Daily Archives: October 11, 2015

Praying God’s Promises Out Loud

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11738026_990325144363926_1438943792802855249_nThe Word of God contains many promises about the circumstances and situations we face. Reading, proclaiming, declaring, and meditating on these promises found throughout Scripture will increase your faith. Faith comes from hearing the Word (Romans 10:17). We actually pray the Holy Spirit’s inspired words back to God. He is faithful to His Word. His promises are consistent with His character.

You will be able to pray with wisdom and authority as you pray God’s promises. Here are some from the New Testament, but I have heard that there are as many promises in Scriptures as there are days in the year!

  • Luke 3:16 – Promise to baptize us with the fullness of the Holy Spirit and God’s fire.
  • Luke 24:49 – Father’s promise to cloth the church with power from on high. See also Luke 11:13.
  • Acts 1:8 – Promise to receive power through encounters with the Holy Spirit and to be witnesses, even to the ends of the earth.
  • Acts 2:17-21 – Promise to pour out the Spirit that all may prophesy and see visions in the last days.
  • John 14:12 – Promise that those who have faith in Jesus will do even greater works than those of Jesus because He goes to the Father.
  • John 14:13-14 – Promise of answered prayer when asked in Jesus’ name so that He may bring glory to the Father.
  • John 14:27 – Promise of peace and encouragement so as not to be afraid or troubled.
  • Matthew 10:1, 8 – Promise of having authority to heal the sick and cast out demons. See also Mark 16:17; Luke 10:19; and
    1 John 3:8.
  • Ephesians 6:11-18 – Promise for the ability to stand against the devil’s schemes and his flaming arrows.

As we pray God’s promises out loud, we begin to understand God’s plans and agenda. Our desires fall in line with His. In his book, Bridal Intercession, Gary Wiens stresses how praying the Biblical prayers help us come into agreement with the Spirit of God and other believers. He says:

“As a result of praying these biblical prayers, we find it increasingly easy to come in agreement with the Spirit of God concerning His nature and His agenda. We begin to desire what He desires, confident in His ability to bring it all to pass. Also, as we pray the prayers of the Scriptures, we find it easy to come to unity and agreement with other believers. We are not praying for our own agenda or the success of our own programs. We are not praying for our political convictions to be established as the norm. Rather, we are focused on the establishment of His rule and reign, and that is an agenda with which all believers are in agreement.” Gary Wiens

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC

The Apostolic Prayers of Paul

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11227056_990321911030916_7484712621246048536_nThe prayers of Paul are some of the richest prayers in the Bible. They are always directed toward God. They are always positive. He thoroughly understood the law, grace, the church, and holy living.

In the apostolic prayers, Paul focuses on gifts, fruits, and wisdom. He prays for the release of the ministry gifts of the Holy Spirit so that revival breaks out. He prays for the fruits of Godly character in the lives of those in the Church. He prays for wisdom in the Church in order that believers are able to search out the mysteries and knowledge of God so that we may know Him better. He prays these prayers for the glory of God so that His Kingdom may come and His will be done in our churches, cities, and nations.

Paul reveals to us in his prayers, the power of intercession and the high focus we should have in prayer for the spirit of revelation. He prayed that the Church would come to a more full experience of the knowledge of God in active intimacy (Ephesians 1:17-19) as they walked out these spiritual blessings (Ephesians 1:3-14). He wanted the Church to encounter God deeply. We need our eyes enlightened. We need divine encounters with God. Look at what happen when we pray these apostolic prayers regularly:

  • Our hearts are supernaturally influenced by God. This helps us have a sustained lifestyle of pursuing God’s glory. We need the Spirit to do this, to enable our human capacity to receive more of God (1 Corinthians 2:12-14). We need to have our hearts fully alive!
  • We receive divine revelation to enlighten the eyes of our understanding. We begin to see God unveiled experientially in our understanding (John 17:3; Ephesians 1:18).
  • We receive confidence and hope in our individual calling from God. These divine assignments encompass all of time and eternity. We cannot walk firmly in our assignment in this age unless we are anchored in eternity (Ephesians 1:17-18; 2:10; Colossians 1:9-10).
  • We receive understanding of our spiritual identity. We discover the glory and wealth of being God’s inheritance. We understand that we are the focus of God’s affection (John 15:9; 17:23).
  • We are empowered to live our life in God (Eph. 1:17-19). He gives us His resurrection strength (Ephesians 1:20-21). We have the authority of Jesus as we resist sin and satanic opposition. All God’s power works through and for the good of His Church because all things are subject to Christ (Ephesians 1:20-21; Colossians 1:16; Philippians 2:6-11).

Praying these apostolic prayers of Paul’s are powerful. He had a brilliant mind but was deceived and, out of his extreme zeal, had been persecuting the Church. But suddenly, Paul had a supernatural encounter with God that changed everything. His prayers are anointed with the power of God. His prayers are model prayers.

Pray them on a regular basis. You can read them on pages 129-131. Have several copies in your prayer room. Certain phrases in each prayer are highlighted to help your intercessors isolate a phrase for the antiphonal singers. This is what we do here daily at IHOP in Kansas City.

We must seek to obey God as we fill our hearts with His Word and ask for revelation. The apostolic prayers will undoubtedly bring you up to a new level in prayer and intercession. They will help you see how God views the Church and each one of us. Begin by praying them in your own personal life, and then integrate them in your own prayer meetings.

These are only a few examples of how you can pray the Word of God. Praying the Psalms is another wonderful way to praise and worship God through His Word. The Psalms contain many different types of prayer such as adoration, supplication, worship, praise, confession, and intercession. You may want to sing the Word. As you read a chapter in the Bible, you may want to turn every verse into a personal prayer for spiritual growth, physical or emotional healing, or some other concern in your life or the life of another. You may want to rephrase the Word as you pray it back to God.

