Changing Lives with Media + Fresh Stirrings in North Carolina
February 2024 Recap
Heading into 2024, I felt like God was inviting me into the “wilderness”, just as the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness after his baptism (Matthew 4:1). We tend to think of the wilderness as a bad thing, but for Israel, the wilderness was a place to worship (Exodus 7:16). It was the hidden place where John the Baptist spent decades cultivating a prophetic message (Matthew 3:3). It was where the beloved discovered true intimacy with the Lover (Song of Solomon 8:5).
I plan to talk more about this in an upcoming podcast episode. But I wonder if today God is also inviting you into the wilderness? The place of intimacy with Him, dependence, spiritual warfare, fasting, prayer, rootedness and worship? Away from the noise and strife and rat race into the secret place of His presence? To know His word, hear His voice and experience His love like never before?
“Therefore, behold, I will allure her,
and bring her into the wilderness,
and speak tenderly to her.”
Hosea 2:14
Please check out the updates below. God is doing amazing things. Thank you for your support!
Matthew Lilley
Prayer Missionary
Director & Founder of Presence Pioneers
Recent Podcast Testimony 🙌🏼
"I've benefited from your ministry tremendously over the past 2 years. Your podcasts and blog articles are like a map to navigate an important work God's doing and help locate one's place within it. Keep going."
Launching a Prayer Room in Salisbury, NC 🚀
I was honored to be invited to the one year anniversary celebration of F3 Church in Salisbury, NC. They are a praying, presence-centered community that was launching a new house of prayer (literally in a historic house) the week after we were there. I was honored to lead worship for two services and do a seminar on David’s Tabernacle to help lay some biblical foundations of day and night worship and prayer.
Regional Stirrings in East NC 🔥
Some fresh expressions of prayer and unity are stirring in the eastern half of North Carolina!
Last year, God led me to start gathering a handful of folks who are leading presence-centered communities in the region for a quarterly leaders luncheon to build unity, encourage one another and pray about collaboration towards 24-7 worship and prayer.
This month we hosted the first leaders luncheon of 2024 in Greenville, NC in tandem with a weekend burn event (10+ hours of worship).
Out of that meeting, we have also now launched a monthly prayer call where we can unite in prayer for revival and an online 24/7 prayer calendar to track prayer in the region.
More to come!
The Latest From Presence Pioneers Media 🎙️
The Dark Side of Religion and How to Get Free w/Gunter Akridge
Jake Kail on The Secret Place, Hunger for God and Discipline in Prayer
Praise Reports & Prayer Requests 🙏
Pray for safe travels for my wife Shepard and I as we head to Columbus, Ohio to minister next month.
Pray for refreshing, joy and fun for our family - we are taking a week off for our annual spring “staycation” at the end of March.
Praise God for provision since stepping back out full-time with Presence Pioneers. We have had all we need! I will be taking some time in April to do some fundraising to ensure we meet our 2024 ministry budget.
Family Update👨🏻👩🏻👧🏻👦🏻
Upcoming Itinerary ✈️
March 4 - Washington, NC - BOYO Young Adults
March 9-10 - Columbus, OH - Garden City Church
May 13-14 - Greenville, SC - Garden Church
May 25 - New Bern, NC - Regional leaders luncheon & burn event
Matthew, I’m grateful to have met you on line through our brother in Christ and I believe in the wilderness as a place of harvest that the Lord builds upon his rock. Thank you for sharing the good news of the gospel here. Amen