The Anatomy of Prayer (by Min. Adria Carpenter)

One of my friends wanted to be featured on my blogpost, so this is a brief expository on my friend's study on prayer/intercession. Without further ado, here's Minister Adria Carpenter.

The Anatomy of Prayer deals with prayer as a whole. My name is Adria Carpenter and as a minister and intercessor, I don’t want to just be doing something, but I want to be aware of what it is.  2 Timothy says study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly diving the word of truth. “The Anatomy of Prayer”, was birthed to stimulate people to understand the power that prayer carries.  I pray that this will give you spiritual insight on what an intercessor is.  First, let go to Webster and see what an intercessor is? An intercessor is a person who intervenes on the behalf of another, especially by prayer. I want you focus on the word especially, which means to a great extent, very much. In other words when you think about the word intercession, the first thing that comes to mind is prayer!!!   Prayer is an essential part of an intercessor, but there are many roles that an intercessor can possess.  As I began to do my study on intercessor, I asked God what is an intercessor? The name that was dropped in my spirit was Adam. I was puzzled with this for some time, because I didn’t understand why Adam came to me.  But I was reminded in Matthew 6:33 that says seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and these things shall be added unto you.  I sought God because I knew He wanted to reveal the mystery of His word unto his servant pertaining to my asking what is an intercessor? I studied the book of Genesis focusing my attention on Adam and his role in the beginning of time.  Adam was created from dust of the earth. Genesis 2:15 says The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. However, Genesis 3:1-4 says “now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God has made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God really say, You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’ The woman said to the serpent, ‘we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, You must not eat fruit from the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it or you surely will die.’” This was the first sign when the spirit manipulation took place. Let’s continue in Genesis: When the woman saw that the good for food and pleasing to eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom she took some and ate it. She also took some and gave it to her husband, who was with her and ate it. 

Adam was responsible for being attentive and watching the garden. When you study the scriptures, you don’t see anything about God telling him to pray, because he gave him dominion over every living creature in the earth. Adam was obligated to cover and stay in covenant with what God authorize him to do. Cover- put something such as cloth or lid on top of or in front of in order to protect or conceal it.  

Covenant- an agreement

What are they saying??  Intercessor, Prayer Warrior, Gate Keeper and Garden Watcher the Nation is in need and soliciting the prayer from you.  There will be a continuation of The Anatomy of Prayer Blog to give additional information pertaining to prayer.

I pray that this Revelation was useful and that it blessed your life.

Plan of God vs. Man of God

I want to talk about the difference between the plan of God and the man of God. First and foremost, I want to say praise God for the men and women of God that God calls to the five-fold ministry (the truth is, we all have a role within the five-fold ministry and we’re called by God for a unique purpose). The problem is when we as humans put too much stock into the man/woman of God than we do the plan of God (which is the Kingdom of God).

The best example from the Bible is the story of Moses. Moses was chosen by God to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. The children of Israel were so used to the cruelty of Egypt that they couldn’t see beyond Egypt. And what was God trying to do? Bring them into a land that’s flowing with milk and honey. During that time, that was a blessing from God. But the children of Israel couldn’t see that. In fact, after they crossed the Red Sea, they wanted to go back to Egypt (they felt they could go back to Egypt and live on top of the world). Anyway, God was trying to get the children of Israel to rely solely on Him and He would provide. The people’s rebellion got to a point that God was going to strike them dead; however, Moses interceded for them. Where are the true intecessors in this time that we’re living in? That’s a different blogpost.

One of the challenges Moses had leading the people was that Moses had a desire for the people that the people didn’t have for themselves. As a result, Moses was so frustrated that he disobeyed God – and as a result, he was disqualified from leading the children of Israel over to the Promised Land. Fact: when Moses was disqualified, God already told the children of Israel that they were going to die in the Wilderness because of their lack of belief. They couldn’t comprehend the plan of God (or they didn’t want to trust God’s plan for them). In fact, they were so focused on the man of God that they missed God’s plan. Don’t let that be us where we’re so focused on the man/woman of God that we miss God’s plan.

