“So with yourselves, since you strive eagerly for spirits, seek to have an abundance of them for building up the Church” (1 
Corinthians 14:12)
I was touched by this scripture from 1 Corinthians one day when I was experiencing dry and difficult prayer. I felt thirsty and hungry for the “brush of God” in my heart. I came to realize that part of receiving spiritual gifts to build up the Body of Christ is to experience the need for God anew, to be empty, waiting to be filled. Part of being ready to receive something new means, being open and available to wholeheartedly welcome the gift. God brings that about usually by bringing us through dry, and difficult prayer. Rather than to fall pray to thinking that all is lost, we should be encouraged.
We just navigated having two daughters get married this summer within 3 weeks. We also had extended family and a former foreign exchange student that we had hosted stay with us for an extended period in between the weddings. This week after all of the chaos and joys of the weddings were over, I felt rather spent. It was then that I realized that this spent feeling was precisely where God had wanted me for He was doing something new in me. When I am spent, I am not in control, for I am needy before God. God wants us needy before Him because He has so much in His hands to give us. When we are self-assured we do not hunger and thirst for righteousness or the spiritual gifts that build Him up in us and in the world around us. Next time you feel spent, or dry in prayer, learn to recognize the signs. You are being prepared to move out in a new spiritual gift or to “speak a new and foreign tongue” to build the Body. ~ Mary
WORD of the Vine 
Seeing what is happening with you, opens me more to God.
You know that I wave to the man in the wheelchair on the street that leads out to the boulevard. Yesterday he waved back to me and today I stopped and talked with him. Come to find out he grew up in the same neighborhood with all of the Fitsik’s and knew all of them. He said “I see you going back and forth all of the time. Do you work?” I just had to laugh and it also made me confront that question…the same question Tina used to ask me in a different way, “why do you keep running?”. He told me to come back again, which I will. Just wanted to share.
By: Pat Johnson on July 8, 2014
at 4:58 pm
I don’t know if you got this message so I’m sending it again.
On Tue, Jul 8, 2014 at 12:57 PM, Pat Johnson wrote:
> Seeing what is happening with you, opens me more to God. > > You know that I wave to the man in the wheelchair on the street that leads > out to the boulevard. Yesterday he waved back to me and today I stopped and > talked with him. Come to find out he grew up in the same neighborhood with > all of the Fitsik’s and knew all of them. He said “I see you going back > and forth all of the time. Do you work?” I just had to laugh and it also > made me confront that question…the same question Tina used to ask me in a > different way, “why do you keep running?”. He told me to come back again, > which I will. Just wanted to share. > > > On Tue, Jul 8, 2014 at 7:58 AM, WORD of the Vine <
By: Pat Johnson on July 10, 2014
at 2:37 pm
I’m sorry… “fall prey”, not “fall pray”.
Thank you for your article.
In JMJ,
Joe
By: Joe Gloor on August 24, 2014
at 12:06 pm