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Norfolk storyteller’s book of answered prayer

Norfolk Christian author Barrie Lawrence has published his fourth book, The Curious Case of the Constipated Cat and other true stories of answered prayer.  Regular Network Norfolk contributor Kevin Gotts reviews the book.

Good storytellers attract and engage their audiences quickly.  Barrie Lawrence, the well-known Norfolk dentist, blogger, speaker and author has just launched his fourth book with the title The Curious Case of the Constipated Cat and other true stories of answered prayer.

ConstipatedCatCoverBarrieLawreIn this new book, Barrie, known for his straightforward, compelling and non-jargon style – refreshing for many Christians - has compiled interesting and often entertaining stories of a constipated cat, a boy with a deformed arm, an angel in Venice, a romance restored, an irritable bowel and many more relating to answered prayer.  He playfully ends some accounts with a view that some people would consider the outcome as “it’s a coincidence, or maybe psychosomatic.”

Enthusiasm underpins Barrie’s approach to life.  Describing himself as “a normal ordinary person, living a normal ordinary life” who has experienced answered prayers and wanted to share them in this new book.

The practice of prayer has been honed over fifty years, “I was born again into a new family – God’s family.  Now one of his children, I could pray to my Heavenly Father,” Barrie reflected, “But I have become bolder in my prayer life, happy to pray on the spot when a need arises, increasingly praying over the telephone with people, often daily.”

Part Two, moves into how Barrie and his wife Wendy have been able to pray and evidence healings, miracles and needs met.  Their Christian “mantra” is relationship, based on knowing the God of the Bible as a Father, following Jesus’ teachings; and listening to and working with the Holy Spirit of God.  Barrie tells of spending time with God, rather like spending time with a spouse, so that the relationship grows and flourishes.

Barrie also includes attitudes and behaviours that may hamper prayer and a relationship with God, and the problem that sometimes prayers seem to be “unanswered”.

He finishes with a call to step out in prayer, have faith and to develop a relationship with the Lord and to pray in the name of Jesus.  “May you know richly the blessing of the living God – who answers the prayers of his children when they cry out to him.”

This as the title alludes to, worked for Bathsheba the constipated cat, and a wide spectrum of people, with dramatic recoveries following prayer.

Barrie and Wendy also run a home based church called Liberty in Frettenham, north of Norwich, together with a major involvement in the Norwich chapter of the Full Gospel Businessmen’s Fellowship where Barrie is President.

To find out more about the cat and as a helpful guide to answered prayer, do buy the book, available from all good bookstores including Jarrolds and Amazon.  Barrie’s website is www.barrielawrence.com.

The book is published by Grosvenor House Publishing Limited


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