There are so many creative ways to pray the Word. The knowledge of this great treasure we have should cause each one of us to rejoice. It is far more valuable than silver or gold. God’s Word is life-giving. Let’s use it daily in our prayers. Let’s learn to pray it out loud for spiritual breakthrough.

“I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.” Psalm 119:14-16

 

Prayers from the Book of Revelation

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11667261_990255734370867_6429920607243431306_n“When you pray the hymns of the Revelation, you pray with all of heaven, going before God as He sits on His throne and  joining with Him in worship. You will hear and say some of the same words the angels and elders say to God. Try praying these hymns and get to know some of what is going on in heaven, what will happen when heaven comes here, and how all of heaven and earth talk to the One on the throne and to the Lamb.”  Wesley and Stacey Campbell

We need to realize that the book of Revelation is a prayer manual in the end times. There are seventy to eighty direct or indirect references to prayer in the book of Revelation. Some of these references are hymns, declarations, worship, supplications, altars, incense, and others. These prayers reveal the end-time events and Jesus as the conquering King of kings. They also reveal intercession as the governmental center of the Kingdom of God. The prayer movement will have a vital role in God’s plan to release the Kingdom of God on earth.

Take some time this week to pray some of the hymns in the book of Revelation listed here. Ask God to show you things you have not seen before. Ask Him to speak to your heart and bring you into “zoe”, life-giving revelation. Ask Him to cause the Word of God to burn within you as you journey through life. We need to be like the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders in Revelation 4:8b-11 who continually marveled at the awesome holiness and glory of God:

“Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: ‘You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.'”

  • Revelation 1:4-7 – A prayer to anticipate the second coming of Christ.
  • Revelation 2:7-8, 11-12, 17-18, 26-29; 3:5-7, 12, 21-22 – A prayer for overcomers.
  • Revelation 5:8-14 – A prayer to the Lamb.
  • Revelation 6:9-11 – A prayer for the persecuted.
  • Revelation 7:9-17 – A praise of the end-time harvest.
  • Revelation 11:15-18 – A prayer in expectation of the future reign of Christ.
  • Revelation 19:1-8 – The wedding song.
  • Revelation 22:12-17, 20 – A prayer asking Jesus to come.

Praying God’s Word and studying it is like a rich treasure. Approach your study of it with a spirit of love and devotion towards God. Help others in your House of Prayer to realize its life-giving power in your prayer meetings. Don’t just look at it as an intellectual pursuit. Often when we get a letter from our friends, we react in a certain way. We reread it to see what they have to say with the interest of a friend and loved one. But frequently we treat the Bible like a textbook, looking to gain intellectual knowledge. God wants your affection and love as you read and pray it.

Respond to Him as you read. Say, “Thank You” for His promises, and ask Him for strength to follow His commands. Pray for understanding when you encounter a difficult passage, and ask for a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him (Ephesians 1:17-18). Pray for increased understanding and that He will guide you into all truth (John 16:13).

Believe that God will transform your House of Prayer as you study, commune, and pray His Word. Develop a loving dialogue with a commitment to obey, and watch how your lives change over time. You are digging deep for gold, and you will not be disappointed. His Word in your heart and proclaimed through your lips, is like a burning fire that will touch and transform not only your own lives, but all those you come into contact with. Remember that agreement with God in His Word changes us, it changes the spiritual atmosphere of our cities, and it releases His power in the world.

Cherish it, love it, pray it, and appreciate it as you walk this journey of life and as you build the House of Prayer in your city.

“Seeking the face of God, and then gazing at it, has to begin sometime and someplace. It begins by bringing our whole person before the consuming fire who is God, reciting His words—the Bible—out loud to Him and then letting the Holy Spirit reveal Christ to us. This is why we pray the Bible. May it be that as you engage in this practice that your prayer times will have the same result as the disciples’—whose hearts burnt within as God talked with them along their journey of life. Yes, may your heart burn and your light shine.” Wesley and Stacey Campbell

 By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC

Our Prayer for Wisdom in Developing a House of Prayer

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12065528_1035112536551853_5307152816253278059_nLord, we pray for a Spirit of wisdom and revelation that we may know You better. Open the eyes of our hearts and enlighten us to know the hope to which You have called us (Ephesians 1:17-19a). Help us to start a House of Prayer in our city, and increase prayer in our churches. Give us dynamic prayer lives. We ask for you to give us practical wisdom when we pray with others. Give us Your creativity and a faithful team. Raise up dedicated intercessors and worshippers, and help us to plan carefully. Show us how to train and motivate people to pray.

Help us to be considerate of others in the prayer room, and teach us to love the diversity of your Church. Help us to be open to all types of prayers. Teach us to enjoy times of silence and times of music, times of intercession and times of thanksgiving, times of meditation and times of reading and praying Your Word. “Show me your ways, LORD, teach me your paths. Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long” (Psalm 25:4-5). “Send me your light and your faithful care, let them lead me;
 let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell. Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God” (Psalm 43:3-4). [Use “us”, “we”, and “our” in prayer instead of “me”, “I”, and “my”.]

Lord, encourage our hearts and unite us in love, so that we may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that we may know the mystery of You, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:2-3). Release the wisdom of Your Spirit in our lives and in our city. Teach us how to pray in the prayer room both corporately and individually. Reveal Your will for our lives and Your love for us. Let your light enter our hearts, let Your Word grip our minds (Psalm 119:18, 105, 130; Colossians 3:1-3), and help us to make quality decisions to walk in righteousness (Psalm 24:3-6, 119:11, 32). We give you all the glory and praise. We thank You for the wisdom You will give us as we begin. In Jesus’ name, amen.

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC