being honest, I wasabsolutely terrified, being 25
(14:01):
years old wanting to go toprayer with these women who are
50 and 60 years old, who werejust mature in the word.
I think I barely knew John 3,16 at the time, but I had such a
compulsion to want to go toprayer and so I made the steps
to go and when I went, one ofthe ladies there was like I knew
you were coming, and that wasso encouraging because these are
(14:26):
women of prayer and they theyflowed in the prophetic as well
and they're like I knew you werecoming and that was so
encouraging to me.
But then when I got there, thesewomen were just praying, like
they were just amazing in prayer.
They would pray for 10 and 15minutes.
I'm like I can't do that.
I don't know enough word.
I don't know what I'm doing.
(14:48):
And the pastor's wife took meunder her wing I'm going to cry
thinking about it and she saidto me Cindy, if you would just
pray two words out of obedienceof what the Holy Spirit is
asking you to pray, it is justas powerful as any woman in that
(15:08):
room that's praying.
She said you just have to beobedient to what the holy spirit
is asking you to pray.
And I had such a fear of thelord and such an all the lord at
the time that I began to do it,even if I felt like I didn't
measure up.
And so how did that journeycontinue, kim?
(15:30):
You actually said a little bitago, getting out of your comfort
zone, being obedient to whatthe Holy Spirit is asking you to
do, no matter how comfortableyou feel, because if you can do
it in yourself, it's not led bythe Lord, right, it is when you
get out of your comfort zone iswhen you're going to grow and
the Holy Spirit has a way ofmoving you and shaking you and
(15:52):
getting you out of your comfortzone to accomplish His will
through your life.
And when you're out of yourcomfort zone, you have no option
but to lean upon the HolySpirit to lead you and to guide
you.
And I've been doing that nowfor 24 years.
And from that one moment in aprayer room of just praying two
(16:15):
words to now leading prayerteams and prayer moments, I
couldn't have done it on my own.
I couldn't have done it on myown.
So I would just say, like myjourney has just been a life of
being obedient to the HolySpirit and being moved from my
comfort zone.
But don't ever despise smallbeginnings, because God can do
(16:35):
much if you just take a step offaith.
Kim McIntire (16:37):
Amen, that's such a good word.
Thank you for sharing that.
Jo Beth how about you Tell usabout your journey of prayer?
What's it looked like over thepast decade?
Jo Beth Ellis (16:49):
You know, I was raised in church, right, and
prayer was always there, it wasin our home.
But I don't think prayer reallytook on a really personal place
in my heart.
Prayer anchors me.
(17:11):
Prayer anchors me.
Prayer is where, when I'mtroubled, heavy hearted, don't
know what to do.
Yeah, it is where I go.
It is to God that I go, becausehe changes things.
(17:33):
He is my strength, he is myhope, he's my tomorrow, he's my
today, and my prayer time withHim is precious, it's valuable.
It's so valuable to me, it's sovaluable to me.
And you know, when your morningsometimes gets turned upside
(17:57):
down and you don't have therhythm you normally have and you
start a day out of your rhythm,I can tell a difference For
sure, a hundred percent.
I can tell a difference.
So it's so valuable to me andit anchors my day, anchors my
day, and it helps me rest atnight.
And that's what prayer does.
(18:18):
That's what the journey hasbeen.
But this last decade for surehas absolutely changed.
It's a more.
I want more time with the Lord.
Kim McIntire (18:31):
Yeah, that's good.
Time is really such.
It's key to prayer, and it'snot that it's a legalistic thing
, but making time.
We make time for everything, ifyou think about it.
We set appointments, we makesure we talk to our kids, we
make sure we're communicatingwith the people that matter our
husband or whoever thoseimportant people in your circle
(18:54):
are.
How much more so the creator ofthe universe, amen, yes, and I
feel like that's when thingsshifted for me, when that became
utmost priority and it meantmore to me to talk to God than
anyone else, because that's howit should be.
Actually, that's right.
When I started ordering my lifelike that, everything started
(19:16):
changing.
Michelle Mitchell (19:17):
Yeah.
Kim McIntire (19:18):
And most of all me , you know me.
Like.
Things may have still been kindof chaotic in areas, but when
you're different inside, youview those situations
differently.
That's right.
So thank you, jo Beth.
Michelle, let's talk aboutprayer with you.
What's your journey been likeso?
Michelle Mitchell (19:35):
I grew up in church, like Jo Beth, like you.
It really, for me it wasn'tuntil about 10 years ago where
my prayer life it wasn't so muchrelational and I probably went
through one of the worst timesof my life about 12 years ago
and all I had was Jesus.
(19:57):
That's all I had and my lifereally began to change and I
could only go up and he was myrock.
He was what I leaned on and myhusband and I now.
We had an amazing experience totravel with ministry and
(20:21):
through that we learned so muchfrom.
I can't even explain it, but ittook us to a whole nother level
and then another level, andthen another level, and we
thought we were Christians.
But we learned so much in sucha short amount of time, in three
(20:41):
and a half years, and prayerwas such a pivotal point.
It changed, it was relational,it was personal and it was just
God.
I want more of you, god.
I'm hungry for you, god.
I want to be with you.
I don't want you to leave myside.
I need you every second ofevery day.
(21:03):
And in the prayer it's not justsetting aside the time in the
morning, it's how we live ourlife, it's in everything that we
say, it's in everything that wedo, it's the things that comes
out of our mouth, it's the wordsthat we speak, and I sit there
in my car and I talk to God whenI am at work.
(21:25):
I talk to Him.
Lord, I need a word for thisperson.
They are hurting, or whateveris being brought to my attention
through the individual sittingin front of me.
It's all through prayer.
It's in communicating.
Prayer is communicating with theLord and so, therefore, it
spills out into every part ofour life.
(21:47):
It's not just the time and theway, although that is the
precious time.
That's where you get youranointing, for the day is when
you're really alone with Him andyou have no distractions.
The phone isn't near you.
You have your worship musicgoing through those things.
So my prayer life hasdefinitely changed in the last
10 years.
(22:07):
Life has definitely changed inthe last 10 years, and now I
have the privilege to share thatwith others, to teach others.
Hey, it's not just sitting onthe pew on a Sunday morning.
It is so much more than that.
