Prayer Pond
YOUR SAFE HARBOR FOR PRAYER
The Prayer Pond is your safe harbor for prayer. Share prayer requests, updates, and shouts of praise.
It’s safe, secure, and always without judgment.
What a blessing was that stillness as he brought them safely into harbor! Psalm 107:30 NLT
PRAYER IS THE HEARTBEAT OF CHRONIC JOY®.
Welcome to the Chronic Joy® Prayer Pond, where you can share your prayer requests, updates, and shouts of praise. At Chronic Joy®, we’re passionate about prayer.
You are invited to pray for this ministry, for those affected by chronic illness and mental illness, and for each prayer request tossed into our Prayer Pond.
Whether a request, praise, lament, loss, joy, hope, or grief, prayer ripples beyond this day and the boundaries of our world.
We often hear, “Prayer is the least I can do,” when in reality, prayer is the most we can do. As we connect with our Heavenly Father and with one another in prayer, our serving hearts grow and thrive.
“For where two or three come together in my name, there I am with them.” Matthew 18:20
PRAYER POND
What happens when chronic pain drives us to bed day after day?
What happens when we feel the weight of loneliness?
And what happens when we’ve searched for answers, but found none?
Many of us have felt the sting of wounding in the very places we sought safety. Sadly, even as we have requested prayer, some of us have been met with words cloaked in shame, judgment, or condemnation.
At the Prayer Pond, we invite Jesus to meet our heavy hearts with His Good Word.
OUR SAVIOR IS A SAFE HARBOR
In Christ, we always have a safe harbor to come to just as we are.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 ESV
The old-fashioned word in the middle of the verse – supplication – simply means to humbly ask. Jesus will never turn us away. In fact, He specifically asks us to bring our requests to God. As we lift our hearts, He lifts every burden, wrapping us in peace.
Is this world of chronic illness a place where life is stunted? Or could there be a hidden gift of intimacy with our Lord not seen before? Perhaps it is precisely the place where prayers are born.
Could it be that the unrelenting pain is exactly what causes us to cry out to God for help?
We believe chronic illness invites us to shelter under Christ’s outstretched wings. Jesus is present in our unrelenting pain, where His own sweet breath becomes our every prayer. For in this place of crying-out, hidden longings are lifted up to Him and the Spirit moves to intercede in and through His Presence in us.
EXPRESSING OUR DEEP LONGINGS IN PRAYER
There is a longing in our souls that rises from the deep places, of “Deep calling out to deep,” Psalm 42:7, as we long for God to, “Hear the voice of [our] supplications,” Psalm 28:2.
Sometimes those vague terms cause us to flounder and set aside His call to prayer. Yet what if this safe harbor for prayer is also a safe harbor to learn how to pray, to express the vague and unnamed feelings lingering in our hearts?
Want to Learn More?
Join us at the Let’s Pray page, a safe and inviting harbor to explore a breadth and depth of prayer.
Click on an image to learn more.
Let's Pray!
Prayer is Precious Invitation from God
Axe Head Prayer
Redeeming your spiritual edge.
Holy Attention
The Spritual Discipline of Noticing and Appreciating
Breath Prayers
Connect to God with Every Breath.
Lament
An Honest, Vulnerable Expression of Pain
Journey Deeper into Prayer
Cultivate a vibrant life of prayer!
Prayer of Examen
Reflections with God
Lectio Divina
Savor the Words of Scripture
Prayer Journaling
A Touchstone of God’s Love
Praying the Psalms
God’s Prayerbook for His People
The Questions of Jesus
An Invitation to Prayer and a Deeper Faith
Show me, Lord
Teach me. Guide me.
Suffering & Joy
Joy Thrives in the Midst of Suffering
Share Your Prayer Requests at the Prayer Pond
You’re invited to share your prayer requests in a judgment-free zone. While we love to pray for you by name, we’ve included an anonymous option, because we understand that sometimes just the effort to share a request is vulnerable and hard.
At Chronic Joy®, you are prayed for, and every request is prayed over. If you share your address with us (which is always kept confidential) we would love to send you a note of encouragement.
Before you leave the Prayer Pond, please #PrayItForward by lifting others’ requests. When you click the “I PRAYED FOR THIS” button, the requester will get an email saying, “Someone just prayed for you.” What an honor to love and serve one another in prayer!
Whenever we pray – on sleepless nights, in the heat of the day, or as dawn breaks on a new day, God will hear us.
Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice. Psalm 55:17 KJV
You are a precious, vital member of the Kingdom of God and of this community. We’re glad you’re here. Grateful for your presence. Blessed to lift you in prayer.
Thanks to everyone for who prayed for me. It is so encouraging to get a notice in my email indicating someone prayed for me. Blessings to all Chronic Joy prayer warriors. ~ Edna
You're invited to join us for Prayer Prompts & Posts
You are invited to share your prayer requests and praises related to chronic illness to our Prayer Pond using the form below. Once your note is received, we will share it according to your instructions. Feel free visit us often and share updates!
Anonymous
I have a dear friend who is very discouraged. She has ongoing medical expenses that are very costly, the bills are iling up an they're feeling very overwhelmed an rather despaired. Pray that they can trust God to meet their needs in His time His way an bring all honor an glory to Him.
