Ministry Update: Launching NIGHT WATCH!

On September 1, 2019February 18, 2022 By CaitlynIn Ministry Life

Hey, friends! It has been too long since I’ve written… tbh, I was swamped for a while with our summer programs and I didn’t fight like I should have to make Fragrance Arise a priority. But in all our discussions and prayers about building the house of prayer and strengthening the prayer movement, I’ve been freshly aware of the potential of this blog, and I’ve been convicted that I can’t afford to let it sit on the back burner.

So I am coming back after my unnofficial hiatus with the best news ever: Today, September 1, The Prayer Room Missions Base is extending our hours into the night! For 6 years, we’ve been 18/7 with live prayer and worship 5am-11pm every single day. We’re expanding that that to 1am every night, making us officially 20/7 and one step closer to our goal of being 24/7! We call this addition the “Night Watch”, and eventually, the whole overnight portion of our schedule will be the Night Watch.

This is incredible. We are so thrilled and grateful to the Lord that He has given us the strength to be able to give Him this offering. Tonight at 11pm, instead of praying a closing prayer and turning off the lights, a fresh worship leader (me!) will come on stage and we’ll keep going another two hours until 1am. And then we’ll do it again the next night, and the next, until we’re able to go longer and never turn off the lights at all.

Since our early days of starting as a one hour 5am daily prayer meeting in our director’s living room in 2005, we’ve known that The Prayer Room was called to a 24/7 house of prayer for our region. Over the years, we’ve added slowly, very careful that if we added a set to our schedule, it would be on every day of the week, and we would be able to sustain it. We don’t experiment with adding hours for a season; if something gets added to our schedule, it’s there till Jesus comes back.

We’ve been faithful to that model since day 1, but that means that every step is very slow and strategic. We’ve been 18/7 for 6 years, knowing that whenever we took our next step forward into the night, it would be a big deal.

The plan has always been to add one set at a time into the night: first 11pm-1am, then 1-3am, and finally 3-5am to make us 24/7. Our strategy to shore up these new sets would be to launch an internship at the same time, and fill that prayer room with young adults with passion for worship in the night. After the internship, some would stay on the night watch, and we could start another internship and go get more.

This is what we’re doing this semester. Today, in conjuction with launching our new Night Watch hours, we’re also launching our first-ever Fire in the Night internship! This is a part-time 14 week program for young adults centered around those night hours. Here’s the schedule:

Class 8-9pm Tues/Wed/Thurs
Class 3-7pm Sat (including an hour for dinner, food provided)
Encounter service 7-9pm Sat
Prayer room 9pm-1am Thurs/Fri/Sat (we chose weekend hours because these are mostly people with jobs!)

While they’re in the prayer room, they’ll be serving on three sets each, which will be a mix of worship leading, ushering, and prayer leading. For more info, including class content, see our website at tprdfw.com.

As of today, we’re launching with 5 interns! (I’m a little leery of putting that number out there, because it ALWAYS fluctuates the first few weeks–ask me at the end of the semester how many we ended with!) I’m so excited to see these hungry ones encounter Jesus in the night.

To get this internship off on the right foot, I put together a short playlist of songs from that specifically talk about the night watch. They’re all from the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, where they’ve been doing 24/7 live prayer and worship since 1999 – so they know a thing or two about worship in the night! The songs from the “Simple Devotion” album were actually all written and recorded by the night watch worship teams.

If you don’t see it below, here’s the direct Spotify link.

There is one other song that is deeply precious to the night watch in Kansas City (written by Chris Tofilon) but it was never released on an album so it’s not on Spotify. I pulled a live recording from youtube and edited it down to six minutes from an hour-long set. This one is called “Psalm 134 (Bless the Lord)” and the Psalm it’s based on is literally ALL about the night watch – the priests who stand and bless the Lord in the house of prayer through the night.

“Come, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD,
who stand by night in the house of the LORD!
Lift up your hands to the holy place
and bless the LORD!
May the LORD bless you from Zion,
he who made heaven and earth!”
(Psalm 134:1-3)

Attached below is the live recording of Psalm 134 (6 min) and also the longer worship time it came from (23 minutes). If you have time, listen to the longer one. It goes into a powerful spontaneous time of what I call throne room worship, centered on the holiness of God. You can also right click to download.

Psalm 134 (Bless the Lord)

Psalm 134 (Bless the Lord) & spontaneous

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5 House of Prayer Podcasts I Love

On July 8, 2019October 21, 2021 By CaitlynIn Uncategorized

Earlier this year, I felt an urge to start searching for podcasts specifically related to the house of prayer and the forerunner message of the end times. Turns out it was perfect timing, because there aren’t many of these out there, and the five I was able to find all launched just this year, in 2019! My friends who know such things tell me that the podcast world in general is experiencing a bit of a revival right now, and I’m so excited that these people are seizing the moment to get the message of night and day prayer in preparation for Jesus’ return out into the world.

I searched for podcasts that weren’t just prerecorded sermons, but actually had the feel of friends sitting around table talking, and were connected to the vision and DNA of the broader end-time prayer movement. All five of these fit those parameters, and I have listened to almost every episode of all five of them over the past few months. I can recommend them all confidently, and I know they will bless you if you pick one or two to dive into!

I’ve linked them all on Spotify, but they all can be found on multiple platforms, so search for them on the podcast app of your choice. And if you have any more podcast recommendations that belong on this list, please let me know!

1. Presence Pioneers

The ministry of Presence Pioneers was founded by Matthew Lilley in 2004 and has been planting, strengthening, and connecting praying communities (such as houses of prayer, burn furnaces, and praying churches) ever since. Matthew is currently the USA director of Burn 24/7 Global and also has roots in IHOPKC. This podcast has a rich prophetic perspective on what God is doing in the global prayer movement and what it looks like for the church to actually host God’s presence in a region. I had the opportunity to meet Matthew this week after listening to his podcast for several months, and I am so encouraged by his passion to see God’s dreams come true in the area of prayer, worship, and revival. My favorite episodes so far have been episodes 1-5 pretty equally, but especially episode 3 about the Night Watch.

