Transformative Prayers

So, over at Kura Kimanna, I was just writing about how people grow and change, and how the mind helps in that process. How, as we control the thoughts within ourselves, we, like a caterpillar, change by the Holy Spirit into a butterfly.

Photos from WeHeartIt.com

This process of shifting from Old man to NEW man... this shift from caterpillar to butterfly, is tremendous and can only occur when we allow the Holy Spirit to do His work within us and we work WITH Him by not allowing the toxic thoughts, emotions, attitudes, behaviors, dreams, and so forth, from taking root within us.

Dr. Caroline Leaf, a neuroplastic researcher, discusses what one of her colleagues dubbed the "trees of the mind" in both of her books on how people think and how they are able to CONTROL their thinking.

Representation of the thought of the mind tree...

So here's the thing I want to talk about today...

Prayer as a means for transforming the mind.

When we pray the Scriptures from our heart, or pray with biblical insight... when we agree with the words of HEAVEN instead of with the circumstances around us... when we allow the Holy Spirit to SHIFT our paradigms as we pray, we are transformed by the renewing of our mind.

Whether this prayer is meditative in nature; if it is intercessory, or contemplative, or by any other means that raises and worships God and respects Him while showing us who we really are and what He can and will do in our lives if we are willing to allow Him to... that is TRANSFORMATIVE prayer...

And when we allow ourselves to allow the Holy Spirit in... when we come into agreement with Him... we become more and more the butterfly. Less and less the caterpillar.

With the Spirit of God, we can FLY into other realms in the Spirit. When we praise and worship god, it takes our minds off of ourselves and the world, and set our sights in the heavenly realms where true transformation can take place... MUST take place because we have then been in the presence of God Almighty, even though His Presence, the Spirit, has called us up higher to that realm in God. We see more clearly, hear more deeply, and revelations are gifted to us as we sit at the feet of Jesus, as He sits at the right hand of God the Father...

As we pray with an attitude of praise and worship, wanting to pray nothing but to be closer to God, and to become more like Him, we are transformed because we are transported.

Sometimes, in dreams and visions, this happens, but when we pray... when we come in humble obedience before our King into His domain (Kingdom= the King's domain), we are forever changed; our hearts and minds are forever altered, and therefore our bodies have the potential to be altered. Humble obedience combined with the humble boldness of FAITH is the key to the Kingdom so many forget.

So... here is the challenge: will you set time aside this weekend to pray in a transformative way? Will you allow the Holy Spirit to continue to transform you more into the image of Christ, the Living Love Divine, who lived the ultimate life of caterpillar (humanity in the flesh), cocoon (grave), butterfly (resurrection)?!

 I believe that he is not only the Lion and the lamb, but in a sense, His Butterfly is with us now... His Spirit that rests on us. So many see Him as a dove, and that's great. Dove certainly fits the bill. It's what God showed us in His imagery of the Spirit, along with fire and wind. Like a dove, a butterfly RESTS upon someone. Yet a dove hasn't transformed in the way the butterfly has... a butterfly, like Jesus, has transformed from one form to another.

Allow Him to come and rest upon you... for even while as the dove He rests within us, He comes as fire, water, and transformation (butterfly) to rest UPON us and work through us to help thers. And allowing Him to have His way in us is the beginning of true transformation.

Then, and only then, can we fly!