When God raises a man or a woman of God to send a revelation, He’s thinking about the people and wanted to see them advanced. God wanted the children of Israel to advance, but they didn’t because they were focused on the man of God than they were the plan. Again, are we advancing to further His plan for our lives, or are we focused on the man of God. I’m not saying to disregard a man/woman of God. Praise God for them. I’m just stressing balance here.

When you obey the man/woman of God that’s to lead you, that you fulfill the kingdom of God. Those who have sow in obedience to the voice of God, you shall receive increase (now that will come in the area that God choices) – it’s just the mere fact that you’re cooperating with the plan of God – so get ready!

So why is it more about the plan of God than the man of God? Because people can get caught up with just the man/woman of God and their position opposed to the plan of God. The plan of God is the Kingdom of God – and God’s plan is locked into His purpose. In every generation, God will raise a man/woman in that generation for His plan – which is ultimately for His people. And when the people comply with the plan regardless of the man, they are increased. So, bypass the personality and position of people!!!

Example: If God gives me a Word for someone, try to bypass my personality (because I’m a handful – if you know me, you can testify), and just receive (regardless if it does or doesn’t feel good to your flesh).

I pray that you are blessed by this blogpost.

Blessings,

The Mayne Man

The Meaning of Jabez

This blogpost is a “did you know?” kind of blogpost, but also it’s a post dedicated to anyone who has suffered childhood abandonment, neglect or rejection. If you have suffered childhood abandonment, neglect or rejection, allow this blogpost comfort your heart, soul and spirit. Now many of you are familiar with the book The Prayer of Jabez or perhaps the song Bless Me. I won’t talk about either of them in this blogpost (thank God).

Surprisingly, Jabez is only mentioned in two verses within the entire Bible. So, why is Jabez important (apart from the fact that he asked the Lord to enlarge his territory and to bless him indeed)? I’m glad you asked. If you look at 1 Chronicles 4:9 (which we overlook and go directly to verse 10), we get a backdrop on the life of Jabez. Verse 9 says this: Jabez was more honorable than his brothers; but his mother named him Jabez saying, “Because I gave birth to him in pain.” Now you can look at this in one of two ways. The first way is because of the pain while giving birth to him. But let’s look at the second way. We can infer from verse 9 that there was no father in the picture. And if you think about it, within the OT, it was the father that named the child. But let’s look at the name Jabez, it also reveals the mother’s life. Jabez’s name actually means misery, pain and sorrow (and I would venture that no parent would intentionally name their child misery, pain or sorrow – maybe some would).

Think about this, in Genesis 38:18, when Rachel was about to pass away, she was giving birth to her second child (her first child was Joseph). Now, her second child’s name wasn’t originally Benjamin; it was originally named Ben-oni (son of her sorrow). That was because she was about to die. But Jacob (Rachel’s husband) named him Benjamin (son of my right hand) – to show that he was glad he was here. He didn’t want Benjamin to be a burden because of his name. Notice that it says “son of my right-hand” – that means a son in a position of importance and honor. That’s very important. How parents treat children will shape their future.

OK, back to Jabez. By giving Jabez that name, that would show the mother how she felt about him and or what he means to her. It also would show her the life she was living herself. Now, I want to expand this for a minute. Because regardless of the child’s name, but there are many parents who feel burdened because of their child, the pain that’s going on in their own lives, but also the fact that no man is stepping up to the plate to be a father (now that last part is for the single mothers). Do you know that a parent’s pain will actually shape a child’s mind if it’s left unchecked. In fact, a lot of how children turn out in life is based on the environment we were raised in. In fact, I’ll use myself in this case. When there’s an environment where secrets are held within the family unit (where there’s child abuse and child neglect), a child is going to act out all of the pain that’s inside if it’s not addressed and no healing was provided. How do I know? I’m currently in the healing process (some things were revealed as I got older in life).  – I mean I didn’t go out and do drugs, drink excessively, but there are some things I did during my teen years that I’m not proud of). Let me also say this: praise God knowing that He is the ultimate Healer, but sometimes we have to swallow our pride and seek professional help (if needed or He’s telling you to seek it) so you can walk in the inheritance that God has prepared for you.

