Morning Prayer Notes for Friday, October 29, 2021

  1. “Morning Chapel Prayer Playlist

Pastor Dustin…

Well, thank you for joining us this morning beautiful fall morning. My name is Dustin Sherry. I’m the Youth Pastor here at this wonderful church. And I have the honor of leading prayer this morning.

The Bible says we are His sheep, and the voice of a stranger we will not take heed or follow. And I just want to mention that this morning. God’s voice is a very familiar voice for the believer. And I’ve talked to so many adults and students, and they say, “I struggle to hear God’s voice. I feel like I can’t hear Him.” I remind them that God’s Spirit is alive on the inside of you. And we need to break past this idea that God is somewhere out there, far away. And we’re down here on earth and we’re trying to hear, and God’s like shouting from heaven and we’re just trying to cut through the noise and hear His voice.

But the truth is, is He’s alive on the inside of you. And He will speak clearly and distinctly to your heart. Jesus said, “I only do what I see my Father do. And I only say what I hear Him say.” That is the relationship that He had with God, where He was constantly hearing God. He was constantly getting direction from the Lord. And you and I can have that same relationship where we hear God’s voice and we walk in it.

I was telling a group of students, “I think sometimes the reason we think we can’t hear God’s voice is because His voice is actually so familiar that sometimes we’ve confused it with our own voice.” I think God’s voice is so familiar to us. Now we know what’s us and what’s Him, right? When we get the thought, “Hey, you should eat a gallon of ice cream at 11 p.m.” I think that might be you! But when you know His Word and you know His character, it becomes easier to discern what’s Him and what’s us. Right? And, and the truth of the matter is the Bible says that as a child of God, God’s voice is familiar to us. And I think sometimes people struggle because they think they can’t hear God’s voice. Or they think they’ve never heard God’s voice, and because of that, they’re looking for something that’s strange and unfamiliar. But the Bible tells us that if it’s strange and unfamiliar, it’s the enemy, right? The stranger, we will not take heed or follow. God’s voice is on the inside of us. And it’s that familiar, peaceful prompting. Now God’s voice will bring peace, but there’ll be times He’ll speak to you about things that your mind has to come to terms with to get in a place of peace. You’ll have an inward knowing or confidence or peace with it. But it won’t always make sense to your head. So when I say peace, I’m not necessarily talking about a feeling, I’m talking about a deep confidence and knowing. And so as we pray this morning, just set your focus and attention on the Lord. I’d encourage you to think about His goodness and think about His faithfulness and then just rest in that and then just allow him to speak to your heart.

Prayed…

Father, we just thank you that you are here… that you are alive on the inside of us…

I pray, Father, that that revelation would become real to the body of Christ as a whole…

I pray they would really come to know and experience the truth that you are alive on the inside of them speaking to their hearts…

I pray they would listen… take moments to acknowledge you in all of their ways…

Thank you that you have given us tongues, words, and utterances…

To pray totally uninterrupted by our minds…  that we can commune with you and bypass our intellect and our understanding…

That we connect with you on a spiritual level…

To be led and directed and guided by you…

Barb…

The grace to pray… the grace to move into the deep … to step out of the shallows and step into the deep … to move into the places that you have prepared for us…  we pray those out by the Spirit … we reach out in the Spirit and we take hold of those things… that you have prepared for us … we make a demand on the power of God … by your hand, it’s by your hand… not by our power or our strength, Father, but it’s by your Holy Spirit … we yield ourselves to the Spirit of God and we allow Him to move. We allow Him to carry us … into those places in you… that we so desire in our hearts… for you have put that desire in us … to pursue you, to be satisfied by you only … so we look to you today… and we draw upon that grace … to obtain… a massive move, Father, a massive move, a massive move of your Spirit, a massive move within your body… each one, each one … moving in, moving into that place in the Spirit… having that connection with the Spirit … yielding over to the Spirit … flowing in that river of peace and joy and grace and mercy … glory to God… for the days to come to be prepared for the days to come… thank you for that gift… the gift of the Holy Spirit… with the evidence of speaking in tongues … glory to God… we’re so grateful that we can pray those things out when we don’t even know what to pray… by your Spirit, we can tap into those places… and pray out those things that need to be prayed out… those steps that need to be prayed out… the plans that need to be prayed out, Father … for it’s your anointing, the Holy Spirit that destroys the yolks and removes the burdens, removes those hindrances out of the way, removes those blockages out of the way… And all we have to do is yield to the Spirit of God … we don’t have to come up with the great ideas … you fill us with those ideas … you nourish us by your Spirit… you nourish our minds and you nourish our souls, Father… by your Spirit, you build us up on the inside … by your spirit, we let you move… Have your way. Take your place. That high place in us. That seat that is yours… divine intervention… divine intervention now … Thank you, Lord.

