I published a book! Pursuing One Thing is on Amazon.

I am SO excited to announce that my book Pursuing One Thing is now released! I’ve written hundreds of thousands of words on this website about loving God, but never before have my words been in paperback on Amazon.

Download chapter 1 free

Pursuing One Thing is about the three verses in Scripture that use the phrase “one thing” to describe a focused pursuit of God (Ps. 27:4, Lk. 10:42, Ph. 3:13). Before writing this book, I was familiar with these verses individually but had never put them together to see the unified theme. King David, Mary of Bethany, and the Apostle Paul all had a radical, wholehearted pursuit of God that was the driving force of their lives–and this same passion is available to us today.

Because I’m a house of prayer diehard and can’t help myself, parts of the book reference the prayer room environment (and of course David’s tabernacle was his version of a prayer room), but the book was written for all believers in any context. So far the feedback has been really encouraging!

Brad Stroup, the director of The Prayer Room where my husband and I serve as missionaries, said this:

“Caitlyn cleverly captures the heart of God inviting us to run after Him as our one thing. She ties in countless inspiring examples of those who have and leaves us eager and expectant to begin or renew our own journey to do the same. Caitlyn’s reach in this book provokes a reach within us—a reach to love Jesus more and be more wholehearted for Him in all that we do. We need this message and I’m very grateful for this messenger and the lifework she put into bringing us Pursuing One Thing!”

Matthew Lilley, the founder of Presence Pioneers and author of David’s Tabernacle and Enjoying Prayer, shared this review:

“In Pursuing One Thing, Caitlyn Peterson provides a much-needed invitation to prioritize intimacy with God. She beautifully weaves together insights from throughout the Scriptures into a cohesive and concise message: we were made for a passionate pursuit of Jesus. And this message resonates with authority because Caitlyn has spent many years living out this ‘one thing’ lifestyle as an intercessory missionary. Anyone wanting to strengthen and cultivate their relationship with God should check out Pursuing One Thing.”

Other early readers also had very kind words (and no, I did not tell them to use such similar phrasing!):

“Through the pages of this inspiring book you will refocus, rekindle, and remember the hunger you had for first love! Beautiful!”

“The essence of Pursuing One Thing is summed up well by a statement in the final chapter; we need to be drawn and enticed by God’s beauty and grace rather than pushed and guilted into the pursuit of God. In my own pursuit of loving God and desiring to live fully for Him, I find it so crucial to read and meditate on books like this that inspire my heart and help me refocus when I start to drift. I’m so grateful for Caitlyn’s contribution to the list of books I can go back to when I’m needing to refresh my vision.”

“I loved this book! Caitlyn Peterson’s clarity and gentleness are just what I needed to realign my heart with the foundational message of singular devotion to Jesus. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to stir up the fires of wholehearted love again!”

I’m so humbled and excited by how God is already using this book to stir up fresh love in the hearts of His people. I pray it will be just as much (and more!) of a blessing to you and any you share it with!

Get it in bulk for just $5

Pursuing One Thing was originally a message I taught at The Prayer Room in January 2024. When I decided to publish, it was because I needed a small, inexpensive book to send to the financial partners who support my ministry. Because of that, I wanted to offer a bulk discount with missionaries like me in mind- although of course the discount is available for any reason you might need bulk quantities!

Email me at caitlynpeterson@tprdfw.com and I’ll use my author portal on Amazon to send you 15+ copies at $5 each.

(PS- if you’re a missionary raising support, I have a whole other platform for you to support you in that journey! Visit fearlesslyfunded.com for biblical encouragement and practical tips for partnership development.)

Recap: 3 ways you can get into this book for yourself

  1. Buy it now on Amazon
  2. Download chapter 1 free
  3. Email me at caitlynpeterson@tprdfw.com to get a bulk discount – 15+ for $5 each.

Introducing Fearlessly Funded for Missionaries!

Remember when I said this blog was on hiatus, I said I was praying about how/when to come back? Well, I’m still not back to Fragrance Arise, but God has been really moving on a new idea He’s given me… helping missionaries with partnership development! I’ve been a missionary raising financial partnership since 2016, and dabbling it it even earlier, and I’ve learned so much and really come to love it. Building relationships and sharing about what God is doing in the Earth is so much fun!

Partnership development is definitely not always easy, but it doesn’t have to be scary! So many missionaries feel called to missions but feel locked up in fear, either because of shame and insecurity or not knowing where to start. That’s tragic to me. I want to come alongside missionaries and offer biblical encouragement and some of my favorite tips and strategies to strengthen their process.

My philosophy is that partnership development is primarily about relationships, not money. As missionaries, we have the honor of inviting the Body of Christ to partner in what God is doing in the Earth. We then steward these relationships by honoring and blessing our partners. God’s work was never meant to be an individual effort; we were always meant to live interdependently. Partnership in missions is another way we walk out love and unity as a Body.

Right now, Fearlessly Funded includes:

I’m working on developing even more high-value downloads such as templates and ebooks that will share my step-by-step strategies to build your partnership team to get (and stay!) fully funded. I’m also hoping to point people towards more in-depth resources, such as my favorite online training course.

Missionary Giveaway

To launch Fearlessly Funded, I have a special survey and giveaway for missionaries! This survey will help me know how to best serve laborers on the mission field, and missionaries who fill it out will also be entered to win a $50 Amazon gift card!

If you’re a missionary (or planning to be), would you please fill out this survey? The giveaway will end on September 18, 2024.

Lastly, would you please share this survey with any other missionary friends you may have? Whether they’re just stepping out or veterans in the field, I’d love to encourage and serve them any way I can!

Featured

We’re On Hiatus, But Join Our New Personal Newsletter!

