A Call To Prayer With Tonya Armstrong

Trudy: We hear so much about prayer, intercessory prayer, healing prayers, corporate prayer etc. What is prayer?

Tonya Armstrong: There are many types of prayer indeed but the bottom line is.....prayer is simply communication with God....talking to him.

Rather it is intercessory prayer (talking to Him on behalf of someone else), Healing prayer (talking to him about divine healing) Corporate prayer (talking to him about or on behalf of the congregation with other people). It should be a time of thanksgiving and it certainly is a time that you can ask God all the questions that burn so deep. It’s a direct line to heaven.

T: Why is prayer so important?

TA: Prayer is so very important. When we are praying, God is listening and answering. When we take into consideration that there is nothing that we can say to God that he doesn’t hear, it is an awesome thing. There is probably nothing more important in your spiritual walk than prayer. Think of what it means to you when you have a conversation with someone and you know you have their undivided attention.....We always have Gods undivided attention when we talk to him, when we pray. It’s a time that we can talk to him about what concerns us and thank him for what he has done. Remember the more you talk to someone the more you get to know them, the deeper your relationship becomes, the more you recognize their voice. The same applies with God. You will begin to recognize his voice, you will grow closer to Him and you will get to know Him. It’s the most important relationship you will ever have. Spend as much time as you can...getting to know him.

Thank you Tonya, I think one of the hardest things to understand is that God wants to hear from us no matter what the topic of conversation might be. The idea of being in relationship with God is not new but I think we have come to a place in society that we must take the time to understand how we build that relationship and why

T: Thinking about the term prayer life/creating a prayer life-what does that mean and how do you do it?

TA: Prayer life.....Creating an effective prayer life is based on you knowing Gods Word and like I said previously, continuously talking to him. When we pray we must call Gods Word back to Him...in order to do that, we MUST know His Word. Like anything else that becomes successful we must practice and study that thing. I am a firm believer that your prayer life will show up! What I mean by that is..... It will help determine how you react to certain things, how you respond, how you handle and how you go through it. An effective prayer life will allow you to navigate situations in a way that you would never be able to without prayer. I can’t stress enough how important it is. Again, practice makes perfect. Pray, Pray, Pray ....Read, Read, Read....Study Study Study...I promise you that before you know it your prayer life will have developed and it will be something that comes ...oh so natural.

T: Would you like to share a little about your journey to accepting this awesome gift of intercessory prayer?

TA: My journey.....To be honest, it took me a long time to recognize the gift, or should I say, sit still long enough to allow God to speak to me about the gift. Once I decided to hear God, it took me an even longer time to accept it. I often wondered why I felt the way I did, why I felt such a huge burden for people I didn’t even know, why I would take on other people’s emotions, why I would have unexplained pains in my body. Once I began to truly understand the meaning and calling of being an intercessor it was very clear. Then I had to stop running from it and embrace it. That was not an easy thing for me. My first selfish thought (in a line of many) was.....I have my own stuff to deal with why I have to deal with other peoples stuff. I don’t want to pray for people that I don’t necessarily care for, I don’t want to feel this way, I don’t want to!!! One day the Lord so clearly told me....All you have said is I I I.....this is not about YOU, it’s about me and my people and this is one of your assignments in my Kingdom.

I found myself going through very difficult times in my own life, with my marriage, my children, my family etc. and not being able to pray for them the way I felt I should. One day I cried out to God for one of my children and the Lord said, pray for the people I put on your heart...I have taken care of EVERYTHING that concerns you! Not that I don’t pray for my marriage, children, family etc. but the Lord has let me know that because I am praying and interceding for the people HE has told me to.....I don’t have to worry about the people and situations that concern ME!

I would not be telling the truth if I said I still don’t want to run from it sometimes, but GOD! I am beginning to understand more and more the power of prayer and intercession. It’s something that I don’t know if we can ever truly and fully comprehend but I do know that even though it is difficult, I count it a privilege to be an intercessor in the Kingdom!

