A shift in prayer direction
From Australia a call has come for believers worldwide to fast and http://allaboutmanga.net/nl/kamagra-goedkoop-zonder-recept/ pray for America from April 30th through May 6th.
Because of that, I want to recycle several blog entries I wrote last year. At that time, God prompted me to shift my focus as I prayed for the nation. In short, I believe God showed me these four things for which to pray:
- Pray for people to know what to do.
- Pray for people to receive wisdom along with their knowledge.
- Pray for those people to receive the boldness to step out in what they know to do.
- Pray for those people to be filled with boldness to carry out their tasks to completion.
Written last year (second in series):
When I wrote my book First of All, Pray: Prescription for a Nation in Crisis, I had been engaged in praying for the United States for over twenty years, often about elections, the president, and national security. During those two decades, I experienced some vivid dreams in which I interacted with each of three presidents—our current one and the last two. The dreams were all instructive as far as praying for each particular man and from those dreams, I got glimpses into each man’s thinking, motives, and behaviors at the time. Along with that, I gained some understanding of the spiritual obstacles surrounding the office which affected the ability of each Chief Executive to make sound decisions.
In February of 2008, I had been praying every week with a friend over the phone for the presidential election in November of that year. We had been praying together on this topic since the beginning of that year, and on the second Saturday of February, the Lord gave clear direction concerning how to pray for one of the candidates. I shared it with my prayer partner, and she agreed. However, the Lord neglected that evening to indicate to me which candidate to whom He was referring; at that point in time, three viable candidates were still running—one Republican and two Democrats. Of the three, one of them I was not fond of; one of them I didn’t trust at all; and the third I really knew nothing about, so I had no feelings one way or the other about that person.
All that next week, I prayed over the instruction God had given me. Then, when unbecoming information came out about one candidate in the middle of the week (the one of whom I was not fond), I asked the Lord, “Is this the candidate You were talking about?” Crickets. Nothing…except a sense of the Lord rolling His eyes at me. I deduced from this that the candidate of whom I was not fond was not the one the Lord had indicated.
Before I prayed with my prayer partner the next week, I realized that the Lord was referring to the candidate about whom I had no opinion. My friend confirmed that she sensed the same thing, so with that, we prayed according to instructions about the little-known candidate throughout the rest of 2008 until the election and even up to the inauguration. (Suffice it to say that ever since the second week of February, 2008, I had prayed according to Mark 4:22 and Luke 12:2.) That candidate became president; but although the outcome did not turn out as we had hoped, the directive still stood and continued to influence my prayer for the President as he took on the duties of office.
Early in April last year the Lord dropped a “shift” into my heart concerning the way I was to pray for America. He showed me that quite a bit of the original prayer direction He had given had taken place. More would unfold as well, but now was the time to shift focus when I prayed for the nation.
Now my assignment was to simply pray for people to know what to do with the insight and revelation He was giving. The Lord wants to prepare men and propertiesinwestla.com order cheap flagyl usa women for appropriate action, and He intends for all of that action to be covered by prayer—preferably before the actions take place so His will can be more perfectly accomplished.
Simple enough, right? Well, we are in the age of which Daniel prophesied—the age in which knowledge has increased and is continuing to expand exponentially (see Daniel 12:4). Therefore, although the charge to pray for humans to know what to do is easy enough, the Lord desires that His people not only pray big general prayers along this line, but He also wants us to be able to key in on specific groups and individuals by the Holy Spirit, according to the need, according to the moment, according to His will, and according to His prompting. And there are so many key individuals and groups in so many areas and walks of life, and the time is so critical that I believe the Lord wants all hands on deck, each one ready to pray whenever the Spirit of God drops His leading into their heart.
And I believe with all my heart that this shift in focus from God is not merely a have-to directive; it’s also a get-to directive. You and I get to participate with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit in these outlandishly amazing times.
More tomorrow,
Dorothy
…for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Philippians 2:13
Read MorePraying for the US
A call has gone out for believers worldwide to pray and price tadalafil 60mg fast for America. Those who have called for the fast have set apart April 30 this week through May 6. And the most fascinating thing about the call is this: it comes from Australia. Wise men and women across the globe realize that if the US fails in its unique global leadership role, the rest of the world will likely fall as well.
A year ago, in early April, I was minding my own business, just enjoying fellowship with the Lord, when He spoke something very clearly to my heart.
I posted what He showed me in a series last year, and I think it’s a good time to rerun it in preparation for the fast and during the time of prayer.
