BREATHE IN, BREATHE OUT:

The Prayer of Jabez and Ann Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, “Oh, that You would bless me and enlarge my border, and that Your hand might be with me, and that You would keep me from harm so that it might not bring me pain!” And God granted what he asked. First Chronicles 4:10 (ESV) One of my spiritual gifts is speaking. I had numerous opportunities to hone that skill during the twenty-five years at the helm of Choices Pregnancy Care Center. So, when hearing that Bruce Wilkinson, author of “The Prayer of Jabez”, a tiny book that became all the rage in 2000, selling nine million copies in a mere two years, sought to teach speakers the message he had been giving to pregnancy centers, I was all ears. But would he choose me? Raising much funding, he was booked solid, unable to fulfill all of the speaking requests. His idea? Select a few people, then train them, sending them out across the country using Bruce’s message. I threw my hat into the ring, praying for the opportunity to be a small cog in a big wheel. Not having a clue of what would happen next. Humbly honored to be one of the fourteen men and women, we met in Charlotte for several days of training. Then we would practice the message back home. The Great Turnaround was the name Bruce chose for our motley crew, with the idea of turning around the way pregnancy centers could acquire large funding. My feelings vacillated between exuberating joy with a tad of anxiousness thrown in. Off my Camry went to the big North Carolina city where I was to sit under the leadership of the well-known author, now Bruce to me. Shaking a bit but smiling nonetheless, Ann made her way to the front of the room when called. He asked me to rehearse a particular segment of the message. Critique followed, as we were sponges under his tutelage. When returning to my front row seat, picking up my pencil to jot down valuable notes, lo and behold Bruce walked over. A yard away, it was as if no one but the two of us were in the room. As Bruce eyeballed only me, with slow intent, he recited The Lord’s Prayer in its entirety. Diving deeply into my eyes for emphasis. Getting to “He leads me beside quiet waters”, Bruce paused to speak only to me. My soul was ready to hear. “Ann, a year from now you will be a different person.” He was quite serious as his soft smile caught my eyes. Yearning not to let the statement fly by me, it seemed a valuable plan to write the entirety of Psalm 23 in a special notebook. Each day my hand scribbled down a different translation. Who knew there were so many? After writing each translation, I read all of the translations prior to the new one. You can imagine what God had in store for me. His goal? To change Ann. I felt God lead me to add Psalm 46:10 to the mix, as a reminder to be still. Energetic Ann needed those words, too. Lest I forgot the lesson from God delivered to me by my godly friend. For two years, as time allowed from my job at the pregnancy center, AL and I made our way to California, New York state, Michigan, South Carolina, and a myriad of other states across this great country. He would tell people that he was the logistics guy, which meant he carried the suitcases. And booked the flights. We were a team on route from God, and Bruce. Our covenant-keeping Maker is transforming you and me into the image of Christ. We seek to look more like Him daily. While not big-Whigs, God calls us close to His side as we listen and learn. Look out, because part of your Heart Training might just come in unexpected ways, too. Stay on your toes and take good notes as the Teacher teaches. God never changed Jabez’s name yet turned his future around. God allowed Bruce Wilkinson to step into my life for a season and for a reason. Our Covenant-Keeper is all about accomplishing The Great Turnaround in each of His children. What did I inhale? ______________________________________________________________ What did I exhale? ______________________________________________________________