Morning Prayer Summary for Thursday, January 18, 2018

Mary led group in worship…

Pastor Ray shared…

This morning, Erika and I discovered we had each separately gotten something from the Lord that was similar. This is my part. In Zechariah 3:7, “If you will walk in My ways and keep My charge, then also you shall rule My house and have charge of My courts, and I will give you access [to My presence] and places to walk among these who stand here” (Amp.) If you walk in my ways. If you’ll keep my charge, my word. And then in Haggai 2:4 “Yet now be strong, alert, and courageous, O Zerubbabel, says the Lord; be strong, alert, and courageous, O Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest; and be strong, alert, and courageous, all you people of the land, says the Lord, and work! For I am with you, says the Lord of hosts.” Work. In other words, do what I’ve given you to do. Keep going. Keep moving.

I found this short article in Herald of His Coming. First of all, there’s a quote from John Wesley: “Be active. Give no place to indolence or sloth. Give no occasion for anyone to say, “Ye are idle.” Lose no shred of time. Gather up the fragments, that nothing be lost. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might. (Ecc. 9:10).

“Be Strong … And Work”

The challenge that the Lord gave to the remnant of the children of Israel through Haggai rings down through the centuries to us, who might very well be the last generation of this age. A remnant had returned from captivity and they were rebuilding the Temple. The work was lagging. God spoke through Haggai to encourage the builders.

“Be strong … be strong… be strong… and work: For I am with you, saith the Lord of hosts” (Hag. 2:4).

They had a noble task to perform—the rebuilding of God’s House. We, too, have a noble task—building the body of Christ, preparing for His Coming, gathering in the unsaved. We must be strong in the Lord and work also.

The work of rebuilding the Temple was lagging because the children of Israel were absorbed in their own houses and lands, in the cares and pleasures of this life. Is not this a great temptation in our day? It is easy to become overly involved in maintaining the standard of living we desire. Take care! Let us not neglect the things of God. Jesus said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God … and all these things [the necessities of life] shall be added unto you” (Matt. 6:33).

God is wanting to do a splendid work in this late hour. He has called us to be His co-workers. “To every man his work…” (Mark 13:34). Let us find the tasks and duties God would have us to perform and be strong to do them. We can be encouraged by Philippians 2:13, “It is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.” What deeper joy can there be in life than knowing we are fulfilling the purpose for which God has called and chosen us. As we yield fully to Him, He will work His purposes through us.

Let us not succumb to the what-does-it-matter sprit or the I-can’t-do-anything spirit. Let us be strong to work, to sacrifice and to pray for revival and for the salvation of souls in this hour!

Might God enable us to see this day of opportunity in right perspective. Satan, of course, is busy distracting to matters of secondary importance. Let us be strong to work for God, remembering His precious Word—“For I am with thee.” What great incentive. What great reward.

And let us be strong to pray. “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (Ja. 5:16).

Pastor Ray continued…

God’s individual plan for me lines up with His plans for other individuals. Your individual call lines up with others. That’s the body of Christ. We’re a company of believers at Living Word and we join up with you out over the Internet, companies of believers with a plan from heaven, working together. Not one second is wasted in the work we do for the Lord.

Prayed…

Thank You, Father, that the plan and purpose will get us where to on time
Thank You for the connection to other parts of the body
We plead the blood of Jesus over the whole body of Christ

We declare over our country today, from our President and Vice President, all those in positions of authority… get your act together—congress, senate… and do what God has called you to do! We take authority over all the division the enemy has tried to bring… we declare a unity… one nation under God indivisible… that is our prayer… we lift up our President and cover him with the blood… we declare no weapon formed against him will prosper… we speak against those lies that keep on speaking… Stop it! Desist in your maneuvers against our President…

The body of Christ rising up and declaring “This is the way it is and this is the way it shall be…” One nation… the United States of America… from state to state to state, we declare we’re the “United” States… we pray for those in authority in every state beginning with the governors… a change, a shift, a rearranging, a turning… wisdom from heaven… Minnesota! Take your place… keep moving to God’s perfect right way…

