Morning Prayer Summary for Thursday, April 04, 2019

Mary led group in worship…

Erika shared…

I’ve been pondering this for a while and it keeps coming up. I want to read a quote from Spurgeon on Lev. 6:13.

“The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out” Lev. 6:13.

Keep the altar of private prayer burning. This is the very life of all piety. Burn here the fat of your sacrifices. Let your private devotions be, if possible, regular, frequent, and undisturbed. Effectual prayer availeth much. Have you nothing to pray for? Let us suggest the Church, the ministry, your neighbors, your country, and the cause of God and truth throughout the world. Let us examine ourselves on this important matter. Do we engage in private devotion with lukewarmness? Is the fire of devotion burning dimly in our hearts? If so, be alarmed at this sign of decay. Let us ask for the Spirit of grace and of supplication. Let us set apart special periods for extraordinary prayer. For if this fire should be smothered beneath the ashes of a worldly conformity, it will dim the fire on the family altar and lessen our influence both in the Church and in the world. The text will also apply to the altar of the heart. This is a golden altar indeed. God loves to see the hearts of His people glowing toward Himself. Let us give God our hearts, blazing with love and seeking His grace, that the fire may never be quenched. It will not burn if the Lord does not keep it burning. Many adversaries will attempt to extinguish it. Let us use Scriptures as fuel for our heart’s fire; they are live coals. Let us attend sermons, but above all, let us be much alone with Jesus.

Erika continues…

Today, I want to talk about where we are on the great timeline of God. That’s a big subject. Our lives are pretty much dominated by time. We have alarms for this and we got to be there for this and we have to do this and that. It’s days, minutes, hours, years, etc. Pastor Mac is preaching out management and how you have to have a plan. That’s all good. We know that we have an internal clock given by God almighty. We know that we can adjust to that clock. Or the clock can adjust to us. Sometimes that doesn’t work out so well. We also know from scripture that we’re to be led by the Spirit. So we have time, we have schedules, we have this, but we are to be led. The sons of God are led, right?

We know in 2nd Peter we’re told we are not to be ignorant concerning this one thing. A day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as a day. So you think we should pay attention? If we’re not to be ignorant. We’ve talked about it. We all know about it with the way society is. It’s just breathlessly moved from one event to the next. But do we factor in the fact that God has a timetable? And we’d like to see things happen in His schedule. He, even more than us. We’re not even conscious that, “Oh yeah, I wonder how God would have us to figure all that out.” We all know our personal world of time and all that entails we’re told not to be ignorant about God’s timeline. There are many teachings that we could go into about God’s timeline. Billye does a wonderful job. Talks about moeds. Talks about shmittah. It’s a good thing to study. We’re not going to go into that, but I do want to read a particular part of what she had to say in her book, “Praying in the End of Days.” I think you’ll see where we’re going.

How amazing that for such a time as this, we have come to the kingdom (Esther 4:14).

Whatever time period one lives in on the earth, one should know what God is doing during his or her lifetime. And then, cooperate with what He is doing.

If you lived during the time of Noah, you should have gotten your tools and helped him build the ark.

If you lived during the Master’s earth walk, you should have baked some bread and cooked some fish, and gone to the meetings.

You and I live in a time that all past ages have been moving toward. The end of the end of days.

We live at an age change!

Jeanne Wilkerson repeatedly said, “There are hooks upon which all history hangs. The First Coming of the Lord. And the Second Coming of the Lord. All history pales in the light of these two events.

Erika interjected… So you think we should know about them? You think they should be part of who we are, part of our consciousness, part of how we operate and function as the Church of the living God, aware of His timeline, aware of the fact that we live at a change coming rapidly. Amen?

You and I live just before the Second Coming of the Lord

The Bible calls our lives, our races.

Christianity is a great relay race. Starting with Peter and the Twelve, the Mary’s, Paul, etc., on and on—the baton has been passed until it reached you and me. We are on the last lap of the race.

The fastest runners are always put on the last lap of the race. It is our equipment—our knowledge of who we are in Christ, as revealed in the New Testament letters—that enables us to finish in victory.

We are here to work with God, in His work just before the Second Coming, and all the great prophetic events associated with His Coming. One of the main ways He established for us to work with Him is in prayer.

Erika continued…

So talking about one of the ways that we work with Him, we’re extremely blessed to be in a ministry where we were founded and still continue to operate and function and have made room for prayer. We have a great emphasis on prayer. But there seems to be a mandate that we as the Church must pass onto the next generation not only knowledge about prayer, but pass on the spirit of prayer and the doing of prayer. How does this affect us? Because it’s part of the timeline of God. He wants us to work with Him. We have available resources of prayer and we should continue to believe for the dissemination of those things. We know that it’s by the Spirit, that there have been moves of prayer throughout generations. But we’re looking for that. If He works with us regarding this in the last days, it’s one of the great ways that we can work with God. We should be looking for that.