It's a lifestyle.
Kim McIntire (22:22):
And if you're only experiencing the Lord within
the walls of the church, let mejust tell you and we would all
agree, I know you are missingthe sweetest parts of time with
God because he wants to meet usin the secret place, and I love
what you spoke, michelle, abouthow prayer shouldn't just be in
that time alone with Him in thesecret place, but it should flow
(22:45):
all through the day the shower,the car work, family, you know,
in the interchanges that youhave throughout the day, the
shower, the car work, family,you know, in the interchanges
that you have throughout the day, the exchanges with people, and
so, wow, ladies, I love all ofthat.
I know there are peoplelistening that have a passion
for prayer.
I also know there are peoplewho really struggle to pray, and
(23:08):
so what we're hoping today isto broaden the vision of prayer,
because I think sometimespeople at least I will speak for
myself for many, many years myprayer life was boring, and I'm
just going to admit that BecauseI think it's just really
important to be honest withyourself and with God.
God already knows.
So just be honest.
(23:29):
You can't really go anyplace ifyou stay stuck.
So I got to a place in my lifewith the Lord, where I realized
my prayer life is basically mejust asking God to do things,
and I got convicted that I waspresenting the Lord with a
checklist of all the things Ineeded Him to do and he was the
(23:53):
only one who could do it.
And while that is all true, nowonder people get bored with
prayer and I think about howwould you guys feel?
You guys are all very closefriends of mine.
How would you guys feel youguys are all very close friends
of mine?
How would we feel if, when weare together, I'm literally just
(24:18):
asking one of you a checklistof questions of could you, jo,
beth, could you do this for me?
Michelle, can you do this?
Cindy, could you do this?
And that's all you heard fromme.
That's not a relationship, andso what?
We're hoping to unpack, and thisis a two-part episode.
So if you only hear part one,you're going to miss a lot, and
if you only hear part two,please go back and listen to
(24:40):
part one, because we are goingto unpack prayer and it's going
to be amazing, and these threewomen are definitely the
anointed ones that God picked totalk about it.
So let's dive in.
Let's talk about different wayswe can pray other than the
checklist, which is petition,and it's the way most people
(25:03):
pray.
Unfortunately, I call itkindergarten-level praying, and
that's not to insult anyone, butthe point of that is to express
growth is needed.
Yes, if you are in that place,you're in good company.
Many people are I was one ofthem but we're going to talk
about the layers of prayer andwe're going to talk about first,
(25:23):
thanksgiving and praise, and alot of people may not think of
that as prayer, but anytimewe're expressing something
verbally or in our heart orspirit to God, that's a form of
communication and that's a wayto pray.
So, cindy, why don't you talk alittle bit about thanksgiving
and praise?
I did want to speak thisscripture over this particular
(25:46):
part of our discussion, becausePsalm 100, verse 4, says Enter
his gates with thanksgiving andhis courts with praise, give
thanks to him and praise hisname.
So what a great invitation tothank God and praise him.
Cindy, what would you like tospeak into this?
Cindy Ritter (26:04):
Well, you know, first of all, I want to say
praise is prayer.
Anytime you're communing withthe Lord, we want to give him
praise and as we're praising him, the word of God says that he
inhabits the praises of hispeople and so if we are in
communion with him, he's goingto inhabit our praises and he's
(26:27):
going to go before us ineverything.
And some people wonder well, ispraise a part of prayer?
Absolutely.
Not only is it a part of prayer, it is an an amazing weapon.
And I was, as I was prayingthis morning.
I was like lord, how can Iincorporate praise to help
people understand how powerfulit is?
And he said that it's a weaponand it's very effective in
(26:49):
prayer and in battle.
So, for those who are reallygoing through something, we want
to praise the Lord as if it'salready done.
We want to praise him for theoutcome before it even comes,
because we're a people thatdon't live by sight, we live by
faith.
And so I was looking upscripture and in second
Chronicles 20, it says it'stalking about a battle says
(27:11):
early the next morning, the armyof Judah went out into the
wilderness of Tekeah, On the wayto Joseph, had stopped and said
listen to me, all you people ofJudah and Jerusalem, believe in
the Lord, your God, and youwill be able to stand firm.
Believe in the prophets and youwill be able to stand firm.
Believe in the prophets and youwill succeed.
And after consulting the people,the king appointed singers and
(27:36):
praisers to walk ahead of thearmy, singing to the Lord and
praising him for his holysplendor.
And this is what they sing Givethanks to the Lord, His
faithful love endures forever.
And here's what's really cool,it says at the very moment they
began to sing and give praiseand the Lord caused the armies
(27:57):
of Amun and Moab and Mount Seirto start fighting amongst
themselves.
The armies of Moab and Amunturned against their allies from
Mount Seir and killed every oneof them and after they had
destroyed the army, they beganattacking one another.
In other words, that praisebegan to bring confusion in the
camp and the Lord went ahead ofthem and they began to destroy
(28:21):
each other.
And we often think that we haveto fight the battle.
So we have to remember.
We praise from a place ofvictory, not to victory.
And so when we are liftingpraise to the Lord, he goes
before us and he battles on ourbehalf as we lift him up.
So if God is for us, who couldbe against us?
(28:41):
It's already done.
It's already won.
So just to encourage people,when I think of praise, I think
of battle.
I think, lord, if you're for me, who could be against me?
It is a weapon, it is praise,because praise is upward, it's
not inward.
You can't praise inward, youhave to praise upward.
And that brings the presence ofGod right into our very
(29:04):
situation no matter what we'rebattling.
Kim McIntire (29:06):
That's good.
Yeah, I can wake up like on thewrong side of the bed and just
get into like three or fourminutes of praise and I mean it
will turn the day around so fastwhen our eyes are off of
ourself or whatever.
We're dreading, you know, ormaybe we just don't feel well
when we wake up.
But setting the heart to praiseit's a weapon.
(29:27):
I feel like it moves the focusfrom self to Him and that's
always the best place for ourfocus to be so thank you for
that.
Do you guys want to add anythingto Thanksgiving and praise as a
way to pray?
To pray, I'm sorry.
Jo Beth Ellis (29:45):
I will just add to this that in 2020, and we all
remember what 2020 was you knowit was a year of unsurety.
