Tag Archives: prayer

Our Prayer for the Church

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11709564_989926214403819_5343331049890529465_nLord, we pray for the Church in our city and around the world [Name your city.] Help us to seek You and dwell in Your House. Teach us to gaze upon Your beauty (Psalm 27:4). Prepare us for revival. We know that prayer and worship prepares the way. May the praise of God be in our mouth and a double-edged sword in our hands (Psalm 149:6). Teach our church to worship and pray. Bring the Church in our city into enjoyable and anointed prayer. Unlock the hearts of Your people into the beauty of prayer. Teach us perseverance, and give us greater faith in prayer. Cause us to arise in prayer and passionately pursue You. Help us to know our identity and give You our devotion and praise. Unite our churches in prayer, and break down every barrier. We want to focus on the lost and see Your Kingdom come on earth.

Help Your Church to transition into the end times. Bring Your Church worldwide into the reality of heaven. Raise up forerunners in prayer, and strengthen the foundation of prayer in Your Church. Help us all to be obedient step-by-step, and listen to Your strategy and direction in every detail. Help us to pray Your purposes and plans in our city. We ask You to fill the atmosphere of our city with praise and worship. Invade our city with the atmosphere of Your presence. Thank You that Your Church will become a grace-empowered praying Church. You are forming Her into a beautiful Bride. We give You glory and praise. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Verses to Memorize

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come” (Ephesians 1:18-21).

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC

Why Prayer and Worship is Key to Revival

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11403171_990321821030925_1910952849621166331_n“The release of a heavenly model of worship and intercession, with music and prayers woven together in a tapestry of ministry to the Lord, is key to the release of revival upon the earth. The Lord in His grace has revealed to us in the Word how He enjoys receiving ministry from us, and we neglect this revelation to our own loss… What we are beginning to understand is that worship is the essential warfare of the saints, for it releases the presence and power of God. From Psalm 22:3 we know that the praises of the people of God make up the throne on which He establishes His rule and authority, and so as we minister to Him we are confident that His power is released in the earth.” Gary Wiens

The combination of prayer and worship in extended times of prayer are key for revival. Never has there been a revival without extended times of intensive prayer, nor will we ever see the final world revival ushering in the second coming of Christ without it. Here are some exciting reasons:

  • It brings us into the reality of heaven – We must realize that worship and prayer are combined together in heaven around the throne of God. We are in the process of bringing heaven to earth in our cities and nations. We are copying what heaven is doing by combining the interaction of the harp (worship) with the bowls of incense (prayers). See Revelation 5:8.
  • It unlocks our hearts –  The atmosphere of worship and praise opens our hearts in a greater dimension to fervent intercession, and a greater passion for Christ and His ways. It also unlocks our hearts to a greater gratitude for all God has done. I cannot help but move to a higher level in my intercession when praise and worship are combined. I find this true when I’m praying alone as well as in prayer meetings.
  • It increases our faith – I have seen and experienced how the singers fuel the intercessors, and the intercessors fuel the singers, until all seem to move into a higher realm of faith. The Word of God is prayed with greater certainty, with deeper passion, and with an unquenchable faith.
  • It attracts us to enjoyable prayer – There is no doubt about it. God wants us to enjoy prayer. There is no way we can move into day and night prayer without an enjoyment of it. It is much too hard and strenuous a work. We need our hearts to say, “Yes, I want to do this! Yes, our city can get into this because God is making it enjoyable.”
  • It increases our perseverance in prayer – Many times I have heard people say that the time goes by so quickly. There seems to be an ability and grace to pray for longer periods of time when prayer and worship are combined. Many who find it hard to pray for any length of time suddenly are able to spend hours in the prayer room.
  • It brings forth an anointing for spiritual warfare – It breaks the hold of the enemy in cities. It opens the way for a freedom to proclaim the Gospel. The Kingdom of God invades the territory. The combination of prayer and worship releases God’s justice. Praise, worship, and prayer is a powerful combination and a mighty force against the kingdom of darkness. We come into agreement with God’s heart and things change.

God is preparing His Church around the world for revival. He is preparing us individually as well as corporately.

“There is an irrefutable law in history that revival (justice) is released in a measure whenever night and day worship and intercession are offered. Wherever night and day prayer has emerged in history there is always a Divine breakout of speedy justice. It cannot be stopped.” Mike Bickle

Let’s pray that the Church worldwide would grow in prayer and worship. Psalm 132 is a psalm crying out for revival. The psalmist reminds God of King David’s devotion and dedication in pursuing righteousness. David had vowed to God that he would find a place for God, a dwelling place. His heart was set in seeking Him. He would not let go until God had a dwelling place on earth.

