Pray Network Forum

Last week in my other blog, http://thinkinginthespirit.blogspot.com/, I wrote about the complexity of the issue of abortion. Like many social problems its roots are deeper than its legality. I did not mention that the law acts as a teacher and does play a part in changing the thinking of society. But it is also important to note that we are facing spiritual strongholds that must be brought down to make radical changes in our culture. It is easy to treat these matters as less difficult or painful than they are. But it is important to note that Jesus said,

“I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy.”

(Luke 10:19)

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 tells us,

“The weapons of our warfare are not worldly, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments and every high-minded thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, taking every thought captive to obey Christ.”

We come against spiritual strongholds when we seek to change human nature or have real effect on our culture. I don't want to pretend that politics are not important in this spiritual battle, but as long as we think it is our primary means, we will be defeated. Let me point out three necessary elements in changing society.

Evangelism

Nothing changes people like the gospel. The majority of believers in Corinth had no spiritual background at all. God needed to make great changes in their thinking and lifestyle. Nothing would change them or people today like being radically born again.

Discipleship

And while a great change comes upon us at our conversion, there is also a process of transformation by which we are made more and more like Jesus. Before changes can spread into wider society, God needs to change us in the church. It is the will of God that we become salt and light to the society around us. If we try to do that in our own strength we will fail.

Prayer

But we have been given prayer to work in our world. We have the limitless power of God to break down our society's spiritual strongholds. By prayer we can do the impossible. Who knows what God will do through our prayer?

http://watchinginprayer.blogspot.com/

“God’s purpose may be thwarted or it may be accomplished depending, to one degree or another, on the obedience of His people and their willingness to use the weapons of spiritual warfare that He has provided. God is powerful enough to win any battle, but He has designed things so that the release of His power at a given moment of time often is contingent upon the decisions and the actions of His people. A principle weapon of spiritual warfare is prayer. Not just routine or mediocre prayer, but prayer powerful enough to move God’s hand in order to determine the destiny of a whole nation.” C. Peter Wagner

Do we realize the power we have available to us when we take our authority in prayer? Most of us don’t realize our authority because if we did, we would be praying far more. We would be sacrificing everything else in order to pray. Instead of worrying about the increase in evil in our land, we would be on our faces before God crying out for His intervention. Unfortunately in many churches prayer is the weakest link. It should be the strongest one because it is the key to God’s blessing in the spirit realm.

America is a nation in crisis. Division, strife, and violence are increasing at an alarming rate. We must encourage the body of Christ everywhere to pray for the future of this nation and for this upcoming election. Several Christian leaders have indicated that this is a one-issue election" - the supreme court judges. The most serious threat over America is the 55 million abortions (since Roe vs. Wade in 1973). More abortions will lead to a greater judgment. There is more at stake in this election than most of us realize. We are battling for the soul of this nation.

How should a nation in crisis respond at a time like this? We need to gather in prayer with fasting to cry out for mercy, deliverance, and revival. God wants our hearts. We must take action and fervently pray for this election and vote for Godly values. It is our God-given responsibility to vote. See the values of each candidate here. Join us at the International House of Prayer for a Solemn Assembly for America from October 31 - Nov. 2, 2016. See Joel 2:12-17. I ask those in other nations to join us in prayer for America at this critical hour.

We work together with God when we exercise our authority in prayer. Authoritative intercession and heartfelt repentance is key to breakthrough in America. By exercising our authority in prayer and standing strong in God’s truth, we are working together with Him to determine the future of our nation. We have authority in prayer to actually see our personal lives and the lives of others change. We can pray authoritative prayers for our neighborhoods and cities. Certain things in history will happen through our intercession if we pray the way God wants us to pray. We can change nations through prayer if we choose to use this mighty weapon.

Prayer is like being at a tasty buffet banquet. Imagine being at a dinner buffet where there are many tables loaded with different foods. The foods are the best. They are mouth-watering and absolutely delicious. Guests help themselves to the different kinds of food, as they desire. The host walks around among his friends to see if everyone has enough to eat, while the servers keep loading the table with fresh food. You can take as many trips as you like to the tables as long as you have enough to eat. The host doesn’t care as long as you are full.

In a similar way, God has provided everything for us if we pray. We can have all we need. Most of us have not realized the power there is in prayer. We are not asking. All we have to do is reach out by faith and ask Him to touch our lives, our cities, and our nations. When we tap into his resources by faith and pray, miracles happen. When we exercise our authority in prayer, God answers in a powerful way. There is a strength and power in prayer that the Church has not yet known or realized.

My husband is a very practical man. He can fix almost anything. In our garage he has all kinds of tools. Once he decided to remodel our bathroom and tile the floor. To do an excellent job, he needed a good tile cutter. Whenever he fixes something in our home, he needs the right tools. Lately he has been working on our car. He needed a jack to lift the car up in order to work underneath. He couldn’t fix a problem underneath the car without that tool. It would be impossible.

The body of Christ also has a task. We want to change the world for Christ. It’s a huge task for all of us, but we do it one life at a time. Some are reaching people in their workplace or in another country. Some are reaching people in the hospitals or in the schools. We are all in this together. We want to see people’s lives changed all over the world before Jesus’ return to earth but the task is huge, and we need the right tools to do it. The most essential tool is prayer. Only through prayer can we get the job done. There is strength and power in prayer that can change the world.

When we pray with authority, things happen in the spirit realm. God remembers every prayer we pray, and every one of them prayed through the power of the Holy Spirit has effect on earth. Not one prayer is forgotten. When I was in a particular city in the country of Turkey, I remembered a prayer I had prayed in that very same city several years before. It was as if at that moment God showed me that He had remembered my prayers from several years before, and that it was extremely important and would have a powerful effect in that city one day. My prayer influenced God. When we realize the authority we have in prayer, mighty things will happen all over the earth that brings victory to the powerful name of Jesus. Well-known prayer author and intercessor, E. M. Bounds, wrote about the power of prayer:

“Prayer is power and strength, a power and strength that influences God, and is most salutary, widespread, and marvelous in its gracious benefits to man. Prayer influences God. The ability of God to do for man is the measure of the possibility of prayer.”

The prayers you pray influence God. He remembers every single one of them. You may be thinking, “You don’t know me - My prayers seem so feeble and weak - God doesn’t seem to answer me.” Do not ever think that God hasn’t heard you or that your prayers do not matter. The enemy is trying very hard to discourage people in prayer in these days because he is afraid of prayer. He knows it’s strength and potential, and he is trying to keep this hidden from the Church.

Prayer takes time. We have to learn to wait and believe. One day you will see that your prayers have had a mighty effect in the spiritual realm. Do not give up or ever think it is not important to pray today. If ever there was a need for intercession for America, it is now.  We are in a key (kairos) time in all of history. The Greek word “kairos” in the New Testament means the appointed or opportune time that God has set for something to occur. During a kairos time, we must respond in prayer and press through in intercession in order to see God’s plan fulfilled. We are in a time of urgency, and we must seize it in prayer. This is the appointed season for change and for intercession to increase.

We must not fear the future or believe the lies of the enemy, but we must stand strong in authoritative prayer. 

Fear weakens us and gives us an unsound mind. Instead, we must know our authority in prayer to see mighty changes on earth, in our own personal lives, and in our nation. We can pray God’s future plan into being through our intercession. If we pray strategic, authoritative, and prophetic prayers then we will be praying the future into being. Authority is the key to strength and power. We have awesome responsibility.

We need God’s revelation of our spiritual authority. We rarely grasp the full potential of the strength and power of prayer that is available to us. We often go about our daily activities and forget that we are united with Christ. We are connected with Him as our head, and we are His Church designed to express the fullness of His power on earth. Carefully meditate on the Apostle Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 1:18-23 to get the full picture. God has incomparably great power, Christ is seated at God’s right hand, Jesus defeated Satan at the cross, and we are called to enforce Jesus authority on earth through prayer.

I remember when I was on my way to a prayer meeting in a nearby church on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. I was not very familiar with that church even though it was not far from my house. Therefore I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going. Having thought I passed it, I turned around and drove into the parking lot of a building. Going up to the door and finding it was locked, I knocked and asked a gentleman if this was the church. The man turned to me and said with a tiny laugh, “No, this is the fire department.” I realized suddenly what an incredible mistake I had made. I was at the fire department!

God spoke to my heart through that experience. We are in an emergency situation. The house is on fire! Cities are on fire! There is an emergency in the nations. Right now we are in a  battle for America. The harvest is ripe, and Satan knows that his time is short. He is doing everything he can to steal, kill and destroy. We must pray - We must encourage everyone around us to pray - We must shake awake those who are asleep - We must become radical and passionate in prayer. The cities and nation are on fire! Prayer is the answer. When we pray, we are empowered to reach the lost. Then we take action with the power of God. God rules through His body, the praying Church!

The hope for the nations is an anointed prayer movement. It is God’s people knowing the strength and the power of prayer and enforcing God’s will on earth through it. God has given us breakthrough authority to change nations. Authority is delegated power similar to a police officer when he enforces the law. Through our prayers we can change the atmosphere over cities. Through our prayers we can bring into subjection demonic powers and principalities, and disciple the nations. Through our prayers God releases deliverance and transforms society. God is calling us to use our authority in prayer to bind the enemy’s work and to loose His Kingdom on earth. Let’s learn to take hold of the strength and power of prayer and pray down God’s blessings on our nation.

“Of what infinite importance is the place the intercessor holds in the Kingdom of God! Is it not indeed a matter of wonder that God should give men such power? Yet there are so few who know what it is to take hold of His strength and pray down His blessing on the world.”  E. M. Bounds

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
International House of Prayer (IHOPKC)
deb@intercessorsarise.org
www.intercessorsarise.org

This edition of Spotlight covers the Midwest Prayer Conference held at Worthington Christian Church in Columbus Ohio on October 21-22.  For coverage of the pre-conference held on October 21, see the previous Spotlight.

After a time of extended worship, Dave Butts kicked off the 2016 edition of the Midwest Prayer Conference with a session on revival.  He asked a difficult question that I've wondered about but never heard anyone else voice publicly:  "Given that we've had a movement of prayer for revival for several years now, why are we not actually seeing revival in our churches?"  His answer - we're not prepared for revival, and revival won't come until we're ready for it.

Butts outlined a three-step process to prepare the church (individually and corporately) for revival:

1. Consecration.  Just as the Israelites had to consecrate themselves prior to entering the Promised Land (Joshua 3:5), so believers (and the church) must set themselves apart to God's purposes.  Butts made the point that once something is set apart for God, it can no longer be used for ordinary purposes.
2. Obedience.  The priests had to step into the water with the ark while the river was still flowing, before God would stop the river (Joshua 3:3).  Many in the church have settled for being hearers only of the word, and not doers (James 1:22), and revival will not come to a Church not focused on obeying the word.
3. Dependence.  The American church has settled for what we can accomplish in God's name (but in our own strength).  Reflective of our culture, we have become independent.  Revival will not come until the Church learns to depend fully on God.

Jon Graf began the day Saturday with a session on "Proactive vs. Reactive Praying".  He listed the following characteristics of proactive praying:

1. Proactive prayer demonstrates a solid trust in God, both in his power to do and in his will.
2. Proactive prayer often focuses more on the process than on specific results.
3. Proactive prayer has the foundational belief that fruit and Kingdom growth should be the primary purpose.
4. Prayer can be proactive even in the midst of reaction…when it truly seeks God's glory over circumstances.

Drawing on several of Paul's prayers for the church, Jon showed the importance of praying for the process of spiritual maturity in believers.  He re-emphasized a point he had made the previous day about the purposes of prayer: (1) to grow a personal relationship with God; and (2) to advance God's will and purposes on earth.  He concluded with an example from Acts 4 of praying kingdom focused prayers in the midst of crisis situations (in this case, persecution).

Dave Butts followed with a session on our need for God's peace.  Peace, he explained, is not just the absence of hostility or crisis - it's a positive commodity that can be given and returned (Matthew 10:13).  Jesus left his peace with us (John 14:27; 16:33; 20:21).  Paul speaks of peace in the context of reconciliation with God and with others (Ephesians 2:14-17) - a peace accomplished only through Christ.  This peace comes through ongoing prayer (Philippians 4:6-7) and through people of prayer.

The next slot featured several breakout sessions.  I took the one on Spiritual Warfare 101 by Mike Jebb.  Mike opened the class with references to several helpful resources on Spiritual Warfare and then spent the majority of the time covering tools developed by the Strategic Prayer Initiative (a ministry of Harvest Prayer Ministries) related to growing people in prayer.  We took a basic survey regarding our self-perception of our prayer lives - a survey that has been through several revisions over the course of many years of usage in churches.  I couldn't possibly do justice to all the tools that Mike presented, but this session was in many ways a highlight for me.  The overall theme was that it's possible, through proven tools, to incrementally improve the prayer lives of the average congregation (most of whom, statistically, would say that their prayer lives need improving) by making these improvements easy to manage.  Check out the Strategic Prayer Initiative website for more details (I'll focus more extensively on SPI during a future Spotlight.)

