Prayed…
Thank You that we can come, that we come in one accord
We praise You for giving us Your Son, for giving us Your love
Father, we thank You for this day, and for all that You have given us
You have given us Your holy written word, the great and mighty Holy Spirit
You have given us the gifts and fruits of the Spirit, and the precious blood of Jesus
We are a blessed people, blessed among all others
Thank You for this time together, that we can honor, reverence, and worship You
Yes, Father, we will work with You in the realm of prayer
Scripture Focus…
Jesus instructed them, “Don’t leave Jerusalem, but wait here until you receive the gift I told you about, the gift the Father has promised. (5) For John baptized you in water, but in a few days from now you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit!”
(Acts 1:4–5 Passion Translation)
On the day Pentecost was being fulfilled, all the disciples were gathered in one place. (2) Suddenly they heard the sound of a violent blast of wind rushing into the house from out of the heavenly realm. The roar of the wind was so overpowering it was all anyone could bear! (3) Then all at once a pillar of fire appeared before their eyes. It separated into tongues of fire that engulfed each one of them. (4) They were all filled and equipped with the Holy Spirit and were inspired to speak in tongues—empowered by the Spirit to speak in languages they had never learned!
(Acts 2:1–4 Passion Translation)
Shared…
The following excerpt is taken from Defining Moments by Bill Johnson:
Courage: Maria Woodworth-Etter
Perhaps the most impressive part of her miracle lifestyle was how God entrusted her with the actual atmosphere of heaven. It rested upon her. Oftentimes, people for miles around her meetings would fall under the power of God. The conviction of God would touch their hearts, and they would be saved. Think of the implications of this kind of anointing. When a bomb goes off, there is the damage from the impact, but there is also collateral damage. When the presence of God would fall upon Maria Woodworth-Etter, there was powerful blessing in the tent, and there was also collateral blessing. It literally transformed cities. God was not ashamed to be called her God, and He was delighted to be seen upon her. She truly was a friend of God.
The mandate to carry the presence of God into our cities is undeniable. It must be taken seriously. While the Holy Spirit is resident in every believer, it wouldn’t be accurate to say that He rests upon every believer. However, that should be our goal. In the same way that the Dove, the Holy Spirit, remained upon Jesus after His water baptism, so the Spirit of God is to remain upon us. One way to describe this relationship with the Holy Spirit is this: “He is in me for my sake, but He is upon me for yours.”
Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation
I consider the prayers of the apostle Paul in the book of Ephesians some of the most important prayers ever prayed. The church at Ephesus is the only church not to receive a word of correction from the apostle in a New Testament epistle. The Ephesians were honored in Scripture for their discernment and devotion to Christ, as well as for their unparalleled revival, which is recorded in the book of Acts. (See Acts 19:1–19). So, what do you pray for the church who seems to have everything? Paul prayed that God would give “a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him” ( Ephesians 1:17 NASB).
Interestingly, these two realms – wisdom and revelation – became of upmost importance for Maria Woodworth-Etter. She cried out for wisdom continuously. She knew that without divine reasoning, she could not accomplish all that she had been called to do. Additionally, in many ways, what launched her ministry was the spirit of revelation that came upon her when, in a moment of time, she received a download of biblical insight that would have taken her years of study to obtain, if at all.
God’s unusual graces are never to take the place of hard work and devotion. Instead, they often come to those whose faithfulness attracts these graces, bringing about a promotion in ministry that might not have come otherwise. Maria’s ignorance of the Scriptures had kept her from having the courage to preach. However, when revelation came upon her, courage came too—to the point that she became a model of courage, not only for her day but also for ours.
I don’t think it’s possible to be overqualified for ministry. The problem isn’t with how much knowledge or training we have. It’s with the amount of trust in God we’re willing to maintain in spite of our increased knowledge and experience. Sometimes, what appears to be over-qualification in ministry is actually a state of being bound to what we already know at the expense of our need to learn something new from the Lord. Putting it another way, what we know can keep us from what we need to know if we don’t maintain the attitude of a novice, staying open and teachable.
God often moves among groups of people who know that they don’t know what they’re doing! That’s because their awareness of their need increases their dependence on God. Revivals usually work best in such an environment, because people are at their greatest point of trust and flexibility.
