Morning Prayer Summary for Thursday, June 21, 2018

Mary led group in worship…

Erika shared…

We’re going to start today by praying for the nation. Last night, the President was in Duluth, Minnesota! Glory to God. That’s boots on the ground. That’s the anointing that’s on the President, standing on our soil here in Minnesota. We believe that anointing is working to bring about a change, to turn some things that haven’t been turned for too long.

Prayer for nation…

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.

Erika shared…

The other day I was listening to a message. As I was listening, I recognized a sentence that came to me. It was a whole sentence and I’m like, “I know that sentence.” It wasn’t from the Bible. It was from a book by John G. Lake. I knew that I had better investigate. You know when something comes from the Holy Spirit. I knew it was on the bottom left-hand page. I found it. The sentence was “We feel that the time has come when your soul ought to be relieved of the responsibility for us.” It immediately triggered something on the inside of me knowing that we need to pray about that today for the church.

We’re going to pray about three things today. The spiritual growth of the church. Partnerships. And music. All those are big which could be prayed about for a long time. But we’re just going to touch on them today. When it comes to spiritual growth and growing up and personal responsibility, that’s not a favorite subject for too many people. But we’re going to talk about it today. I believe that it’s going to give us a good platform for prayer. I’m going to read some things from John G. Lake. I’m reading from the book, John G. Lake, The Strong Man’s Way to God.

One of the periods of extreme necessity in our great work in South Africa, our finances became cut off for various reasons. I was anxious that there should be no letter down of the work we were then doing, and was trusting that it would not be necessary to withdraw our men, who had labored and suffered to get the work established on the frontier.

However, not being able to supply funds to those on the front, I deemed it the only wise thing to do to get them all together in a general conference, and decide what was to be our future action. By great sacrifice, a sacrifice too great for me to tell you of this afternoon, we succeeded in bringing in our missionaries from the front for a council. I told them the existing conditions and we sat down in the night time to decide what would be our future policy. After a time I was invited by a committee to leave the room for a minute or two. While I was in the vestry the brethren in the body of the tabernacle continued their conference and went on discussing the general question. When I returned, they said to me, “Brother Lake, we have arrived at a decision.” Old Father Vanderval spoke for the company. He said, “We have reached this conclusion. There is to be no withdrawal of any man from any position. We feel that the time has come when your soul ought to be relieved of responsibility for us. We feel we have weighted your life long enough, but now by the grace of God, we return to our stations to carry on our work. We live or die depending on God. If our wives die, they die, if our families die, they die, if we survive, we survive, but we are going back to our stations. This work will never be withdrawn. We have one request. Come and serve the communion of the Lord’s supper to us once more while we stand together.

And as I took the cup they arose and stood in the large circle. I took the bread and passed it. It went from hand to hand around the circle. When it came time to pass the wine, I took the cup in my hand, and with the usual statement that Jesus gave in the committal of Himself to God, “My blood of the New Testament.” I passed it on and the next one, looking up to God, he said too, “My blood of the New Testament.” And so it passed from hand to hand clear around the circle.

Within a few months, I was compelled to bury twelve out of the that company. Every one of them might have lived if we could have supplied the ordinary essential things they ought to have received. But, beloved, we had made our pledge to God. We had declared by the love of God in our souls, and because of what Christ had done for us, that we would be true to Him, and that in the name of Christ His gospel should be spread abroad as far as it was in our power to do.

Men have said that the cross of Christ was not a heroic thing, but I want to tell you that the cross of Jesus Christ has put more heroism in the souls of men than any other event in human history. Men have lived, and rejoiced, and died believing in the living God, in the Christ of God whose blood cleansed their hearts from sin, and who realized the real high spirit of His holy sacrifice, bless God. They manifested to mankind that same measure of sacrifice, and endured all that human beings could endure, and when endurance was no longer possible they passed on to be with God, leaving the world blessed through the evidence of a consecration deep and true and pure and good, like the Son of God Himself.

We see the note that was in the soul of Paul, and which characterized his message when he made the splendid declaration which I read from Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jews first, and also to the Greek.”

You see, the note that touched the souls of men, the note that rang down through the centuries and which rings in your heart and mine today. Christianity NEVER WAS DESIGNED BY God TO MAKE A LOT OF WEAKLINGS. It was designed to bring forth a race of men who are bold and strong and pure and good. The greatest and the strongest and the noblest are always the humblest. The beautiful thing in the gospel is that it eliminates from the life of man that which is of himself and is natural and fleshly and earthly. It brings for the beautiest things within the soul of a man, the unselfishness of the life of purity, the peace, the strength, and the power of the son of God. How beautiful it is to have the privilege of looking into the face of one whose nature has been thus refined by the spirit of the living God within him. How beautiful it is when we look into the soul of one whom we realized God has purged by the blood of Christ until the very characteristics of life and attitudes and the mind of Christ are manifest and evident to him to the glory of God.

Christianity is a strong man’s gospel. Christianity by the grace of God is calculated to take the weak, fallen and erring suffering and dying and by applying the grace and power of God, through the soul of men to the need of the individual, lift them up to the lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.