Another slate of workshops followed lunch, and I took Kim Butts' class on Missional praying.  One of the themes of this conference (as has been the case for several years) was the need for strategic, kingdom-focused prayer.  Kim's class brought this theme down to specifics, touching on several areas of kingdom-focused prayer, including prayer evangelism, praying for unsaved family and friends, and praying kingdom prayers for people we know well.  Her thoughts dovetailed well with Jon Graf's topic of "proactive prayer" from earlier in the day.  A couple of acrostics she used to help guide prayer for kingdom workers were:

• B-L-E-S-S: Body (physical needs); Labor (work/school, etc.); Emotional needs; Social needs (relationships); Spiritual needs.
• A-B-C-D-E-F: Acceptance (from co-workers and people groups); Boldness and Clarity (in sharing the Gospel); Deliverance (spiritual warfare); Extension (of ministry); Fruitfulness.

Jon Graf concluded the conference with a session entitled "Get Into the Battle".  He pointed out that in the famous "armor of God" passage (Ephesians 6), prayer is the means by which we "storm the gates" of hell.  And prayer is the weapon that the gates of hell cannot stand against, because it's the weapon that brings God's power into the battle.  Graf noted that Paul's spiritual battles - manifested physically in his imprisonment - caused Paul to rely on the prayers of the churches for his deliverance (2 Corinthians 1:8-11; see also Philippians 1:18-19). 

Joshua benefitted from God's intervention through prayer in the initial battle with the Amalekites (Exodus 17:8ff).  In Exodus 17:14, God tells Moses to write about the effect of intercession on the battle so that Joshua will know about it.  The lesson was not lost on Joshua, who later boldly prayed to God to halt the setting of the sun in order for Israel to complete a victory over its enemies (Joshua 10).

Graf concluded with four exhortations:

1. Get away from "fix it" prayers that seek the status quo.
2. Pray warring prayers that seek God's glory, that expand the Kingdom of God.
3. Pray prayers that look at every circumstance as a chance to grow the Kingdom, a chance for Jesus to receive glory.
4. Get off the bench and get into the battle!

Throughout the conference, a consistent theme resurfaced: the need to be in battle through prayer for the future of the United States.  While recognizing the many crises that the country currently faces, Jon and Dave both recounted instances of revival spurred on by prayer at different times in the past in which our country was in desperate straits.  The conference as a whole was a great motivator and equipper for believers to join the battle, fighting with the spiritual weapon of prayer.

(See my blog post, "Indignation or Intercession" for a reflection on Dave Butts' follow-up message the next day at Worthington.)

Encouragement is a rare commodity. Strife and division abound in today’s culture, so much so that it seems things have never been worse. Even within the church, we find sharp divisions between believers over politics, doctrine, gifts, and personalities. Despite our call to love one another, Christians often doesn’t look much different from the world.
​
If the lack of encouragement and unity makes you wish Jesus would simply come and rapture us now, you might be surprised to know that two of the most respected leaders in the early Christian church encountered the same problem, just a few years after Jesus walked the earth! The source of their division was a man named John Mark.

Continue Reading

Is the majority of prayer that you hear serious prayer or simply the repeating of well-worn prayer phrases and ideas?  Are pray-ers giving serious thought to the wording of their prayers? For instance, if you are talking with me you don’t need to use my name at the beginning and end of every sentence.  So why do pray-ers use God’s name in this fashion?  Again, how much of modern prayer could be classified as “vain repetition” (Matthew 6:7) like that used by the heathen in Jesus’ day? “Asking God to “lead, guide, and direct” seems to be asking the same thing three times.  “Bless this food to the nourishment of our bodies” is a bit repetitious.  If God blesses the food, it will in turn, nourish the body.  Lord, if you want me to witness to someone today. . .” God has already requested that of you in His Word.  Little need for repeating.  It makes one wonder if those praying are actually talking with God or with their fellow worshippers.  Theologian and author, Theodore Jennings wrote, “People learn to be atheists not from too much contact with the world, but from too much contact with the church.  No number of closely reasoned proofs for the existence of God will ever overcome the impression gained Sunday after Sunday that our prayers are addressed to ourselves.”  Peter encouraged the seriousness of our prayer by writing, “The end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers” (I Peter 4:7). If we really believed, and lived as though the end was at hand, what difference would it make in our prayers? 

In this and many elections I have been a one issue voter because I feel so strongly about abortion. My stomach rolls when I think of an innocent baby being torn apart in the womb. I see our nation standing before the Lord and hearing Him say, “Whatever you did or did not do for the least of these.”

