About the Author

Jennifer Dukes Lee is the author of several books, including Growing Slow. She and her husband live on the family farm, raising crops, pigs, and two humans. She’s a fan of dark chocolate, emojis, eighties music, bright lipstick, and Netflix binges. She wants to live life in such a way...

(in)side DaySpring: things we love
& you will too!
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(in)side DaySpring:
things we love
& you will too!
Find more at
DaySpring.com
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  1. Hi Jennifer! Thank you for sharing this with us today. I often have friends who request for prayer while talking or chatting with them and I tend to make a mental note about it. This was eye opening, it is so much better to pray in the Now. Surrounding our closed and far away ones with prayers is for me an act of love.
    God bless you!

  2. Thank you for being a word of encouragement and hope, dear Jennifer.

    This is a call for warrior help for my homeland Kerala which is reeling under nature’s fury and massive floods. My loved ones are trapped without food or proper drinking water.

    This is a time where we need miracles and if two stand and call Heaven hears

    Please help any way possible

    • Lord, you calmed the storm. You told us that these things you do, we would do also, and greater things than these. You promised to save those who call on your name, and you gave us authority over all the power of the enemy. Today we stand on those promises and command the storms in Kerala “Peace, be still, in the name of Jesus.” We pray supernatural protection and blessing on Lisa’s loved ones, for the praise of the glory of Your name, because of Your mercy and great love for them. Thank you Lord, that your Word does not return void but accomplishes the purpose for which you sent it. Thank you Lord for your limitless grace and protection. We praise You and give you thanks and honor and glory.

    • Father, please hear our prayer for Lisa’s homeland, and especially for her loved ones who are trapped and struggling without basic needs. Lord, we don’t know what to do to help, but we know you do, and you can! Please, Lord, intervene in this situation. Provide your rescue, your strength, your comfort. Give your wisdom and peace, that there would be clarity of mind so that decisions will be made, actions taken that will truly help. And may people see and give you honor for who you are, the true rescuer and redeemer!

    • Hi. Father, we come before you now and offer our selves foe the people of Kerala. Please comfort the affected and strengthen the rescuers. Lord, wipe the tears and quiet the hearts of those in need. Help us to be channels of peace and instruments of compassion. Move our hearts to offer aid where and when we are able. Special comfort the loved ones waiting for news of their family and friends in Jesus’ name, AMEN.

    • Father in heaven, what hope we have in joining our prayers together here for you have promised to hear the cries of your children. We lift up the families in Kerala who are enduring this devastation. We plead on their behalf for your to send aid for their great need at this moment. We pray that you bring comfort to their souls as they process this calamity. May you draw unbelievers into your presence through hearing the gospel of truth and grace in Jesus Christ. Remind those who are your children already of your steadfast love in the midst of trials and help them live out through the Holy Spirit, “Rejoice in all circumstances” even while they grieve deeply the losses all around them. Enable us to “weep with those who weep.” Thank you, O Lord, for your power to all these things and even more than we ask! Amen.

    • Dear Lord,

      I lift up Lisa, and her homeland Kerala. I pray for protection, for healing, for your strength in a devastating situation. Thank you for hearing our cries, Father. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

  3. Thank you Jennifer for igniting a spark of encouragement and hope in me.

    At this very moment , my homeland Kerala , India is being severely battered under torrential rains and massive floods. My loved ones at home are trapped without access to basic provisions like food or water .

    Please raise up and hold in prayers. For we need miracles to work in this hour .

    Thank you and God bless you all

    • Lisa.

      Father God,

      Help those in Kerala,India. Send rescue to Lisa’s relatives. Give them the necessary food & water. Send peace & comfort to Lisa’s soul. Take the rains away & let the healing begin. Send your healing hand to everyone. I ask in Jesus’ Name.

      AMEN!

      Blessings 🙂

    • Dear Lord, be with the people of Kerala. We need miracles, and we know you are the Giver of miracles and hope. Please fill this land with the food and water that is needed, and with hope, which is needed even more. Please sooth all the anxious hearts, especially Lisa’s, with your peace and remind them that you are at work and in control even now. Amen.

    • “So do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

    • Lord I pray for the people in Kerala. Please surround them with Your love and Your power. Give them comfort in this literal storm in life. Please send help that they need. Protect them and keep them safe and most of all let them feel Your Prescence. Amen.