Before I do, however, I want to address an obstacle most of us face, not only when we reach out to the hurting people we meet every day, but also in living our day to day lives freely and unfiltered as generations of Americans have before us. This obstacle is the climate of “political correctness” in which we live. Another name for it would be “the fear of man.” It is that intense pressure that compels you to conform to the status quo, to not rock the boat, to avoid making anyone uncomfortable at all costs—especially if you long to inject Jesus or His Word into the conversation. The J.B. Phillips paraphrase of the New Testament describes this pressure from our “culture of correctness” as “the world around you squeezing you into its own mould” (see Romans 12:2, JBP). And, as the Apostle Paul urged, “Don’t let the world do that” (ibid).
The majority of believers are considerate and respectful to those around them; but due to our current climate, so many of us have become extremely cautious about what we say when it comes to our love for Jesus, morals, or biblical truth because we have been trained—steeped—in the consciousness of the new “right and wrong” in today’s culture. My witness might be “marred” if someone thought I had anything but acceptance toward societal standards and current trends, we may worry. Heaven forbid that someone would think I’m intolerant!
So here we are, in an age in which the power and wisdom of God are so desperately needed but are so defiantly “barricaded” or squelched. And since it is to this generation that we have been sent, we have a job to do—to boldly minister the power, wisdom, salt, and light of the gospel to all of them and to address the forces that seek to prevent this from happening.
All of us are called to be ministers of reconciliation (see 2 Corinthians 5:18), and all of us are called to stand firm against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places (see Ephesians 6:12), praying for all men, for kings and acquista generici kamagra senza prescrizione online all who are in authority (see 1 Timothy 2:1-2). Without prayer for all men, kings, and all who are in authority in conjunction with standing firm against all the strategies of the enemy, the ministry of winning men and women to God through Jesus Christ gets squeezed into a bland worldly mould, becoming a mere shadow of its original power.
I believe this is why God is leading so many of you to cry out to Him on behalf of the United States now. This nation has been wonderfully instrumental in sending out hope, help, and the gospel to people all around the globe throughout her history, and Satan hasn’t liked it one bit. Therefore, the enemy has planted a big bull’s eye on America as he strategizes how to squeeze this nation economically, culturally, politically, educationally, and militarily. His goal is to silence her spiritually, morally, and ethically, in order to render any ministry of reconciliation—whether a large operation or small—weak, fearful, tepid, ineffective, and eventually extinct.
And so, I asked God last year if I could share the prayer directive He gave me then, and I received the go-ahead. His instruction is simple and allows you the lee-way to proceed as you feel led. This is not a “V-line of geese” type of prayer where one leads and everyone else follows; such prayer has its place, but our current situation in this nation requires all hands on deck and around-the-clock readiness, each one alert to pray about whatever drops into his or her heart at any given moment. (It’s that critical—a small blip on your “radar” prompting you to pray as you go through your daily routine may change the course of history: it may thwart a massive attack; it may save millions of lives; it may correct a huge error of judgment on the part of national or world leaders in the nick of time.) Your prayer can be private, quiet, short and sweet; it can be corporate, impassioned, and of long duration. Whatever, God wants to use all of us to affect the United States of America in prayer, and He’s ready for us to pray those prayers on her behalf.
If God has an assignment for you and me in prayer for this nation, then doesn’t that signify that He wants to answer that prayer as well? It is my hope that you will be encouraged to pray bold prayers for the United States of America. I believe that He is not through with us yet. Obviously, the Australians don’t think He is. 🙂
Stay tuned,
Dorothy
“For I know the plans that I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord. Jeremiah 29:11-14a
Read MoreJames 5:19-20—In closing: Concerning those who have strayed
My brethren, if any among you strays from the truth and one turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins. James 5:19-20
- A believer is capable of straying from the truth.
- Other believers have the capacity to turn him back to the truth.
- The reward is in the knowing:
- If you turn someone from error, you will save his soul from death.
- You will cover a multitude of sins.
A believer is capable of straying from the truth. The bulk of James’ letter deals with the straying capacity of believers. On one hand, his letter is a warning to avoid detrimental lifestyle choices, and on the other, it is a corrective rebuke to those who have already entangled themselves in carnality. Because of this, I think of the book of James as a reality check.
Other believers have the capacity to turn straying ones back to the truth. Much of this letter deals with the tongue. The capacity to slip with the tongue seems to be the greatest area of vulnerability among believers. Therefore, James closes his letter by reminding his readers of the correct stance to take concerning those who have strayed from the truth: Seek to turn them back. Don’t spin your wheels by incessantly analyzing their falls and flaws with others; go to God and seek Him for their restoration. Make it your mission to win them back through prayer and godly behavior and words.
