Prayer Summary for Thursday, June 22, 2017

Mary sings…

“In Your Presence that’s where I belong…”

Pastor Ray shared…

3rd John 1:2, “Beloved, I pray that you might prosper in all things and be in health just as your soul prospers.” This is one of my favorite verses. He actually came here just to give us L-I-F-E. Life. And then He added abundance to that life. I came to give you life abundantly. Abundance in cells. Abundance in our muscles. Abundance in our bodies. Abundance in our bank accounts. Abundance in our relationships. Everywhere. We live in abundant life.

Sandy and I were in Wayzata. We were going to eat there. We decided we wanted to pick up something at Walgreens. Right before a light, something happened “suddenly” right before our eyes. An older lady close to 80 pulled out onto the street. I know she didn’t see what was coming. A car was coming down the hill. BAM! It was so loud people came out of the stores to see it. A man hit her car but it flipped that car around so her car was following his car and they were both sliding down the divider in the middle of the street. There was stuff flying everywhere, smoke coming out. People came to help the man. They opened his door and he got out. Sandy said, “At least he’s functioning.” He stands up but almost falls down. They sat him down on the curb. We turn around and go back down. We came back by there probably almost an hour later. The cars were still there. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner was there too. As we went by, I saw the man was there covered with a blanket. He was dead!

This morning, I was thinking about how “suddenly” things can happen. Without the covering of the blood, we’re unprotected. If we were coming down that street at the same time as the man, without the blood, we could have had the same thing happen to us. It made me think about how if we’re praying for revival or whatever we’re praying for… there are many things that we’ve prayed for, for 30 years. Our direction is to keep on keeping on. I looked up a couple things on “sudden” or “suddenly.” This is what I found. “Something done quickly.” Boom! Without warning. There was no warning for this man. “It was unexpected.” I believe he was just coming home from work when suddenly he was out of here. “A sudden turn, quickly, quickly made or quickly provided. All of a sudden or without warning, unexpectedly or suddenly…”

We’ve experienced it here for sure over the years. Sudden change. I’ve had sudden change. I was going one way, then the Holy Spirit changed my direction by bringing about an internal change. He changes us inside, outside, from top to bottom. I’m thankful for His power.

In Acts 12, I looked up one scripture about “suddenly.” Peter was in prison. But fervent prayer was going on in his company. Persistent praying was made for him. Acts 12:5, “the very night before Herod was about to bring him forth, Peter…” The night before he was going to be taken out, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers and fastened. That means he was chained. He was fastened by two chains. Sentries were guarding the door to the prison and “suddenly.” Peter didn’t know there was angel about to appear. But the people were praying in his company of believers. Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared standing right beside him and a light shone in the place where he was. And the angel gently smote Peter and woke him up saying, Get up quickly. And the chains fell off his hands. The angel told him to tighten his belt, get your sandals on and let’s leave. The gate swung wide open. I love it when they pass through and they went out and at once the angel left him. Suddenly. Then Peter came to himself and said, Now I really know and I am sure the Lord has sent His angel and delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the Jewish people who were expecting to do to me. Suddenly!

I wanted to interject that into this confession for America and for our President and nation. To me, it seems like every day this becomes more relevant. We have a command to pray for our leaders. Not just the President. That includes our pastors. There should not be a day go by that we don’t cover them in prayer.

Prayed…

Thank You for Your presence and for changing us. Thank You for all the “suddenlies” that have happened in our lives that came from You. Heaven’s sudden change in our lives for our families.

Prayer for America and the President…

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.

Mary sings song about the blood…

“Thank You for the blood…”

Pastor Ray shared…

Several years ago when we were ministering in France and Lucy McKee was ministering. I was ministering with her at the prayer conference in Nice. She said, “Turn to Acts 13.” They were passing through different cities and Elymas the wise man showed up. That’s the translation of his name which he had given himself. Hello? “I am wise.” Things are about to happen to Elymas! It goes along with some of the things we’re declaring. We’ve been declaring that division, tumults, hostility, blasphemy get shut down. Elymas thought he was wise but he was opposing everything Paul and the disciples were doing. “But Saul who is also called Paul filled with and controlled by the Holy Spirit looked steadily at Elymas and said, “You master in every form of deception and recklessness, unscrupulousness and wickedness, you son of a devil, you enemy of everything that is upright and good, will you never stop perverting and making crooked the straight paths of the Lord and plotting against His saving purposes?” What was he doing? The opposite of what we’re doing. We believe to straighten out the crooked paths. Elymas was trying to make the straight paths crooked. What a perversion! That’s like some of the things that are happening in our country. Things that are good are looked upon as bad. Things that are bad are looked on as good. No! We’re declaring that’s not so. It’s not happening. I love what happened. I love how he got on his case. “Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you and you will be blind, so blind that you will be unable to see the sun for a time. Instantly…” What’s that? Suddenly! “there fell upon him a mist and a darkness and he groped about seeking persons who would lead him by the hand.” What happened because of that? The proconsul believed and became a Christian. Suddenlies from heaven will turn things around so the world will see God is real. It’s time to get in the Church. It’s time to get with those that believe and get away from those that are in unbelief.