Revival is finding God that resting place. It will be geographic places where God’s Spirit is released in power. It will be a resting place where people can live in agreement with and in obedience to the Holy Spirit. When the Church is obediently following God, praying fervently, and living holy and righteous lives, then God’s reviving power will be manifested in that city. The power of God will be experienced in His people both individually and corporately.

God is giving a special grace and an increase in prayer at this time in preparation for this end-time revival.

Some of us are just beginning to get started. Don’t be overwhelmed. A momentum is building and a spirit of prayer and worship is being released across the earth. My suggestion to you is to start small. Music CDs that demonstrate prayer with worship can be found in many Christian bookstores. Purchase a few of these music CDs for members of your prayer and worship teams in your church, and begin to listen to them over and over again. You can purchase excellent worship with intercession music CDs through the IHOPKC online bookstore as well as watch the live IHOPKC webstream.

We did this in our church. Everyone was listening to the music CD called Apostolic Prayers. They’re a great example of “harp and bowl” worship and prayer sessions and a powerful way to pray. I use worship CDs regularly in the nations where I go to minister. We use them in the atmosphere of our own home. Houses of Prayer around the world like to play the live web stream of 24/7 prayer on large screens in their prayer rooms whenever they can’t have live worship.

This will bring you into the atmosphere of what prayer combined with worship is like. It will create a hunger in your soul and an excitement in your heart for praying the Word of God. Worship together with prayer will begin to touch your church with the atmosphere of heaven, and will prepare you and your city for a mighty revival.

“Intercession is agreement with what God promises to do. Intercession is expressed by declaring what He will do. In heaven the worship and intercession flow as one river. When we tell God who He is then our faith expands with the revelation of the transcendent God of power and beauty. Then when we agree with what He will do in intercession, we do it in great faith.” Mike Bickle

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC

Prepare by Praying for God’s Future Church

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11402980_990322897697484_1091674748470268243_n“Prayer must become the main focus of the church. We will not be able to continue to expect the grace of God without prayer. We will come to know that the Lord answers prayer, and we will also come to know the consequences of not praying. Prayer is soon going to become our greatest devotion because the true believers, the bondservants are going to know that He answers prayer.” Rick Joyner

How can we begin to prepare the Church for the future? How can we encourage this visitation of God upon His Bride?

Day and night prayer will be a major part. It will become our greatest devotion. As many become aware of this great challenge of establishing day and night worship and intercession, here are a few things to realize as we pray for the preparation of the Church in the future:

  • There are many who are interested in seeing a House of Prayer established – If God has given you a heart for prayer, don’t think that you are alone. This model is catching fire and is on the heart of God and many of His people throughout the earth. Pray that the Church worldwide catches fire for prayer and that Houses of Prayer will be started in every city in every nation. Pray for God to raise up forerunners who begin to pray for Houses of Prayer. Pray for the starting of one in your city and the strengthening of prayer in your church.
  • God is already establishing this for the end-time harvest – There are several ways that God has already been laying a movement of prayer on the hearts of His people. Much of the work has already been done in the unseen, hidden prayer dimension. Pray for the strengthening of the foundation of prayer in all churches, and praise God for what has already been accomplished in prayer.
  • God will put the pieces together – As the body of Christ rises up to this challenge, let’s realize that only God can do it. We only have to be obedient step-by-step, listening carefully for His strategy and direction. Pray that God’s people are obedient to do their part in establishing 24/7 prayer in their city. Pray that the Church listens to His strategy in every detail.
  • This will include the whole body of Christ – No church will own a citywide House of Prayer, but it will be the unity of the body in all its glorious diversity. We have tried to do it alone long enough. Unity needs to be our constant prayer as these prayer houses develop. People have different ideas and plans, but God’s purposes must prevail. Pray for the unity of the body of Christ worldwide and in the Houses of Prayer as they develop.
  • God wants to dwell in cities and regions of the earth – He wants the atmosphere so filled with united prayer and worship that it will then lead to a great harvest of souls. Pray for God to invade the cities and towns in your nation. Pray specifically for cities by name.
  • God alone must get all the glory for what He establishes – We are preparing the way for the King. We want to pray in His Kingdom reign. It’s not about us—it’s all about Him. Pray that the Church in every nation gives God the glory for what He establishes, and welcomes His Kingdom reign in their city and nation.
  • Much fervent prayer is needed – Prayer is needed before Houses of Prayer arise and fully bloom into what God wants them to be. The enemy hates it and will try to stop it all along the way. Pray that the Church worldwide rises up in fervent, persistent, and unceasing prayer.