Erika continued…

Now do I know how to pray about that? I don’t know but we’re going to do it.

Prayed…

Father, You’ve heard Your words inspired by the Holy Spirit given to the great man John G. Lake, the experience he experienced. That kind of spirit, work deep in the soul of believers. We’re looking for a transitional transformational change in the church of the living God. One that will propel us to go through what is necessary… deep consecration… works in the spirit, the soul, the mind, will and emotions of your people… full work of the spirit… we leave those things behind … factor in the precious blood… by revelation of Your Spirit… hearts coming to the full revelation of Christ in them… everything given through the blood is already theirs if they will step out… we’re looking for a deep work of Your Holy Spirit in the church where we would grow up as sons and daughters of the most high God… we receive all the things of the Father… doers of the Word… transformed… shackles to be thrown off… we are carriers of Your Word… to disseminate Your Word… laying down of things in the church… take up everything that is of You… manifested evidence of transitional transformation in the church… You are welcome in this place… lasting change in the church… outworking that affects society … we believe there is a greater outflow of Your Spirit into the world… to a greater degree… we are looking for consecration… commitment to Your plan and purpose… self would be laid on the altar… we apply the blood over the five-fold ministry gifts… fresh anointing from heaven… to equip… equipment matches the call for this day… utterance of the Holy Ghost… how to execute the plans… responding to the Spirit…

Erika continued with excerpt…

God is endeavoring by His Spirit in these days to exalt the souls of men into that high place. The holy life, that heavenly state whereby men walk day by day, hour by hour in the heavenly consciousness of the presence of Christ in the heart of man all the time. And the presence of Christ and the souls of men can only produce first the purity that is in him for the wisdom that is from above is first pure. Purity is of God. Purity is of the nature of Christ. Purity is heaven’s highborn instinct filling the soul of men, making him in his nature like the Son of God. Upon the purified soul, there comes from God that blessed measure of the Holy Spirit, not only purifying the nature but empowering Him by the Spirit so that the activities of God, the gift of His mind, the power of His spirit is evident by the grace of God in that man’s soul. Lifting him up by the grace of God into that holy place and heavenly dominion in the consciousness in which Jesus lived and moved and accomplished the will of God. Always. Not the earth consciousness, that holy consciousness. The consciousness of the living God of His union with Him which caused the Christ to walk as a prince indeed.

He is now bowed over but bowed and overcome by conditions and circumstance, but realize that the soul of man was creative in power, that it was within his soul and common to his nature and the nature of every other man to protect, accumulate, possess as sons of God. And that through the creative faculty of his soul, the desires of his heart might be brought to pass.

That is the reason God dared to talk as He did to Moses. That is the reason God dared to rebuke a man when he stopped to pray. That is the reason God said, why standest thou here and criest unto me? Lift up the rod that is in thy hand and divide the waters.” Beloved your soul will never demonstrate the power of God in any appreciable degree until your soul conceives and understands the real vision of the Christ of God. Whereby He knew that through His union with the living God, His soul became the creative power through which he took possession of the power of God and applied it to the needs of his own soul and the needs of others’ lives.

Brethren, the difficulty with us all, we have come down out of the heavenlies into the natural and we are trying to live a heavenly life in the natural state. Overburdened by weights and cares and the flesh and life all about us. There is deliverance. There is victory. There is a place in God where the flesh no longer becomes a bondage, where by the grace of God every sensuous state of the human nature is brought into subjection to the living God where Christ reigns and glorifies the very activity of man’s nature making him sweet and pure and clean and good and true.

I call you today by the grace of God to that high life, to that holy walk, to that heavenly atmosphere to the life in God where the grace and the spirit and power of God permeates your whole being. More where not only your whole being is in subjection but it flows from your nature as a holy stream of heavenly life to bless the souls of others everywhere by the grace of God.

Erika shared…

Now we’re going to pray about the next thing. I’m going to be reading from “Defining Moments” by Bill Johnson. This goes with everything that we’re talking about.

For years, I have watched people point back to an experience they had with God many years ago, thinking they still have what they had immediately after that encounter. Bu the effect of the encounter has not been kept current and they are living off the memory of what used to be. Thankfully for all of us, Dwight L. Moody was not one of those individuals. He knew that he always needed more and that he always needed to remain current in his surrender to the Holy Spirit. Even a life-changing encounter with God needs to be stewarded. It must be maintained.

Erika interjected…

So when we have a week of meetings and everybody is all happy, hopping around, that’s good. But it has to be kept up. It has to be current. We have a personal responsibility to steward that gift so the world isn’t going to look around and say they hopped around for two weeks and look at them now. No! Are you with me? We’re talking about growth in the church.

We don’t always know whom God intends to have us partner with for life and ministry. To put it another way, such partnerships are not always reasonable from our perspective. The boy preacher, Henry Moorehouse, became a monumental tool in God’s hands to shape the heart of this evangelist. It was not a partnership that Moody would ever have chosen for himself. Yet God knew exactly what he needed. Moody had a special quality that would become the hallmark of his life—he could recognize the anointing of God upon another person.