Don’t let it be said that you preferred dissecting your brethren to seeking their deliverance.
The reward is in the knowing. Let your greatest reward be this: Knowing that by your love, prayer, and self-restraint someone was restored to fellowship with Jesus. Knowing that someone is now blessed and living for Christ because of your prayers and refusal to belittle, bemoan, or besmirch them when they behaved badly is reward in itself.
…he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death…
Instead of broadcasting his error, you sought the Lord so he would turn from his error. And you obeyed God as you interacted with this one. As a result, he did not run further away from the Lord but was wooed and won back to Him by your steadfast, loving presentation of the Truth—demonstrated by both your words and your deeds. Because of your caring involvement, he has been spared devastating loss on that Day.
…and will cover a multitude of sins.
Though his sins stacked up like a pile of rotting carcasses, by of your gracious intervention, those sins have been covered. They no longer weigh him down or pollute the very atmosphere around him. They are buried and are no longer attached to him—or to his account.
It is fitting that James ended such a corrective letter in this way. As he closed, he refocused his brethren, ensuring that they would make adjustments among themselves with clean hearts and right motives.
I pray we embrace the wisdom in this short letter and be empowered to walk in it before the Lord for the rest of our lives. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Dorothy
Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified. 1 Corinthians 9:26-27
Read MoreJames 5:17-18—Elijah
Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit. James 5:17-18
Three key ingredients are typically found in effective prayer: 1. praying in the name of Jesus; 2. praying in faith; and 3. praying from a position of your righteousness in Christ as a man or woman who maintains a right heart toward fellow believers. (See yesterday’s entry on James 5:16; http://www.firstofallpray.com/?p=6405.)
James wrote that effective prayer “can accomplish much” and, according to the Amplified Bible, “makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working]” (James 5:16b). He continued with this thought by citing the example of the effective prayers of the prophet Elijah.
Elijah was a man with a nature like ours…
James did not connect the name of Elijah with his calling, “prophet”. He meant no disrespect; on the contrary, he highlighted Elijah as a model of an effective man of prayer. But James was not interested in titles or callings in this context; instead, he sought to draw attention to Elijah’s humanity—as a man with a nature similar to everyone else.
Why would James do this? Wasn’t the prophet Elijah a set-apart, powerful prophet of faith? Matthew Henry wrote, “He was a zealous good man and a very great man, but he had his infirmities, and was subject to disorder in his passions as well as others” (see http://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/mhc/Jam/Jam_005.cfm, emphasis added). It is due to Elijah’s humanness that you can take courage through his example. You may not be able to relate to the prophet, but you can relate to another fallible human being. And James was saying, in essence, that powerful, effective prayer is available to everyone—not just for certain elite “holy men”.
…and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.
Elijah came on the scene during a long span of corruption in Israel. King Omri had done evil in the sight of the Lord, and acted more wickedly than all who were before him (1 Kings 16:25). But after him, his son Ahab, who was on the throne in Elijah’s time, did evil in the sight of the Lord more than all who were before him—even more than his wicked father Omri (see Kings 16:30). Ahab not only walked in the sins of those who went before him, but he added insult to injury by marrying Jezebel, daughter of Sidonian king Ethbaal, whose name revealed that he was a worshiper of Baal. Ahab followed Jezebel into her family’s worship of idols and built a house and altar for Baal in Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel. On top of that, he also made an Asherah—a goddess viewed to be the consort of Baal by the nations around Israel. “Thus Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him” (1 Kings 16:33b).
Enter the prophet Elijah. Gripped with zeal for the one true God, Elijah confronted Ahab and said, “As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word” (1 Kings 17:1b). And so it happened—no rain for three and a half years.
Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.
In the third year, the Lord told Elijah that it would rain. But there was some business to accomplish first. He was to face Ahab and the priests of Baal—despite the fact that Ahab had called Elijah a troubler of Israel—and confront them about Baal worship (see 1 Kings 18:1, 17-19).
1 Kings 18 chronicles the confrontation between Elijah and the priests of Baal. God displayed His mighty power while at the same time He exposed the impotence of Baal as a testimony to Ahab and all of Israel that Yahweh alone was God. After Elijah slaughtered every one of the false prophets of Baal, he spoke to the king, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of the roar of a heavy shower” (1 Kings 18:41) when there wasn’t a single cloud in the sky. The Bible reveals that Ahab did as Elijah commanded, but Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he crouched down on the earth and put his face between his knees (1 Kings 18:42). And thus Elijah prayed—earnestly and with effectiveness, with undivided attention upon gaining his request from God.