There is the doing side, not just the hearing. So we want to see that more and more. We don’t want people to, “we have to go to prayer.” But as we started out and if we understand the face to face experience with our Father in worship, prayer becomes a delight and a treasure, to meet with Him. Not an obligation. Because we’re in trouble. We’ve all done that. That’s okay. And He’s okay with that. Because He’s merciful.

We want to continue to keep first and foremost the fact that in working with Him, it’s because of our hearts. Some of us in the beginning were involved in smaller, intimate prayer groups. The focus wasn’t “get in there and get your prayers done.” The focus was Him and what He wanted and how He wanted it accomplished. And then follow Him in the work of prayer. We are on the end of the timeline. If we’re aware of that, we’ll be aware of the possibilities of every individual to enter into that working with God in the realm of prayer. I think one of the challenges that we have in today’s society with continual pressure screaming from the outside, “Performance, performance… you have to look good. You have to talk good. You have to walk good.” You have to have all these things in order to have any value. Not so with Him. You are valuable. Period. Because He created you and you are valuable and important. We want to cooperate with our Father and enter into what He has given to us. I’m going to read Mark 13, Passion translation. Jesus is with the disciples.

“Now, learn the lesson from the parable of the fig tree. When spring arrives, and it sends out its tender branches and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is soon to appear. 29 So also, when you observe all these things progressively taking place, you will know that he is coming near, even at the door! 30 I assure you, this family will not pass away until all I have spoken comes to pass. 31 The earth and sky will wear out and fade away before one word I speak loses its power or fails to accomplish its purpose.”

Erika interjects… The subtitle for the next section is, “Live always ready for His appearing.” How are you going to do that if you don’t even think about His coming at some point?

Live Always Ready for His Appearing

32 “Concerning that day and exact hour, no one knows when it will arrive, not the angels of heaven, not even the Son—only the Father knows. 33 This is why you must be waiting, watching and praying, because no one knows when that season of time will come.”

“For those days can be compared to a man who was about to leave on a journey, but before leaving he placed his servants in charge and gave each one work to do while he was away. Then he commanded the watchman to be on guard at all times. 35 So I say to you, keep awake and alert—for you have no idea when the master of the house will return; in the evening, at midnight, at four o’clock in the morning, or at dawn. 36 Be alert, for he’s coming suddenly and may find you sleeping! 37 And what I say to the four of you, I say to everyone—be awake at all times!”

Erika continued…

So what does that mean? First of all, we have to be awake concerning the times, that He is coming again. If you were never taught that He was coming again, why would you look for Him? And if you were never taught that you’re supposed to be alert and you’re supposed to be awake and aware of that, you will live one way instead of the way He wants you to live. We’re talking about the Church, about individual believers, about effecting the courses of nature and nations.

I was praying about this the other night, that the things that are in the background, those things that they would come forward by the Spirit of God. Those things that the Church needs to enter into. Those things that the Church needs to be aware of. Functioning with the awareness of God’s timeline, moving forward instead of just abiding time until He comes. But with purpose and passion, we enter into those things.

Prayed…

We’re looking for more, for the Church to be awakened… for the church to know by the Spirit… to see by the Spirit the day and the hour in which we live… and not just to stare and gaze, but to enter in and cooperate with the Spirit… with our divine assignments given to each believer… not only in the work of prayer but individually what the call and plan is… being so aware that He is coming… You said we were to watch and pray… that means we’re up on the walls… that means we’re alert… that means we sense and we know… that means that we believe He said He was coming… so we must be prepared for that coming… all of the preparations that must take place along the timeline… wherever we are on that timeline, Father, there are things that must be accomplished by Your Spirit… that means individually and collectively… every member of the church… is keenly attentive and tuned into you… to Your Word… Spirit… to Your leading to walk in the place where You’ve ordained us to walk… moving down that timeline with the sense of urgency in our hearts… with purpose and passion… with renewed energy… that the Master is coming and there must be preparations done… revelation that every part in their plan in the timeline… open that up by Your Spirit… revealed to every believer… so we would be up watching on the walls… preparing the way for our God… attuned to You and Your Word… nations would be changed because believers responded to You and Your Spirit stirring in their hearts to watch and to pray… that there would be greater cooperation, greater ministry… that we would be less entangled in the affairs of this world… but keenly aware of our Father’s world and His kingdom… and His timeline… those days of casual living would be removed from us… that Your voice is being amplified in our hearing and the church is responding to the call and cry… for the equipping of the saints… to do the work of the ministry… the ministry gifts… speak to them and apprehend them… eyes to see and ears to hear… light to flood their hearts… messages from heaven… an awareness… of His plans and purposes… it’s by Your Spirit…

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