Pastor Dustin…

I keep getting the word “respond, respond, respond.”  I almost saw it like there’s two parts to this. It’s spending time in the presence of God, delighting yourself in Him… receiving the words and the direction and the information from Him. The equipping, everything that He has for you. But then the other part of it is the response. Respond. I was in a service with Dr. James Tan. There’s nothing wrong with the word yield. It’s a good word. But I was walking around the service and I kept saying “yield, yield, yield.” And I kept seeing people just sitting there and they weren’t doing anything. And I think, cause at a yellow light, most people, it depends who you are, some people just hit the gas and just pray in tongues. Some people slow down to a stop before it even turns red. And I kept saying, yield, yield, yield. Then people were just kind of sitting like that. And then we did some stuff and then Dr. James Tan came up, and he kept going, “Respond! Respond!” And it changed the atmosphere and people started laying hands on each other. And you hear the cackle in the back of the room and people crying at the front of the room and people would start running. And I told them afterwards, I said, “I like that word respond.” Because it’s the same thing as yield. But it releases people to be more active in it. Respond.

When we say yield, there’s nothing wrong with yield. But when you say yield, I think depending on the person, sometimes that can be like, “I’ll sit here until something happens.” But respond is whatever God said do, do that right now. Don’t wait on it. And as we were praying, I was reminded of Joshua chapter one. It says “After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ minister, 2 Moses My servant is dead. So now arise [take his place], go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land which I am giving to them, the Israelites. 3 Every place upon which the sole of your foot shall tread, that have I given to you, as I promised Moses.”

I read that and it just hit me. God had a land that was prepared for them. He had a land and a promise for them. And then He said, wherever your foot touches, you will possess it. And I began to realize, they had to step there before it was theirs. Do you understand that? There’s a promise that God made to them. This is yours! And it’s beautiful and I’ve prepared it for you. And so this is the place for you. And I’ve prepared it. And other people have worked it. Other people have cultivated it. And it’s amazing. And it’s yours. As soon as you step there, it will actually become yours.

Do you see the faith involved in that? It’s yours, but your foot needs to touch it first. Everywhere your foot touches, you possess the land. In other words, if you’re not willing to go there, not willing to step out, even though I’ve reserved it for you, you’re not going to enjoy it like I’ve called you to enjoy it.

And I think there’s a truth in there. There are things in positions and places that God has reserved for us, but we need to by His grace and strength, we’re not doing it by ourselves. We need to take the step of faith and obedience and go possess that land. We need to step into it. We need to get our feet on it. I’m going to let that sit for a second.

I feel like there’s somebody watching online and you have this thing and you know that God has reserved it for you. But it’s almost like you’re expecting like where you’re standing to just magically turn into the land. And He’s saying it’s right there. I’ve called you to it. I’ve reserved it for you. It’s blessed. It’s prosperous. And I’ve given you everything that you need to step over there and occupy it. And when you get there, it’s yours. When you step onto that land, it’s yours. I’m with you. I’m with you. You’re not doing it by yourself. You’re not doing it in your own strength, but you’ve got to step on it first.

I don’t know who I’m talking to, but I know I’m talking to somebody. Everywhere your foot touches, that land you will possess. And so it’s there and it’s blessed and it’s reserved. It has your name on it. This is My plan for your life. Now go over the Jordan, make the preparation, and then occupy that place. Step into it. It’s what you’re called to do.