Let’s go back to the lesson. If Jabez’s father wasn’t there, or his mother went through with his father (verbal arguments/confrontations), all that pain she had was being poured out into her son, Jabez. Sometimes parents fail to realize what we communicate to children and to the world.  But let’s look at us. If we have pain for whatever reason, we have to keep in mind what we communicate to the world. Sometimes others may experience indirect abuse because of your pain. How do I know this? I’ve done this at times (and of course, I have had to apologize on many occasions). Notice that Jabez’s mother didn’t name his other brothers that kind of name. Truth is, a son always has a good relationship with his mother (there’s a beautiful bond with a mother and a son). Let’s say hypothetically that Jabez didn’t deal with the sorrow that was brought on by his mother and he gets married. He will bring all of that into the marriage and into the children (hopefully, he will have an understanding wife that will help him heal – knowing that they are a unit and she’s in the fight with him and vice versa). But if it’s not dealt with, it’s worse at the second level.

Now I get to the crux of this blogpost: what did Jabez suffer from (just from what we read in verse 9)? Childhood rejection! You can’t be called pain, sorry, and misery without expecting rejection. Rejection can emotionally handicap you and any of you who have suffered childhood rejection will know exactly what I’m talking about! In fact, some of us have never fully healed from the rejection from childhood and it’s playing out in multiple ways (some greater, some smaller).

Here are some phrases that could hinge on childhood rejection: “if my sister wasn’t spoiled,” “if my parents would’ve protected me from my abuser,” “if my mother would stop beating me for minor things,” “if my mother or my father had spent more time with me,” and the list goes on.

I talked about some of the symptoms in a blogpost I did a few weeks back called “If God Really Loved Me, Why Was I Abused As A Child?” Here’s the link -> http://mayneman.blogspot.com/2015/10/if-god-really-loved-me-why-was-i-abused.html

Let’s now move to verse 10, what did Jabez do to break the childhood rejection? First, it said in verse 9 that Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. And he turned to the Lord. He asked the Lord to bless him indeed and enlarge his territory. As a result, God honored his request. Verse 10 says this: so Jabez cried out to the God of Israel saying, “Oh that You would bless me indeed and enlarge my border [property], and that Your hand would be on me, and You would keep me from evil so that it does not hurt me!” And God granted His request.

Jabez followed his heart beyond the words of his own mother and turned to God to boldly receive blessing, increase and freedom.

In closing: if you have suffered childhood rejection, please click on the link to read that blogpost. Now open your heart to receive this: God wants to you that He’s so good that He’s not going to let your negligent mother or father that had didn’t care about you, affect you if you come to Him. He’s saying that He’s got you, He knew you when you were in the womb. He’s also saying that He’s responsible for you and He just want you to come to Him right where you are. He wants a chance to take care of you. Stop blaming your predicament, your life and destiny on some other human being that needs a Savior just like you.

Blessings.

The Mayne Man

P.S. Also check out Psalm 34:8-10 and Psalm 27 in its entirety.

Anger In Relationships

I was listening to the radio on my way to church this morning, and on the radio was a discussion with a Christian woman who was struggling with anger because of a man in her life. It grabbed my attention because I believe there are so many people (regardless of gender) who struggle with anger and if left unchecked, it can sabotage people’s present and possibly future.

Before I begin to paraphrase the discussion that I heard on the radio, I’d like to invite people to get involved in this blogpost, because this might actually be a chapter in a book I’m working on with my copy-editor. If you want to respond to the questions at the end of this blogpost, you can respond as anonymous and let me know which comment was yours (whether an inbox on FB, direct message on Twitter, or an e-mail). If your comment is selected for the book, you will definitely remain anonymous (and of course, ask your permission). I thank you in advance.