Received: December 1, 2020
Anonymous
Hi, I am having a serious flare with severe insomnia. The great news is that my younger son is coming home on Saturday. Could you please pray for release from this flare and that I would be well enough to be a blessing to my son and to get the things done that I want to for the holidays? Thank you so much!
Received: December 1, 2020
Terri
My family is in quarantine due to covid virus. I'm asking for God to heal us, and protect us. I am so grateful to Him that I am so much better than I would have expected, with health issues and all. He is so great. I am thankful for His presence and teaching and love in our lives. May God bless everyone who is affected by covid in themselves, or in a loved one. I join everyone in praying He will remove it from the whole earth.
Received: November 30, 2020
kimberly Allstun
My name is Kimberly. Please pray for me I have severe fears being in social situations that has recently started. I want it gone. Please pray for my happiness and joy. Please pray my family all get along well and I feel I belong. Please pray I feel more comfortable living at my sister's house, being around her large family. Pray for mom and dad's health and addiction in the family. I have recently choose to walk away from drugs. Pray I get this job . Pray I get up early in the mornings
Received: November 29, 2020
Larry
My wife, Karen, has been my caregiver from 2002-2003 and 2009 to present. She has often neglected her needs, concerns, and desires. In 2008 we planned to visit our son, daughter in law and two grand children in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada for birthdays, annaversaries and vacation. When my health deteruated and we couldn't travel our plans vanished. It is felt on Christmas, New Years, Thansgiving when we hosted large family gatherings. Karen and I are praying for all the caregivers.
Received: November 28, 2020
Bettie Gilbert
This is an update for the prayer request about my daughter Rebecca. She had her 2 week post-op doctor appointment, and he felt things were great. The cyst they removed from her lung was actually the size of a softball. Praise God for his protection all these years. Please pray for her recovery as the pain could last several more months. Thank you so much.
Received: November 27, 2020
You Get Mail!
Would you like to offer a kind word, encouragement, an inspiring quote, or prayer to a fellow chronic illness traveller? On hard days when it seems almost impossible to take one more step, sometimes it soothes the spirit to extend ourselves a bit. Writing a note to a fellow traveller could be just that.
Who do you know that you could bless with a note of encouragement? Ask God who you could send a little #PenToPaper love, then just write from the heart – a scripture verse, an inspiring quote, a prayer, and/or a few few short sentences to brighten someone’s day. If you need a little inspiration to get you started, scroll down to the prayer printables for some great ideas
Would you like to receive notes of encouragement? We invite you to sign-up, so encouraging and inspiring #PenToPaper snail mail and other fun printed materials can find their way to your mailbox.
ADULTS
We would love to bless you with inspiring images, encouraging words, and an opportunity to share a little #PenToPaper love with others. Sign-up today to receive your own beautifully-designed, free, snail mail packets. (*Limited international delivery.)
TEENS & YA • You Get Mail!
Teens and young adults, we invite you to sign-up for #PenToPaper packets designed especially for you. Fun, edgy, and transformational snail mail will wing its way to your mailbox several times a year. Sign-up today, and invite a friend! (Safe and secure.)
Free Prayer Printables
Prayer Prompt Guide
Chronic Joy® Prayer Prompts are an invitation to take one gentle step, to pray in a comforting and familiar or perhaps new-to-you way, or to cry out on behalf of one precious life today … maybe even yours.
Prayer is...
Prayer is not what is done by us, but rather what is done by the Holy Spirit in us. Henri Nouwen
Prayer
Whether we realize it or not, prayer is the encounter of God's thirst with ours. God thirsts that we may thirst for him. St. Augustine
Prayer Posts
Prayers for Our Lenten Season • Prayer Prompt
Will you join us, and pause with these 6 Scriptures and Prayers for our Lenten Season? They can be filled with worship for the freedom He has given us.
What is the Meaning of Love? • Prayer Prompts
What does loving well truly mean? As we pray and seek the answer to that question. We will see that truly Jesus is the meaning of love.
Vocabulary of the Heart • What Poetry Taught Me About Prayer
I believe the very work of writing a prayer as poetry takes us deeper into our hearts, giving a new vocabulary to offer our longings to God.
Prayer Books
The Way of the Heart: Connecting with God Through Prayer, Wisdom, and Silence
Henri J.M. Nouwen
Discover a spiritual path consisting of three stepping-stones: Solitude (learning not to be alone but to be alone with God); Silence (the discipline by which the inner fire of God is tended and kept alive); and Prayer (standing in the presence of God with the mind in the heart).
Beside Still Waters: Words of Comfort for the Soul
Charles H. Spurgeon
This devotional is an inspired collection of Scripture-based readings that offer daily encouragement for dealing with illness, loss, depression, anxiety, and other personal problems.
Prayer That Works
Jill Briscoe
Through studying the lives of Elijah and Elisha 1 Kings 17-19 and parts of 2 Kings, readers will be challenged to pray bold prayers rather than settle for meek prayers not offered in deep faith. Readers will learn to cultivate their prayer lives, surrender to God's timing, and plan and persist when prayers seem to go unanswered.
Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God
Timothy Keller
Christians are taught in their churches and schools that prayer is the most powerful way to experience God. But few receive instruction or guidance in how to make prayer genuinely meaningful. In Prayer, renowned pastor Timothy Keller delves into the many facets of this everyday act.