Verse four says “From the wilderness and this Lebanon to the great river Euphrates—all the land of the [a]Hittites [Canaan]—and to the Great [Mediterranean] Sea on the west shall be your territory. 5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. 6 Be strong (confident) and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only you be strong and very courageous, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success.”

And then verse nine, he says at one more time, “Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed…” Why would the Lord say that? Because there is a temptation to be afraid. Then Joshua commanded the officers and the people, and they passed through the camp and they made their way. He said, prepare your provisions for within three days, you shall pass over this Jordan and go in to take possession of the land, which the Lord your God has giving you to possess, be strong and very courageous. I know the plans that I have for you. They’re good, plans to bless you.

Respond to what the Spirit of God is directing you to do. Respond. I grew up in church and I felt like God had called me to do great things. He’d given me a vision for my life. I’d saw people being saved and healed and delivered and set free. And at the time, I wasn’t seeing it in my life. I was a greeter here at the church and I loved it. And I felt like it was where I was called to be in that season. But I wasn’t seeing what God had called me to do. And so I saw God working through me and healing people. I saw God working through me and people getting saved. I saw myself doing these miraculous things, but I wasn’t actually doing them at that point. And so I began to question and wonder, “Do I have that power within me? Am I actually called to do this?” And when I started doing street evangelism, I began to see people getting saved. I remember we were at an apartment complex in Brooklyn Park and I saw a group of teenagers and I started talking to them about the Gospel. There was like five or six kids and by the time we got to the point of the prayer, there was like 30 more kids that had come. And so I’m like let’s start over. And so I went through the gospel message again, and I got to the point of the prayer and I looked up and there was like 50 kids there now. I’m not like recruiting kids to come. I’m just talking to these people, but more people kept joining.

And so I’m like, okay, these people that are here now, didn’t hear what I had mentioned before. So let’s do it again. And so I went through kind of like a presentation of the Gospel again, and I got to the point of the prayer and there were more people there. And so I said, “Well, it wouldn’t hurt you guys to hear it one more time.” And so I went through it again. And by the time we finished saying the prayer, 75 people had gathered together. They came out of apartment buildings and out of parks. The Lord must have compelled them. 75 people were there giving their life to Christ, mostly kids and teenagers.

And then I said, “How many of you guys have heard of the baptism of the Spirit?” And there was a couple of kids who were like, “I think I have.” And then we prayed with them to be filled with the Spirit and they began to pray in tongues. And I thought, “Wow, I never saw this before.” And we would go around and we would see miracles and signs and wonders. And I realized, I think this was in me all along, but I never put a demand on it. Do you know what I’m saying? I was waiting. “God, I need power. God, I want grace. I want, I want, I want to see people healed. I want to see people delivered.” But it wasn’t until my feet touched that ground that I possessed that land. Is that too abstract? It wasn’t until I actually started stepping out in faith that I began to see it.

We went on a trip to Uganda and I was praying with people for healing. And people would say, “I need healing for this.” I’m like, “Okay.” And I’d pray for them. And they would just leave and you’d kind of wonder, did it happen? Did it not happen? And there was this person that was crippled. There was a 12-year-old boy who was injured. What had happened was he was playing soccer. And he broke his ankle. And so he couldn’t receive the proper medical treatment. And because of that, he was crippled. And he was going to be crippled for the rest of his life. And so he was really, really depressed. Wouldn’t look up. It reminded me of Acts three when Peter and John said, “look at us.” It was like this boy stopped looking up even. And so he was just sitting there and wouldn’t look up at us. We prayed for him for healing. And we’re like, “Does it feel any better?” And he wouldn’t even answer us. His mom kind of smacked him. And she was like, “Answer them.” And he’s like, “No, it doesn’t feel better.” And so I was like, shoot, you know? And so I was like, “All right, well, let’s try praying again.” And, and so we prayed again. I asked him, “Do you feel better?” And he’s like, “No.” He just sat there.

