PRAYER SWEETS Encouragement word ... august 2026

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Written By: General Overseer Renea Collins

1st Assistant to Bishop William Murphy II

International Intercessory Prayer Ministry

"THE STUFF IN THE MIDDLE"

Happy August! We have entered the 8th month of 2026. We know that biblically speaking the number eight represents new beginnings.

During our International Conference Bishop Craig Oliver preached a powerful word entitled “Go Forward”. As I sat listening to the sermon, I kept hearing the phrase “the stuff in the middle”. The reality is this, we all go through various times and seasons, in fact in Ecclesiastes 3, God used King Solomon to remind us that to everything there is a season.

In Exodus 14:13-16 NKJV the children of Israel were facing a dilemma, and they were facing it BECAUSE THEY OBEYED GOD!!!!! Let that sink in for a moment. Obeying God is not a guarantee that we will not face obstacles. Rather, amid obstacles we must know of a certainty that God is working on our behalf.

With the Red Sea in front of them and the roar of Pharaoh’s chariots behind them, the instruction from God was “stand still and see the salvation of the Lord”.

As women we are fixers. We fix things for our children. We fix things for our spouses. We fix things for our co-workers but what if some of the things we try to fix, really are not ours to fix? What if Father’s real desire is that we learn to become confident in His ability to fight for us. Notice that I said fight for us, not with us. While we are in the middle of a thing, what if the real goal is to get us to admit that the thing we are facing is bigger and stronger than us. Perhaps that admission will release Father to do what He has been waiting to do all along.

We know how this Exodus story ends; the children of Israel walked through the sea on DRY GROUND. What should have been a muddy mess, became dry ground for their safe passage. I want to encourage you today, if you find yourself in the middle of waiting on a promise, waiting on some thing to take place, please do not get stuck in the stuff in the middle. Between every promise of God and the manifestation of that promise, there is this thing called process. While in process we must keep praying, keep moving, keep trusting, keep standing on the word of God and keep standing on His promises. We must obediently follow God in faith and leave the outcome to Him.

So, while we celebrate this month of August, may we also rejoice in the fact that our God is for us and that any day now the stuff in the middle will become a thing of the past!