However, there is more to the problem of abortion than its legality. My first concern is our society's attitudes toward sex. I don't know how legislation could have much effect that problem. But I would like to see a president use the bully pulpit and other prominent figures in our society use their influence to appeal to Hollywood, fiction writers, and other media to help turn our thinking around. I also think we need to show compassion and give help to teenagers and women in general under the  pressure of an unwanted pregnancy.

And I would also like to see adoption publicly affirmed and promoted. I like the promotion of adoption on soft drink cups at Wendy’s. I think it is interesting that there are so few children available for adoption that couples are paying tens of thousands of dollars to adopt.

I believe abortion is a major issue in America and the world. But we will not have significant impact on it if we are only concerned about its legality. Are you praying?

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#Cast an Eternal Vote

Luke 1:32-33, "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end." NAS

   I have received several emails asking when I planned to blog about the election. Since LOVE2020 is a prayer and evangelism ministry, not a politically focused organization, I had not planned on a blog to talk about the election except to urge people to pray and vote. There are many great ministry partners who can help you with where candidates stand on the issues, fact checking, and issue explanations including www.ifapray.org and the Family Research Council at http://downloads.frc.org/EF/EF10H62.pdf.

   Our good friends and partners at Meet the Need have come up with a great “Ice bucket challenge” type twist during this election season that I am particularly excited about; it is called Vote for Eternity (#CastAnEternalVote.) The focus of Vote for Eternity is not just the next four years but Forever! This challenge goal is to encourage 1 million Christians to commit to service and sharing the love and message of Jesus with at least one person by Election Day. They are not taking the focus off the importance of this election and the need to vote; it is just a great opportunity to bring a million more people into the family of God before November 8^th. Jesus’ heart is dedicated to His house, no matter who is in the White House. Presidents come and go but being a part of His family is forever.

   Each participant is asked to take pictures wherever they serve or share the gospel and then to share their stories on Facebook or Twitter using the hashtag #CastAnEternalVote and challenge three friends to "pay it forward." Do not stop short at just doing something good for people, let them know that you are motivated by the love of Jesus and His heart for everyone to know Him as their Lord and Savior. Let your light shine so that people will ask what the reason is for your hope in such a turbulent election season and be prepared to give an answer about the faith you have in Jesus.

   We all need to be praying for our nation and for this election. America’s Presidential position is considered to be one of the most, if not the most, powerful position in the world. The person we put in the White House will not only affect us, but the whole world and how other nations view us. We cannot be vulnerable nor can we be vicious. Pray for honesty and transparency for all candidates running for all positions from local to national. It is vital that we have people of strong moral and ethical values and character in local positions taking care of our schools, cities, counties, and states in all types of boards, commissions, councils, cabinets and more. Pray fervently over every decision that will be cast in these final days of this election season and enjoy these days by taking the Vote for Eternity challenge.

I challenge you to go out and share the love and message of Jesus with as many people as you can over the next two weeks and post your stories and pictures using #CastAnEternalVote, let’s welcome a million new members into the family of God by Nov. 8^th and continue to encourage all of us to live a prayer-care-share lifestyle.

Love is a verb…let’s get moving!

    Kathy B.

For more information, check out the past few weeks of our Coaching Corner at LOVE2020.com and visit Meet the Need at https://meettheneed.org/

Worthington Christian Church on the north end of Columbus, Ohio was the setting for this year's Midwest Prayer Conference sponsored by Harvest Prayer Ministries and the Church Prayer Leaders Network.  This year's edition included a "pre-conference" on Friday focused on transforming churches into Houses of Prayer.  Participants were treated to great times of worship, multiple learning opportunities, and several times of praying together.  In this edition of Spotlight, we'll summarize the sessions of the pre-conference; in the next edition, we'll review the Saturday conference.

Dave Butts opened the pre-conference with a message based on one of his recent books, Forgotten Power.  The thesis was that transforming churches into houses of prayer isn't as much a matter of tools and programs as it is of helping pastors and church leaders understand the theology behind the importance of houses of prayer.  God named his temple a house of prayer for all nations in Isaiah 56:7, a verse Jesus quoted when cleansing the temple.  Butts pointed out that in the Mark account (Mark 11:11-17), Jesus actually went to the temple first in the evening, looked around and saw what was going on, then went to Bethany for the night.  The cleansing occurred the next day - not at all an impulsive "righteous anger" act like we normally think of, but rather a well thought-out response to the derailing of the Temple from God's purpose for it.  In all likelihood, Butts speculated, this was done after a night of prayer spent with the Father.