2. Onething Global Leadership Summit

For several years during the annual Onething conference in Kansas City, IHOPKC has hosted a special summit for leaders in the body of Christ and the prayer movement. This has been a time for leaders to hear from each other, catch vision for what God is doing globally, and strategize how to be faithful stewards of this move of God. This podcast continues this conversation, and in my opinion is the most heady and leader-focussed on this list. I highly recommend it for HOP leaders and others who have been around a while, but it might be confusing to someone who is brand-new to the idea of the prayer movement. This podcast is hosted by Daniel Lim, one of the senior leaders of IHOPKC.

3. CBETS Podcast

This podcast might be my favorite on this list! A few years ago, IHOPKC launched the CBETS (Center for Biblical End Times Studies) initiative to equip people in how to study the end times. They are systematically working through all 150 chapters in the Bible that talk about the drama surrounding the return of Jesus–it’s a super thorough and intense program! For those who don’t have the time and energy to pour into tracking with the whole program, this weekly podcast is an amazing way to taste the message. Hosts Ruben and Georgina are fun, passionate, and knowledgeable, and I find my heart burning with excitement every time I listen to them and their guests. My favorite episode so far features Samuel Whitefield talking about Jesus as the Son of Man!

4. Burning Rooms

Last month, I featured Sanctuary House of Prayer in Canada for my House of Prayer Spotlight. Their podcast is super relatable and practical in the areas of what it really looks like to live a lifestyle of prayer in the midst of a praying community. They have a real vision for what God is raising up around the world in night and day prayer and worship, especially related to the Great Commission and the hour of history in which we live, and they are super down to earth in encouraging ordinary people to connect with God wherever they are.

5. Return

This podcast was the first one I started listening to, and it made me curious to find all the others on this list! Gabrielle Nunez has been part of IHOPKC for years, and she and her husband Benji are very involved on staff there. Gabrielle has the heart of a forerunner– passionate to prepare the way of the Lord for Jesus’ second coming just like John the Baptist did for His first coming. This podcast dives into some of the key verses and themes related to the end times, and encourages the Church to watch faithfully with real anticipation for that day. My favorite episode so far has been The Glory of the Resurrection, talking about Jesus as the “firstborn from the dead” and what that means for our physical bodies at His return.

P.S. From the Future

After writing this post in 2019, in 2021 I wrote a follow-up list of 5 More House of Prayer Podcasts I Love. Check it out, and I hope it blesses you!

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Ministry Update: Interns and Externs and Staff, Oh My!

On June 16, 2019February 18, 2022 By CaitlynIn Ministry Life2 Comments

Interns

What a season! After we wrapped our music school with 18 students, I launched my energy into our summer Immerse internship. I have six interns and they are incredible!! I honestly couldn’t have asked for a better group. They are hungry, humble, in love with Jesus, engaged, and running hard! They remind me of the well-loved line from the Misty Edwards song Always on His Mind:

How far will You let me go?
How abandoned will You let me be?

These six have committed to spending their summer with us at The Prayer Room going deep in prayer, community, and the Word. It’s a part-time schedule, but it’s not lightweight. Here’s their weekly schedule, not including their 8 hours a week of prayer room time. (Session I lead/teach are marked with an asterisk.)

Tuesday
6-7pm – Awakening (theology of intimacy with God, etc)

Wednesday
6-7pm – Equipping Tools (how-tos of growing in prayer, with activities)

Thursday
6-7pm – *Group Discussion (talk through Bible passages)

Saturday
3-4pm – *Intro to the End Times
4-5pm – Intern Essentials (behind the scenes, hands-on introduction to how we run the house of prayer)
5-6pm – *DINNER PROVIDED
6-7pm – *Community Time (fun, relational connect time)
7-9pm – Encounter service

Externs

The Prayer Room has the incredible privilege of getting to host not two, not three, but FOUR externs from the International House of Prayer in Kansas City this summer!! Students at IHOPU have to do an externship at another house of prayer during their senior year or the summer before. We have hosted close to 20 externs over the years, and they always have an incredible experience and several of them (including me!) have moved back to join us long-term after graduating.

This summer, we get two guys, Faith and John, plus a newlywed couple (like two weeks newlywed!), Max and Brittani! Max and Brittani are coming here a week later than the guys, because they are currently on their honeymoon. The guys arrived this weekend, and we are SO excited to have them!

Faith (center) and John – summer extern first arrivals!!

I got to be at Max and Brittani’s wedding shower in April!

Externs strengthen our community so much. They bring fresh life and vibrancy, as well as an array of gifts in areas like wisdom, musicianship, administration, intercession, worship, servantheartedness, etc. They come hungry to serve, learn, and get connected, and they become friends for life whether or not they choose to plant themselves here afterward.

On their end, they get the benefit of hands-on experience at a smaller house of prayer, with daily interaction with leadership and real responsibility. For most of them, IHOPKC is the only house of prayer context they’ve ever known, and it’s the rare student who gets real access to even running the prayer room, let alone running the ministry as a whole. Spending a season at a smaller house of prayer not only gives that leadership experience, but provides a real-life glimpse into what the prayer movement is actually like outside of Kansas City.

Staff

This is a season of a lot of staff transition for us. Jeremy Jarvis, our beloved worship director who has served as a senior leader and intercessory missionary at TPR for a decade, recently felt God transitioning him out of this ministry. His absence will leave a hole in a dozen different ways, especially as a dear friend and father in this house.

Jeremy leading worship at his last Encounter service.

Trying to cram all my emotions into a Facebook tribute

At the same time, we are gaining more staff than we’re losing, praise God! Jade Cude, who was one of my interns in 2017 and has been on volunteer staff ever since, just came on full-time missionary staff!! (I shared an interview with Jade in a House of Prayer Spotlight post last month.) Jade is already teaching weekly in our internship (taking over the Intern Essentials class) and will soon take over coordinating our weekly Encounter service.

Check out Jade’s interview from last month!

Our two spring externs/FMA teachers, Tyler and Daniel, are currently raising partnership to be able to join full-time missionary staff in the fall. We also just got two of my favorite people from my IHOPU years, Nick and Brittany, who moved here from Kansas City, joined volunteer staff, and want to be as involved as possible.