    • Dear God, hand in hand with Lisa we pray that you be with the people of Kerala, India and protect them from the torrential rains and massive floods they are experiencing. Free Lisa’s family so that they can receive clean water and food and any other assistance they may need. Allow Lisa’s family to get through this storm safely and in the process move closer in relationship with you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

  4. I want to be this kind of friend, too–the kind who drops to her knees between fridge and microwave over the need of a friend. I wonder if we imagine that prayer has to happen in a “sacred space,” and I also wonder how many opportunities I’ve missed to create “sacred space” by praying on the spot. Thanks you Tiffany for snapping the picture, and Jennifer: I needed this reminder that prayer can be the sweet connection that invites intimacy and leads to a deeper togetherness in Christ.

    • Thanks so much for reading along, Michele. You are so right. We make assumptions that we have to be in a certain place, or say certain right words. I love that we can come to the Lord wherever and whenever.

  5. What a simple and beautiful message and certainly one I will apply to my life starting right now.

  6. Stephanie,

    This reminds me of lines in Stephen Curtis’s song”Pray”. I hear you say your heart is aching. And you ask if I’ll be praying for you please. And in keeping with convention I’ll say yes with good intentions. To pray later making mention of your needs. But since we have this moment here at heaven’s door We should start knocking now, what are we waiting for? Yes. What are we waiting for? Let’s stop & pray right here & now. Bonnie Gray stated in her boo “Whispers of Rest” that we can do breath prayers. Just breathe in & say one word or two. Breathe out & finish prayer. Prayer doesn’t have to be some have big fancy words. He wants open honest child-like hearts that speak what’s on our minds. He wants relationships & they involve conversations. Just think of prayer as a conversation with a friend. Stop praying later & do it now!

    Blessings 🙂

  7. Thank you! There have been so many times I’ve asked for prayers from my friends and that’s exactly what they say. But the few times that actually someone prays for me on the spot is when I can truly feel the Holy Spirit at work. It’s amazing how you almost instantly can feel at ease. I will definitely be sharing this with my sisters in Christ!

  8. Amen, amen, amen!!! I have multiple sister-friends and how did we get there?? Exactly this, over many years!!! I loooove this!!!

  9. Please pray for my fiance David who is in Afghanistan special forces trying to get US Drs who are bring held hostage out. Very brutal times there. Please pray for the mission to be successful and the safe return of his troops, the hostages and himself so he can also come home when this mission is complete. He is retiring after this mission and coming home and we will continue helping other together. In Jesus name I pray and thank you all for your prayers. Gena

    • Dear Gena – the message in this devotion is don’t just say you’ll pray but stay and pray so, I felt compelled to pray for your special request. …

      Dear Living and Loving Lord of all – thank you for the privelege of meeting You in the private closet or our hearts and minds through prayer – for being invited by You personally to pray with and over others. I pray for Gena’s “Peace that surpasses” while she is separated from her fiancé David – Lord – lavish her with Your Grace of peace that the world cannot give her as David is overseas doing protection for others in hostile situations.

      I pray for Your Peace to protect and to prevail – – even penetrating the minds and hearts of perpetrators that are causing discord and war.

      I pray for all the families who must be terrified and worried about their doctors or soldiers that are being held against their will. Lord: thank you for your Goodness in the land of the Living. We pray for safety for soldiers fighting for freedom. Your Peace is the only gift that can assist in these circumstances and situations that only the Spirit of God is aware of. So we ask for Peace in abundance and for your Gentle Peace to keep our hearts away from worry by aligning with your loving thoughts for all involved. In Jesus’ Powerful, Beautiful and Peaceful name – Amen.

    • Lord, I lift up Gena and David to you right now, joining Janine with her beautiful pray. We pray peace, protection, strength for each day. Bring Gena and David together and bless their upcoming marriage, and the union that they are creating together, with you in the middle. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

  10. Father in heaven, what hope we have in joining our prayers together here for you have promised to hear the cries of your children. We lift up the families in Kerala who are enduring this devastation. We plead on their behalf for your to send aid for their great need at this moment. We pray that you bring comfort to their souls as they process this calamity. May you draw unbelievers into your presence through hearing the gospel of truth and grace in Jesus Christ. Remind those who are your children already of your steadfast love in the midst of trials and help them live out through the Holy Spirit, “Rejoice in all circumstances” even while they grieve deeply the losses all around them. Enable us to “weep with those who weep.” Thank you, O Lord, for your power to all these things and even more than we ask! Amen.