We prepare the way… we call for a breaking up of the low places and a taking down of the high places… we prepare the highway for our God… the way for the right and the righteous to prevail in this state and this city… the right influence… changes in Jesus’ name… openings by the Spirit of God… we lift up those that are called and anointing appointed to step into offices and places prepared for such a time as this… they would hear and respond to the call of God… strengthen and encourage them… boldness and courage for this day… the church would rise up and not abdicate our place in the governmental system in this state… our influence would increase… we loose ministering spirits to go and assist on those forthcoming elections… prepare the way in Jesus’ name…

Pastor Ray interjected…

We prayed around this a little yesterday, but all of the 1000s of people that will come into this state and Minneapolis and St Paul and the Mall of America and the airport, we prepare the very atmosphere in our cities.

Prayer continued…

We loose ministering spirits and pray over the churches represented in our cities… the condition of the atmosphere around these cities, we declare it shall bring change to those that come into this area. We lift up all the laborers out on the streets and pray for souls to come in. We pray for safety and plead the blood of Jesus over the cities, the airport, the Mall of America. We pray protection around the Mall and we thank You for preparing the way for the laborers to go forth all around our cities. So that people will see there is something different about those cities. Father, we thank You for the manifestation of the Holy Spirit that when people come, Your presence would be upon them. We pray for revival, for an outpouring of Your Holy Spirit here in this region in Jesus’ name. All the planned activities, we cover them with the blood of the Lamb. We pray and ask for Your presence, Lord.

Mary led group singing about the presence of God…

Prayer continued…

We lift the witnesses before You… we shall be Your witnesses… a great utterance in the Holy Ghost… boldness and courage… mercy, love and compassion… Your vessels of honor, to be Your witnesses all across this region… that You would be seen and glorified… that we seize the moment… responding to Your Spirit to step out and minister…

Erika shared…

How many would agree that it’s not an accident that the Super Bowl is going to be in Minnesota? It’s an opportunity. Even the world acknowledges Minneapolis, Mn is one of the best places in the world to live. There could be a lot of reasons but we believe the reason is Him. And we believe that more and more, because He has prophesied and declared that up in this region, up where 35 and the river meet, there’s going to be an explosion of His power and glory. We’re participants. We’re not going to sit on the side lines. We’re going to be “all in.” God wants us to be blessed, but He doesn’t want us consumed by our blessings.

Along the lines that Brother Ray was going, I’m going to read from the book “The Power That Changes the World.” I like the utterance that’s given in this book because sometimes we need to get out of our own “word descriptions,” how we describe things and how we do ministry. This is from Chapter two.

“The intended outcome of something has everything in the world to do with our vision and hope for it, and with the quality of labor we put into it. And much of the Church has a demolition derby kind of approach to the last days. They believe the Church will be filled with sin and many will fall away, barely escaping the judgment to come. It is no wonder so few believers live with hope.

The Church of the last hundred years or so has labored under the idea that our only hope is to be rescued from the powers of darkness. Our faith is no longer in the power of the Gospel. But as Georgian Banov, a great musician and minister of the Gospel from Eastern European, has said, “If you can’t be free from sin until you die, then Jesus isn’t your Savior. Death is.”

Devastation looms everywhere and for many, the only answer is to go to heaven. While that may seem discerning and spiritual to some, it reveals our lack of faith in God’s promises and our weak understanding of the power of the blood of Jesus. His glorious redemptive work made it possible for us to see God’s purposes accomplished for humanity while we are on earth. The escapism approach completely undermines the significance of the message we carry that the Kingdom is at hand.

Neither the Reformation nor the two Great Awakenings came from the kind of thinking that says we need to be rescued. We are designed as overcomers. Those who are convinced of the heart of God for people carry a conviction of the superiority of His message.

The Gospel is good news for eternity, but also for now. It must be used to confront the inferior ideals of darkness that masquerade as intelligence every time the question arises, “Where is your God?” Ideals “raised up against the knowledge of God” are mere illusions of grandeur working to distract us from the promises that God has given us for the here and now. And we must confront them through infectious confidence in God and through the courage to embrace His purposes. Hope always speaks the loudest.