God's purposes for his church - being a house of prayer for all nations - formed the theological underpinnings of the pre-conference.  Butts pointed out that it's not about a program but rather about the hearts of God's people:  if people individually are houses of prayer, then when they come together, the church will be a house of prayer.  Thus, a church becoming a house of prayer for all nations is first and foremost about its people developing hearts for kingdom prayer.

Kim Butts followed this session with an outline for a roadmap process to lead a church to the house of prayer destination.  The roadmap would really work for any strategic planning type process, and featured 7 prayers to surround the process:

1. The prayer of intercession - asking God to teach us to pray
2. The prayer of intimacy - asking God to make us a people of prayer
3. The prayer of listening - discerning God's voice and direction
4. The prayer of thanksgiving - starting with gratitude for where the church already is in prayer
5. The prayer of submission or humility - submitting our will to God's, individual agendas to God's plans
6. The prayer of wisdom - as in James 1:5-8
7. The prayer of unity - based on John 17, a prayer that God will unify the team in direction and goals.

Harvest Prayer Ministries has developed a roadmap process to help churches on the journey to becoming houses of prayer for all nations.

One of many important points Kim made was the emphasis on training children to pray.  "You can train children; you have to re-train adults," she said, pointing out that children have no bad habits of prayer to overcome.  Jon Graf would later make the point that the current "older generation (50+)" in the church has not done a good job of training the next generation in prayer, with the result that the practice of prayer is not an integral part of many young adult believers' lives.

Jon Graf concluded the pre-conference with a session on "Growing a Praying Church".  He noted several obstacles in the path of growing a praying church.  Many pastors consider their churches to be praying churches already, though statistics indicate that 75-80% of their congregation would say that they have "poor" to "no" prayer life.  A second obstacle is the "rugged individualism" so ingrained in American culture.  This produces an independent attitude that tends to rely on human wisdom and resources rather than on God.   And where prayer is a part of the environment, it tends to be individual prayer rather that community prayer.  Graf quoted David Bryant's statement that 90% of the references in Scripture to prayer are references to praying together, rather than individually.

These and other obstacles make creating a praying church a difficult task.  But the results, Graf said, are worth it.  Individually, 50% of people in evangelical churches say that they would make developing a better prayer life a priority if their church could make it manageable.  (Teaser:  I'll cover this in greater depth in part 2 of this Spotlight, focusing on the Strategic Prayer Initiative, which was the subject of one of Saturday's breakouts.)  Corporately, as churches move toward becoming praying churches, an atmosphere of excitement tends to develop because the church's ministries become more fruitful.

Another great benefit when churches move toward becoming praying churches is the transformation that takes place in people's lives as intercession becomes more common.  Graf warned that this can get messy, as this sort of transformation is often accompanied by the light shining on some previously dark areas in the lives of individuals and/or of the church.  Satan will do anything to drain the energy of a church that is experiencing real transformation, and trials and temptations may increase during these times. 

Graf noted that as we train our congregations in prayer, we need to emphasize two primary purposes of prayer:

1. To grow people's relationships with God
2. To release God's will on earth.

Graf noted a point that was often repeated throughout the day - that God could accomplish his purposes in any way he chooses.  He simply chooses to accomplish them through the prayers of his people.  This brings a great challenge, responsibility, and opportunity to the people of God to accomplish the purposes of God through prayer.

The next edition of Spotlight will continue coverage of the Midwest Prayer Conference, beginning with the worship and keynote opening on Friday night.

Dear Father, I pray:  (Insert your child’s name)

1.  Resist Temptations

You will give ________wisdom and strength to withstand temptation. I Corinthians 10:13

2.  Protection

You will strengthen and protect ________from the evil one. II Thessalonians 3:3

3.  Self-control

______ will be self controlled and alert. Resist the enemy, standing strong in his/her faith.  I Peter 5:8,9

4.  Compassionate

________will become helpful, kind, tenderhearted and forgiving to others. Ephesians 4:32

5. Conversation/Words

________will let his/her conversation be gracious, as well as sensible. Colossians 4:5

6.  Wise Choices

You will show ________how to distinguish right from wrong and how to make wise choices. Proverbs 2:9