God’s praying Church will be so appealing. The attractiveness of its beauty, the smell of its fragrance, and the power in its prayers to heal the sick and set people free will be too good to pass up. Millions will want to come into the Kingdom when the Church becomes beautiful with the fragrance of the Holy Spirit. It will happen. Watch and see.

God is giving grace right now for prayer, and His future Church will be a grace-empowered praying Church. It will be a sincere Church that voluntarily loves Him by choice without condition or reserve. It will be an informed Church, filled with individuals who pursue the knowledge of God and are hungry to know Him. It will be a fulfilled Church, satisfying to the hungry and powerfully changing the world through its prayers.

“My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations” (Isaiah 56:7). Isaiah the prophet had a lot to say about this global prayer movement. He described a time when God’s people worldwide will experience unusual grace and authority in prayer. He summarized this by declaring; God will name His Church a “House of Prayer”. This prophetic naming is in itself a promise of functioning in grace empowered prayer. Imagine God naming the Church a “praying church”. All over the earth, it will become common to hear of intercessory worship ministries that continue non-stop, 24 hours a day.” Gary Wiens

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC

Preparing the Church For the Future

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11221818_990272137702560_8036744011765555433_n

“We will soon see prayer become the chief purpose and focus of the church, above any other activity. Intercession is no longer just an option. The basic calling of the church is to be “a house of prayer for all nations” (Mark 11:17). There are no remedies for human problems without God, and the whole earth is about to learn this.” Rick Joyner

The church is in transition and preparation. She will one day see her identity as an eternal House of Prayer and a glorious Bride—but she does not see it yet. There is a wrestling inside, almost like a butterfly in a tiny cocoon trying to escape and spread her wings. She is just beginning to hear the voice of the Bridegroom as John the Baptist did (John 3:29). She is just beginning to desire one thing above all others—to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord as David did (Psalm 27:4). She is just beginning to realize her unique privilege and the close friendship and intimate knowledge that she can have with God’s heart.

Things are happening quickly worldwide. We are all in God’s end-time preparation whether we like it or not. Now is the time to lay hold of the absolute necessity of day and night prayer and ask God to create it in our churches and in our cities. God is giving us grace and authority in prayer to seek Him at this time, so let’s take advantage of it. Let’s seek to grow in fervent prayer.

In unity, we will be doing and saying the same things the Spirit is doing and saying. We will be in unity with God as we learn to walk in daily obedience by pursuing Him in prayer and guarding our hearts with all diligence (Proverbs 4:23).

God desires for us to have a dynamic role as we partner with Him in prayer in bringing His Kingdom on earth. This is how He will govern His universe. As we unite in prayer and worship, we will keep strong and stable when everything is shaking around us.

The prayer movement in a city is going to be one of the greatest stabilizing forces for the Church. God hears the prayers of His people and brings victory (2 Chronicles 6:35, 40; 7:15). This will create the spiritual atmosphere that will enable all of us to bring in the harvest. Evil is increasing at an alarming rate. A House of Prayer can spiritually penetrate into the darkest areas of the city, causing those lost in the deepest darkness to come into the light and be set free.

With such a dynamic role in partnership with God, we must pray fervently for the prayer movement to arise and spread like fire.

In his book, Healing the Nations, John Sandford writes that the Church is seeing the beginning of visitation throughout the world:

“Over the past several years, the Lord has raised up an armada of intercessory ministries around the world. Through their efforts, multitudes have come together in citywide prayer, solemn assemblies, prayer summits, and reconciliation services. God has used the earnestness of this intercession to bring millions to repentance. The prayer movement has touched the heart of God; in turn, He has touched the heart of man. As a result of this prayer movement, the church is seeing the beginning of visitation throughout the world. Renewal, revival, and supernatural manifestations are being reported almost daily. Many feel we are closer to a great awakening than at any other time…”

Early one Sunday morning as we were on our way to a church two hours away, we made a quick stop at a gas station. When I went inside that gas station, I was instantly overwhelmed by the delicious smell of fresh bread and donuts. “Ummmmm” was about all I could say. It smelled so good that it was hard for me to leave. I wanted to buy coffee and donuts immediately because I had been captured by the aroma of that bread. I used my will power and didn’t buy any donuts, but I was strongly reminded that the prayers of the Church will be like a fragrant aroma that captures God’s attention.

