Interview with Janet Holm McHenry
author of PrayerWalk: Becoming a Woman of Prayer, Strength, and Discipline

GGBC: You have written several books, and one of your most successful was PrayerWalk. What inspired you to follow that up with Daily PrayerWalk?

JHM:I not only wanted to encourage readers to go deeper in prayer but wanted to encourage them to have a
consistent practice of studying God's Word. While PrayerWalk invites the reader to a meaningful prayer life, Daily PrayerWalk takes her into the Bible.

GGBC: You have heard so many stories about prayerwalkers. How do you feel such a simple concept has so inspired people?

JHM:It just makes sense. We're busy people! It's hard to find chunks of time to do those things that are critical to our health, such as exercise and prayer. And when folks give it a try, they quickly find their lives changed.

GGBC: Where PrayerWalk gives people an overview of prayerwalking, Daily PrayerWalk focuses on growing into the Word. Why is that so important in a prayerwalker's life?

JHM:We need to study God's Word to grow in faith. Prayer is not enough. If my spiritual life consists only of prayer, it can become too experiential—too much based on how I'm feeling or how life seems to look that particular day. Studying the Bible helps you pray according to His will, because you lean so much about Who God is and what He has done.

GGBC: You bring so many of your own personal stories to Daily PrayerWalk. How important is sharing your own story when writing a book?

JHM:It's my hope to become friends with my readers and to encourage them in their prayer lives. Hopefully, the stories I use from my personal life also bring greater understanding to the Biblical text I'm using.

GGBC: You have been prayerwalking for many years. What are the new ways that it inspires you in your Christian walk?

JHM: Answers to prayer inspire me. I have a folder of clippings from our little town's newspaper, The Sierra Booster, that literally are answers to prayer. Men
who've come to the faith. A friend healed. Changed relationships. God's gifts of answered prayers keep me putting on my shoes and heading out the door to pray.

GGBC: In PrayerWalk you lay out some suggestions readers might consider before walking. Why is pre-planning so important?

JHM: When I began, I was so determined to start walking, that I just headed out the door the next day. After a couple months my joints started aching again, and when
I had my shoes checked, the sales kid said, "Lady you're wearing basketball shoes!" It's important to have a good pair of walking shoes so you don't get hurt. It's also important to dress appropriately for the weather and to stretch out carefully after walking. You don't want to get hurt or discouraged by the elements—you want to plan carefully so you can keep your discipline in place. I explain all of this in a chapter in PrayerWalk and offer more walking tips in each of the 50 chapters in Daily PrayerWalk.

GGBC: Why do so many people struggle with their own prayer lives, and how can Daily PrayerWalk encourage them?

JHM: We're busy. We're tired at the end of a day or first thing in the morning. We're pressed by the urgent. Hopefully, Daily PrayerWalk will help readers get centered in a plan reading the Bible daily and encourage them to live healthier lives by walking and praying for their communities.

GGBC: You say in the acknowledgements that God has changed your life through prayer. How has that change been enhanced by your prayerwalking?

JHM: God has graced me with dramatic changes physically, emotionally, and spiritually through prayerwalking. I have lost weight and dress sizes and have more energy. My shaky knees healed. Depression that clouded most of my adult life vanished. And crazy fears—like "I wonder if this bridge will collapse"—no longer controlled my thinking. I'm a new person, and others have seen that in me, as well.

GGBC: Prayerwalking is so simple. How can you encourage people to get involved?

JHM: Find a partner and make a commitment to do it certain days of the week. Better yet, start a prayerwalking group and go through the 12-week Bible study at the back of PrayerWalk. Then map out your town's neighborhoods and cover them all with prayer!

GGBC: What do you want readers to take away from Daily PrayerWalk and the meditations it provides?

JHM: I hope my readers fall in love with the study of God's Word. I also hope they fall in love with prayer—talking with our heavenly Creator so much that they find they're praying without ceasing—prayerwalking, in effect, throughout their whole day. And I pray they're blessed by the godly changes they'll find in their communities. That'll be enough for me!