NDP 2021: PRAYER FOR RESTORATION, RECONCILIATION, RELATIONSHIPS

Most gracious God and Creator of the Universe, we lift up the Banner of the Risen Christ Who is seated on the right hand of the Throne, from whence He reigns forever and ever. We shout for Joy over His victory o’er the Grave. We sing new songs and hymns of praise to our God, with choruses of worship which echo back and forth throughout not just every galaxy of the Universe, but every corner of the Throne Room. For this is where the Cherub and Seraph sing and fly, back and forth, from eternity past to eternity future and sing “Holy, Holy, Holy”….for Holy are You, Almighty God, King of the Universe and all that there is.

At the start of a new week, we pray for a new beginning in many lives.

We pray for renewed relationships and restoration of broken ones.

We pray for broken hearts to mend and healing messages to send.

We pray for help to the hurting from the Sanctuary of Heaven.

We pray for those who are weighed down by circumstances that lead to depression and seasonal affective disorders.

We pray that this new season of Spring and the glory of the Risen Lord will light a spark where there may be just a few embers.

We pray that this spark will led to a flame....that this flame will lead to a fire…and raging fire that burns in the hearts of Your people.

We pray that this raging fire will turn into powerful passionate longings for the things of the Lord, for such a time as this.

May this fire burn and spread to our families, our loved ones, our friends and neighbors and through the Elect of Heaven that we can in turn, reach out and love the lost to Jesus – the Soon-coming-King! Hallelujah

Lord, the world takes pride in chariots. They are prideful about their horses. But we boast ONLY in the Name of the Lord, our God.

In due course, the world systems will collapse and be wiped away forever before the Holiness and Majesty of the Commander in Chief of Heaven’s Armies. But, we who are called by His Name will rise.

We shall stand firm and strong. Hallelujah. We shall NOT be moved.

We stand strong on the Word of God.

We stand without compromise on the word of our testimony.

We stand planted in cement under the blood-stained Cross of Christ, from whence our redemption cometh.

Father, if we stay faithful and persevere to the end, we know that You give victory to Your anointed. Let us then be resolved to fasten our seat belts, with the guidance and direction of Your Holy Spirit, Who abideth in us, and may we tighten our belts.

May we put on the helmet of Salvation; pick up the shield of Faith and wield the Word of Truth through all corners of our surroundings, with grace and love, yes but also mainly with Truth.

May we shout out loud and proclaim it from the mountain top, that Jesus Christ is Lord!

May we always live, this week and always knowing that The Lord Lives!

Blessed be my Rock and God of my Salvation to Whom, ALL the praise, ALL the honor, ALL the glory be given, now and forever more, in Jesus' Strong Name,

AMEN!

A MATURE PERSON OF PRAYER

TEXT:

COLOSSIANS 4:2-4

2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— 4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

English Standard Version (ESV)

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER 2020 ROUNDUP

The Annual National Day of Prayer Illinois State Capitol event was canceled for the public part of it, but it was still the Day of Prayer. Thanks to the great management of our local Christian radio station, and Moody Bible Radio affiliate - the WLUJ Family of Stations, we were able to assemble our small group of 6 praying ministers and record the most powerful and anointed appeal to Heaven we have had in recent memory. 


That pre-recorded broadcast was then played across the stations many frequencies from the Mississippi River to the Indiana Border - a listening area of over 3 millions people.

In order of Prayer, on the National Day of Prayer across America, our prayer leaders were:
Pastor Joey Krol (Galilee Baptist, WLUJ Morning Host) - Opening Prayer
Pastor Patrick Groth (Hope Church) - The Glory of God
Pastor Mac Dalton (Radiant Church ) - Government (Federal, State, Local)
Pastor Eddie Pullen (Il. Southern Baptist Association IBSA) - The Church, Missions, The Lost

Bernie Lutchman (BMIC) - Families
Pastor John Swinford (Sweetwater Christian Church) - The Military, First Responders, Medical Personnel

Pastor Eric Ginder (New Life Tabernacle) - The Judiciary, Transformation, Vision.

The audio from the radio station will be available at a future time.

PRAYERS OF THE BIBLE SERIES: THE BOOK OF GENESIS #2

A BLESSING & A CURSE

25 So he said, “Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants. He shall be to his brothers.”

26 He also said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant".

27 “May God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant.” Genesis 9:25-27

As if things could not get any worse for mankind, in the annals of recorded human history, the very next prayer in the Bible was a very significant curse. This was not immediately after the Great Flood as Noah was already now a great first time Farmer and Owner of Vineyards which produced much wine. His three sons and their wives had already begun to be “fruitful and multiply" to "fill the earth" as commanded by God.

One day, Noah got a little too much into the fruit of the vine and passed out drunk without any of his clothes. His grandson Canaan, son of Ham, saw him in a most unfortunate position laid out cold and apparently merrily told his father, Ham. This was (and is) a shameful thing in many respects. Dishonor before God does not go unpunished, even now. It may not happen immediately (as Canaan was young) but it will happen! 

