Shared…
The following excerpt is taken from The Complete Works of E.M. Bounds on Prayer by E.M. Bounds:
Prayer and the House of God
Prayer stands related to places, times, occasions and circumstances. It has to do with God and with everything which is related to God, and it has an intimate and special relationship to his house. A church is a sacred place, set apart from all unhallowed and secular uses, for the worship of God. As worship is prayer, the house of God is a place set apart for worship. It is no common place; it is where God dwells, where he meets with his people, and he delights in the worship of his saints.
Prayer is always in place in the house of God. When prayer is a stranger there, then it ceases to be God’s house at all. Our Lord put peculiar emphasis upon what the church was when he cast out the buyers and sellers in the temple, repeating the words from Isaiah, “It is written, my house shall be called the house of prayer.” He makes prayer preeminent, that which stands out above all else in the house of God. They, who sidetrack prayer or seek to minimize it, and give it a secondary place, pervert the church of God, and make it something less and other than it is ordained to be.
Prayer is perfectly at home in the house of God. It is no stranger, no mere guest; it belongs there. It has a peculiar affinity for the place, and has, moreover, a divine right there, being set therein by divine appointment and approval.
The inner chamber is a sacred place for personal worship. The house of God is a holy place for united worship. The prayer closet is for individual prayer. The house of God is for mutual prayer, concerted prayer, united prayer. Yet even in the house of God, there is the element of private worship, since God’s people are to worship him and pray to him, personally, even in public worship. The church is for the united prayer of kindred, yet individual believers.
The life, power, and glory of the church is prayer. The life of its members is dependent on prayer and the presence of God is secured and retained by prayer. The very place is made sacred by its ministry. Without it, the church is lifeless and powerless. Without it, even the building itself is nothing, more or other, than any other structure. Prayer converts even the bricks, and mortar, and lumber, into a sanctuary, a Holy of Holies, where the Shekinah dwells. It separates it in spirit and in purpose from all other edifices. Prayer gives a peculiar sacredness to the building, sanctifies it, sets it apart for God, conserves it from all common and mundane affairs.
With prayer, though the house of God might be supposed to lack everything else, it becomes a divine sanctuary. So the tabernacle, moving about from place to place, became the Holy of Holies, because prayer was there. Without prayer the building may be costly, perfect in all its appointments, beautiful for situation, and attractive to the eye, but it comes down to the human, with nothing divine in it, and is on a level with all other buildings.
Without prayer, a church is like a body without spirit; it is a dead, inanimate thing. A church with prayer in it, has God in it. When prayer is set aside, God is outlawed. When prayer becomes an unfamiliar exercise, then God himself is a stranger there.
Prayed…
Thank You for the blood and for what was done through the blood, Lord
The blood of Jesus is working on our behalf today
There is wonder-working power in the precious blood of Jesus!
Father, You are showing us and guiding us into all truth!
You have made us victorious in all things, Lord
Yes, Lord, we will be world changers!
We are overcomers in, by, and through that blood!
You are a good, good Father, and Your name is above every other name
The name of Jesus never fails, and it gives eternal life to all who believe
Father, according to Your Word, we pray for those in positions of authority
We enforce the victory that is in the name of Jesus over every situation
Lord, we come before You and pray with joy and expectation
Lifting up the United States of America before You today
You have a will and a plan for this nation, and we take responsibility for it, Lord
We come against every lie and deception of the enemy
By the power that is in the name of Jesus, we cast every evil plot of the enemy down!
Every negative thought and plan of the enemy, we cast down in Jesus’ name!
No weapon formed against the President will prosper!
We plead the blood of Jesus over President Trump and his family
Calling for every lie and deception be revealed!
No, our government is not founded on lies and deception, but on the truth of Your Word
We take authority over that situation right now in the name of Jesus
Father, we cause confusion in the enemies’ camp, that deception is being revealed!
Give us eyes to see clearly, and ears to hear Your voice
Thank You for the truth of Your Word, for it is the truth that will set us free
We lift up President Trump, and we ask that You would give him a spirit of seeing and knowing
Declaring that he is sharp and quick, that he has an answer before the question even arises
Father, we ask You to surround him with godly counsel
Clothe those around him with righteousness from the most high!
Remove those that would try to lead him astray or those that would try to deceive him
Continue to cover his path with those that would speak words of truth and light
Declaring that the darkness would be dispelled by the light!
Give him eyes to see in front of him, that the Word would be a light unto his path, Father
His steps are ordered of the Lord, today!
Thank You that the path of reversal redeems time, time you are redeemed in America!
Let the church rise up in these last days and bring in the harvest of souls!
Show us the divine way, the divine plan, and Your divine purpose
We loose those things now in Jesus’ name!
The vision is ahead and the future is bright!
Yes, it is going to go in the right way, and we thank You for it, Lord
Father, we ask that every stronghold be brought down in the name of Jesus!
We hold the blood against it; it will not occupy the air waves or the minds of the people
In Jesus’ name, we cut those things off!
No weapon formed against us shall or will prosper
You are turning those things around, and You are turning them in the right way
Father, we ask You to dry up every rumor that would try to come and undermine the truth
Take the power of rumors out!
We are moving full speed ahead!
Glory be to God!
Shared…
The following is a prayer for our nation by Pastor Lynne Hammond:
Father, in the name of Jesus, and according to your Word, we pray for those in authority in our nation. We lift up President Donald Trump, his family, his staff and cabinet members. Let Your Word cling to them and let them not depart from your plan. Strengthen them with mighty power by your Spirit to stand against wickedness, lies and deception. Guide President Trump’s decisions; let Your light shine upon his path and show him the path of reversal for every evil way. Continually surround him with godly men and women who impart wise counsel to him. Cause the way of the wicked to be set to confusion and come to nothing. Deliver us from the traps and snares the enemy has laid for us, and let the wicked be caught in their own devises and be brought to shame.
We take authority over the plots and plans of the enemy against this nation. Let prideful and lying lips be silenced in Jesus’ name. Slanderers will not be established in America. We pray for our Congress, our Supreme Court, our Military leaders and our intelligence agencies. Let the wisdom that is from above reign in this nation and be constantly speaking to our leaders. We exercise the authority you have given us to tread down all the power of the enemy. We cast down and demolish imaginations and arguments that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God, and we bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. We bind spirits of strife and division, civil wars and tumults, spirits of hostility, lawlessness and blasphemy, and fires from hell that have burned in our cities.
We speak grace and peace over America. We pray and believe for the voice of truth, salvation, revival and restoration to be proclaimed and heard across our land. Grant unto your servants everywhere that with all boldness we may speak your Word. We pray for a mighty outpouring of your Spirit with signs, wonders and miracles. We expect the wisdom of this world that is earthly, sensual and devilish to depart and vanish until Your, mighty work in America becomes a beacon of hope for all people everywhere. We expect the voice of rejoicing to be heard in our nation for your goodness, mercy and prosperity, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