Erika interjected…

He could recognize the anointing of God on another person. That’s what I want to pray about for a little bit today. We’ll read a little more but that’s where we’re going.

And once he saw the presence of God upon this 17 year old from the UK, everything changed. As a result, Moody was launched on a journey that would affect the lives of millions of people.

Erika interjected…

We’re talking about partnership. We’ve heard a lot about partnership and that’s wonderful. But I want something more to get on the inside of us about this.

D.L. Moody also recognized the anointing of God upon the two women who prayed for him to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. While he was initially a bit offended by his interaction with them, he recognized God upon them.

Erika interjected…

So whatever God does in this day and hour, if it doesn’t quite match up with what you think, don’t throw it out.

This added focus to his pursuit of God and his passion truly became all encompassing.

These two partnerships, one with the boy preacher and the other with the two praying women, launched Moody into a pursuit of God that became empowered by God Himself. It was supernatural hunger. It was as though God gave him His own passion in his quest for God’s face to shine upon his life. This hunger was one that God refused to ignore. The story of His coming upon Moody that day on the streets of New York is legendary for so many reasons. The first is that it is God who chooses the time and the means. It is our responsibility to respond to His summons. The second is that a token prayer will never take us to where we want to go. The prayer that moves us is the one that will move Him. Moody’s corresponding hours of prayer brought about the greatest encounter of His life, and thereby enabled him to preach with such power that thousands would be saved at a time. But perhaps more important, he preached from an understanding of God’s heart for humanity and was personally overflowing with great joy from his encounter with the God of joy. This was the actual platform from which he preached.

Those two partnerships helped to take Moody to his promised land, so to speak. But it was his subsequent partnership with Ira Sankey that enabled him to thrive while there.

Erika interjected…

He’s connected to somebody. And another connection comes up. Got it?

Sankey became the partner in ministry that made these two men golden in both word and song. Not only did Moody preach the gospel as good news, but Sankey’s anointed voice melted the hardest hearts, igniting them with a hunger for God. The music brilliantly prepared people for Moody’s preaching. Once again, Moody’s ability to recognize the anointing of God upon another person would multiply the effectiveness of his own gift.

In these three cases, it is easy to see the benefit that relationships provided for Moody and his ministry. But it must be clearly recognized that these relationships were not for his personal benefit.

Erika interjected…

Did you get that? People hear about partnership. “If I partner with that ministry, then I’m going to get blessed.” Yes, you are but that’s not what it’s about.

The partnerships came about because moody was already of true value to the Holy Spirit. The benefits to his ministry were the fruit of that core value.

Erika interjected…

We’re talking about personal growth, about partnership, about core values in the church. We’re talking about music. I want to pray about music today! The Holy Spirit knows how to pray about music. I’m going to read this other part.

In June 1870, Moody met a musician named Ira D. Sankey while in Indianapolis. Moody immediately recognized him in the Spirit and told him he had been praying for eight years for someone like Sankey to accompany him. Sankey came out to visit Moody for a week to see if it would be a good fit. He arrived at Moody’s home in the midst of family prayers. Moody immediately asked Sankey to sit at the organ and play a hymn. That same day, they visited the sick from Moody’s congregation; Sankey sang over them, and Moody released the Word and “offered prayer for the healing of both body and soul.” During this visit, Moody also stood on a box on the sidewalk, gathered a crowd, had Sankey sing, and then began to preach. It took several months, but eventually Sankey quit his job and came to minister alongside Moody.

Moody and Sankey were a great “tag team” and partnered together for nearly 30 years. One of Moody’s biographers wrote, “Mr. Moody’s words would bring a sinner to the point of conviction, and then the tender pathos of Mr. Sankey’s singing would let a great flood of blessing into that sinner’s soul, and the softening influences would work until he would cry out in his joy, “I am saved.” And on the other hand, when a meeting had just begun, and away back in the farthest corner, men were sitting who had come in a scoffing mood out of curiosity to hear the evangelists, the preliminary song of Mr. Sankey would rouse the attention of those persons, and they would try to get nearer to the platform and by the time Mr. Moody was ready to speak, they would have forgotten why they had come in their eagerness to hear the preacher’s message.

Erika continued…

It sounds so simple. The impact of partnership and music in the church in these days. We’re so blessed with the music that’s available to us. But I want us to pray about that something on the inside. You can have two people play the same song. It’s about the inside, the inner man, about what is coming out of the man. It’s about the plan for congregations for people to be saved and lives to be transformed.

Prayed…

We lift up partnerships… what God has in these last days for the body of Christ… for bodies to be joined together for the recognition of the anointing upon each ministry… allowing that power to work together to bring about a furtherance for both ministries and for the plan of God…

we want to be joined with who You want us to be joined with… to work and flow with them… we want the music that comes in our services to be ministry of the Spirit to a greater degree, level… You designed it that way… we need it in our lives… there is a deeper… we’re calling for more… in the realm of music… to enter into that realm… we’re looking for change there… for openings…

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