The woman on the show called in and was struggling with anger because of how her man is treating her and their son. The interviewer is telling the woman that her response should not be based on what he does or doesn’t do, but it should be based on what’s going on inside of her and once you choose to move in the way that’s positive, you’ll make positive choices. 

The interviewer turned his attention here to where the woman was focusing on the fact that he didn’t fulfill what he said he was going to do and how that affected her and their son. As a result, it’s coming out in how she communicates with him.  He said that when she responds out of anger, she’s actually supplying the fuel that the anger needs. The expectation that’s in you for him, that he’s not fulfilling, really creates anger; but at the same time, you actually have respect for what he’s capable of doing.

Some questions in relation to this post:

1. How can you deal with anger from past relationships?
2. How can anger harm your life (present and future)?
3. Why do people renege on their promises leaving a bad taste in the other person’s mouth?
4. Why do some people allow past hurts in relationships to hinder their growth in life?
5. What is the healing process look like for you if you’ve been involved with a man who has a counterfeit spirit?
6. Do you believe it’s important to hear what people are saying? It’s been said: out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks?
7. What are the ramifications when anger takes over the conversation?
8. What are things that people say that can run the other person away?
9. Why do we make the other person the enemy when it’s really not a fight against flesh and blood?

Blessings,

The Mayne Man

What's Love Got To Do With It?

Before I begin this post, I have to ask how many of you have asked this question. If you asked it, was it because you have had your heart broken? Let me submit to you that I understand. I want to take this blogpost and share a little bit of my life in the prayer that it touches your heart and spirit.

This song was on my spirit as I was heading to work this morning. When I first heard the song, it was in the summer of 1984 (and I just turned 10 years old). My summer that year encompassed joy and pain. Let's see, I fell off of my bicycle and ended up with six stitches in my left knee; but at the same time, this is when I would be sexually abused. It was during this time that I heard the song. Many of you will remember this song by Tina Turner (in fact, she won a Grammy for the song). To this day, there's one part of the song that touches me and that's where I want to focus the remainder of this blog. She sings this part near the end of the song:

I've been thinking on a new direction

Well I have to say

I've been thinking about my own protection 

It scares me to feel this way

Even as I type this, it brings tears to my eyes though they are not falling. I believe this post is a release for me and for many others reading this. I do ask a question: how many of you think about your protection if you have been hurt? If you have had your heart broken, you could relate to that part (along with the question, who needs a heart when a heart can be broken). Granted, many hearts have become callous because of that, and I understand. More to say on that in a moment. If you have been abused in any form, you can relate to that part for sure. If you have been neglected, rejected, abandoned in childhood, you can definitely relate. To the last two points, I can wave my hand. 

Before I get close to wrapping up this post, I need to address the question "what's love got to do with it?" Truthfully, love has everything to do with it. You may not have experienced the love you need from childhood or as an adult; but love is the reason why you're still here. I want you wherever you are to just breathe.

If you have seen the movie "What's Love Got To Do With It?", there was a song at the end of the movie when the credits were rolling that was also moving. I saw the movie in 1994 as I was a few days away from leaving home. The chorus of that song moved me (and it summed up how I felt about the things I endured in childhood). It said this:

I don't care who's wrong or right

I don't really want to fight no more

It's time for letting go!

I like that. We don't have to fight anymore. The thing we have to do now is let go of the hurt, the pain and any loose fragments that may come up as you're healing from the hurt you endured. And I'll be honest, when I do certain things in my life, I am thinking about my own protection. I have had my share of wounds in childhood that I'm addressing to this day (so my wall of protection can come down). I encourage you to find where the wall of protection started so you can heal. As always, I have to make a caveat, as the wall comes down, be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Don't fully let your guard down.

Blessings, 

The Mayne Man

If God Really Loved Me, Why Was I Abused As A Child?

