Lake House Prayer Retreat

“Where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them” (Matthew 18:20).

Four women. Three days. Two nights. One small lake house. We came together for one purpose: to touch heaven for our churches, our families, our friends, and ourselves. And God met us. He did more than meet us—He engulfed that lake house in His glory. He fulfilled His promise, “Where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them” (Matthew 18:20).

“And how long have you four ladies known each other?” the cafe owner asked as her cheerful smile encouraged conversation. “I guess you’ve all been friends a long time, huh?” 

We’d gone to the lake-front cafe for our Friday lunch—a break from intercessory prayer. The smells of grilling sandwiches tantalized our taste buds. 

“Uh, no, we three only just met each other,” my friend Nancy answered, pointing at Joan and Lori.

We all chuckled.

“Well, I know they are all women of prayer, so I called them together for a prayer retreat,” I explained.

“Wow! You all seem so bonded!” the cafe owner exclaimed.

My friends Joan and Lori nodded and returned her smile. 

As we completed our meal and went back to our lake house prayer station, we mused on how close we felt to each other, even though three of our group had been strangers less than 24 hours before. But after only our first prayer session, we were rejoicing in the bond of spiritual sisterhood as daughters of the King!

And the daughters of the King got down to business with the King. We prayed for ourselves—for bondages to be broken, for healing to ensue (Isaiah 53:4-5). We prayed for our churches—for God’s holy fire to descend, for strongholds to be destroyed (Acts 2:1-3). And we prayed for our denomination’s churches—that revival would break out as the followers of the King developed a new hunger and thirst for righteousness (Matthew 5:6). We prayed for our denomination’s missionaries by name, that they would be empowered to be witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).

We prayed. For three days, we prayed. And God heard his daughters.

As our time drew to a close, we regretted that we had to part. We had tasted heaven and didn’t want it to end. But we left with a new anointing…a new passion for the Lord…a new determination to shake heaven on a daily basis…and to return to another prayer retreat as soon as we could. For we received what we had prayed others would receive: we hungered and thirsted for more of God’s presence, for His righteousness. And we were filled! (Matthew 5:6).

Woman of God, you are not a second-class citizen in the kingdom of God! You are a daughter of the King! And as a daughter of the King, you have the responsibility, the privilege of approaching God with the faith that the Lord will hear your prayers and move in answer to your intercession.

Prayer Retreat Challenge: Women, I’m challenging you to put together your own life-changing prayer retreats. For guidance, see the prayer retreat document under the Resources tab. Post any questions as well as highlights from your own prayer retreats in response to this blog post.

–Debra White Smith c2018