Wednesday, September 8, 2010 40 Days of Prayer & Impact: 32 Days to Launch

Today, there are 32 DAYS before the Encounter Grand Opening on 10-10-10. We are asking you to join us in what God is doing and is going to do in these last 40 days.

Pray with us. Act with us. Imagine the impact we could have in Helena if each one of us is individually involved in making Helena a better place. Imagine the lives that could be touched. Imagine how the spiritual landscape of our community could be changed even BEFORE the grand opening.

His Ways are Higher Than My Ways

Today, we are looking at Isaiah 55:9 ...

For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

We attempted to host the Rock Climbing Wall at Alive@Five again today. I've literally spent hours in the last two days trying to make this come together — emails, phone calls, five hour drives through Montana, swapping vehicles with friends, and more. Once we finally had the Rock Wall in place, we discovered that one of the mechanical stabilizers was damaged and we were unable to safely setup the wall.

Even if we had, the rain began to come down with thunder and lightning. And as you may know, Rock Walls make fantastic lightning rods! So after re-connecting the trailer and locking things back into place, we began to stroll through the Alive@Five area.

We still ended up giving away nearly 100 Tootsie Pops along with invite cards to our Grand Opening on 10-10-10. In addition, I introduced myself to several of the vendors and had some great conversations. The turn of events actually opened some doors that never would have opened if we would have been able to do it "our way."

So here is my point. We know that God created us in His image. But that does not mean that we are exactly like God. His thoughts are not our thoughts. His ways are not our ways.

God's ways of connecting are better than our ways — far beyond what we can imagine!

TODAY'S PRAYER

Given our interactions with various businesses today at Alive@Five, I encourage you to pray for downtown Helena businesses. Connecting to our community also means connecting with businesses as well. Behind every business are real people — real people who God is desperately seeking. Pray that our downtown Helena businesses would be blessed, and that they would recognize the true source of their blessing.

TODAY'S IMPACT

I encourage you shop at a downtown Helena business today. Strike up an authentic conversation as well. Make sure you let them know that we appreciate all their hard work, and the contribution they make to the mosaic of the downtown culture.