The Church will become a House of Prayer for the nations. Churches throughout the world will put prayer at the center of all of their activities. They will cry out to God for their city, country, and the nations of the world. Those who are searching for truth will not be able to stay away from the sweet-smelling aroma of prayer that will come from the prayer room. People will be drawn into the Houses of Prayer, and God’s future Church will be filled with the aroma of Christ. This is what we have to look forward to. And those who have been in the prayer room will bring this sweet-smelling aroma with them everywhere they go—to school, their workplace, and into the streets.

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC 

Houses of Prayer Help the Church Arise

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Our Prayers for Wisdom in Developing a House of Prayer“The revelation David had about the emotions of God equipped his heart for a sustained aban-doned pursuit of God, through his many weaknesses and failures, as well as his stunning
victories. David is the picture of the end-time church, which will be a lovesick, wor-shipping warrior bride, and a people after God’s own heart.” Mike Bickle

After traveling extensively throughout Europe, I realized more than ever how day and night prayer would help advance what God is doing around the world. Darkness seemed to be invading every segment of society—you could sense the blindness as you talked with people on the streets and in the stores. God did not seem to be welcomed there.

Yet, there is such a desperate need for God to permeate every city, and this can only happen through prayer and worship. It is only the light that can cast out the darkness. Evil seems to be intruding into our nations at an alarming rate. God’s manifest presence can invade our cities through Houses of Prayer.

A good example of how this can happen is by looking at Asaph in Psalm 73. He was facing extreme difficulty and had almost lost his footing. He envied the arrogant when he saw their prosperity. They seemed to have no struggles and were free from burdens. They were carefree and increasing in wealth. They seemed to get away with violence and were actually prospering. Asaph felt as if it was useless to live a good life (Psalm 73:1-16). The whole thing seemed to be extremely oppressive.

Now if we were honest most of us would say, “That’s exactly how I feel. I’m tired of seeing the wicked prosper.”

Notice in this Psalm that everything changed in verse 17 when Asaph entered the sanctuary of God. It was right there that he began to understand their final destiny. In the sanctuary of God (House of Prayer), he gained a fresh vision of the reality of God’s love and justice (Psalm 73:17-28). Suddenly they would be destroyed and cast down to ruin. They were on slippery ground. They would be punished for their sin.

Asaph realized the personal love of God for himself. God was always with him and would guide him—God was his strength and would take him to glory—God was his refuge. The wicked were only enjoying temporary success.

Houses of Prayer will help the future Church arise.

Entering the sanctuary of God through prayer will help the Church to see the true reality of the situation out there in society. When it looks as if the wicked are prospering, the prayer room will keep the Church focused on the eternal rather than the temporary. The Spirit will release the glory of God upon the Church at the end of the age. God has put eternity in our hearts (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

Day and night prayer will help the Church to see the purposes and plans of God. Prayer will help us to know the hidden wisdom of God ordained before the ages (1 Corinthians 2:7-10). It will help us to persevere and stand together in unity. It will impact our communities and the world.

Houses of Prayer will help the Church arise.

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC

Eighteen Benefits of Fasting in Isaiah 58:6-14

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11150790_961648353898272_2235412994775239405_n“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear…”

  • Your light will break forth like the dawn (verse 8).
  • Your healing will quickly appear (verse 8).
  • Your righteousness will go before you (verse 8).
  • The glory of the Lord will be your rear guard (verse 8).
  • You will call and the Lord will answer (verse 9).
  • You will cry for help, and he will say, “Here am I” (verse 9).
  • Your light will arise in the darkness (verse 10).
  • Your night will become like the noonday (verse 10).
  • The Lord will guide you always (verse 11).
  • The Lord will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land (verse 11).
  • The Lord will strengthen your frame (verse 11).
  • You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail (verse 11).
  • Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations (verse 12).
  • You will be called repairer of broken walls (verse 12).
  • You will be a restorer of streets with dwellings (verse 12).
  • You will find your joy in the Lord (verse 14).
  • You will rise on the heights of the land (verse 14).
  • You will feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob (verse 14).

There are some spiritually difficult circumstances where we will only see the breakthrough when prayer is combined with fasting. You may be praying for a lost son or daughter or someone trapped in drugs and alcohol. You may be praying for a breakthrough in a needy nation. Prayer with fasting multiplies your effectiveness.