It was a year of, you know,unknown and a dear friend of
mine and I that was actually aseason.
I'm going to say that I reallylearned to praise.
(30:06):
To say that I really learned topraise and it was through a lot
of writing down, you know,praise cards, praying and God
moving, and that has alwayschanged for me how valuable
praise is, and thanksgiving, tohave a heart of praise and
thanksgiving, and I learned thatthrough a horrible season.
Kim McIntire (30:27):
So praise God for that, yeah, for sure it's a good
memory.
It's a really good memory tolook back and think look how
many things I had to praise Godfor during COVID Hallelujah,
that's so good Confession.
We're going to talk aboutconfession as a way to pray
First.
John 1.9 says if we confess oursins, he is faithful and just
(30:51):
to forgive us of our sins andcleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
And I'll just share withlisteners this is a regular
practice of mine.
There's a psalm and I failed tolook that up this morning, but
it says if I had cherished sinin my heart, the Lord would not
have listened.
And so I feel like it's reallyimportant to allow the Holy
(31:16):
Spirit to search us and to knowus, to test us and try us, to
see if there be any wicked wayin us.
And I just go before the Lordregularly I can't say every day,
but on most days and just saysearch me, o God.
And confession is a beautifulthing.
It's cleaning.
(31:37):
It cleanses you, it helps youknow like you're loved.
Conviction and discipline fromthe Lord is a beautiful gift,
but I think sometimes we fail tosee it as such.
But if you are not practicingregular confession, I would
encourage you to do so, becauseGod is happy to forgive us of
(32:00):
our sins.
He invites us in to that kindof relationship.
Think about, like as a parentto a child, like as a parent to
a child, when your child admitsthey're wrong or says they're
sorry.
Like, aren't you so proud ofthem Because I am?
(32:20):
And if you aren't a parent yet,maybe you can relate this with
someone in your life that you'reclose to.
But how much more so does theLord delight in our just
admitting I was wrong.
God, I have failed here, and soI wanted to just personally
share that.
That is something I practiceregularly.
Anyone else have any thoughtsabout that?
Michelle Mitchell (32:39):
I just feel like it keeps us humble.
You know, we're not a perfectpeople by any means.
Right, you know.
And to admit our faults, toadmit our wrongs, it's okay,
there's nothing wrong with it,it just keeps us humble, yeah
it's really difficult for prideto creep in if you're
acknowledging on a regular basisyour failures before the Lord.
Kim McIntire (33:03):
And it's not a condemning thing either, Like oh
, I'm just a terrible person andI failed again.
You know that gets out ofbalance, but it's really just an
act of posture, of humility,you know humbling yourself.
Cindy Ritter (33:16):
Can I say?
Kim McIntire (33:17):
something, please do.
Cindy Ritter (33:19):
So here's something that I've always
believed Confession exposes thetactic of the enemy in your life
.
Kim McIntire (33:27):
Oh, sure, yes.
Cindy Ritter (33:29):
And I've always felt that.
Well, not that I felt, but theenemy, his tactic, is to isolate
us.
He wants us not to confessthose things out into to someone
, to the Lord, because if he cankeep us isolated in our sin, it
can continue to fester and keepus hindered from our
(33:50):
relationship with the Lord.
But as we search our heart andwe want Him more than anything
else and we begin to confess oursin, it brings exposure to the
darkness in our life, and thenlight is now shed, and that is
what God can work with.
So, I just think it's justimportant that we know like
confessions more than justconfessing to the Lord and
(34:12):
humility, but it's also bringingexposure to the tactic of the
enemy in our life so that wehave authority and can conquer
those things, and it bringshealing and deliverance to each
and every one of us.
We're transformed from glory toglory.
Kim McIntire (34:24):
Right and I feel like you know, during confession
is the time when I can say tothe Lord Lord, I need your Holy
Spirit, because this is an areaof weakness and struggle,
temptation, whatever the casemay be.
Maybe it's a stronghold and I'mreally like leaning into the
(34:47):
Holy Spirit for that strongholdto be broken.
And I would go even farther andsay, sometimes this involves
confession to a sister in Christor confession to my husband
that I'm struggling.
And the women around in thiscircle today, they've all heard
me say this is a struggle and Ineed you to pray for me.
So, not just confession to theLord, but a practice of
(35:10):
confession to others.
And the Bible says that confessyour sins one to another that
you may be healed, and oh, it'sa beautiful thing.
So don't shy away fromconfession.
I would say, run to it, becausethere's layers, as you can see,
to this, because there's layers, as you can see, to this.
We're going to talk about onemore prayer practice before we
(35:34):
conclude episode one, and so weare going to talk about
persistent prayer and I thinkabout the parable of the
persistent widow, and that isfound in Luke 18, verses 1
through 8.
And I would encourage listenersto go to that if you're not
familiar with that parable.
But when I think aboutpersistent prayer, I think about
(35:56):
my friend Jo Beth.
She is relentless in persistentprayer.
I know she's prayed forspecific things for decades.
She's not stopped asking Godfor it.
I don't think she ever willstop asking God until it happens
.
So Jo Beth, what keeps?
Think she ever will stop askingGod until it happens?
Jo Beth Ellis (36:14):
So, jobeth what keeps you motivated to never
stop asking?
Jobeth, I don't think I everwant someone to ask me the
question why did I stop praying?
Because then I gave up on Godand the prayer that I have
prayed for decades and decades.
(36:35):
Eternity is at stake with it,right, yeah, and I can't stop
praying.
I just can't.
It's in me and God is faithfuland it keeps me close to Him
(36:55):
because he may answer the prayertomorrow and you know you're
that close to it and I can'tshrink back from it.
I will always keep praying andkeep asking.
Kim McIntire (37:10):
I love that, and it's an example to other people.
I think sometimes we don'talways recognize what example we
are to others in our communityof faith, and so to me, I think
a lot of times, man, I just I'mgiving up on this situation, but
(37:31):
then I'm no, jo Beth's notgiving up, I'm not giving up,
you know.
I mean, shouldn't that be howwe are for each other though?
Yeah, like linking arms withother strong women and men of
faith and just man.
Sometimes we feel weak, but wecan look to someone and be like
but Lord, if you can do it forJobe, if you can put that spirit
(37:51):
of persistence in her, you canput it in me, because you are no
respecter of persons, right?