Mary sings song…

“There is power in the name of Jesus… to break every chain…”

Erika prayed and then shared…

By the power and authority given to us, we break the chain of discouragement. We break that chain of lying discouragement over our governmental leadership in this United States of America. We take authority over it. We break that chain and say, “You are broken and done. You are forbidden from operating against our President, his cabinet, staff, family, those in authority, in Jesus’ name.” Father, we release our faith to strengthen them. Let their eyes see and persevere in the name of Jesus. Let them know that it isn’t over. We’re going through in the name of Jesus. We overcome in the name of Jesus. Thank You for suddenlies, infusion of power and authority. Greater vision, grant it to them.

Ray and I did not coordinate this ahead of time. You’re going to like this.

The Wind of a Revival Tornado
Acts 2:2

On the day of Pentecost, the Spirit of God moved in “like a violent rushing wind.” Each word is significant. Wind denotes respiration, or a breeze. It is frequently rendered “breathe” because in the spiritual sense it is the bringer of new life and the sustainer of the life it brings. Violent denotes the power to move things and rushing indicates the ability to carry or bear something. These three words point to God’s power to breathe life, power to move opposition, and power to bring the accomplishment of God’s will. [pause excerpt]

That’s what we’re believing and asking for in this nation. Suddenly!

[continue] That kind of action is perhaps best demonstrated by the activity of wind known as a tornado. When the atmosphere is just right, God unleashes a tornado against the human heart. Divine truth strikes like lightning. God’s voice thunders, bringing heavy conviction and repentance. Torrents of rain in the form of God’s saving and delivering power pour forth from heaven upon men, women, and children.

Like a tornado, a revival draws attention to an unseen power. Anyone who has ever witnessed a tornado is left awestruck by its mighty power. Spiritually speaking, a mighty revival tornado captures the attention of sinners. With their desires fixed on fleshly and material things, a swirling move of God’s Spirit causes them to weep, tremble, pray, and cry out for God’s mercy until their lives are transformed. [pause]

Erika interjected…

I like the utterance here because we get lulled into this sense of “Okay, we just keep praying and we keep doing the same thing.” No! Expectation… expecting that to happen… and while they were praying… and while they were praying… I was reminded of what happened at the beginning of the Azusa Street Revival. Some young ladies were in a room praying. Later in the evening, a knock on the door came. This is 1905 or 06. They answered the door. A black man with one eye, named William Seymour stood at the door. He said, “You have been praying for revival and I’m the man that God has sent to bring it.” Suddenly while they were praying… Think of it. Be stirred up by it while we’re praying!

[excerpt continues]
Like a tornado, revival purifies the atmosphere. Before a tornado hits, the atmosphere is hot and heavy. Disease-carrying mosquitoes may hover over swampy areas. Smog may blanket a valley. But when a tornado passes through, it cleanses the atmosphere. Revival comes to deliver people from the swamps of sin and the foggy skies of unbelief. The holy gaze of God makes you feel naked and exposed. You cannot hide your sin anymore. As you confess and repent, the work of the cross applies death to the sin in your heart. Chains of bondage fall off. Addictions and demonic strongholds crumble by the power of God. And you are left clean and pure in His presence.

Like a tornado, revival brings awesome power. In an atmosphere of revival, believers and sinners alike are brought low in humility and repentance, and then are raised in power to live righteously victorious in an anti-God, sin-filled world. Revival finds its way into places where spiritual drought abounds and the water of God’s truth no longer springs up into everlasting life. It goes where the fruit of the Spirit is no longer evident and the tree has become barren. Where hearts have become like the dry, cracked desert sand; where there is moisture and very little life.

We should all pray, “Bring the violent, rushing wind, O God. Bring a revival tornado!” [end excerpt]

Prayed…

We believe You for it… we look to You for, Lord, to whom shall we go
You said we should come to obtain help, so we come and look to You
That suddenlies are still in Your vocabulary
We’re not wanting life to go on as status quo
Father, You said to ask… You inspire the asking and give us the words and vision
We’re trusting and believing in You that we live in the greatest day
The former and the latter rain… the outpouring… the wind of Your Holy Spirit
All across this land and all across the earth
We give of our supply in prayer … going about laying hands on the sick… ministering words of life to the hurting
We are Your hands and feet… we are here to do Your bidding
You are stirring all across this land… the five-fold gifts
Every member functioning at its capacity
Each one in their place… functioning together as the body
The body joined together with one heart, one mind
The church is growing in wisdom and understanding and revelation
Faith works by love… full revelation of love
That the world would see and know us by our love for one another

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