If God really loved me, why was I abused as a child? How many of you have heard people ask that question? I have a better question: have you ever wondered that yourself? When I think about it, that question could be modified to fit whatever you have been through (natural disaster, loss of a child, loss of a parent, etc.). But for this post, I want to focus on childhood abuse (physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and verbal abuse). Is this question a valid question? Hand down, yes it is. And it deserves an answer (which will come during the course of this blogpost). Before diving into this post, I do need to say one thing: if you have asked this question and came through, just read and enjoy this post. If you have asked this question and have turned away from God because of what you went through (or perhaps you have some scars that are in need of healing), I dedicate this blogpost to you. Also, if anybody has condemned you, or looked at you strange because you have asked that question (you know, the “how dare you ask that”), you will not get that out of me. Allow this blogpost to touch your heart and spirit.

Psalm 27:10 (from the Amplified Bible) says this: Although my father and my mother have abandoned me, yet the Lord will take me up [adopt me as His child]. This will be the foundational verse for this blogpost. If you have suffered any type of abuse mentioned in the above paragraph, you’ve probably had these questions in your mind:

Why didn’t those who said they loved me protect me? Why does my family fight so hard to cover up the abuse that I suffered? What did I do to deserve this abuse? Was it because I was born that I deserve this? Was I not even wanted? Was I an afterthought?

I’ll be honest; some of those questions were in my mind as I went through my teen years.

Let’s take this a step further: when you went through your abuse, did any of these become part of your life (you don’t have to share, just think about it):

You became more of a social butterfly

You became an introvert

You became promiscuous (sex addict)

You found yourself attracted to someone of the same sex

You decided to be asexual

You abstained because of the hurt suffered (either by choice or you were mocked by the opposite/same sex that forced you to abstain)

You found yourself running to Christianity (or a different religion)

You found yourself turned off from Christianity (or a different religion)

Again I’ll be honest. Out of the items listed above, I became an introvert (part of that was due to me having Asperger’s), abstained from sex – partly by choice and partly because I was mocked during my school years and I found myself running to religion (Christianity) for refuge.

So let’s go back to the original question: If God really loved me, why was I abused as a child? The question sounds complicated, doesn’t it? Is the answer complicated? It depends. Because of the abuse you suffered, you might have some physical and mental scars, along with holes in your heart and spirit. Now, I mentioned Psalm 27:10 earlier and some of you might have grown up in a religious home where there was abuse. Because the abuse occurred by someone in your family, you are disgusted with religion and don’t want anything to do with it. Do I understand? Absolutely. Is the abuse your fault (or was the abuse merit)? Absolutely not!! Does God for this type of abuse? Again, absolutely not!! This is where Psalm 27:10 really shines. Abuse is really abandonment and rejected – and those that were supposed to protect you really forsook you. In fact Matthew 18: 4-6 says this (and this is Jesus speaking to His disciples): therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives and welcomes one child like this in My name receives Me; but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble and sin [by leading him away from My teaching], it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone [as large as one turned by a donkey] hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.

Now, why did God allow it to happen to you? This is an excellent question. We may not know the reason why while we’re here on earth, and keep one thing in mind: His ways are not our ways (in fact, they’re higher than ours).  If we were to look at the book of Job (especially the first 2 chapters), you’ll find that the devil wanted access to Job’s life to do harm. God allowed the devil to do certain things (except kill him). After the devil did his damage, God restored everything the devil destroyed at the end of the book (the 42^nd chapter to be exact). And if you have suffered, be encouraged that He will restore you and make your latter years greater than the former years. Note, the devil (in John 10:10) desires to steal, kill and destroy. He hates us. We suffered, and we may have holes as a result of what happened, but we can get healed and be restored. What’s key is that we have to fight for our healing and do our part (God wants to restore us). Don’t be afraid if you’re on the fence about it, go ahead and give Him a chance. You have nothing to lose.

Blessings,

The Mayne Man

P.S. If you can spare 3 minutes, on the right hand side of my blog, you’ll see a video (where I take the IAmMe Challenge); allow that song to bless your heart and spirit. And yes, I wrote and sing the 2^nd verse and the bridge.