That's the goodness of our God.
He's amazing.
So we're going to conclude thispart of this episode, but we
will be continuing it in ournext episode, so please stay
tuned.
I want to thank you forlistening today.
(38:12):
Be sure to check us out on ourwebsite, itstimetoriseuporg, our
Facebook page or Instagram atthe underscore official
underscore rise, underscore up.
May God's grace and peace bewith you In Jesus' mighty name.
Welcome to the it's Time to Rise Up podcast.
I'm your host, kim McIntyre.
Thank you for joining us thisweek.
If you're not familiar with ourshow, check out our website at
itstimetoriseuporg.
There you will find our socialmedia links and for our podcast
platforms, you'll find us onYouTube, apple Podcasts, spotify
(00:30):
and anywhere else you find yourpodcast.
We would humbly ask you tosubscribe, leave us a comment,
give a thumbs up or, even better, leave us a five-star review on
Apple Podcasts.
Thank you again for joining ustoday.
The Power of Prayer is the titlefor our show today, and with me
here in the studio are threewomen who are mighty in prayer
(00:53):
Jo Beth Ellis, michelle Mitchelland Cindy Ritter.
All three of these ladies serveon the Rise Up Conference
prayer team.
They have each impacted my lifein very different but profound
ways.
What they all have in common istheir passion to live life in a
rhythm of prayer, meaning it'spart of who they are, it's not
(01:14):
just what they do.
Let me introduce you to ourguests and then I'll have them
share a little about themselvesbefore we dive into this
incredible topic of prayer.
Michelle Mitchell, I remembermeeting you at Cindy Ritter's
house for the Bill Johnson study.
Hosting the presence.
(01:34):
It was the first time she hadtalked about you and I'm like
she's like you know Michelle.
I'm like I don't know Michelle,but thankfully now I do, so
that's what I remember aboutmeeting you.
So why don't you tell us alittle bit about?
Michelle Mitchell (01:49):
yourself, michelle.
So I am married to an awesomeman named Michael Mitchell and I
have two kids.
He has two kids and we havefour grandchildren almost four
grandchildren all together.
We have one coming next month.
So we're very excited aboutthat, absolutely.
Congratulations, thank you,we're very excited.
Kim McIntire (02:11):
Yay, family is growing.
That's awesome.
What about ministry work?
Michelle Mitchell (02:21):
What kind of ministry are you doing right now
?
Right now, I am doing a newbelievers class Awesome.
I am part of Rise Up, of course, just also leading a small
group at our house with myhusband and just doing— and
serving on discipleship inchurch Serving on discipleship
team.
Yeah, All the things that theLord has me doing.
Kim McIntire (02:40):
That's awesome.
Okay, thanks for sharing that.
Our next guest is JoBeth Ellis.
I've known JoBeth for 30 years.
In 2025, it will be 30 years.
We met in 1995.
She's my oldest friend, but Idon't mean that as in age.
I mean that as time, like wehave been friends for almost 30
(03:02):
years.
That's incredible, and I loveher so much.
She's taught me a lot aboutprayer.
Why don't you tell us a littlebit about yourself, jobeth?
Jo Beth Ellis (03:12):
I have been married for 40 years.
I have three children, a sonand two daughters, and six
grandsons.
Life is good and God is good tome Amen.
Kim McIntire (03:28):
Tell us about your ministry work.
Jo Beth Ellis (03:31):
I am privileged to be on the discipleship team
at church and I love it, andthis past fall, this past fall,
I got to help launch an Abideclass.
Yes, and right now it isabsolutely a joy and a lot of
(03:53):
learning and a lot of leaninginto God and letting Him do you
know what he does best.
Kim McIntire (03:59):
That's right, that's right.
Yeah, jobeth is leading anAbide class, which is our
discipleship piece for the RiseUp Conference, and there are
going to be more classes openingin January.
So more to come about thatlater.
But welcome, jobeth, we're gladyou're here.
And our other guest is CindyRitter.
She's calling in from Floridatoday.
(04:20):
We're thankful she's safe fromall the hurricane things that
have been going on.
I met Cindy in 2020.
I started attending the churchwhere she was on staff and she
took me under her wing.
She's one of my spiritual mamas, although she's 10 years
younger than me.
So just want everyone in theaudience to know never
(04:44):
underestimate someone youngerthan you, because a lot of times
you can learn a whole lot frompeople 10 years younger than you
.
That's right.
Cindy Ritter (04:53):
And so Cindy you are one of my spiritual mamas.
I don't think it's a full 10years.
Kim McIntire (04:56):
Okay, well, I think it's more like five, but
still.
Oh, then I had your age wrong,because I'm not going to say it
on the air but I thought youwere legitimately 10 years
younger than me Apparently not,but hey, that's okay.
All I know is I've learned somuch about leaning into the Holy
Spirit, and a lot of that wasjust from you teaching me,
(05:17):
loving on me and being really,really patient.
So why don't you tell ourlisteners a little about you?
Cindy Ritter (05:24):
Yes, I have been married for 30 years to my
husband, Steve.
We have two adult children.
We don't have any grandchildren, but we have a grand, well, two
grand dogs, so I think they'remy babies.
My husband just a little bitreal quick is the first 20 years
(05:45):
of our marriage.
We were in the Navy, or myhusband was in the Navy, and so
we moved around a lot, so Ireally gained a lot of
perspective in different areasand cultures.
So, but yeah, so married 30years, two kids, two granddads,
living in Florida, safe from thehurricane and loving the
sunshine and the palm trees.
Kim McIntire (06:03):
Yeah, and tell us about your ministry work, cindy.
Cindy Ritter (06:07):
Well, currently I am our discipleship pastor at
our main campus here in Floridaand oversee all of our
assimilations processes forthree of our campuses.
I also oversee prayer team onall of our campuses and oversee
all discipleship groups on allof our campuses.
I also oversee a prayer team onall of our campuses and oversee
all discipleship groups on allof our campuses.
Kim McIntire (06:30):
So you're a little bit busy.
It's a little bit.
A little bit yeah, and yet youtook your Saturday morning to be
with us, so thank you so muchfor that.
I really appreciate it, friend.
So let's go to this.
Let's talk about how each ofyou became history of Rise Up in
episode one.