L to R: Nick, Brittany, me, Daniel, Tyler, all IHOPKC-to-TPR transplants. We’re basically bringing all of Kansas City to Texas one person at a time. 😉

On top of all of this, we got a new volunteer staff member from the music school who is heading up a new security department for us, and another new volunteer staff member from Immerse (Beverly, bottom center in the picture at the top of this post)! God seems to be really bringing us new staff right now with specific gifts and experiences that will be a huge strength to this house. It is such a joy to have these people as new friends and comrades-at-arms building night and day prayer with us.

Prayer Request for Housing

A while ago, I shared that we were praying for God to give us a dorm. He’s been really quiet on that point, and even started to lead us to believe that He has a different plan for how He’s going to provide housing for our community in this season. Luke and Caslin, two of our senior leaders (also my small group leaders and good friends), recently bought a house with a few rooms to host! On top of that, several of our young adults are talking about buying/renting homes together. As much as it would make life easier to have a dorm, God seems to be stretching us by calling people to open their own homes.

At the beginning of June, I actually moved out of my house! I was the only TPR person left in the house, and the house culture was shifting toward being a discipleship house for younger college girls, so it was time for me to transition. Luke and Caslin invited me to move in with them for the summer, until they get a single guy (Daniel) as a housemate in September. Our externs Max and Brittani are moving into the house for the summer as well!

My hope for the fall is to find a house to rent with a few TPR girls, but that plan is very much not landed yet. Please pray for the right (affordable!) house and for the right people to be able to move in together.

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House of Prayer Spotlight: Sanctuary House of Prayer

On June 2, 2019June 2, 2019 By CaitlynIn House of Prayer Spotlight1 Comment

Continuing my House of Prayer Spotlight series, this month I’m featuring my first international house of prayer – Sanctuary House of Prayer in Winnipeg, Canada!

Geographic orientation for my fellow non-Canadians

Two of my IHOPU friends were part of Sanctuary before I met them in Kansas City! Stephanie, on the right in the foreground, was in my small group at IHOPU and now serves on staff with the YWAM base in Kansas City. Arielle, in the background, is back in Canada serving at Sanctuary and helping lead their Consecrate internship!

In hearing about Sanctuary’s heart and story, I was struck by the way they carry their mandate and the DNA of the prayer movement, even though they may be smaller than some of the other houses of prayer I know. Twelve faithful hours of live prayer and worship a week, with burning hearts of love for Jesus, crying out for revival, lifting the sweet fragrance of worship, positioning themselves as forerunners and friends of the bridegroom… that’s WAY more than many churches and ministries, and it’s a rare and beautiful thing to God!

I reached out to Sanctuary’s director, Brian Creary, and he was kind enough to take the time to answer some questions for us!

Brian Creary, Sanctuary House of Prayer director

When and how did Sanctuary start?

This house really began as an idea on May 7th, 2002, when I visited IHOPKC for the first time. I was encountered by the Lord after seeing and experiencing what was happening in the prayer room that morning and felt the call to return to Canada to “build this” in my city of Winnipeg. I said yes but really didn’t understand what to do about any of it. Over the next four years, the Lord brought mentors to help me, a core group of young people that wanted to go for it, a free building to do it in and even some finances to help us along the way. We launched on May 7th, 2006, excited about the possibilities and a bit naive about the journey ahead. Since then, the Lord has been so faithful.

What does your weekly schedule look like now?

We have had many variations of our weekly schedule over the years, mostly because we don’t yet own our own place to meet. Currently, we have hours on Sunday afternoons and evenings, Monday evenings and Tuesday morning with the staff. We recently added an early morning intercession set focused on the marketplace needs. We do many other things in the community, as well. A team goes to the local hospital to pray the sick every Monday afternoon and is but one example of many extensions to the prayer room work.

Sanctuary runs twelve hours a week of live worship in the harp and bowl model! You can find their schedule online.

How many people do you have involved?

That number has also changed many times over the years. Since the first day I have always answered that question with “about 50 people” even though at times it was closer to 100 and at other times as low as 30. To be honest, I don’t really count that closely. So, to answer the question, I’d have to say it’s about 50 or so. 🙂

10th anniversary celebration in May 2016 with lots of food and fellowship!

What do you believe is your unique mandate and vision as a HOP?

In the very early years of our development, I felt that we were to carry our city in prayer and ask for what was the prophetic destiny of His heart for us. Over time, He added clarity to this idea. At one very important moment, He spoke of a coming revival that would transform the city and surrounding region. There is much to say on that promise, for sure, but in short the coming move of God directly affected by the activity of our prayer room keeps us coming back.

In addition, the Lord has given us a clear and strong call to the priesthood as we see it biblically. We know that ministry to the Lord is central to everything we do and we function with that in mind in every set. In the early and very naive days we thought a 24/7 reality was just around the corner for us. Now, we don’t think so much about schedules and hours logged, but much more about being before him with integrity and really ministering to his heart.

What is something you love about the culture of your HOP?

We have grown to be people of faith! Our 13-year journey in worship and prayer has been filled with challenges and invitations to actually believe in what God had promised. Many times we were alerted that He was pressing us to have “extraordinary faith” and to trust in His nature, character and corresponding leadership when things went in unexpected ways. I can say now, looking back, that we gained far more by overcoming the adversity and pressing to know Him in all of it than we would have had we just had an easy ride with lots of people, money and public support. We have such a great community because they have made this journey about being as close to Jesus as possible, whether they understood or agreed with His leadership or not.

One of the fun things their community is doing right now is a great internship called Consecrate – they have a really fun promo video online!

What is something God has taught you in this journey of HOP ministry?

In the first couple of years, we had high expectations and lots of zeal to make it happen. But, growth was slow and we struggled more than we had anticipated. It wasn’t long before weariness produced grumbling and complaining. And worse still, once that began it was really contagious. One Sunday morning as I was preparing my message for later that day, I was suddenly interrupted by the clear strong voice of the Lord. He said to me, “When you complain like you are doing, you are saying to me that you disagree with My leadership and that you are unhappy with the way things have turned out. And when you complain like you are doing, you are saying that you do not trust Me to lead you forward and believe you could do a better job of it.”