HELLO!! I’ve missed you all so much! I want to share a peek into what’s been going on and why you haven’t heard from me in so long.

On October 9, 2023, I got married!! Preston and I met at The Prayer Room in 2019 and our friendship slowly and then suddenly turned into something more. He’s amazing and we’re so enjoying building our life together. Because of all that going on, I began slowing my activity on my social media and this website, and eventually stopped.

I never intended to be gone forever, and I still don’t, but as I’ve been praying about how/when to come back, God has not given me the green light to pick up where I left off. I want to make sure that I can balance maximum health for my priorities and time management with maximum helpfulness for the prayer movement. For now, the blog is in hiatus.

However, after weeks of seeking Him for strategy, He gave me a plan I’m really excited about! I am creating a NEW EMAIL LIST that is not about Fragrance Arise but is about my personal life and ministry at The Prayer Room where I serve as an intercessory missionary building 24/7 prayer. My husband serves with me with equal vision but volunteer hours. We would love for you to receive our newsletter so we can stay in touch! (Also, I’m writing a small book, with plans for more, so I really want you to be in the know when it releases later this year!)

Feedback Questions

I have two other questions for you, to help encourage me in the bittersweetness of hiatus and also to inform my potential new strategy for a future blog relaunch. If you can, please comment on this post:

  1. How has Fragrance Arise blessed/benefitted you? What have you loved?
  2. How could it bless/benefit you in the future? What would you like to see?

Thank you for being part of this community. I look forward to keeping in touch with you.

Until He comes,

-Caitlyn

5 More House of Prayer Podcasts I Love

A couple years ago I shared 5 House of Prayer Podcasts I Love, when 2019 saw a boom of HOP-related podcasts. Since then, a number more have been released, and I’ve been tracking with as many of them as I can. I’m here today to share my favorites with you!

Some of these were birthed directly out of houses of prayer, and others are from groups that have strong ties to the prayer movement and strongly carry the forerunner calling to prepare for Jesus’ return and long for His appearing. All of them have been a blessing to me, and although I can’t listen to every single episode (on top of podcasts, there are a number of Bible study series I’m trying to get through, and once in a while I like to listen to music too), I trust and recommend them all!

1. All of the FAI Podcasts

FAI is Frontier Alliance International, a missions organization based in Israel that serves all over the Middle East and also has a calling to equip the body of Christ worldwide in the Maranatha message, what I usually call the forerunner message of Jesus’ return. (You may have heard of their documentaries like Covenant and Controversy and Sheep Among Wolves, or their feature films like Ballads of the Revelation and Ballads of the Exodus.) The FAI app hosts six different podcasts, including The Better Beautiful and Walking Mirrors. The Better Beautiful is hosted by Stephanie Quick in Israel and Jeff Henderson in Florida, who both serve as leaders within FAI. They share weekly episodes diving deep into Bible passages and mediating on the beauty of Jesus as the “better beautiful,” the one who is the highest beauty and the answer to every question. Walking Mirrors is hosted by Stephanie for artists and creatives, discussing how we as artists declare the glory of God. I’ve binged more FAI content in the last year than any other source, and have been so deeply enriched by all they impart.

2. The Apocalyptic Gospel

When I heard of this podcast, my first thought was “There’s no way these guys aren’t connected to some kind of house of prayer circle I’m familiar with.” Turns out they’ve got connections from several angles, including both FAI and ACTS. This podcast is hosted by three guys (Josh Hawkins, Bill Scofield, and John Harrigan) who are all scholars of the Jewish context of the early church, and highlights how far we have come from the truths that were so fundamental to them. It was always about a coming King bringing an eternal kingdom, fulfilling His promises to Israel. I’ve just started the first few episodes, and I’m quite prepared to madly binge it over the next few weeks. I’m especially excited for all of the people they’re interviewing (including several from FAI)! Their full website is here.

3. Gripped

If you’re around the prayer movement and haven’t yet heard of Gripped, allow me to help you out from under your rock. Gripped is hosted by Billy Humphrey of GateCity Church (formerly called IHOP Atlanta) and Corey Russell of Upper Room Dallas (who was formerly at IHOPKC). These episodes are FIERY– if you’ve ever heard either of them lead a ministry time, you’ll know what I mean! They discuss revival, prayer, intimacy, and the end times, with the goal of stirring up the church to more ardently love Jesus and long for His presence.

4. MAPS Global Podcast

I came across MAPS Global because several of my HOP friends were joining their staff as missionaries to the middle east. MAPS is a global missions organization based out of Richmond House of Prayer in Virginia, and is a beautiful example of the the prayer movement joining with the missions movement, because they were always meant to be two sides of the same coin. This podcast, featuring MAPS director R. A. Martinez, tackles important and often controversial subjects including the gift of tongues, the urgency of the great commission, and how the gift of prophecy is supposed to interact with politics (looking at you, 2020 US election). These episodes go deep, and bring solid biblical clarity the church needs in this hour.

5. Beholding

Beholding is a new podcast from Sanctuary House of Prayer‘s own Johan Heinrichs, who also hosts the Burning Rooms podcast I featured in my last list. In the first episode of Beholding, Johan tells the story of realizing he didn’t know Jesus as much as he thought he did, so he started making a list of all the descriptions of Jesus’ character he could find in scripture. This list began to transform his heart and his relationship with God, and so this podcast devotes one short episode each to the verses on this list. Each episode ends with a prayer meditating on these descriptions and some instrumental music to facilitate your own meditation. This podcast is a powerful way to practice beholding the beauty of Jesus, and the website has further goodies to help.

5 House of Prayer Podcasts I Love

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!