I'm speaking to the listenersright now.
(07:06):
You might want to tune intothat, because Cindy was part of
the beginning of Rise Up, so whydon't you share about that?
Cindy Ritter (07:14):
Yeah.
So we had been doing some lifegroups and one of my heart of
life group was to raise up women, and so I had been doing some
women life groups.
And I got connected with HollyHoyer, which I actually knew
before this particular lifegroup.
We had served together,administered together, but we
(07:34):
decided that we would love to beable to teach women how to pray
.
We felt there was a need toreally just teach women not just
to pray, but to pray the word.
And so Holly Sawyer and I begana group in her home and it was
fabulous.
People were coming and theywere just pouring out their
hearts to the Lord, and God wasjust really transforming lives,
(07:57):
right?
in her living room and it beganto grow quite a bit actually,
and so we moved it to my livingroom because it was a little bit
bigger.
And during the time that wemoved it to my house, we really
wanted to point it more thanjust pray in the word, but we
wanted to really teach women topray but also operate in their
gifts, which is where you talkedabout hosting his presence by
(08:18):
Bill Johnson.
We did that video episode, butin it it wasn't just teaching
about hosting his presence, itwas also practicing the gifts of
the Spirit.
So we'd have times of video,times of teaching, times of
discussion, but then at the endthere was always time of worship
and always a time of practicingthe gifts, encouraging one
another to flow in those gifts.
(08:38):
And so from there we completedthat group, but then the Lord
called us to move to florida and, um, so when we did, I think
really, kim, you were reallytransformed in that group, like
that's.
During the time, you werefilled with the holy spirit and
god just really began speakingto you and I just remember
saying I don't know what allthis is, but I'm hungry and I
(09:01):
want it.
If it's God, I want it, andthat's really always in my heart
as well.
If it's God, I want it.
And so I know at that time whenmy husband and I moved,
everything kind of transcendedover to your living room and
then of course, it grew even outof that and then you began
(09:22):
meeting.
I believe it was God's Resort,which I did not have a privilege
to be a part of that, but Ihave remained in connection with
Rise Up because I've just feltlike this ministry was birthed
out of our living rooms and it'sso powerful.
It wasn't just something oh,let's do this.
No, it was bathed in prayer andGod began doing a work in women
(09:44):
and it began to grow and grow.
And so every year you have theRise Up Conference.
I feel compelled, like I needto go back.
I want to see what God's doingin this ministry.
It's almost like, okay, it wasbirth and you have a baby for
all you mamas out there, but youwant to see it grow.
And it's just been incredible,even from a distance, to be able
to hear of all the things thatGod is doing through the
(10:06):
ministry and then being able tobe a part of the actual
conference.
It's just been amazing to seewhat God is doing and what he's
going to continue to do, and Ijust believe it's going to
continue to grow for years tocome.
Kim McIntire (10:18):
I just think back to that time in your living room
and how I was so out of mycomfort zone, and I feel like
this would be a really goodplace to insert this.
You know, if you become part ofa community of women who pray
and read the Word and seek theLord, you're probably going to
be uncomfortable.
If it's a good thing, becausethe enemy doesn't want you to be
(10:40):
in those atmospheres, and soI'm really thankful that I
fought through the uncomfortablethat I experienced, because
everything was new, and so Idon't have the words to thank
you for inviting me into thatspace, but it's definitely been
hugely impactful in my growth inprayer.
So thank you, Cindy andMichelle.
(11:01):
How did you become part of theRise Up Prayer Movement?
Michelle Mitchell (11:06):
So I was actually one that came from the
very beginning.
I was there.
I believe it was Cindy that hadinvited me to see women coming
(11:28):
together, praying for oneanother, believing for one
another, a community of womenthat truly wanted more of God
and just being in that.
It's powerful.
It's powerful.
It's life-changing Very much soVery life-changing, yeah, how
about you, jobeth?
Kim McIntire (11:42):
When did you jump in?
Very much so, very much so.
How about you, jobeth?
Jo Beth Ellis (11:44):
When did you jump in.
I would say I jumped in whenthe ladies started meeting at
God's Resort.
Okay, and I will say this I sawsuch a change in you and it
stirred up a desire in me.
I wanted that, thank you, andyou know, I saw what God was
(12:09):
doing in you and it made mehungry for more.
That's amazing.
Kim McIntire (12:15):
That's so good.
Yeah, Contagious.
Yes, we talked about how wewant to be contagious, Like when
people are around us, let it bethey see so much Jesus that
they— want more.
Like what do they have Tasteand see that the Lord is good.
And we were talking on the carride over here to the studio.
(12:35):
Michelle and Jo Beth were withme and we were talking about how
it's our heart and I know it'sCindy's heart too when people
hear us, let it be they hearJesus.
Let it be they see Jesus.
And that's a prayer God willhonor, you know, when you ask
Him.
So here's something I want usto talk about.
I don't know who wants to start, so just anyone who wants to
(12:57):
jump in.
If you could just share withour audience what your journey
of prayer has looked like overthe past years, when did it
begin and how has it grown to bewhat it is today, If everyone
could just take a couple ofminutes to share about that.
Cindy, do you want to start?
Do you want to lead out withthat?
Cindy Ritter (13:16):
Yes, I actually love talking about this because
I believe, no matter where youare, this would encourage anyone
.
So I did not grow up in churchand so when I gave my life to
the Lord when I was 25, myentire life turned upside down
and from the very beginning Ifelt such a pull towards prayer
(13:40):
and intercession, and the churchwe attended at that time had an
intercessory prayer team and Iwanted to be a part of it.
So bad, and at the time Ididn't know why, but I know now
it was the Holy Spirit callingme and at the time I didn't know
why, but I know now it was theHoly Spirit calling me and I was
terrified.
If I'm being honest, I wasabsolutely terrified, being 25
(14:01):
years old wanting to go toprayer with these women who are
50 and 60 years old, who werejust mature in the word.
I think I barely knew John 3,16 at the time, but I had such a
compulsion to want to go toprayer and so I made the steps
to go and when I went, one ofthe ladies there was like I knew
you were coming, and that wasso encouraging because these are
(14:26):
women of prayer and they theyflowed in the prophetic as well
and they're like I knew you werecoming and that was so
encouraging to me.