And I started to get more and more bugged with the situation as it went on, because I’m like this boy, his life is hanging in the balance. He’s going to be crippled for the rest of his life. And he’s in this village where people have to do manual labor to survive. Like, “God, he needs this.” And I’m not minimizing it, but it’s not like he had a surgery and he’ll have an eight-week recovery, but we want to speed it along. It’s like, his life is like kind of hanging in the balance with this thing. “God, we need this!”

And so I prayed again and nothing happened. And I said, “Can you just get up and walk?” And he goes, “No.” And his mom smacked him and she said, “Get up and walk.” And so he got up and he started walking and he was like, “ow, ow, ow…” And it wasn’t getting any better. And I’m like, “What is going on?” We need a miracle here.

Then he kept kind of limping and you could hear him making noise cause he was in pain. And his mom was like “Jump!” And he looked at her like, “Are you crazy?” And his mom goes “Jump!” And he jumped. And when he jumped, his ankle was totally healed. And he had this look on his face. And I said, “Now run!” And he started running and I said, “Now jump!” And he started jumping. So then we left and it was just kind of like stirring in me.

We left that house and went to another house. There was a man whose knee was really messed up. I don’t know if he tore every ligament in his knee, but his knee would just swing freely back and forth. Like there was nothing holding it in place. And he said he had been hit by a car and he could only hobble, but he couldn’t use that leg. And so we prayed for him and we said, “How do you feel?” And he goes, “I feel the same. I feel good.” And we’re like, “Okay, that’s nice. But what’s going on with your leg?” And he’s like, “It’s not really different.” And I said, “Can you try walking?” He tried hobbling. And I’m not this type of person usually. It’s not my personality. I don’t think I’m a mean person, but something just came over me and I went, “RUN!:” I just screamed it. And he looked startled and he took off running. And as he was running, he was hobbling, but he got all the way down the street. When he got to the end of the street, I could see him stand up straight. And his facial expression changed, and he turned and ran back like full tilt, super fast. His leg was working perfectly again. And he came back and he started jumping and he’s like, “I’m healed, I’m healed, I’m healed, I’m healed.”

This is not a tutorial on how to pray for people, but I was like, I feel like I just give myself too much room sometimes when I’m praying for people for nothing to happen. And I’ve just almost like become okay with it. Like, I’ll pray for you. I’ll kind of leave it up to you and your faith, whatever God says to do. I’ll trust you to figure that out. And if it doesn’t really happen, maybe you’ll get a little bit better. And I just realized in that moment, like there was a demand that was put on it. Run! Do this thing. Do you believe God’s Word? Do you believe you’re healed? Then do it. Do it if you believe it.

And I just began to think of the way Jesus did ministry. I’m not saying be irresponsible. I’m not saying be rude to people when you’re praying for them. It’s not what I’m saying. But I think of the way Jesus ministered and Jesus was like, “Do you want to become well?” And they’re like, yes. And they’re laying there crippled. And He’s like, “Well, then get up and walk.” No prayer. No quoting anything. Nothing wrong with prayer, nothing wrong with quoting verses.

But I think of Andrew Womack, a better way to pray. He would talk about this. And he was like, we spend so much time just thanking God for every… He was saying sometimes when we pray for people, we thank God for all of these things, but we never actually say what we want to happen. And so he’s like sometimes we never actually say like “Pain, go! Be healed.” We’ll talk about all these things. I thank you for this. Thank you for that. And Andrew says that’s good. I’m not saying that’s bad. Thank God for things. Remind people of God’s Word when you pray for them. That’s all good, but he’s like at the end of the day you have authority and at some point just say what you want to happen. Because that’s what Jesus did when He ministered. “Get up and walk.” “Take up your mat and go.” Peter and John, when they’re going into the temple and Acts three, the Bible says that they reached down and the man jumped up and he was running and leaping and praising God.

I’m talking about responding when the Spirit of God begins to deal with you about something. I’m not trying to give a tutorial on praying for people to be healed or anything like that. But I’m talking about when the Spirit of God prompts you to do something with you… when He deals with you about doing something, respond to that. If you’re sitting at home and you’re dealing with something and the Spirit of God tells you to get up and run, just do it!

Respond, respond, respond, respond to what the Spirit of God is doing. Thank you, Lord.

Comments are closed.

Post Navigation