  11. Hi Jennifer.
    That is an awesome article. I am so guilty of telling people that I will pray and I do, but not with them in person or on the phone.
    I intend to be more intentional about this with anyone who needs prayer. My Bible Study/Share Gp. prays every week together, but when we see each other individually and need a prayer, we don’t stop and pray. Thanks so much for holding us to accountability.
    I just wish I could print these articles so I can share them, but I don’t see any way to print them.
    Thanks again.

    • So glad this spoke to you! I wish I knew how to advise you on printing the article, but you could share in other ways, such as forwarding your email to your friends, or sharing on FB and other social media. Thanks for wanting to share this with others!

  12. I love to pray for others at the moment! So encouraging to be reminded to keep offering and to hear of others doing this with hearts in agreement. Sometimes I have experienced resistance when I offer. This tends to happen with people who didn’t grow up in church, are new believers or perhaps not believers yet. I imagine it comes as a shock to them and they are uncomfortable. When it first happened, I thought maybe I shouldn’t ask anymore, but the Lord continues to take this fragile heart of mine and strengthen it by His Spirit to keep asking, gently. I would appreciate prayer for me in this regard as I tend to have a sensitive heart and can take it personally if my heart is not guarded by the Lord. I pray for each of you as you walk in taking these risks with others. It truly is a blessing when the prayer is given and received in agreement!

  13. Jennifer! Oh, friend. This just gives me all the feels. This is what walking out our faith in the body looks like. This is what it means to need each other, to be better together. This is how we change the world, by praying … not later … but now! xx

    Gracious God, thank you for Suzie’s beautiful example of praying on the spot and thank you for gifting Jennifer with the ability to share about it to encourage all of us. Give each one of your daughters who reads this post eyes to see an opportunity this week to stop and pray with someone in need. Thank you for your Spirit who lives in us and empowers us to do things we’d be too scared or uncertain to do on our own. Move in and through us! We’re willing. Amen!

  14. Thank you for this timely subject. I faced so many challenges during the 2017-18 year. Not as much with the children as adults. There was 3 very special friends that went the extra mile and took my hand and prayed. It didn’t matter where we were. God spoke to them to speak to me his words of comfort and encouragement. Had it not been for these warriors, I don’t think I would have made it to the end of the school year. I am so pleased to say the year actually ended with smiles and pleasantries beyond belief. A hug from me and apology from the most unlikely person. God is so great. I am looking forward to the best year ever. God bless all of you.

  15. Technology has made evil so very available. But it has also made the ability to share our needs with prayer warriors super easy!
    My mission circle members send out a group text for prayer. We can immediately pray for that need (and then reply that a prayer has been sent up on their behalf). It is also so easy that when God brings someone to mind to say a prayer for them and then let them know you are thinking of them and praying for them.

  16. With age, it seems, has come a lack of intimidation for me. I know the clerks and service personnel at the businesses I frequent. So noticing the tiredness in a pharmacy tech’s eyes, I asked how I could pray for her. The tears came readily and I leaned across the counter, gave a hug and whispered a prayer. Let me be Jesus to those always around me.

  17. Oh my Lord, Jennifer!

    Thank you for this! As a crazy busy Momma, I have all the good intentions in the world to pray for my people or for those Jesus lays heavily on my heart. But so often, the insanity of the day takes me off in a different direction and I FORGET! But I love this… Thank you for encouraging my heart to stop and pray in the moment and connect with others as I pray for them right then and there. Sooooo good!

    Here’s to being the pray now-ers!

    Becky

  18. Jennifer, I just love this.
    As a cancer survivor, I so appreciated it when people prayed for me but it was even more powerful and I felt more seen and held when they said: “Let’s pray now.” Whether we were in the car, in a coffee shop, on the phone, or I was in the chemo chair.
    So now I pray right in the moment. Not just to bless the other person and invite Jesus into their struggles (that should happen whenever I pray) but to prevent the VERY real problem of me forgetting to later that day!!
    Thank you for the wonderful reminder.
    Niki
    xx