But then when I got there, thesewomen were just praying, like
they were just amazing in prayer.
They would pray for 10 and 15minutes.
I'm like I can't do that.
I don't know enough word.
I don't know what I'm doing.
(14:48):
And the pastor's wife took meunder her wing I'm going to cry
thinking about it and she saidto me Cindy, if you would just
pray two words out of obedienceof what the Holy Spirit is
asking you to pray, it is justas powerful as any woman in that
(15:08):
room that's praying.
She said you just have to beobedient to what the holy spirit
is asking you to pray.
And I had such a fear of thelord and such an all the lord at
the time that I began to do it,even if I felt like I didn't
measure up.
And so how did that journeycontinue, kim?
(15:30):
You actually said a little bitago, getting out of your comfort
zone, being obedient to whatthe Holy Spirit is asking you to
do, no matter how comfortableyou feel, because if you can do
it in yourself, it's not led bythe Lord, right, it is when you
get out of your comfort zone iswhen you're going to grow and
the Holy Spirit has a way ofmoving you and shaking you and
(15:52):
getting you out of your comfortzone to accomplish His will
through your life.
And when you're out of yourcomfort zone, you have no option
but to lean upon the HolySpirit to lead you and to guide
you.
And I've been doing that nowfor 24 years.
And from that one moment in aprayer room of just praying two
(16:15):
words to now leading prayerteams and prayer moments, I
couldn't have done it on my own.
I couldn't have done it on myown.
So I would just say, like myjourney has just been a life of
being obedient to the HolySpirit and being moved from my
comfort zone.
But don't ever despise smallbeginnings, because God can do
(16:35):
much if you just take a step offaith.
Kim McIntire (16:37):
Amen, that's such a good word.
Thank you for sharing that.
Jo Beth how about you Tell usabout your journey of prayer?
What's it looked like over thepast decade?
Jo Beth Ellis (16:49):
You know, I was raised in church, right, and
prayer was always there, it wasin our home.
But I don't think prayer reallytook on a really personal place
in my heart.
Prayer anchors me.
(17:11):
Prayer anchors me.
Prayer is where, when I'mtroubled, heavy hearted, don't
know what to do.
Yeah, it is where I go.
It is to God that I go, becausehe changes things.
(17:33):
He is my strength, he is myhope, he's my tomorrow, he's my
today, and my prayer time withHim is precious, it's valuable.
It's so valuable to me, it's sovaluable to me.
And you know, when your morningsometimes gets turned upside
(17:57):
down and you don't have therhythm you normally have and you
start a day out of your rhythm,I can tell a difference For
sure, a hundred percent.
I can tell a difference.
So it's so valuable to me andit anchors my day, anchors my
day, and it helps me rest atnight.
And that's what prayer does.
(18:18):
That's what the journey hasbeen.
But this last decade for surehas absolutely changed.
It's a more.
I want more time with the Lord.
Kim McIntire (18:31):
Yeah, that's good.
Time is really such.
It's key to prayer, and it'snot that it's a legalistic thing
, but making time.
We make time for everything, ifyou think about it.
We set appointments, we makesure we talk to our kids, we
make sure we're communicatingwith the people that matter our
husband or whoever thoseimportant people in your circle
(18:54):
are.
How much more so the creator ofthe universe, amen, yes, and I
feel like that's when thingsshifted for me, when that became
utmost priority and it meantmore to me to talk to God than
anyone else, because that's howit should be.
Actually, that's right.
When I started ordering my lifelike that, everything started
(19:16):
changing.
Michelle Mitchell (19:17):
Yeah.
Kim McIntire (19:18):
And most of all me , you know me.
Like.
Things may have still been kindof chaotic in areas, but when
you're different inside, youview those situations
differently.
That's right.
So thank you, jo Beth.
Michelle, let's talk aboutprayer with you.
What's your journey been likeso?
Michelle Mitchell (19:35):
I grew up in church, like Jo Beth, like you.
It really, for me it wasn'tuntil about 10 years ago where
my prayer life it wasn't so muchrelational and I probably went
through one of the worst timesof my life about 12 years ago
and all I had was Jesus.
(19:57):
That's all I had and my lifereally began to change and I
could only go up and he was myrock.
He was what I leaned on and myhusband and I now.
We had an amazing experience totravel with ministry and
(20:21):
through that we learned so muchfrom.
I can't even explain it, but ittook us to a whole nother level
and then another level, andthen another level, and we
thought we were Christians.
But we learned so much in sucha short amount of time, in three
(20:41):
and a half years, and prayerwas such a pivotal point.
It changed, it was relational,it was personal and it was just
God.
I want more of you, god.
I'm hungry for you, god.
I want to be with you.
I don't want you to leave myside.
I need you every second ofevery day.
(21:03):
And in the prayer it's not justsetting aside the time in the
morning, it's how we live ourlife, it's in everything that we
say, it's in everything that wedo, it's the things that comes
out of our mouth, it's the wordsthat we speak, and I sit there
in my car and I talk to God whenI am at work.
(21:25):
I talk to Him.
Lord, I need a word for thisperson.
They are hurting, or whateveris being brought to my attention
through the individual sittingin front of me.
It's all through prayer.
It's in communicating.
Prayer is communicating with theLord and so, therefore, it
spills out into every part ofour life.
(21:47):
It's not just the time and theway, although that is the
precious time.
That's where you get youranointing, for the day is when
you're really alone with Him andyou have no distractions.
The phone isn't near you.
You have your worship musicgoing through those things.
So my prayer life hasdefinitely changed in the last
10 years.
(22:07):
Life has definitely changed inthe last 10 years, and now I
have the privilege to share thatwith others, to teach others.
Hey, it's not just sitting onthe pew on a Sunday morning.
It is so much more than that.
It's a lifestyle.
Kim McIntire (22:22):
And if you're only experiencing the Lord within
the walls of the church, let mejust tell you and we would all
agree, I know you are missingthe sweetest parts of time with
God because he wants to meet usin the secret place, and I love
what you spoke, michelle, abouthow prayer shouldn't just be in
that time alone with Him in thesecret place, but it should flow
(22:45):
all through the day the shower,the car work, family, you know,
in the interchanges that youhave throughout the day, the
shower, the car work, family,you know, in the interchanges
that you have throughout the day, the exchanges with people, and
so, wow, ladies, I love all ofthat.