There it is again Wonderful Women and Magnificent Men; it starts, grows and ends in relationship. It requires work but any relationship worth having is worth the work. We spend time learning the thoughts and ways of a new friend, team or potential love interest with the hope that it will be a long term, fruitful relationship. As we invest that time communication is not only clear but it becomes more intimate, so it must be in our relationship with God. Our efforts must be sincere and purposeful; it not about being available (at first) but more about being present and active in the conversation. The rest will come.

T: What led you to begin sharing prayer beyond Kingdom Life Cathedral?

TA: I started sharing prayer outside of KLCM because prayer is a Kingdom thing! My job in the Emergency Room allows me to see A LOT. It made me realize that there are so many people who are hurting and struggling with one thing or another. And they need prayer! These are people who are a part of our community and it is our responsibility to take care of each other. It takes me back to 2 Chronicles 7:14 However, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves, pray, search for me, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear [their prayer] from heaven, forgive their sins, and heal their country.

We have to pray so that the place we live can be healed. That is what prompted me to start One Voice regional prayer. It’s indeed what the Lord is calling HIS people to do. Pray....across denominational, racial, socio economic lines. I believe the turbulent political time we are in is not a mistake or an accident. It’s an appointed time that the Lord wants us to come together to be THE KINGDOM and start looking and acting like the KINGDOM! And to PRAY

How many of you have asked or been asked what are we going to do now? What is going on in the world? Here is the clarion call to be a part of the solution. We know what will happen if we pray. Tonya shared her marketplace experience that brought her to a deeper understanding of the power of prayer. Take a step back to look at your community, what do you see as you visit your child’s school? They need prayer too. What do you see when you go to the grocery store? Who do you encounter in your household of faith? Your brothers and sisters need prayer. Your community needs you to answer the call to action through prayer.

T: You have been coordinating this community prayer for a few months now and from everyone I talked to and everything I have seen posted on Face Book, it is an amazing fellowship. What next?

TA: What’s next for One Voice? We will continue to pray and go to as many churches as possible. Along with being an opportunity for us to come together and pray, the Lord has also said that every church we go to, we will leave a little bit of Glory there! WOW RIGHT! So we are going to keep doing what God has said, until HE says something different.

T: Allow me to stir the pot a little: Who is eligible to participate in this fellowship? Do I need to be an ordained minister or a member of a particular denomination?

TA: ANYONE AND EVERYONE is welcome and encouraged to come to One Voice. You don't have to have a title...you don't even have to be a Christian...you know why? Because the atmosphere is conducive for salvation; where 2 or 3 are gathered in HIS name HE is in the midst. So if a person is a non believer, on the fence, a believer, elder, Pastor, black, white, yellow, Pentecostal, Baptist or otherwise....... all are welcome to pray and receive the Love of the Father.

T: What is your elevator ride encouragement (you only have the time it takes to go from the lobby to the top floor!) for us today? And no Tonya, you may not hit the stop button LOL

TA: Don't doubt God. Don't doubt that he hears your prayers that he loves you and HE is always there. In the times that are the hardest to pray, when you feel like you can’t get a word out...he hears your heart. Be encouraged and know that God is a present help in times of trouble that HE has promised to never leave you alone. Keep talking to HIM, keep trusting HIM and remember that he is a prayer answering God.

Thank you Tonya, I appreciate you sharing your time and heart with us. Beautiful ladies prayer is something all of us can and must do. If you are not convinced turn on your local and national news-I will leave it right there. You may not be the fierce warrior bombarding heaven when you pray, pray anyway. You may not be able to spend hours on the floor calling out the names on the sick and shut in list. Fine, start with the people in your immediate circle; pray for one person each day. If you are the person who is not sure what to say in prayer, start by sharing your heart with your Father. It is a conversation, He will listen.