ABOUT Minister Lisa
Ordained minister, visionary and founder of Created To Pray as well as an aspiring author. Wife, mother, grandmother and most importantly, a Jesus lover!
My heart's desire is to be all that God desires me to be and to help inspire others to do the same.
I believe in order to do that, one must have a firm foundation in prayer.
I discovered in through many challenges in both my personal life experiences, as well as in leading a non-profit multiple non=profits, that the most powerful catalyst for change was not through my own strength but through the power of prayer and power of the Holy Spirit.
Of all the women the Lord could use to lead THESE Ministries, I would have picked myself last.
I became a teen mom at the age of 17. At the age of 18, I met and married the man who I thought was to be my husband for life.
From that marriage, I had two beautiful daughters. We tried to live a somewhat picture-perfect life. However, I walked away from that relationship as a survivor of domestic violence, physical, and mental abuse.
I found myself leading a life of not being able to provide for my kids. We lived in one bedroom off of my grandparents' house, a room that could only hold one bed….one bed that three kids and I slept in. During all of this, my grandfather, who was a pastor, and my grandmother continued to care, nurture and pray for and with us.
Even still, I turned to drinking, partying, another failed marriage, and a lot of other things that cause me to cringe as I think back on them.
But God had other plans for my life.
God had plans involving true love and redemption. 20+ years ago, I met the man that I knew, without a doubt, God had sent my way. I knew because he saw me in the way that God sees me.
My heart and passion has always been about serving and ministering to women and youth. After serving many years as a youth pastor and Executive for two non-profits, I knew that the Lord was calling me to something that would change families for generations. Creating a space for women of all ages to come together for a weekend of intentionally seeking the Lord, with no distractions. Thus, founding Created To Pray. A life transforming weekend filled with prayer, fasting and workshops.
HISTORY Of The Retreat
I love to speak into the lives of women who have a story like mine.
Transitioning into better circumstances is not always easy, but it is possible.
As I began to do so through our ministries, I came to the indisputable realization that the root of genuine transformation is prayer.
But many women, like my younger self, had no knowledge of prayer or a superficial understanding of the tool they have at their disposal.
I knew I had to offer a safe space for women to learn what it is to pray and lead a prayerful lifestyle.
After launching the first retreat, we had an overwhelming response by women who experienced prayer in a way that completely revolutionized how they approached God and their spiritual disciplines. It was hard to leave such a prayer-soaked space when the refreshing from heaven restores a human spirit.
With opportunities to learn, practice and soak in the presence of the Lord through worship, we discover that we are Created To Pray.
And it is my heart that every woman would know that through Jesus Christ she was created to have relationship with the Father, she was created to thrive in healthy relationships and that she was created to pray.