I was stunned and felt the sting of a rebuke. I sat there, afraid to move or even think. I knew His accusation concerning us was entirely correct. Then, He said one more thing: “Your way forward and out of this is thankfulness.” I grabbed that part of the encounter, repented and immediately put it into practice, both personally and corporately, even having a “Thankfulness Day” now and then in our prayer room. It has changed everything about how we see our lives, the condition of this house and the possibilities that are ahead for us.

What do you believe God is doing in your midst right now?

We had a very difficult season recently that lasted for almost 2 1/2 years. People left us, the money dried up, the feeling in the prayer room was mostly discouragement and many secretly wanted to quit. When that season ended, I was grateful we were still standing and expected to get back to business as usual. Instead the Lord made it clear that this next season was going to be about developing friendship with Him, experiencing communion with His heart. And it’s been a great season! He has drawn near in many new and fresh ways. Jesus feels more real to most than ever before and there is life in the prayer room and a sense of wanting to go deeper. I have no doubt that there are busy and challenging days ahead. For now, we are being asked to go deep and root ourselves in relationship with Jesus more than ever before.

Check out Brian’s blog about this season of friendship with God.

Find Sanctuary House of Prayer on their website, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram!

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What I’m Praying: Young Adults to Encounter God in His House

On May 30, 2019February 18, 2022 By CaitlynIn What I'm Praying

Continuing my What I’m Praying series… a few weeks ago, The Prayer Room wrapped our spring Forerunner Music Academy. I’m sad that it’s over, but I’m excited that the end of one thing means the beginning of something else–on May 26, we launched our summer Immerse internship for young adults! Just in the past couple of years since I stepped into this position, I’ve led 20+ young adults through this internship. Some have planted a house of prayer, some have become full-time missionaries, some have joined volunteer staff or at least stayed committed to the house of prayer at some level, and all were strengthened by their time here.

Over the years The Prayer Room has seen so many young adults come through our doors, encounter Jesus in the place of prayer, and find an entirely new trajectory for their lives. It’s my favorite thing when God sends us people who just got saved, and now their foundational concept of Christianity is a lifestyle of prayer and being part of the big-picture Story of God.

Over the past few weeks, our rapid fire topic that we pray at the end of every prayer room set has been variations of this same theme: for God to draw young adults into His house and encounter them deeply. We have one of the biggest colleges in Texas right down the street from us (UTA), and this is a golden opportunity to see young adults fall in love with Jesus and get set on fire for His presence–but GOD has to draw them in, and then He has to touch their hearts.

This is a two-fold drawing: first, for God to draw them in the door, and two, for Him to draw their hearts deep into His heart.

“Draw me after you; let us run. The king has brought me into his chambers.”
(Song of Solomon 1:4)

For Immerse this summer, six young adults have been successfully “drawn” to say yes to the program! Whenever people do an internship or a school like this, they all come seeking God at some level, but they’re all in different places along their journey and all have different expectations of what the program will be like.

I remember one guy, Francisco, who came into an internship trying to get a foundation in his relationship with God. He struggled a bit at first with letting himself be vulnerable in a community that was so intensely relational and loving (TPR is not an easy place to hide!). Over time, as the love of the Father and the love of this community washed over him, he became a different person. He opened up, made deep friendships, fell in love with Jesus and the prayer room, and got anchored in this family. He joined volunteer staff and was a pillar of this house, pouring out and serving at every opportunity, even while being a full-time social worker. After nearly a year and a half with us, Francisco quit his job and moved to Kansas City to be a student at the music school at the International House of Prayer University, where he’s now going into his sophomore year. Everyone there loves him, and he is a bright light of joy, servanthood, and love wherever he goes!

Francisco right before he left for IHOPU

Francisco was transformed by the love of God, to such an extent that he shifted the entire trajectory of his life to chase everything God has for him and to be part of the Story of what God is doing in this generation. I believe that God wants to perform similarly radical transformations in the lives of countless young adults in prayer rooms all over the world.

When I first did my internship at IHOPKC in 2012 (read the story on the My Story page), I was already in love with the presence of God and knew that I was marked as a “Mary of Bethany” to sit at His feet and pour out my costly offering of love. However, I had no real direction in life. I had graduated college and didn’t feel peace about pursuing my field of study, so I had a really boring backup plan that I kind of hated and was really in need of direction.

Really, what I needed was vision. I needed a mission, a big Story to throw my life into. I needed my horizons expanded to see the bigger prophetic picture. I wrote in my journal that I was “waiting for my revolution.” In 2012, I found my revolution, and it was called the global end-time prayer movement.

In a five-month internship (and especially one specific night in the prayer room), my life was hijacked into the dream of God for the climax of history and the return of Jesus. I believe that God wants to hijack so many more of this generation into His big Story– the end-time prayer/worship/missions movement that will give Jesus His inheritance and usher in His literal bodily return to the planet.

So this is what we’re praying– that God would draw young adults into His house and draw them deep into encounters with Him that would change their lives forever.

God, draw young adults into our prayer rooms. Sovereignly get them in the door, and then tenderly draw their hearts deep into You. Let them fall in love with Jesus and catch a vision to throw their lives completely into what You’re doing.

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Ministry Update: Admin Life

On May 22, 2019February 18, 2022 By CaitlynIn Ministry Life

I’m about a week and a half late posting, and that’s something I never wanted to do on this blog… but this month has been a whirlwind of activity at The Prayer Room! On May 4, our part-time music school wrapped up for the semester. 19 students graduated and I’m so proud of them! Most of the students have chosen to stick around the community and stay committed to prayer meetings, as well as keep serving on prayer room worship teams. So far, one has even joined staff!

Celebrating their last day of music classes!

This school was made possible by two guys from IHOPU (one who graduated last year and one who graduated this semester) who spent the spring with us and took lead on teaching music. Soon afterward, both of them left and went home for the summer – to raise partnership to move back in the fall as full-time intercessory missionaries!! We miss them, but are EXCITED OUT OF OUR FLIPPING MINDS that we get them back FOREVER in a few short months. It’s been so much fun to watch God knit their hearts to this community and call them to serve in His house long-term.