It’s when we become more seasoned that we tend to become less flexible. Again, as God increases our understanding of Scripture and the ways of the Holy Spirit, the challenge for us is to remain dependent children of our loving Father. The problem isn’t with being blessed. It’s with staying humble while being blessed.
Power Encounter
Jesus commissioned His disciples to preach the gospel all over the world. (See Mark 16:15.) He also told them not to go until they had been clothed with power. (See Luke 24:49.) It’s possible for us to know what we’re to do, and even to have the open door to do it, but still not be qualified. Knowledge won’t qualify us. College degrees won’t either. Only a life-changing encounter with the power of the Holy Spirit can truly qualify us to serve God. We are qualified by the anointing.
Maria Woodworth-Etter put it best in her description of her defining moment:
I came like a child asking for bread. I looked for it. God did not disappoint me. The power of the Holy Ghost came down as a cloud. It was brighter than the sun. I was covered and wrapped up in it. My body was light as the Holy Ghost, and fire, and power, which has never left me. Oh, Praise the Lord! There was liquid fire, and the angels were all around in the fire and glory.
What is most interesting to note is that even after visions, trances, and other wonderful divine experiences, Maria was not really ready for ministry until this moment of the Holy Spirit’s power. As we seek additional encounters with the Holy Spirit, looking to be increasingly clothed with power from on high, it is important that we not try to hold God “hostage” to our receiving the same encounter as another. It should be increasingly clear that not everyone featured in this book had the same experience. That fact will become even clearer in the chapters that follow. Let us not forget that God is the One who clothes us with power, and it must be done His way. Spiritually hungry, humble people do not attempt to put demands upon God. They do not “command” Him to do something in a way that pleases them. They hunger with trust, knowing that if they ask for bread, He will not give them a stone. (See Matthew 7:9; Luke 11:11.)
Suffering and Brokenness
Just because God can use something in our lives doesn’t mean He designed it. It can be quite the opposite.
She never lost sight of the goodness of God. So many people alter their call according to their circumstances. This great woman of God stayed true in spite of seemingly impossible circumstances. I respect her because, in addition to this, she followed every transition that the Holy Spirit was making in the church in her day of service. In other words, she didn’t become stuck in what God had done in the past but continued to listen to see what He was doing presently. Thus, she was a part of every move of God in her lifetime, and she missed nothing. She responded to every call that He presented her with. Such an example is very rare in all of church history.
The Power of the Testimony: Carrie Judd Montgomery
Anointing Encounter
Even after her ministry success, Carrie’s hunger for God continued to deepen. When we live in blessing, we need to remain in a posture of spiritual hunger, as Carrie did. Hunger is a sign of spiritual health. Carrie’s hunger led her on a journey that brought her to an even deeper encounter with the Lord a few years later.
Like D.L. Moody, regardless of her previous encounters or ministry successes, Carrie went after more of the Spirit, which was freely available to her. By faith, she learned to possess what was already in her spiritual account. It is important to realize that by covenant in Christ, everything is already given to us. We simply need to take hold of what has already been given. In Carrie’s time, speaking in tongues was a newer phenomenon and was controversial within the church. But when we want Him more than anything else, it doesn’t matter what His manifest presence might look like. Knowing that there is more and being hungry for full immersion in God changes everything.
After spirit Baptism
Carrie’s Spirit baptism encounter touched her deeply. Her experience brought her satisfaction in ways she had not previously experienced. She observed a multiplication of joy, power to witness, “teachableness,” a hunger for the Word of God, and “freedom of the mind from all care,” which had not been settled in her up to that point. She also said that “the precious reality of His grace, the perfection of His love in my spirit, the absolute rest and quietness of my mind (having the mind of Christ) and the indescribable quickening of my mortal body by His life-giving Spirit (Rom. 8:11), seem infinitely beyond any experience I have had in the past, freighted as the past has been with His blessing.”
Continued Praying…
Father, we are so thankful for Your Holy written Word that is the basis of truth in our lives
Everything we have, everything we need, and everything we do is in You, Lord
Thank You for the testimony of people in years and in decades past, their testimony is still relevant!
What they did still has the power to speak to us today!
We yearn and we hunger for more of You, more of Your Spirit, and more of Your power
Yes, Father, we want to know and experience You more, we want to hear from You more
We want to receive from You more, and to walk in obedience to You more!
