I have told you all this so that you will have peace of heart and mind. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows; but cheer up, for I have overcome the world.”- John 16:33

Pain and suffering are inevitable in this life. Back on 10 March I wrote about the Lake Concept, how when the Holy Spirit moves in He starts cleaning house. The unhealed wounds of a lifetime (pollution and garbage dumped in your lake/soul) start rising to the surface, where they can be dealt with and healed by Him. Sometimes during this process everything in us wants to run in the opposite direction to deny, detach and drug our pain. But the invitation of Jesus is to meet him in our pain and allow Him to deal with it. Let it become the crucible of our foundation.

Over time, as we get beaten up by life events pain accumulates in our soul. So many of us, maybe all of us, carry unseen scars from our past. Unhealed emotional pain and unforgiveness for those that hurt us, that can sabotage our spiritual formation. This website exists because of my personal emotional pain. As a believer I followed many of the spiritual practices (16 March), I was an intercessor and spent time daily in prayer seeing many prayers answered. I would begin in English then move to praying in tongues, the spiritual language God gave me when I first received the Holy Spirit. My prayer time was usually a time of peace, and communion with God.

Then a storm occurred in my life that caused me so much emotional pain that I actually did not want to carry on living. I told Jesus I couldn't do it anymore that he had to take over.....He took over, and my life changed dramatically at that point. Six months later as we all do, I found myself going through a wilderness period....separated from my spouse, living in a tiny cottage, alone and struggling financially and every time I prayed in tongues I would end up uncontrollably weeping, tears pouring down my face. I had to stop praying in tongues, making me feel that I was now also isolated from God.

I went to Rev John Marquet, a very wise man of God; we sat down together and he prayed for me, then he looked thoughtful for a moment and said, "Hang on" and he got up and went and got a copy of the Anglican Prayer Book. He handed it to me and explained that believers have been praying the formal prayers of the liturgy for hundreds of years. He gave me the book to keep and said that maybe, I needed to use formal prayer and just rest in the Lord for a little while.

I admit coming up through the charismatic movement I was skeptical. But I discovered it reflected a quiet, but strong faith, and there was a beauty in the words that quietly brought me into the presence of God without me dissolving in tears. From this came the knowledge of the value and worth of the formal prayers, handed down to us. Then it dawned on me: 'How many, like me, don't know about this resource or how to use it? Then the calling came on my heart from God to share this discovery and I have been sharing it and my testimony in this website since 2012. I will continue until God tells me to stop. Even though I can now once again pray in tongues without dissolving in tears, I still use the formal prayers and psalms as a starting place. So this website is beauty from ashes. God can do that, no matter what your situation and circumstances, He can bring beauty from your ashes - so why are you clinging to that past hurt and pain, like it's treasure? Give it to God, work through it with Him and lay it down at the foot of the cross where it belongs!