Spring externs Tyler (left) and Daniel (right) – my boys!!

In the weeks since the music school ended, I’ve enjoyed the chance to catch my breath and focus my energy on this summer. On Sunday, May 26, we launch our summer Immerse internship for young adults. I’ve got a few signed up and a handful more considering. These internships are never big, but those who do it are always impacted, some in dramatically life-changing ways.

This summer, we also have FOUR new externs from IHOPU coming to serve with us for a few months! We can’t wait to have them get plugged into this community. They are going to bring such wisdom and giftings and be such a strength to this base–but mostly, our favorite thing is when they become our new best friends!

As you might know, my role on staff is to oversee all of these schools and externships. Immerse has a few new components this summer, so I’ve been trying to clean up some old curriculum and create some new curriculum. On top of that I’m recruiting interns (including trying to find one of the interns a place to live so he came move here for the summer), scheduling teachers, updating and printing documents… basically, I’m trying not to waste an hour and I’m living by my to-do list! (I’ve begun to see this season before every program a bit like finals week in college… just suck it up, power through, pull a couple of all-nighters, you’ll survive.)

I shared this on my Instagram story this week.

One of the curriculum documents I drafted was an in-depth session on usher training for our prayer room. In order to cast vision for the weightiness and value of serving as an usher in the house of prayer, I took myself on a little Bible study journey through passages that describe the “gatekeepers” in the tabernacle of David.

1 Chronicles 9 describes the gatekeepers’ duties in detail. They were charged with guarding all of the entrance doors to the tabernacle, to strictly guard the priests, the worshipers, and the holy items used in worship. They also were in charge of keeping inventory of all the holy items used in worship, including preparing the food items used in offering. They didn’t serve as singers or musicians, but their responsibilities were vital; it was described as an “office of trust” (1 Ch. 9:22) and “ministering in the house of the Lord” (1Ch. 26:12).

“The gatekeepers… were in charge of the work of the service, keepers of the thresholds of the tent, as their fathers had been in charge of the camp of the LORD, keepers of the entrance. …David and Samuel the seer established them in their office of trust. So they and their sons were in charge of the gates of the house of the LORD, that is, the house of the tent, as guards… the four chief gatekeepers, who were Levites, were entrusted to be over the chambers and the treasures of the house of God. …on them lay the duty of watching, and they had charge of opening it every morning. Some of them had charge of the utensils of service, for they were required to count them when they were brought in and taken out. Others of them were appointed over the furniture and over all the holy utensils, also over the fine flour, the wine, the oil, the incense, and the spices.”
(1 Chronicles 9:17-30)

The responsibility of the gatekeepers was to keep the house of prayer protected and taken care of so that the worship could continue unhindered. They served as security and also the behind-the-scenes staff taking responsibility to ensure that all the practical logistics of running the house of prayer were in place. By standing guard at the doors as well as by doing boring tasks like taking inventory, they were serving and guarding the very resting place of God.

The gatekeepers were the ushers, the admins, the facilities staff, the rule enforcers, etc. At our house of prayer, many of our staff serve as worshippers and intercessors on a microphone, but we also serve as gatekeepers– ushering, section leading, sending emails, making spreadsheets, budgeting, vacuuming, updating a billion documents, replacing power cables, fixing holes in the ceiling, planning events, running slides, taking inventory, placing Amazon orders, troubleshooting malfunctioning loop pedals.

ALL of it is important. ALL of it is serving the Lord and building His house.

So, I apologize that this post is late. Fragrance Arise is important to me, and hopefully the next time my “finals week” hits, I’ll be a little more prepared and maybe even have some posts scheduled ahead of time. But for at least the rest of this week, I’m going to admin my heart out to make this internship the best it can be. Jesus is worthy of all the spreadsheets, Google docs, and curriculum updates in the world.

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Tools for a Life of Prayer: Gazing on the Beauty of Jesus

On May 13, 2019February 19, 2022 By CaitlynIn Bible Stuff, Prayer and Worship

(Full disclosure: I love to recommend resources to help you in your journey, and when I do I use Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase something through my links, I may receive a small commission. But if there’s a resource you want, I encourage you to get it wherever works best for you!)

Much of this Tools for a Life of Prayer series has been about very practical how-tos of what to do when you come into a prayer time. I’ve shared tips on scheduling time for prayer, asking God questions, prayer lists, and Bible meditation. However, having a vibrant prayer life is less about the how-tos than it is about the Person. It’s about encountering Jesus.

David’s life vision as recorded in Psalm 27:4 was three things, which to David were really one thing–one single, all-consuming desire:

to DWELL in the house of the Lord
to GAZE upon the beauty of the Lord
to INQUIRE in His temple.

Today I want to focus on the second part, to “gaze” upon the beauty of the Lord. This invites two questions: One, what is the beauty of the Lord? And two, how do we gaze upon it?

What is the beauty of the Lord?

The Bible repeatedly refers to the beauty of Jesus. I hope that’s not a new idea to you, but I remember when it was a new idea to me. Beginning to discover all of the verses that describe His beauty and then letting myself become captivated by how deep they go was the start of a journey that will literally NEVER end.

Here are just a few of my favorite verses about the beauty of God:

“…worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness.”
(Psalm 29:2)

“You are the most handsome of the sons of men…”
(Psalm 45:2)

“My beloved is radiant and ruddy, distinguished among ten thousand…”
(Song of Songs 5:10)

“In that day the branch of the LORD shall be beautiful and glorious…”
(Isaiah 4:2)

“Your eyes will behold the king in his beauty…”
(Isaiah 33:17)

“…one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
(Revelation 1:13-16)

“And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.”
(Revelation 4:3)

These verses and others begin to clue us into the fact that Jesus IS beautiful, but the deeper we go on this journey the more we will discover that EVERYTHING about Him is what makes Him beautiful. Every aspect of His character and personality is awe-inspiring, fascinating, and captivating. His love, joy, playfulness, fierceness, humility, honesty, cleverness, justice, dedication, wisdom, faithfulness, and a thousand other traits are what make Him beautiful.

I know plenty of people who have some or all of these characteristics to varying degrees. However, no human on earth could ever be all of these things perfectly all at once… and then on top of that be GOD, and so be able to express all of these characteristics in infinitely powerful and creative ways.

