Fathers
It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. Luke 1:17; emphasis added
The forerunner, John the Baptist, was ordained by God to prepare the way of the Lord. Throughout church history, in times of spiritual drought, famine, and darkness, God has looked for men and women of similar passion and focus to once again prepare the way of the Lord. Every revival, renewal, reformation, awakening, and move that has poured out from Heaven upon a weary earth found its conception when some man, some woman, some child said Yes to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and entered into a targeted season of entreaty before God on behalf of others.
A bulk of the preparatory work of John in the days before Jesus entered His ministry involved three specific avenues: turning the hearts of fathers back to the children; turning the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous; and to make a people prepared for the Lord. For anyone who wants to see God invade, change, and rearrange their culture, I believe that the “outline” John received from the Holy Spirit is still powerfully effective to use in intercession for any generation—especially this one.
…to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children…
So much has been said, written, and preached about fatherhood. Yet everywhere I look, I see children and teens suffering from negligent, abusive, or disinterested/absent fathers. And as those kids grow up, they do so without the tool chest that healthy fathering provides. Adults are living their lives bent in a way God never created them to lean, in great part due to the deficient and often inexcusable fathering they received. And unfortunately, many mothers have also fallen short as well.
Kids grow up scared, angry, or depressed into very troubled teens who make poor choices, and then they enter into a horribly dysfunctional adulthood where they find themselves scratching their heads—why am I so unhappy?—scared, angry, depressed. Then they produce children…and the sad cycle continues.
One irrefutable need in our generation is to radically overturn the fatherhood deficiency. Our inner cities ache for the stability of men of integrity. Our meth-pocked rural areas cry out for the steadiness of men of honor. And our suburbs secretly weep for men who value and live out their commitments to their wives and children in love.
Unless God intervenes, as Cher sang, the beat goes on. Therefore a key component to any awakening, move, or reformation of God is to transform fathers. Negligence, abuse, disinterest, and absenteeism must be repented of, one father at a time.
I can almost hear the Holy Spirit urging, “There’s hope! I will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children. But you, believer—take your stand. Pray. Dig deep. Intercede for the lost, broken, distracted, and wayward men of your generation who have turned—for whatever reasons—away from their families…from their kids. Pray that they will sense an irresistible pull toward Me, encounter Me face to face, receive forgiveness and cleansing, and then by the power of My grace, turn back to their children with humility and integrity…and restore peace, acceptance, safety, and love to their families once again.”
All of us have had a father. Many of us were blessed with good fathers. Far more of us have experienced a lifetime of pain in the short span of childhood due to irresponsible, irrational, or eruptive fathering. Is it any wonder why the first stated thrust of the forerunner in Luke 1:17 was to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children? Sweeping, irrefutable outpourings of the Holy Ghost must be accompanied by a massive move among fathers turning in humble love and repentance to their children. Deep wounds will be healed, bent lives will be straightened out and restored, and Jesus will be manifested openly as Lord once again—on city streets, in suburban neighborhoods, and in small towns, farming communities, and remote regions throughout the nation.
But first things first—Pray. May the hearts of the fathers be restored to the children.
Dorothy
Read MoreForerunning prayer
It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. Luke 1:17
For every move of God there is a “back story”.
John the Baptist played a key role in the back story to Jesus’ miraculous time upon the earth. His calling? To prepare the way of the Lord. To be a forerunner before Him.
Did you realize that the preparatory work of the forerunner didn’t stop with John? It’s a calling that has appeared in every generation ever since Jesus walked the earth.
This weekend marks the 110th anniversary of the outpouring of God at Azusa Street which began falling on April 9, 1906. This move came upon those souls suddenly—but it didn’t take all of them by surprise. No, concerted prayer on the part of a couple of local black congregations combined with those of others, including a white man named Frank Bartleman. Fervent prayer preceded this iconic move of God; without it, the Azusa outpouring would have never happened.
When you read about the various moves, revivals, renewals, awakenings, and sweeping reformations, they share one commonality—forerunners in prayer. Often for months or years—even decades—before the first trickle of the miraculous begins to rain down, these intercessors labor in the shadows, interceding before God on behalf of souls.
Preparation for a move of God typically requires that someone intercede on behalf of men, and Luke 1:17 reveals three specific thrusts of such preparatory prayer.
- To turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children
- To turn the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous
- To make ready a people prepared for the Lord
Preparatory intercession occurs during times of spiritual drought. It happens during times of spiritual famine. It also takes place during times of chaos, turmoil, and trouble. It’s going on right now, and I fully believe that the Lord is seeking to enlist you and me in this work. Will we hear—and heed—His call?
For the next few blogs, I plan to put a magnifying glass upon each of the three thrusts of preparation found in Luke 1:17. Hope you’ll join me.
Dorothy
I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land…. Ezekiel 22:30a
Read MoreObfuscation
I was praying on Valentine’s Day about the election, and the word “obfuscation” kept coming to me. I wasn’t sure of two things: how to pronounce it or what it means. But I sensed that it was a strategy to bring confusion to the American people and their vote, and I also felt that I was to pray that God would bring forth effective strategies to overturn all the strategies of obfuscation.
The word means “to make obscure or unclear; to darken.”
As I tore this word apart, I found three similar definitions that are distinctly different in their connotations. I sensed that there are three corresponding groups of people upon which the strategy of obfuscation is being applied: those who are well-meaning and “live and let live” types; the me-first, pleasure/gratification-driven crowd; and the church.
Here are the three definitions:
To confuse. This is the strategy of temporary interference with the clear working of one’s mind through causing confusion, unsettledness, embarrassment, or a multitude of distractions. This strategy is used with the well-meaning, live and let live crowd who want to pull their own weight and make good choices. It is intended to push them off-balance and to confuse them in their decision-making processes. They are manipulated while they are confused.
To stupefy. This is the strategy to remove sensibility, to benumb the faculties, to put into a stupor, to stun as with a narcotic, a shock, or a strong emotion. This strategy is used with the me-first crowd and the pleasure/gratification-driven crowd. They are manipulated and controlled through the daze of their pleasures and the promise of unending gratification.
To bewilder. This strategy is all about causing its targets to stagger and be confounded at the immensity of the forces that defy them. It is used to muddy the waters and cause targets to lose both their hope and their way. This strategy is intended to cause targets to wander aimlessly, unanchored and without vision. This is the strategy of obfuscation that is being used against the church. When our hope is lost, we become unanchored; without a vision, we perish.
So as I pray about this election, I realize that obfuscation is being used against American people of all stripes. I will be praying for God to bring light to these strategies, and that the intended targets will wake up and wise up to see that what they’ve been thinking and feeling isn’t completely true. I’ll be praying that light will illuminate the minds of the hundreds of millions of my fellow citizens to see clearly—perhaps for the first time in their lives—and to make wise decisions that will not only affect the course of this election, but also the course of their individual lives and the nation.
And I’d like for you to join me.
Dorothy
Read MoreHow do I pray for our nation?
How do I pray for my country? Just by asking this question, you show your desire to shoulder your part of the prayer load, and I believe this pleases God. Even though the problems in our nation appear to be innumerable and unnervingly complex, God has called His people to pray and seek His face concerning the welfare of the nation in which they live.
The good news is this: You don’t have to cover it all—God will show you your part to pray each time you go to Him; He will lead you to that portion of the puzzle about which He’s anointed you to pray that day. When you start to sense a leading from Him, pray on it in faith—even if you wonder if it’s just you. God wants to use your prayers to bring about His will in that specific thing.
As you purpose to pray daily for the nation, the topic may change or stay the same; all the while you are learning to let Him lead—and all the while your prayers are being effective.
Imagine how much can be accomplished if each of us simply asked God to help us pray for our nation at some point during the day. That which would be too much for one solitary person to shoulder will be accomplished by the Spirit of God as He individually reveals to each one their part to pray each day.
One of my pastors says something all the time about the huge projects our church undertakes: “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”
Well, how will we see the boiling cauldron that is the United States transform once again to a city set on a hill, bathed in the light and mercy of God? One prayer in one mouth at a time, multiplied by the multitude of souls in the church—both American and worldwide—multiplied by the hours still left us, multiplied by the immeasurable glory of God!
And that, my friend, is how we pray for our nation.
Dorothy
Read MoreSeek Him
When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You, “Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.” Psalm 27:8
Is the Lord tugging at your heart to spend some time with Him? If so, don’t be concerned about the everyday hub-bub; He will take care of all of that as you obey and pull away to seek Him.
Does the Lord seem to be far, far away? Have you grown numb from circumstances piling in on you, and now don’t have the energy to spend on God? If that’s you, I want to encourage you—He is near. He cares, and He longs for you to know that. The Bible promises that if you draw near to God, He will draw near to you (see James 4:8). Seek Him. He will hear the faintest whisper from the weariest one of us, and He will lift you up.
So many Scriptures speak about seeking the Lord. Although you and I are called to a 24/7 communication with the living God, the Bible also reveals that there will be times when God prompts you into a special season of seeking Him, a time in which you set aside other activities to draw close to Him.
This is what I will be doing for the next few weeks. Since I will be laying aside my blog for a period of time to spend time with the Lord, I want to leave you with some encouraging verses about seeking Him. Soak in them and pick out one or two that really speak to you. Copy them for yourself to think on as you draw near to God. Enjoy!
But from there you will seek the Lord your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul. Deuteronomy 4:29
Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually! 1 Chronicles 16:11
If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14
And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you. Psalm 9:10
The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. Psalm 14:2
The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. Psalm 34:10
But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation say continually, “Great is the Lord!” Psalm 40:16
O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Psalm 63:1
Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart…Psalm 119:2
With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! Psalm 119:10
I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me. Proverbs 8:17
“Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. Isaiah 55:6-7
Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile. Jeremiah 29:12-14
The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. Lamentations 3:25
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Matthew 6:33
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Matthew 7:7-8
And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us…Acts 17:26-27
And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Hebrews 11:6
God bless you as you seek Him. See you sometime in February (or before if the Lord leads me that way).
Dorothy
Read MoreScriptures for finances
If you are facing dire financial circumstances—or simply a less than desirable financial situation— you need a stable and scriptural reference point from which you can draw confidence and courage. But before I list some verses to encourage you, I want to build the case to reveal just how powerful the Word really is.
1.) Jesus told His disciples about the time following His resurrection, “In that day you will not question Me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you” (John 16:23). That means that when you ask for your specific need to be met, you ask the Father in Jesus’ name.
2.) To underscore just how powerful His name is, Philippians 2:9-11 states, “For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” When you pray and use the name of Jesus in faith and reverent love, you operate in His authority and have direct access to the Father.
3.) The name of Jesus is both powerful and highly exalted. But watch out—according to the psalmist David, something is higher yet! “…Thou hast magnified Thy Word above all Thy name” (Psalm 138:2b). The Word of God is even higher than His name!
Using these Scriptures, you can establish the following in your heart:
a.) You can ask anything, believing in His name, and it is done for you.
b.) At His name every knee will bow.
c.) And yet He has exalted His Word above that beautiful and powerful name! Have confidence when you use the name of Jesus in prayer; have confidence when you exalt His Word in prayer. The power-team of His name and His Word gives you the victor’s edge as you stand your ground.
Scriptures for finances: [Unless otherwise indicated, Scriptures are taken from NASB.]
Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:31-33)
Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. (Luke 6:38; NIV)
And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed. (2 Corinthians 9:8)
And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)
Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers. (3 John 2)
The young lions do lack and suffer hunger; but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing. (Psalm 34:10)
Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication; and let them say continually, “The Lord be magnified, Who delights in the prosperity of His servant.” (Psalm 35:27)
I have been young and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his descendants begging bread. All day long he is gracious and lends, and his descendants are a blessing. (Psalm 37:25-26)
Honor the Lord from your wealth and from the first of all your produce; so your barns will be filled with plenty and your vats will overflow with new wine. (Proverbs 3:9-10)
It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich, and He adds no sorrow to it. (Proverbs 10:22)
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, and the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous. (Proverbs 13:22)
There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more, and there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want. The generous man will be prosperous, and he who waters will himself be watered. (Proverbs 11:24-25)
The reward of humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, honor and life. (Proverbs 22:4)
These are just some of the verses contained in the Bible concerning finances. Prayerfully consider these truths, let the Holy Spirit make them alive in your heart, and obey Him as you pray in faith and follow His leading.
May the Lord bless you richly,
Dorothy
Tomorrow: Special 9/11 tribute
Monday: Tithing
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