You have called and ordained us to walk out a life of ministry more aligned with Your will and Your plan
We are looking for a greater change in the body of Christ from one degree of glory to another
No, we will not stay stuck, but we will move forward in the things that You have for us, Lord
Declaring for a greater change in every pastor, teacher, apostle, evangelist, and prophet
We are looking for supernatural change to transform, and transition their hearts, Father
Grant unto us a download from heaven, an impartation from heaven!
You have given gifts unto men for the perfecting of the saints, oh God
We need more of You in this day and in this hour
You have made Your grace and Your power available to each and every believer
Praying and believing for a greater spiritual hunger in the church in these last days
Yes, Father, we do lay aside some things, we lay down our own agendas
We lay down the lies of the enemy that say we are not enough, we are done and finished
We take up that call and that cry and that hunger, Father
You said we should ask, and that You would give, so we will knock, and seek, and we will find You
Open our eyes to see all that You have for us, for You ordained us for such a time as this
Father, You have equipped us with everything we need to fulfill Your call and plan
We call in that harvest of souls into Your kingdom, oh Lord
By Your mercy and by Your grace, grant unto us utterance in the Holy Spirit
Grant unto us boldness and courage to stand up and take our place in the body of Christ today!
Let us reach out with a prayer, let us reach out with a touch and with a word of encouragement
Yes, the church is stepping up and out and is ministering words of eternal life!
Calling for the church to increase in our effectiveness of ministry and to a greater capacity, Father
We ask You for an increase in the anointing of God, and increase the boundaries oh God
Let us continually press on to the call of God, and to the fullness of the Spirit
Applying the blood of Jesus unto the church which is Your body
Calling for each and every part to respond to Your call and to Your plan
When You touch us, we will respond and yield!
You are the answer to every need!
Let us be Your hands and Your feet in a way that we never have been before
We will walk in wholeness and soundness, spirit, soul, and body
Empower and anoint us to be all that You have called us to be
We are looking for radical, dramatic, and continual change in the church of the living God
Yes, we will endure and press through any kind of persecution that will come our way!
Thank You for the honor and the privilege to know and to worship You
You loved us, and You gave everything for us!
We receive and walk in that love, and we will be givers of that love, Father
For freely we have received and freely we give!
Our hearts are expectant and yearning for more of You, Lord
You are moving in, through and around us in a new and in a fresh way
We need You more, we need You, because the world needs You
We need more of You, because they need You, the lost needs You and this nation needs You
This nation was ordained and created for Your glory and for Your honor, Father
Applying the blood of the everlasting covenant over this nation of America
We plead the blood of Jesus over our President, over his family, over his children and grandchildren
We plead the blood of Jesus over his staff, over his advisors and cabinet members
Declaring that no weapon formed against them shall prosper in Jesus’ name!
No lies, no deception, no deceiving spirits, no catastrophes shall or will come against them
Strengthen them of and by Your Spirit, oh God
Yes, Father, they will continue to resist evil and they will cling to that which is right and good
They will finish all that You have called them to do
Let each and every one of them know the anointing of God that is upon their lives
You have called them to these last days; You have called them for such a time as this!
Let our President know that You, by Your Spirit have called him, and You have anointed him
Continually surround them with godly men and women who can impart Your wisdom to them
We loose angels and ministering spirits to assist, accompany, and preserve them, Father
Thank You for supernatural progress, we thank You that the light dispels darkness!
Calling for a reversal for every evil work in this nation
No, that will not be left undone, but it will be uprooted, and it will be brought out!
Thank You that this nation is moving more and more to the right
Barriers are being broken down in the name of Jesus!
Declaring for this nation to be one nation, under God!
Calling for every believer to respond to that call and take their seat of authority in Christ Jesus
Grant unto every pastor wisdom and understanding, open their eyes to see and their ears to hear
We are looking for change in the educational system that we would stand up for truth and liberty
This nation was founded upon You, upon Your principals and upon Your Word!
The body of Christ is working and functioning together in one accord
You will continue to give us platforms, avenues, and venues to proclaim the name of Jesus
Casting down denominational barriers that would try to hold us and keep us from being the body
You have created us to be one body, united together in one accord!
Father, You are raising up men and women to go where no one has ever gone before
Give them boldness and courage to fulfill Your call and Your plan!
We trust in You to touch us, to give us a voice to speak, to speak of Your goodness, oh God
Thank You, Father, thank You for Your presence and for Your love
You said You would never leave us nor forsake us
We love, honor and bless You today, Lord