Jesus is utterly remarkable and completely unique.

Even His wrath and justice are beautiful… because they flow from a heart of absolute love and humility. What human on earth could say that? Psalm 45 describes Him in His second coming glory fighting with a sword and being victorious against His enemies, and then says that He fights “for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness.” (Psalm 45:4) What??! What kind of person fights for the sake of humility? Who else could conquer the earth with the purest, meekest heart?

Jesus, You’re beautiful.

As I wrote in my blog Why the Beauty of Jesus is My Life Message:

Everything He is and does is absolute perfection, and not just harsh, to-the-standard perfection, like a starched white cleanroom. No, this is vibrant, colorful perfection, like an overwhelming symphony of music and movement and color in wild extravagance and perfect harmony. There is a fullness and a richness to His personality that is completely unique and stunning.

How do we gaze upon the beauty of the Lord?

What’s the secret to gazing on something invisible? Several verses give us clues:

“that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened…”
(Ephesians 1:17-18)

“Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.”
(Psalm 119:18)

We set the eyes of our hearts on what we can see of Jesus in the Word, and we ask God for help to see clearly.

Of course, the point isn’t just to recognize certain doctrinal truths about Jesus. Words like “gaze” and “behold” imply more than just a quick glance or casual perusal. It’s a steady, focussed attention.

In the Song of Solomon, the king commends His beloved for having eyes like doves’ eyes. (Song 1:15, 4:1) Doves’ eyes can only look straight ahead, and also, doves mate for life. To have eyes like doves is to have a steady, undistracted gaze.

To gaze on the beauty of Jesus is to meditate on who He is, and to let ourselves be in awe of Him.

Just today as I was writing this blog in the prayer room, I knew I needed to take some time to gaze on the beauty of Jesus again. I sat on the floor with my Bible open to Psalm 45, and I slowly read the phrases again, speaking them back to Jesus and feeling His nearness, letting myself be caught up in the description of the man I love.

“My heart overflows with a pleasing theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe. You are the most handsome of the sons of men; grace is poured upon your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever.”
(Psalm 45:1-2)

As I took my time gazing on Jesus through the words of this Psalm, the worship leader started singing “Wedding Song” by David Brymer, which is completely based on Psalm 45!

These extended times in the prayer room with my Bible open are precious, but often, I simply take time in the middle of my day to slow down, breathe in, breathe out, and just say, “Jesus, You’re beautiful.”

The incredible thing is that as we make gazing on Jesus a habit, the Holy Spirit will reveal more of the depths of God to us (1 Corinthians 2:10). He will continually give us more and more insight into the unsearchable riches of His glory. And here’s the craziest part– everything our limited, unresurrected human minds could ever comprehend abut Jesus is the tiniest drop in the infinite ocean of who He is. We will still be searching out the depths of riches of the glorious beauty of Jesus for all eternity. A million years for now, you will see something new and be amazed all over again.

As we seek to develop our prayer lives, we have to make the beauty of Jesus front and center. We have to remember the wonder of the person we’re talking to, and we need to take intentional time simply to gaze at Him and adore Him for who He is.

Book Recommendation:

My favorite book on the beauty of Jesus is Beautiful Outlaw by John Eldredge. I’ve never read another book that so refreshingly dives into the vibrant, living personality of Jesus as revealed in the gospels. Don’t walk, run to Amazon to get this book.

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House of Prayer Spotlight: Jade Cude, Volunteer Staff

On May 5, 2019February 18, 2022 By CaitlynIn House of Prayer Spotlight

House of Prayer Spotlight is a monthly feature of Fragrance Arise (and honestly, probably my favorite series)! Every other month features interviews with different houses of prayer, and the in-between months feature interviews with my fellow staff members at The Prayer Room. God is doing so much in the house of prayer globally and this series aims to shine a light on what it looks like in different places.

This month, I am featuring Jade Cude, who is on staff with me at The Prayer Room! Jade had never heard of the house of prayer two years ago, but since then, God has thoroughly captivated her heart with His story and His dreams for 24/7 prayer. It has been one of my greatest joys to see her flourish and continually give over more and more of her heart to the story of God. She has been a full-time theology/ministry student at The King’s University and also simultaneously a full-time veterinary technician, and she still has made being part of The Prayer Room one of the central priorities in her life. (Also, if you ever get a chance, ask her about her stories from serving in the Coast Guard!)

I can’t say enough about how much I love and admire this woman… and as you read what she has to say, I’m sure you’ll fall in love with her too! (She even has some very exciting news about where God is taking her next in this journey…)

Jade and I relaxing/working on the TPR balcony

What do you do at The Prayer Room?

Right now my staff role at The Prayer Room is calling and following up with visitors who come for the first and second times. After they visit, usually a week or two later, they get a text from me asking if they have any questions about getting involved or if they need prayer for anything. I enjoy working with and talking to people, so this role is the best! As part of volunteer staff, my role is only about an hour commitment each week since I have been working full-time and in college full-time.

Last year in March 2018, we had many holes in our schedule at The Prayer Room and my heart ached with not being able to help more since I could not play an instrument. I decided to start taking piano lessons and within a couple of months I was leading worship. Now, I lead worship about twice a week as well as pray, usher, and section lead. I have two sections that I lead each week for about 6 hours each. (The section leader is the “manager on duty” overseeing the base for a certain block of time.) I love giving it all for God because what He did for me is worth everything I could ever give Him.

Worship leading selfie in her section leading vest! So proud of how Jade has developed as a worship leader!

How did God lead you into being involved?

I got involved with The Prayer Room during reviveTX two years ago. ReviveTX is a ministry initiative that The Prayer Room partnered with that teaches the local church to go outside of the four walls and share the love of Jesus and the gospel. During that time, The Prayer Room went 24/7 and they were asking everyone who did outreach to get involved with praying for the people being encountered and lead into the kingdom of God. I had never heard of The Prayer Room before this, but I love prayer, so I signed up to lead prayer two sets per week, 3-5am.