Despite all of the spectacular miracles surrounding Elijah prior to that, he didn’t see the answer to this prayer immediately. As he crouched, praying, he asked his servant to check seven different times to look out over the sea in hopes of rainclouds approaching. “There is nothing” the servant replied six times (see 1 Kings 18:42-43).
But on the seventh check, the servant returned with this report: “Behold, a cloud as small as a man’s hand is coming up from the sea” (verse 44). And soon, the sky grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy shower (verse 45).
Remember, Elijah had a nature like the rest of us have. And as he listened to God and refused to waver, his prayers prevailed.
Like Elijah, as you seek to obey the Lord and follow Him in your life, refusing to waver in your prayer of faith—your prayers will prevail. The Lord is faithful.
Dorothy
Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised). Hebrews 10:23, KJV
Read MoreJames 5:16—Environment for answered prayer
Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. James 5:16
Therefore, confess your sins to one another…
James described the kind of atmosphere in which prayers are more readily answered. This is the environment in which people of God feel safe enough to freely confess their sins to one another. This should be the environment found in every Bible study, prayer group, and church. However, when members carelessly toss aside concern for the dignity and privacy of others, that Christian circle is no longer a safe place for those who are vulnerable and hurting. In fact, it becomes unsafe for everybody involved until—you guessed it—the offending individuals wake up and repent. If you’ve had difficulty respecting the private concerns of others, take care of business right away. Humble yourself before the Lord and confess it to Him. Don’t be guilty of undermining the safe environment in your fellowship. When you continue in careless discussion you—not those about whom you gossip—become the weak link in your group.
…and pray for one another…
In a safe, privacy-respecting environment, praying for one another comes naturally—and it brings supernatural results. In such an environment, men and women look out for the interests of others, not merely their own (see Philippians 2:4). Whether praying for someone else face to face or on your own, your genuine, heartfelt prayers of faith—saturated in love—pave the way for the power of God to take over. In such an environment, both leadership and members take their stand in prayer, opening the door for an atmosphere conducive to breakthroughs and miracles.
…so that you may be healed.
This is the environment where healing becomes common place. Broken, diseased bodies are healed, and tormented minds are delivered from bondage. Instead of being dismissed as having little faith, those who remain long in a weakened condition are encouraged and lifted up in faith and love before a God who is ever-present in times of trouble. Instead of being pounded with impatient Bible instruction, those who are still believing for their healing are honored for their gallant stand of faith. This is the environment in which people can be healed.
The effective prayer of a righteous man…
What is effective prayer? Much has been written and preached on this subject by men and women of brilliant, effective faith. In their instruction, these individuals have gone into great detail to depict what effective prayer really is. In fact, in the next verse, James himself depicted such prayer by using the example of the prophet Elijah.
But I want to stick with this verse—verse 16—and the two preceding verses (…he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up...) to discover a little bit about effective prayer.
Effective prayer will always contain these three ingredients:
Effective prayer is prayed in the name of Jesus. It is because of Jesus’ substitutionary death that you have the right to go before God with boldness in the first place. You pray in the name of Jesus because you are His. You pray in the name of Jesus because His name is above all other names, and in Him all the promises of God are yes and Amen (see 2 Corinthians 1:20).
Effective prayer is prayed in faith. The eye of faith is less upon:
- me
- my execution of the prayer
- my faith
and more upon:
- the Father who sent His Son to die for me
- the resurrected Lord in whom all of the promises of God are Yes
- the Spirit of God who quickens His Word to my heart
Effective prayer is prayed by a righteous man or woman. All who are in Christ have been made righteous, yet to piggy-back on today’s title, “Environment for answered prayers “, consider this. The man or woman who endeavors to maintain an atmosphere of safety within their fellowship by keeping private the concerns of others is living out their righteousness in day-to-day reality.
…can accomplish much.
Such genuine respect for the dignity of others combined with the prayer of faith in the name of the Lord is the hallmark of the true Christianity. The body of believers who pray this way—in faith, in the name of Jesus, and with godly respect for one another—will be able to accomplish much through their prayers. The Amplified Bible declares in this verse that the prayers of such individuals will make “tremendous power available, dynamic in its working”.
Dorothy
Confess to one another therefore your faults (your slips, your false steps, your offenses, your sins) and pray [also] for one another, that you may be healed and restored [to a spiritual tone of mind and heart]. The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working]. James 5:16, AMP
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