Oftentimes, we take the great promises of Scripture and put them off into a period of time for which we have no responsibility—the Millennium or eternity in heaven. One of the ultimate expressions of arrogance is to think that we know ahead of time what is about to happen, and to let that cause us to become ineffective in our assigned purpose and call. When did the disciples know how and understand ahead of time what God was going to do? I cannot find one instance. Jesus prophesied to them, but they only understood what He meant after it happened. What if we took a cue from their example and kept our lives firmly anchored in our commission, without adjusting it to accommodate our unbelief? I believe true kingdom success would be the result.

At the very minimum, we must bring Scripture’s extraordinary promise to God and ask if it might be possible for Him to fulfill them in our lifetime. Because we are believers, we must look to the possibility contained in a promise more than we look to the effect of the evil that surrounds us. This is the responsibility of the faith-full. On top of that, we are to prophesy according to our faith. We should consider what it looks like to declare the word of the Lord when it is backed by faith in the purposes and plans of God. It has to look different from the typical word that requires no faith to see it fulfilled. …

The word subdue is a word that implies conflict and a process that needs to take place owing to the opposition that already existed here on earth. It is a military-type term revealing that we were born into a war—God created us as people of solution and purpose. Such realities of conflicts and solutions remain today for those who will adjust their thinking to the possibilities that exist through the profound nature and power of our message. Think of it—we were designed for problems. His purpose and plan is complete, lacking in nothing and ready to be administered to any and every ailment of mankind. And that includes the ailments found in governments.

Much of our Christian culture has evolved in the absence of the ultimate values and purposes that God has for the planet. We also have a tendency to forget what has been accomplished before our time, which is supposed to give us courage for our day. Instead, we look at things like the Reformation as oddities that were necessary to prepare us for the end, not things that are to build on or take to the next level. The generations of believers who helped bring about the two Great Awakenings and the Reformation did not sit back and think, “It’s time to get a few souls saved, and then let’s get rescued from the forces of evil. Instead, they believed in the ability of God to accomplish His desires through a yielded people. They looked beyond the evil of their day and saw the heart of God revealed in His promises, which deal with every malady humanity has ever experienced.

So the fact is there is more and we are to be propelled and compelled not only by the Word but by past experiences, those that have gone before us, to use them and say “They did it. Surely we can do it.” This generation that lives now has the greatest resources available to us than any other generation in the past. We have all the technology, everything we need. We have all the information and beyond the need. Amen? So we believe that now we’re going to do it. We’re not going to sit back and go, “Jesus, rescue us.” We’re to be rescuers. We need to put on the whole armor, get geared up, get out there and rescue some people. That’s the call. The mandate. Let’s pray about that right now…

Prayed…

Father, we thank You that You stir us up by the power of Your Spirit and Word… You inspire us with men and women in the past who have gone out and broken every barrier that they set. “Yes I can and Yes I will” that they said I have everything because I have Jesus. I have everything I need to overcome every and any situation in my life and those that extend around me. We as the church step out and touch the world with the good news of the Gospel…

New ways and witty ideas and inventions… destinies and plans… places and platforms… You are raising up a generation that is unashamed and bold and courageous… bringing the influence of the Gospel to every level of society… We plead the blood over the Christian family… wholeness and soundness in Christian families… Fathers stepping back into their places… great healing in relationships… bodies… souls… so we might go forth to heal… this is a glorious time for the glorious church… we spend time with You seeking Your face and presence… we become carriers of You… in the words we speak and touches we give… that we would infuse this city and nation with You… a great awakening unto God… affecting every facet of society… You founded this nation on Your Word and brought forth on godly principles… we believe and ask greatly that this government is turning… more godly people and influence that Your Word has free course in our government… speak to those about their places in government function whatever level that might be… You are raising men and women up with the bold conviction that the foundation must be upon the promises of God… The tide has shifted and turning… greater numbers… increase… influence… expansion… we have the answers… we are problem solvers… we are overcomers and we allow that to flow out of us… whatever situation that might be… we do not become part of the problem… we are aware that we are bringing You, Your very self into the very atmosphere in which we enter in, wherever we might go, that we are carriers with distinguishing marks upon our lives…

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