After reviveTX was over, I decided to do the Immerse internship at The Prayer Room because I loved the community and how encouraging everyone was. After Immerse, I got a vision for the house of prayer and began to devour the end times teachings!

I have been on volunteer staff ever since Immerse two years ago, but I was also raising support to become a full-time missionary with Time to Revive (the ministry that did reviveTX). After about a year of being with Time to Revive, as well as volunteer staff at The Prayer Room, I decided that God was calling me to be full-time at The Prayer Room instead. So, now I am raising support to transition to being a full-time missionary at The Prayer Room! (Insert ticker tape parade here!!! We can’t wait to have her full-time!)

It has been a very difficult journey so far, but I know God is faithful and I am trusting Him more than I ever have in my life. Building the house of prayer is something that has been built in my heart these past two years and I can see God doing this globally! This is not just a good idea, but this is God’s idea and it’s biblical. I cannot even fathom God’s grand plan for our world, but studying the end times, the prophecies in the Bible, and Revelation has opened my imagination and understanding of what the Bible teaches.

Prophesying over visitors during School of Supernatural Ministry (and rocking her reviveTX shirt!)

What is meaningful to you about being on staff?

The most meaningful thing about being on staff is that I am helping build the house of prayer. By studying and praying, I have seen God’s heart for the house of prayer and for His bride to be living a full-devoted life, awaiting His return. This is what has made all the struggle, all the boring prayer meetings, all the misunderstanding from friends and family, and all the nerves about finances worth it. Jesus is worth it. There is no way that someone could come on staff and sustain building the house of prayer without the understanding that Jesus is worth it. He’s worth every second of our time and attention, but since we cannot give Him every second as individuals, the community that is building Him night and day prayer can give Him this together. It’s His inheritance.

My role at The Prayer Room is to invite guests and visitors to build with us and become a part of our community. I get the honor of inviting people into this love triangle of God, the house of prayer, and the community. This journey of building God a resting place for His presence to dwell is not easy, but having a community that comes with being on staff makes it so much more enjoyable and sustainable.

What has been the greatest difficulty and the greatest joy of being part of The Prayer Room?

The greatest difficulty of being part of The Prayer Room probably has been fighting with the enemy because he does not want the house of prayer to become a reality. The reality of keeping my thought life submitted to Jesus can be a struggle sometimes. Being at The Prayer Room where I minister to God’s heart has kept me so in love with Him that during my darkest times I have clung to Him for dear life. Without The Prayer Room, I don’t think I would be where I am today. Every day is a new day to wake up and be thankful for what God has done and is doing. While it may be hard for people to be vulnerable, even God’s priests that spend hours in The Prayer Room still have struggles and things that we fight to hand over to God.

The greatest joy of being part of The Prayer Room has been seeing so many people dedicated and committed to God’s word. Our community does not compromise or sway from God’s word. Each week we have an Encounter service where we get a teaching straight from the Bible, not a sermon about how to make our lives better. This community teaches to not love our own lives, but to lay it all down for Jesus. This reality is difficult because we really want to do our own thing with our lives. The community makes the sting of this reality a little better. We love each other, encourage one another, and pray for each other. This life is not easy, but having people around you who know your heart, love you through your mess, and accept you where you are while calling you to move forward has made life enjoyable. Seeing new people come around The Prayer Room and catch the vision for the house of prayer has been the greatest joy of staying involved with The Prayer Room.

Jade has done three semester-long training programs with us – Immerse internship, School of Supernatural Ministry (pictured), and now Forerunner Music Academy!

How can people connect with you?

I’m still raising support as a full-time missionary, so if you would like more information about who I am and what I will be doing, email me and we can talk! Or if you would like to partner with me financially as a full-time missionary, go to theprayerroomdfw.com, click the donate tab, and scroll down to find my name (Jade Cude) to set up reoccurring payments.

Thank you, Caitlyn, for spotlighting me in your amazing blog/email! By the way, Caitlyn has been my teacher, mentor, friend, and biggest supporter since I began this entire journey.

Love you, Jade!!

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What I’m Praying: The Harmony of Unity

On May 2, 2019February 18, 2022 By CaitlynIn What I'm Praying

Continuing my What I’m Praying series…

Every Thursday The Prayer Room hosts a private prayer meeting for local senior pastors. We transition the normal prayer room worship upstairs into our alternate prayer room so that we don’t drop the “fire on the altar” (Leviticus 6:13), and we make the prayer meeting in our main prayer room private and exclusive for these senior pastors. That way, they have the freedom to step out of “ministry mode” and just connect and receive, and everyone else still can be in the prayer room upstairs.

(Also, the pastors’ prayer meeting downstairs isn’t expected to flow in a normal harp and bowl form. The prayer focus is for their churches and for revival in our city, and we do have a worship leader who is very gifted with prophetic worship, but we give the pastors freedom to break all the normal prayer room rules to pray and connect however blesses them. Since we have the fire on the altar upstairs, we can feel completely comfortable letting whatever happens happen!)

We’ve been doing this for a few months now; after years of having it in our hearts, God is finally giving the grace and favor to make it happen! Although it’s generally just a small handful who come every week, it’s been powerful to see God moving as these pastors pray for each other, and pray for God’s purposes in our city side by side.

While the pastors pray downstairs, I serve as the usher for the prayer meeting upstairs. During the short time of intercession for revival in the middle of the set (this is a thing we started doing early this year–check out my blog post on why and how that works), I always like to pray for unity in the church in our region, and specifically for the pastors in the building.

My favorite verse to pray for unity is Romans 15:5-6 (also my favorite verse to pray for couples, so if I’ve given you a wedding card in the past 7 years, I almost guarantee it had this verse on it!).

“May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
(Romans 15:5-6)

There may be many differences between churches… some to be celebrated, and some to be overcome by the grace of God. But no matter our differences, Paul’s prayer, which was inspired by the Holy Spirit, was that we would live in harmony and glorify God together with ONE VOICE.

What would it be like if the collective testimony coming out of the Church in a city was “Christ and Him crucified”? (1 Corinthians 2:2)

What if every unbeliever and every demon knew that the Christians in a city were a force to be reckoned with because of their unity?

