CR to Ghana Prayer Guide!

 We thank God for the privilege of traveling to Ghana to share CR!  We have heard God call us…  Our trip dates are  9/27 to 10/6/11… 

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; the new has come.  All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.. 2 Corinthians 5:17-18

We realized four years ago that God was calling us to take the ministry of Celebrate Recovery internationally.  Praying for God’s direction, it has become evident that God is making a way to bring Celebrate Recovery to Ghana and using us to bring the message to this country!  Last April, 2010 we had the privilege of spending time with Apostle Francis Odai from Maranatha Power Ministries while he and his wife, Valerie, were in Tulsa.  After visiting Celebrate Recovery @ SHBC they expressed interest in having this ministry at their church.  Since that time we have been planning and preparing to travel to Ghana.  On October 1, 2011 we will have a CR Seminar with Pastors from Ghana to share this ministry!  

While on this mission trip to Ghana, sharing Celebrate Recovery, we need and are asking for you to be part of our daily prayer team.  Each of us has been on mission trips before and are very much aware of the need for daily intercessory prayer!!

Below is a brief itinerary of this journey.  You can follow along day by day and pray for specific things.  We will be posting on this blog from Ghana (depending on internet connections!) so we can stay connected with you and let you know how to specifically pray for us during our trip. We love to read your comments back to us too!

We SO appreciate your prayers and could not do this without them.  As you watch our journey realize when we are in Ghana, we are FIVE HOURS ahead of CST!  (If it is 9am in Tulsa it is 2pm in Ghana!)

Tuesday, September 27    Our Team Departs Tulsa to Atlanta, 12:55PM/Delta - We arrive in Atlanta @ 3:48PM for a 3.5 hour layover  - Our next flight leaves Atlanta @ 7:30pm.

Please pray; for safe travel from home to the airport and on each of our flights, that Norma & Steve are able to have dinner & visit with their kids, the Shockleys, during the layover & that good-byes are joyous!

Philippians 4:6  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer & petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”

Wednesday, September 28 We arrive in Ghana @ 11:10am.  We will be teaching the Evening Service…  Topic:  “Developing the Leader in You!” @7pm…

Please pray; that going thru customs in Ghana goes smoothly, that our luggage arrives on the same flight with us, that our travel in Ghana is safe and that we arrive somewhat rested, for the health of our team, that we will we get settled and begin to establish relationships with our hosts!  Pray for the evening service that our message would be inspiring, encouraging & understood by all!

Philemon 1:6  “I pray that your partnership with us in the faith may be effective in deepening your understanding of every good thing we share for the sake of Christ!”

Thursday, September 29 In the morning we will be speaking on the Radio & in the evening we will be speaking to leaders at Maranatha Power Ministries…

Please pray; we would learn more about the people and the source of some of the ongoing issues & problems they face in their culture & lives, us as we speak on the radio & evening service that we would make CR understood & seen as a needed ministry for the people of Ghana! 

Matthew 19:26  “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible!”

Friday, September 30 In the morning we will be doing village outreach with mosquito nets and in the evening we will be going to the MPM service that lasts all night! 

Please pray;. As we go into the villages with the nets, pray we will be an example of openness & love, share truths from God and be an encouragement to the people. Pray people receive Christ!  Pray for our participation in the evening service & that God would touch lives…

Mark 12:30  “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind & with all your strength!  The second is this, love your neighbor as yourself!”

Saturday, October 1 ONE DAY CR SEMINAR FOR PASTORS!  (9am-4pm)

Please pray; for us to be used by God, that we will be understood on all levels, that we would “connect” with the people, that these Pastors can see the benefit CR could have for their people, for those who will be attending this session- for their travel and for their hearts to be opened, that we will have the appropriate answers for their questions & that God moves these Pastors to desire to go home & encourage individuals to get involved in CR!

Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.”

Sunday, October 2 We look forward to attending church at Maranatha Power Ministries & Josh will be preaching!

Please pray; that we will experience further, the people, the traditions, and the culture of the country, that the Holy Spirit will convict our hearts and give us wisdom, direction & strength to continue & for us as we speak & preach!  Pray for Josh, preaching in the service this morning!

Romans 1:16  “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes:  first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.”

Monday, October 3  We will visit villages on Monday in the morning & speak on 2 radio programs in the afternoon & evening.

Please pray; that the Holy Spirit is our guide these next three days and that we continue to be used for Christ.  Pray for us to continue to rely on God’s strength each day and that each night we continue to get the rest necessary to maintain our health and our stamina for the task we get to be a part of.  Pray for us as we speak & preach on the radio & wherever we go!

Ephesians 2:10  “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

Tuesday, October 4  We will get to be a part of a prayer & healing service at 10am, in the evening we will speaking to local Pastors at a Pastoral Meeting. 

Please pray:  for us as we experience this prayer & healing service with this church family, pray for God’s presence to be felt & for healing to take place, for each of us as we speak to the Pastors in the evening!

Ephesians 5:1  “Be imitators of God, as beloved children, & walk in love, just as Christ also loved you & gave Himself up for us, an offering & a sacrifice to God.”

Wednesday, October 5 We will spend the day saying good-bye & thank you to our hosts!  Depart Accra, Ghana for Atlanta, 9:35pm… Delta (12 hr. flight)

Please pray: that our experiences are just what God thinks we can handle and that we are open and honest with each other as we review all that we have seen, heard, smelled, touched, and tasted during this trip.  Please pray for rest and for our hearts to be forever changed by this experience.

Ephesians 4:1  “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit thru the bond of peace.”

Thursday, October 6 Arrive Atlanta, 5:30am & Leave Atlanta at 8:30am to Tulsa.  Arrive Tulsa @ 9:36am

Please pray; that our processing of our trip continues, that we would be open to how God has changed us during this adventure, for safe travels, for our good health to continue, for our connections to be smooth and for our energy to be enough for the trip home. Pray for the transition back to life in the US!.

Thank you for being a part of our prayer team and for your understanding of how very important you are to this mission trip experience.  Thank you also to those who will be stepping in for us while we are out of the country at CR @ SHBC and our Life Group!  We are praying for you, too.  We’re praying that God blesses you for sharing your prayers with us.  Yes, we will see you on Friday at CR, October 7, 2011…!!  Norma, Steve & Josh