I know there are peoplelistening that have a passion
for prayer.
I also know there are peoplewho really struggle to pray, and
(23:08):
so what we're hoping today isto broaden the vision of prayer,
because I think sometimespeople at least I will speak for
myself for many, many years myprayer life was boring, and I'm
just going to admit that BecauseI think it's just really
important to be honest withyourself and with God.
God already knows.
So just be honest.
(23:29):
You can't really go anyplace ifyou stay stuck.
So I got to a place in my lifewith the Lord, where I realized
my prayer life is basically mejust asking God to do things,
and I got convicted that I waspresenting the Lord with a
checklist of all the things Ineeded Him to do and he was the
(23:53):
only one who could do it.
And while that is all true, nowonder people get bored with
prayer and I think about howwould you guys feel?
You guys are all very closefriends of mine.
How would you guys feel youguys are all very close friends
of mine?
How would we feel if, when weare together, I'm literally just
(24:18):
asking one of you a checklistof questions of could you, jo,
beth, could you do this for me?
Michelle, can you do this?
Cindy, could you do this?
And that's all you heard fromme.
That's not a relationship, andso what?
We're hoping to unpack, and thisis a two-part episode.
So if you only hear part one,you're going to miss a lot, and
if you only hear part two,please go back and listen to
(24:40):
part one, because we are goingto unpack prayer and it's going
to be amazing, and these threewomen are definitely the
anointed ones that God picked totalk about it.
So let's dive in.
Let's talk about different wayswe can pray other than the
checklist, which is petition,and it's the way most people
(25:03):
pray.
Unfortunately, I call itkindergarten-level praying, and
that's not to insult anyone, butthe point of that is to express
growth is needed.
Yes, if you are in that place,you're in good company.
Many people are I was one ofthem but we're going to talk
about the layers of prayer andwe're going to talk about first,
(25:23):
thanksgiving and praise, and alot of people may not think of
that as prayer, but anytimewe're expressing something
verbally or in our heart orspirit to God, that's a form of
communication and that's a wayto pray.
So, cindy, why don't you talk alittle bit about thanksgiving
and praise?
I did want to speak thisscripture over this particular
(25:46):
part of our discussion, becausePsalm 100, verse 4, says Enter
his gates with thanksgiving andhis courts with praise, give
thanks to him and praise hisname.
So what a great invitation tothank God and praise him.
Cindy, what would you like tospeak into this?
Cindy Ritter (26:04):
Well, you know, first of all, I want to say
praise is prayer.
Anytime you're communing withthe Lord, we want to give him
praise and as we're praising him, the word of God says that he
inhabits the praises of hispeople and so if we are in
communion with him, he's goingto inhabit our praises and he's
(26:27):
going to go before us ineverything.
And some people wonder well, ispraise a part of prayer?
Absolutely.
Not only is it a part of prayer, it is an an amazing weapon.
And I was, as I was prayingthis morning.
I was like lord, how can Iincorporate praise to help
people understand how powerfulit is?
And he said that it's a weaponand it's very effective in
(26:49):
prayer and in battle.
So, for those who are reallygoing through something, we want
to praise the Lord as if it'salready done.
We want to praise him for theoutcome before it even comes,
because we're a people thatdon't live by sight, we live by
faith.
And so I was looking upscripture and in second
Chronicles 20, it says it'stalking about a battle says
(27:11):
early the next morning, the armyof Judah went out into the
wilderness of Tekeah, On the wayto Joseph, had stopped and said
listen to me, all you people ofJudah and Jerusalem, believe in
the Lord, your God, and youwill be able to stand firm.
Believe in the prophets and youwill be able to stand firm.
Believe in the prophets and youwill succeed.
And after consulting the people,the king appointed singers and
(27:36):
praisers to walk ahead of thearmy, singing to the Lord and
praising him for his holysplendor.
And this is what they sing Givethanks to the Lord, His
faithful love endures forever.
And here's what's really cool,it says at the very moment they
began to sing and give praiseand the Lord caused the armies
(27:57):
of Amun and Moab and Mount Seirto start fighting amongst
themselves.
The armies of Moab and Amunturned against their allies from
Mount Seir and killed every oneof them and after they had
destroyed the army, they beganattacking one another.
In other words, that praisebegan to bring confusion in the
camp and the Lord went ahead ofthem and they began to destroy
(28:21):
each other.
And we often think that we haveto fight the battle.
So we have to remember.
We praise from a place ofvictory, not to victory.
And so when we are liftingpraise to the Lord, he goes
before us and he battles on ourbehalf as we lift him up.
So if God is for us, who couldbe against us?
(28:41):
It's already done.
It's already won.
So just to encourage people,when I think of praise, I think
of battle.
I think, lord, if you're for me, who could be against me?
It is a weapon, it is praise,because praise is upward, it's
not inward.
You can't praise inward, youhave to praise upward.
And that brings the presence ofGod right into our very
(29:04):
situation no matter what we'rebattling.
Kim McIntire (29:06):
That's good.
Yeah, I can wake up like on thewrong side of the bed and just
get into like three or fourminutes of praise and I mean it
will turn the day around so fastwhen our eyes are off of
ourself or whatever.
We're dreading, you know, ormaybe we just don't feel well
when we wake up.
But setting the heart to praiseit's a weapon.
(29:27):
I feel like it moves the focusfrom self to Him and that's
always the best place for ourfocus to be so thank you for
that.
Do you guys want to add anythingto Thanksgiving and praise as a
way to pray?
To pray, I'm sorry.
Jo Beth Ellis (29:45):
I will just add to this that in 2020, and we all
remember what 2020 was you knowit was a year of unsurety.
It was a year of, you know,unknown and a dear friend of
mine and I that was actually aseason.
I'm going to say that I reallylearned to praise.
(30:06):
To say that I really learned topraise and it was through a lot
of writing down, you know,praise cards, praying and God
moving, and that has alwayschanged for me how valuable
praise is, and thanksgiving, tohave a heart of praise and
thanksgiving, and I learned thatthrough a horrible season.
Kim McIntire (30:27):
So praise God for that, yeah, for sure it's a good
memory.