7. Not Misled

________will not be misled, remembering that he/she can’t ignore You and get away with it.  Galatians 6:7

8 . Sexual Purity

______will flee from sexual immorality and maintain purity for his/her future spouse.  I Corinthians 6:18

9. Know Right from Wrong

________will do what is right because knowing it and then not doing it is sin.  James 4:17

10. Refuse Evil

________will hate the gatherings of those who do evil and refuse to join in with the wicked. Psalm 26:5

11. Satisfaction

________will do his/her very best, for then he/she will have the personal satisfaction of work well done. Galatians 6:4

12. Self-centeredness

________will not just think about his/her own self, but be interested in others, and in what they are doing.  Philippians 2:4

• If you would like to receive a free downloadable copy of 31 Scriptures to Pray for Grandchildren email me at  lpenner@christiangrandparenting.net

By Lillian Penner, National Prayer Coordinator, Christian Grandparenting Network

Many of you in our community responded positively to last week’s post, which included a reminder of God’s promise to bless those who set aside time for Him. You may remember that part of the specific promise the Lord gave was to “release strategies to help you bring the full tithe of your time and energy into the Kingdom.” (For the full post, click here.)
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This week as I studied, the Lord gave me a strategy to share with you, which I have found immensely helpful. It is the idea of a “mini” Christian prayer retreat. What I will share with you is an adaptation of a plan outlined in Michael Hyatt and Daniel Harkavy’s new book, entitled “Living Forward.”

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Prepare to Share

1 Peter 3:15, “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,” NAS

Greetings Neighbors,

   I continue to thank Jesus for you and all that you are doing to show your love for Him and your “neighbors.” I had the joy of attending the Imagine conference last week. Imagine was a Pastors and leaders conference in Akron, Ohio where the hosts and speakers talked about teaching and living a prayer-care-share lifestyle in and through the Church. I was so grateful to hear these three words taught not just as information and inspiration but with application points for the mobilization of every Christ-follower so that we see transformation occur in every city in America.

   The past two weeks I have focused on prayer and care in the workplace; this week we turn to sharing the love and message of Jesus with your workplace. I know it can seem to be a risk – if not downright dangerous – to talk about Jesus at work, but I heard Dr. David Jeremiah give a very sensible answer in a recent interview about this very concern. Dr. Jeremiah was asked, “How can I share my faith at work without worrying about getting fired?” His wise answer came straight out of Scripture; 1 Peter 3:15 to be exact; “… Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…”

   If you have been in prayer for your workplace, and if you have shown care in and for your workplace; then you can bet that people are going to start asking you about your lifestyle of love and hope. Living out the love and message of Jesus does not go unnoticed in a world and workplace that is centered on self and success. Your gentleness, humility, and “calm through the storms” kind of hope will shine like a lighthouse for those sinking in a sea of personalities, projects, profit-focus, and professional as well as personal problems. Your steady emotions and encouraging words, along with your uncompromising integrity and reputation for dependability, will draw people to come and ask you, “How do you do it?” or “What’s your secret?” It is at that moment a door is flung open and you can share that Jesus is your hope and help.

   So many people worry that they are not prepared to share the message of Jesus, but Peter makes it clear that we should be prepared; just as prepared as you are for meetings, a project pitch, a presentation, an evaluation, etc. You do not have to memorize a sermon – in fact, please do not preach, but share what Jesus means to you, what He has done in you, how He works through you and what Scripture says about Him based on the needs and direction of your conversation. You do not have to have a seminary degree, but a simple knowledge of what Scripture says about our Savior and salvation. Offer to talk more over lunch, after work hours, or invite them to your home for dinner. If they share a personal or professional struggle, let them know you will pray for them and then check on them in a few days to see if anything has changed or they need to talk. Of course, confidentially is crucial; but if they come to you – they must trust you. Share your personal relationship and a Scripture or two to encourage them, and over time, invite them to church. We were reminded on several occasions at the Imagine conference; “People don’t come to church looking for God, they come looking for answers.” Be prepared to tell people how relevant Jesus is and that He is the answer they are looking for.

I challenge you to share the love and message of Jesus with every person connected to your workplace and to prompt other neighbors to share in their workplace, so that every American has seen and heard the message of Jesus by the end of the year 2020.

Love is a verb…let’s get moving!

    Kathy B.

We have several books available on our LOVE2020.com bookstore to help you live and share the message of Jesus at work. For more ideas on prayer-care-share for the Workplace, visit our Workplace action plan under the Strength Conditioning page at www.LOVE2020.com. Check out www.Iwork4Him.com and tune in to their radio show Monday through Friday to learn more about connecting with Christ in your workplace.

As I prayed recently, I saw in the Spirit a sleeping army, like an army of dry bones in the valley (Ezekiel 37:1-14). I believe I heard the Lord say, “It is time to wake up those who sleep, to activate those who slumber.” I felt His desire to reassure you of His friendship with you. He wants to call forth creative abilities in the Spirit!

God is calling forth latent creative gifts within you and calling you to come to the forefront. It is time for a great army of creative worshipers to arise like dry bones out of the valley. God is going to cause the brittle and broken dryness of your lives to disappear, and to be rubbed with a salve that takes away all pain. Those who cannot see or envision what God is doing will have their eyesight restored. Those who need creative input will receive anointed ideas, not just techniques, to impart LIFE. 

Continue reading HERE

Malachi 3 contains a wonderful promise of abundant blessing for those who "bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house." (Malachi 3:10, NKJV.) Israel (in context) and the church of God (by extension) are promised that the windows of heaven will open and there will not be enough room to contain the blessing God gives us economically. I know this to be true, and have seen God bless me personally as He has changed me from tightwad to tither! (You can read some of my financial testimonies here.) 

Yet with many Scriptures, the Holy Spirit often reveals deeper layers of meaning to us as we grow. His job is to break us out of the "boxes" we put ourselves - and God - into. One of the things He is revealing now is that we must move beyond the "financial blessing" box described here and see that God is looking for our hearts, not just our wallets. Giving is secondary; all giving flows first from the heart. Tithing is not just financial, but also personal. ​

Continue Reading: Tithe Your Time!

I’ve written at least once each year about appreciating pastors, usually during October, which is Pastor Appreciation Month. Because God called, “Some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers” (Ephesians 4:11), they deserve a special time of appreciation. For the first time in over twenty years, I have a new pastor. When his name was shared with our church, I did not know him, but within a few days I discovered that I knew people who knew him: a former ministerial colleague; also a friend from his seminary days; plus a member of his previous church. Because they knew both he, and I, he had heard about me before he arrived at our church. Nevertheless, I was surprised when he contacted me and asked if he could drop by my house, knowing that my wife was home bound for twelve weeks recuperating from an injury and I was a 24/7 caregiver. Between his first and second Sunday as my pastor, he was sitting in my den, visiting and praying for my wife and I. I wanted to ask, “don’t you have more important things to be doing during your first week in town?” but I knew the answer. Sure he did, but he made my wife, and I a priority, the same way our former pastor had done. I know that neither my pastor, nor your pastor, can make every church member a high enough priority to visit often in their home for an hour, and not leave until they pray, but it is sure nice when they do. I spend a lot of time praying for others. It’s nice to be the object of prayer, especially from my pastor. I appreciate that.

In a prayer time that I was leading shortly after September 11, 2001 a six-year-old boy spoke up. “We need to pray for the terrorists!” I answered without thinking. “Pray that they will be caught and killed.”

That incident and the real danger of enemies on our door step plunged me into a serious quandary of how to love them. In Luke chapter 6 Jesus gave us a list of specific applications. And while I need to say these directives are personal rather than political, they should affect every area of a Believer's thinking.

Luke 6:27

“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you.”

You have to begin by listening. Are you willing to listen to things Jesus says that go against what you consider common sense? Have you considered what good thing God has arranged for you to do for the person who lies about you or opposes something important that you need to accomplish?

Luke 6:28

“Bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”

Desiring God's blessing on someone is a foundation of intercessory prayer. I have several lists of people that I pray for every day as a personal spiritual discipline. And from time to time God impresses me to add someone to one of those lists that I just don't like. I have to pray for God to develop His love in my heart for them as I try to ask Him to bless them.

Luke 6:29

“If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them.”

This  may be the most practical and difficult application of loving our enemies. And while the command to turn the other cheek, not to mention the ensuing commands Jesus gives us here, leaves us terribly vulnerable, it meant much more than that to the people who first heard it.

Some years ago I went on a mission trip to what you might call a “kiss culture.” Especially in the churches there, men greeted one another with a kiss on the cheek, often on both cheeks.  It did not take us very long to discover that the one receiving the kiss has to turn his cheek. If you did not turn your cheek, you got kissed on the mouth.

We were never comfortable with this custom, but we quickly came to understand the depth of relationship they were expressing. In such a culture turing the other cheek was an offer of relationship. In the case of an enemy, it was a vulnerable offer of reconciliation.

Let me skip down to Luke 6:35,36, a good conclusion to this passage.

“But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

Genuinely loving your enemies requires a work of God in your life. We grow in this complicated and humanly impossible discipline as we spend time in His presence. To love like this you must be a child of the Most High. God must plant His spiritual DNA into your heart.