There are aproximately 1,200 churches in the Dallas area (according to my 30 seconds of Googling). Let’s imagine all of those churches completely in the will of God, ministering to the people God has given them and focussing on what they’re supposed to be focussing on–each in different ways, for a different demographic, serving different needs in the city. In diversity, we can still come together in “one voice” unity to glority God together.

God emphasises different parts of His heart to different churches, too. This is part of why the Body needs each other. No one congregation has a full revelation of God. Some churches have more clarity on justice, or worship, or identity, or the end times, or family, or missions. In learning from each other, we become more of who we all are meant to be.

I love that Paul called for believers to live in “harmony” with each other. I don’t know what the word is in Greek, but in English “harmony” makes me think of music.

Imagine every church, in all of their glorious diversity, each playing their own little piece of the song. Imagine the rhythms and melodies and sounds from every different kind of instument. Imagine Chinese strings being played with African drums. Imagine someone rapping while someone else sings an operetic melody. Imagine it all flowing together seamlessly, an epic multicolored symphony, creating one resounding crescendo of glory to God.

What would that sound like from heaven’s perspective?

What would that look like? If worship is like incense rising before His throne, can you imagine the thick column of incense rising in unity from a city as a whole?

This is what we’re praying for– that Jesus’ Bride would be one as He and the Father are one, glorifying Him together, unity in diversity, every tribe and tongue.

“that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us…”
(John 17:21)

“…behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb… and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!'”
(Revelation 7:9-10)

God, unify Your Church in our city. Knit our hearts together in love, that we could glorify You with one voice in perfect harmony.

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Tools for a Life of Prayer: Revelation Through Meditation

On April 28, 2019January 24, 2023 By CaitlynIn Prayer and Worship1 Comment

Revelation Through Meditation 1 Recently, I blogged about WHY to meditate on the Word. Today, I want to talk about HOW!

One of the first tools I learned that helped launch me into a life of prayer was something called Revelation Through Meditation. The way I’m going to present it is borrowed and tweaked from Jake Hamilton, who borrowed and tweaked it from Kirk Bennett. (If you want to listen to 18 minutes of Jake teaching the process for a YWAM group in 2010, it’s an absolute goldmine and highly engaging.)

The goal is to focus on one Bible verse and soak yourself in it as deeply as you can through several different creative means. This model is not law, but it is a helpful tool for you to use as a launching pad, and it’s an easy way to teach others to meditate on Scripture. Use it and adapt it as you like.

I recommend setting aside 30 minutes to an hour to do this. When it begins to feel long–and it will, because the spirit is willing but the flesh is super weak–embrace the tension and resist the urge to call it quits. Let yourself get to the point that you’re not operating out of the strength of your own flesh but rather the grace of the Holy Spirit.

1. Divide Your Paper Into Four Sections

1. Bible Verse:

At the top of the page, copy one verse from your Bible. If you don’t know where to start, almost any verse from Psalms will do. Read the passage through once to get an idea of the context, then set your Bible aside. The goal is to interact with just this one verse without distraction for a good length of time.

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”
(Psalm 19:1).

2. Doodle Zone:

This section should take up the majority of your paper. It will be a blank canvas for writing and/or drawing as you interact with this verse.

3. Brain Dump:

This is where you will “take every thought captive” (1 Corinthians 10:5) by writing down all the to-do list items that suddenly pop into your mind to distract you while you are meditating. Suddenly remember you need to send an email, do laundry, and go shopping? Write it down and do it later.

4. Study Later:

Often, you will find yourself distracted by curiosity about the verse. “What’s the Hebrew word for ‘work’? How many times is the word ‘glory’ in the Bible? What was the original context of this Psalm?” These are great questions, but they are not the focus right now. Write them down and look them up later.

2. Read It, Write It, Say It, Sing It, Pray It

Now that your paper is prepared, it’s time use several different approaches to soak in this verse as thoroughly as possible. As you dive deep, remember that no matter how familiar you may already be with this verse, there is always more to encounter through it. The Word of God is like a thousand sided gem, and every time the light refracts from it, you see something you never saw before.

1. Read It:

First, simply read the verse. Read it over and over.

2. Write It:

This is the time to use your doodle zone. Some people like to use this space to simply write the verse over and over. Repetitive writing helps reinforce memory. Another great idea is to journal your thoughts about the verse, phrase by phrase. I have a lot of fun creatively interpreting the verse through doodling and drawing. Even if you’re not an artist, you can write big letters and small letters, with underlining here and there and stars and “glory” lines doodled around the words. Give the verse a form to take on paper.

Revelation Through Meditation 3

3. Say It:

Say the verse over and over. Whisper it to yourself. Emphasize different words. Taste the phrases. Let them wash over you. This is how you memorize Scripture and get it written on your heart.

4. Sing It:

This may be the most powerful part of this meditation model. Make up your own song using the verse. You might start word-for-word, and then put the ideas of the verse in your own words. It doesn’t matter how you sound, and you can sing quietly if you want to. Singing a verse or an idea will burn it into your heart like nothing else, and it will be so precious to the Lord.

“I know what you’re thinking; you’re thinking, ‘Well, I don’t sing.’ Even better. You know why that’s even better? Because it doesn’t cost me anything to sing a song because I know I can sing. When you sing, and you don’t know how to sing, it becomes a sacrifice only you can give to God… A year from now, you’ll have hundreds of songs that only you and God know. You ever heard anybody talk about a secret history with God? You’re building one. You won’t even remember the song tomorrow, but guess Who will. You’re gonna get to heaven one day, and God’s gonna say to you, ‘I loved your song about John 3:16.’ And you’re gonna go, ‘…how’d that go again?’ And He’s going to remember it. And you’re gonna have hundreds and thousands of little songs just like a child sings.”

(Jake Hamilton, YWAM Kona, 9-18-10)

5. Pray It:

Hopefully, you’ve already been talking to God through this verse this whole time, but now try using this verse to pray over specific areas in your heart or specific situations in your life or in the world.

“God, help me understand this. Help me live in light of this truth. Reveal this to others. Do what You promised.”

It’s as simple as that! Happy meditating!

Have you ever used this model before, or any pieces of it? Which piece sounds the most fun or helpful? Tell me in the comments!

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