It's a really good memory tolook back and think look how
many things I had to praise Godfor during COVID Hallelujah,
that's so good Confession.
We're going to talk aboutconfession as a way to pray
First.
John 1.9 says if we confess oursins, he is faithful and just
(30:51):
to forgive us of our sins andcleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
And I'll just share withlisteners this is a regular
practice of mine.
There's a psalm and I failed tolook that up this morning, but
it says if I had cherished sinin my heart, the Lord would not
have listened.
And so I feel like it's reallyimportant to allow the Holy
(31:16):
Spirit to search us and to knowus, to test us and try us, to
see if there be any wicked wayin us.
And I just go before the Lordregularly I can't say every day,
but on most days and just saysearch me, o God.
And confession is a beautifulthing.
It's cleaning.
(31:37):
It cleanses you, it helps youknow like you're loved.
Conviction and discipline fromthe Lord is a beautiful gift,
but I think sometimes we fail tosee it as such.
But if you are not practicingregular confession, I would
encourage you to do so, becauseGod is happy to forgive us of
(32:00):
our sins.
He invites us in to that kindof relationship.
Think about, like as a parentto a child, like as a parent to
a child, when your child admitsthey're wrong or says they're
sorry.
Like, aren't you so proud ofthem Because I am?
(32:20):
And if you aren't a parent yet,maybe you can relate this with
someone in your life that you'reclose to.
But how much more so does theLord delight in our just
admitting I was wrong.
God, I have failed here, and soI wanted to just personally
share that.
That is something I practiceregularly.
Anyone else have any thoughtsabout that?
Michelle Mitchell (32:39):
I just feel like it keeps us humble.
You know, we're not a perfectpeople by any means.
Right, you know.
And to admit our faults, toadmit our wrongs, it's okay,
there's nothing wrong with it,it just keeps us humble, yeah
it's really difficult for prideto creep in if you're
acknowledging on a regular basisyour failures before the Lord.
Kim McIntire (33:03):
And it's not a condemning thing either, Like oh
, I'm just a terrible person andI failed again.
You know that gets out ofbalance, but it's really just an
act of posture, of humility,you know humbling yourself.
Cindy Ritter (33:16):
Can I say?
Kim McIntire (33:17):
something, please do.
Cindy Ritter (33:19):
So here's something that I've always
believed Confession exposes thetactic of the enemy in your life
.
Kim McIntire (33:27):
Oh, sure, yes.
Cindy Ritter (33:29):
And I've always felt that.
Well, not that I felt, but theenemy, his tactic, is to isolate
us.
He wants us not to confessthose things out into to someone
, to the Lord, because if he cankeep us isolated in our sin, it
can continue to fester and keepus hindered from our
(33:50):
relationship with the Lord.
But as we search our heart andwe want Him more than anything
else and we begin to confess oursin, it brings exposure to the
darkness in our life, and thenlight is now shed, and that is
what God can work with.
So, I just think it's justimportant that we know like
confessions more than justconfessing to the Lord and
(34:12):
humility, but it's also bringingexposure to the tactic of the
enemy in our life so that wehave authority and can conquer
those things, and it bringshealing and deliverance to each
and every one of us.
We're transformed from glory toglory.
Kim McIntire (34:24):
Right and I feel like you know, during confession
is the time when I can say tothe Lord Lord, I need your Holy
Spirit, because this is an areaof weakness and struggle,
temptation, whatever the casemay be.
Maybe it's a stronghold and I'mreally like leaning into the
(34:47):
Holy Spirit for that strongholdto be broken.
And I would go even farther andsay, sometimes this involves
confession to a sister in Christor confession to my husband
that I'm struggling.
And the women around in thiscircle today, they've all heard
me say this is a struggle and Ineed you to pray for me.
So, not just confession to theLord, but a practice of
(35:10):
confession to others.
And the Bible says that confessyour sins one to another that
you may be healed, and oh, it'sa beautiful thing.
So don't shy away fromconfession.
I would say, run to it, becausethere's layers, as you can see,
to this, because there's layers, as you can see, to this.
We're going to talk about onemore prayer practice before we
(35:34):
conclude episode one, and so weare going to talk about
persistent prayer and I thinkabout the parable of the
persistent widow, and that isfound in Luke 18, verses 1
through 8.
And I would encourage listenersto go to that if you're not
familiar with that parable.
But when I think aboutpersistent prayer, I think about
(35:56):
my friend Jo Beth.
She is relentless in persistentprayer.
I know she's prayed forspecific things for decades.
She's not stopped asking Godfor it.
I don't think she ever willstop asking God until it happens
.
So Jo Beth, what keeps?
Think she ever will stop askingGod until it happens?
Jo Beth Ellis (36:14):
So, jobeth what keeps you motivated to never
stop asking?
Jobeth, I don't think I everwant someone to ask me the
question why did I stop praying?
Because then I gave up on Godand the prayer that I have
prayed for decades and decades.
(36:35):
Eternity is at stake with it,right, yeah, and I can't stop
praying.
I just can't.
It's in me and God is faithfuland it keeps me close to Him
(36:55):
because he may answer the prayertomorrow and you know you're
that close to it and I can'tshrink back from it.
I will always keep praying andkeep asking.
Kim McIntire (37:10):
I love that, and it's an example to other people.
I think sometimes we don'talways recognize what example we
are to others in our communityof faith, and so to me, I think
a lot of times, man, I just I'mgiving up on this situation, but
(37:31):
then I'm no, jo Beth's notgiving up, I'm not giving up,
you know.
I mean, shouldn't that be howwe are for each other though?
Yeah, like linking arms withother strong women and men of
faith and just man.
Sometimes we feel weak, but wecan look to someone and be like
but Lord, if you can do it forJobe, if you can put that spirit
(37:51):
of persistence in her, you canput it in me, because you are no
respecter of persons, right?
That's the goodness of our God.
He's amazing.
So we're going to conclude thispart of this episode, but we
will be continuing it in ournext episode, so please stay
tuned.
I want to thank you forlistening today.
(38:12):
Be sure to check us out on ourwebsite, itstimetoriseuporg, our
Facebook page or Instagram atthe underscore official
underscore rise, underscore up.
May God's grace and peace bewith you In Jesus' mighty name.
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