[So anyone reading my blog or my Facebook recently will see a dramatic increase in reference to something known as “Pihop.”  I have even turned it into a verb and talked about “Pihopping” or “going to Pihop it up.”  In this post I just wanted to share a little bit about what Pihop is and what its about.]

Pihop  is the Pasadena International House of Prayer and is connected with Ihop, the International House of Prayer out in Kansas City.

Physically speaking, it one narrow but deep office building and one a much larger worship space that was opened recently.

Spiritually speaking, as the name might suggest, Pihop is not a church but a place of prayer, a place to receive ministry, and a place to be trained in ministry.

(Sidenote: Even as I write these words I realize that these are three areas that were distinctly lacking in my Church experience growing up.  Growing up three worship songs, a sermon, a worship song, and a benediction was the basic format of our Sunday worship and the sermon of the pastor was central. This was church to me.  Extended times of prayer and worship, healing ministries, and ministry training were non-existent in my church experience until very recently.)

What this practically looks like is a space that open almost all the day where you can go to pray, do art, read, study, and join in with worship. They have a variety of chairs, cushions, desks, art easels  and open spaces to facilitate all of this. The worship, by the way, is contemplative. There are no Powerpoint lyrics to follow along with and the repetition of words and phrases is common.  Every hour the worship leader(s) are replaced with no introduction and the worship continues.  For those that are completely unfamiliar with their style it is usually something like this. There are also a variety of more formal ministry opportunities that you can sign up for such as prophetic prayer, prayer for inner healing, prayer for physical healing, or sign up to be trained in any of these through Impulse, their internship program, or their School of the Supernatural.

I started attending Pihop following the gentle leading of God after my time in inner healing prayer. Going there and just receiving there this summer has been an amazing experience. It has been a place of rest and encouragement for me, a place where I can do work in the midst of a worshipping community, and a place where I go to join with others earnestly seeking God.

As some of my friends from the past would be quick to point out, I would be the last person they would expect to be participating in such a ministry.  Not two years ago I probably would have rolled my eyes at Pentecostals and Charismatics and anyone that went to Pihop.  Now I’m essentially a walking billboard advertising for the Holy Spirit and the places I know She’s moving, such as Pihop.

On that note, I have heard many friends talk about being in a very spiritual dry place, being very run-down and others who have just been asking very deep questions, like “Does God even love me?”  I often see the symptoms of these deeper issues despite the fact that people are trying to carry on like it is business as usual for their faith when it is anything but. Many Christians get burnt out by Church  ministries, programs, exhortations, burdens and principles that are laid on top of our ever faster pace of culture and life and other adult responsibilities we must carry.

We have become Human doings not Human beings.

My exhortation to you Human doings is to come visit Pihop with me sometime.  Table your cynicism and fears for a few hours and see if this is something that you want to be a part of in some way.

Pihop for me was the oasis at the end of a very long and hard road for me. I have spent years in recovery, a year in counseling, and gone through several in inner healing prayer sessions. I think this all was part of a long time of seeking the face of God and wrestling with Him. I do not want to suggest everyone will have such dramatic encounters with God.  Faith is not a math equation and God is not a genie.  I do not want to suggest going to “Pihop = incredible spiritual experiences” or that by showing up you will rub the lamp of God and make Him show up.

But then again…the Holy Spirit has a mind of Her own.  The only way to know for sure is to check it out for yourself.

[In my next post I want to share a very personal slice of my experience at Pihop.  I am going to share the recordings of the prophetic words I’ve received there over the last month or so.]