Therefore, Noah prays an imprecatory prayer against his own grandson while praying a blessing on the descendants of his other sons - Japheth and Shem! This curse from Noah to Canaan is NOT a model prayer for us. God does not want us to go around cursing, or calling the wrath of God upon anyone. We are to pray against evil and plead for the Protection of the Lord against any forms of demonic control or possession, but our goal is to pray for the enemies of God, thereby - as the Bible says - placing burning coals upon their heads. We can also rebuke the darkness and in Name of Jesus and resist the devil at all turns. (Read Ephesians 6 and the entire book of James).

Canaan ended up being more than Israel's servant as history noted. When the Israelites came out of Egypt in the Exodus, God gave them Canaan's land, as part of His great plan of Redemption. So the curse from verse 25 is a prophetic declaration, not for this time. Scripture is closed on this point.

The other part of Noah's prayer shows him swinging from imprecatory to Praise and Worship, just like he did for those hundreds of years which the Lord let him live. Verse 27 of Noah's prayer which has huge implications for mankind as that too is very prophetic. It is noteworthy the Holy Spirit used Noah's second son Japheth to cause Noah to pray for the enlargement of his future generations.

Through Japheth, the following peoples came: Russians; Greeks; Indians (Asia); Persians; Southern Europeans (Spanish, Portuguese etc.); Anglo-Saxons; Germans and Celts (Irish)! We will look at the breakdown of the nations of the other brothers at another time.

The amazing run of the Nations out of one man, via the blessing of his Father Noah, is also an example for us to pray for our own children. Even before kids are born, we should be praying for their salvation and for the salvation of their children and their children's children, if Jesus Christ tarries. We should pray with them nightly, in our homes during family time, at meals and at every opportunity thereby giving feet to the imperative to "pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17). 

Our prayers will not create nations like Noah's did for Japheth, but God has a different plan for each of our children, and for us as well. Ask and we shall receive. Ask of the Lord on behalf of our sons and daughters and even if we may not live to see their full measure of the blessings we prayed for on their lives, it is the contention of those of us who believe that we will do so, on the other side of glory. 

In this, I pray therefore, my life verse upon all of my own children, as I claimed for myself, so many years ago (Psalm 27:4) "One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD And to meditate in His temple". Amen

(Photo credit here).

FORTNIGHT OF PRAYER

DAY 10

STAND UP FOR YOUR CONVICTIONS 

This is a different type of Prayer Focus Day as head towards the end of the designated 14 Days of Prayer, originally called by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops for Religious Liberty. Since then, several major conservative Protestant organizations, including myself, have joined in as there is always a great time to pray and obey.


As we come to the final Five Days, for this specific period, we have to resolve to NEVER stop praying! This is the main takeaway from what we are doing. The Bible says to "pray without ceasing" (1 Thess 5:17). This LITERALLY means (in the Greek) - LEAVE NO INTERVAL BETWEEN THE TIME YOU PRAY (for example NOW) AND THE NEXT TIME! It doesn't mean you pull over every five minutes on the Interstate Highway, kneel down and pray. The key is to be in constant and repentant fellowship with the One Who created you and sent His Son to be the Bridge back to Him, so we can have that uniquely close relationship with our Father.


If you and I wish to see our children and families and therefore our local communities and towns do better, we must never cease from praying. We should never stop because the enemies of God - the devil - will not stop until he destroys our peace, our love for the Savior and each other and our children and their futures. Christ was NOT kidding when He said in John 10:10 "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly".

Many Christians are now fearful since the US Supreme Court, in a stunning decision decided to legitimize a life-altering governmental decree which affects every single American. With or without knowing it, the decision has repercussions for Religious Liberty, Individual Freedom and personal choice. There is confusion in the Body of Christ about how to react to this and if we should really even want to pray God's blessings to the people who do this kind of thing.


Again - yes, we have to, because God commanded us to. But several questions and concerns have come up in the past couple of days, which are worth considering and taking to the Lord in prayer:


-  When praying for a decision maker: whether it is a wrong-headed Judge or Politician, pray for his/her personal salvation first, their safety and their families' protection, joy and happiness.Trust me, my friends. This will put you in good standing with the only Judge Who matters - Jesus Christ!


-  We are to pray that their policies and plans reflect the Will and intentions of God, not man. If a politician and the judge who okays it, decides they wish to tell a church "You can pray inside your four walls, but don't bring your religion outside and try to live like a Christian....and by the way, I, Mr. Politician, am a Christian too...so keep your opinion to yourself!" Well, in this case, you don't pray for any ungodly policy - which promotes abortion or teaching kids sex education or name your outrage - we DO NOT PRAY FOR THAT TO SUCCEED.


- In this event, while praying for government leaders, it is absolutely okay to put these people and any clearly anti-Bible policies firmly in the Hands of God and pray "God, oh my God, I can't handle this....I am losing my mind watching all the debate and outrageous lies or policies I see on Fox News, Father if You don't take this from me,  I will become a basket case. I give this issue over to You. Lord, You alone are sovereign and the heart of the king is in Your Mighty Hands. From the days of Nimrod and others, man has assumed an opinion of himself higher than You. 
In 6000 years, nothing has changed. So Father, I ask that You deal with this in Your Way, which I know is not MY way! Lord I know this policy or decree or mandate to provide pre-abortive pills is wrong and from darkened, cold hearts. Lord, You handle this in Your way. The courts and laws of man will never be pleasing in the Eyes of a Holy God, so now, oh God, I pray for Divine Intervention. 
Father, none will escape Your accountability, including me, if I don't stop obsessing about this and go back to "praying without ceasing". Therefore, I am now submitting to You and Your plans for us as a family and the Body of Christ, in Jesus' Name, amen.
If you prayed this prayer, and really want to not let all of this evil and politics get to you - turn the TV off and go for a walk or workout in the gym, or go ride your bike...trust me, it makes a HUGE difference. It is also more therapeutic and enriching. I keep a running up to date podcast list of my favorite preachers, which you can get for free off iTunes or OnePlace. You don't have to listen to "fire and brimstone" speakers all the time. There are some great Bible teachers out there who will bless you, as they teach the world of God, so click on the ONE PLACE link.


Finally...and we are going to keep this running on this site, for long as it takes, I wish to briefly address a question, which is relevant to our time.
- Is it okay to "REBUKE" the devil? Yes! Here is what James, the half-brother of Jesus wrote in James 4:7 "Submit to God, RESIST the devil and he will flee from you!" RESIST in the original language is anthistémi or STAND YOUR GROUND, OR SET YOURSELF AGAINST, OR FORCEFULLY STAND UP FOR YOUR CONVICTIONS....need I continue!


I have personally rebuked the devil several times and most of it was while the scumbag has come after my family, or my soul when I am doing the Lord's work. He is not to be trifled with but he is a liar, cheat and a coward who flees at the Name of Jesus! I know this to be ABSOLUTELY TRUE!!!  However you want to rebuke the devil and his demons, do it but ONLY do it if your soul is right with God! Do not go to trench warfare with the serpent of old armed with a super soaker! He will eat you up and spit you out if 1. you are not saved and 2. are not fully walking with the Lord! Trust me, I have seen and heard of many people "binding" and "rebuking"  or "casting demons" into "hell" etc...only to have them not just get frustrated that things got worse, but they are more confused than ever!


Think on these things, over this weekend as the second half of this year begins. Then ask the Lord to search your heart and see if there is anything hidden or wicked or should not be there, and then ask Him to remove it, so that there be nothing hidden between you and Him. This way, you and I can be better men and women of prayer...powerful and righteous before Him. Amen.

(image by google)

RUN UP TO NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER 2012

DAY 1:  "WHAT AM I TO DO?"

KEY VERSE: What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.(1 Corinthians 14:15 ESV)


In less than 72 hours, American observes the Annual National Day of Prayer. Many events will be held around the nation, both in the public square and in churches. This is a good thing. Here in the middle of the heartland, in the Capitol City of the state of Illinois, we choose to acknowledge this day according to the wishes of God - by means of Worship.

We assemble at the Illinois State Capitol Steps for the official Springfield observance, as we have since the event returned to its Biblical roots in 2006, when Springfield/Decatur Business Men in Christ assumed leadership. (Click here for the more details on that event). We pray and press in to the Heart of God on behalf of the Community and Nation, but more importantly for families and our dear children who are under assault by an increasingly hostile secular establishment. I have a different focus than some others. My emphasis as the facilitator of this, and any event which I organize, is to have the people of God assemble to worship. I even invite those who are not saved, to come and fellowship, in hope that when I give the Salvation message, they will grab a hold of the Gospel and repent.


As both a street and formal evangelist, I am a student of Revival and know that Repentance is the Key to Revival. After Repentance, comes more and more crying out to Abba Father. We cry out in hope and expectation, and give Him permission to invade every aspect of our lives - both personal and corporate - in order that He may draw us closer to Him. To that effect, the prayer leaders I invite annually, will not be the politically-connected pastor or the activist or ministry leader. Prayer leaders who are filled with the Spirit of God, from any Christian denomination are the ones who can execute this assignment to "PRAY WITHOUT CEASING"!


The question above, from our Key Verse for National Day of Prayer week in America, at least here in the Illinois State Capitol is "WHAT AM I TO DO"?! Well, our first assignment is to pick up the mantle of prayer! First Thessalonians 5:17 exhorts us to "pray without ceasing". That simply means, from the original text "do not let there be a gap between your prayers, from one day to the next". This should awaken us to the fact that most Christians do not pray! The average christian man prays less than 2 minutes per day. Even worse, the average pastor prays only an average of 10 minutes per day! 


As the nation heads down the road to a coming Judgment, the people of God are called on to be, well, the people of God! Therefore, in order that we not neglect so great a salvation and calling from our Father in Heaven to maintain our daily relationship with Him, I suggest we adopt this key verse from today into our walk with the Lord.


In addition to our 2012 verse above, there is no better way to start the day with Jesus than to grab a hold of this Scripture and savor it " praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication".


The Kingdom of God is what's at stake for us and our children. Dig into this verse and keep watch, pray without ceasing this day and persevere not only in prayer, but in loving someone else to Jesus. Amen.

(image courtesy google)