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC

Benefits in Seeking God’s Face

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10399447_964513906945050_1606014413027492981_n-2There are several benefits in seeking God’s face and His presence in the prayer room:

  • We experience personal transformation – We become more and more fascinated with God rather than with the things of this world. We grow in intimacy with Jesus and develop a deep inner life with God.
  • We establish a lifestyle of encountering God in the place of prayer – Our heart connection with Jesus becomes stronger and stronger. We learn what it means to keep our lamp burning like the wise virgins at the midnight hour (Matthew 25:1-13).
  • We find corporate unity – When we are preoccupied with seeking God, our divisions disappear. Our unity empowers our prayers.
  • We find victory in spiritual warfare – The atmosphere is changed in a city through 24/7 prayer. The powers of darkness are forced to retreat, and they lose their hold because the presence of God dwells in the prayer room and over the city.
  • We are trained in the Word as we pray and sing it – Because there is such a focus on singing and praying the Bible, everyone begins to learn God’s truth in a deeper way.
  • We are prepared to reach the lost – There is an ability to receive the heart of God in the prayer room. His passion is for the lost, and he imparts that same passion and ability to reach out to the lost as we leave the prayer room.
  • We realize God’s personal love for us – In the prayer room we can receive the Father’s embrace. We are empowered by God’s love and receive His sufficiency for any battle. Our lives become empowered with God.
  • We become more alive and can work harder for God – When we abide in His love, we work harder than we do when we are just being workers (Romans 6:13). His love gives us strength to work with great zeal.
  • We experience confidence in God – We find that we are not condemned because of sin, but we are righteous in Christ. We realize our spiritual identity based on the finished work of Christ on the cross (2 Corinthians 5:17-21). We realize that we are pleasing to God (John 15:9).

“My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!’ Your face, LORD, I will seek… I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD” (Psalm27:8, 13-14).

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOP-KC

Places of Encounter with God

11695804_990323194364121_2649432941536911869_n“Prayer rooms are places of direct encounter with God. So much of our faith, if we are not very careful, can be second-hand experience. We listen to talks that tell us what to think. We read books that inspire us with other peoples’ experiences of God. But alone with God in a prayer room, it’s time to get the Bible open for your self, going straight to the source. It’s time to dialogue directly with God face to face without a middleman. In such a context, God often is able to speak to us and touch us in a way that no ministry session could ever achieve.” Peter Greig and David Blackwell

Isn’t a face-to-face encounter with God something you long for and desire? When I was in Germany, I was involved in teaching a course for God’s people who were working in different countries around the world. The course was called “Face to Face.” The goal of the course was to help bring individuals into a face-to-face relationship with God and also with one another.

The prayer room is the place of face-to-face encounter with God. I can’t think of a better description of the 24/7 prayer movement. The prayer room is the place to access the heavenly realm and hear from God. In the prayer room God purifies our life. As we spend time in prayer, we carry the very presence of God out with us into the world. Our faces can shine with the presence of God.

Moses is a good example of a Biblical character that sought the face of God. We read about his encounter with God in Exodus 33:11a: “The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend.” When he came down from the presence of God, His face actually shone with the glory of God.

“When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the LORD” (Exodus 34:29). 

There is an increasing hunger for the presence of God, not only individually but also corporately among His people worldwide. People from all denominations, cultures, and ages are beginning to seek after God’s face. Kim Catherine Marie Kollins has established a 24/7 prayer ministry among the world’s 100 million renewed Catholics called Burning Bush International.  She says:

“Everywhere I turn I seem to hear this same call to prayer being proclaimed—prayer for cities, prayer for nations. Everywhere I look I see writings calling the people of God to intense worship and adoration and intercession. Many new prayer initiatives are being called forth—houses of prayer are springing up, prayer mountains and prayer vigils are being held in response to this prompting of the Holy Spirit. Now is the time, and the trumpet is being sounded to the whole people of God. We are being called to awaken from slumber and be empowered anew by the Holy Spirit. We must become once again passionate adorers of the Lord and powerful instruments of intercession for the Church and the world.” 

Who is Like the Lord?

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC 

An Architect’s Mindset

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11226567_964511230278651_6881985017139642886_nTo begin laying this great foundation in our cities for prayer, we need to have an architect’s mindset. Like an architect, we need to see the big picture. So often we are over-whelmed as we think only of our own personal problems or what our own church is facing, but we need to begin to see our entire city through the eyes of God. We need to have a vision that is persistent. Seeing life from God’s point of view changes everything. Our own problems become small in light of the needs of our city.

An architect can see a big, beautiful building even as he sees nothing tangible in front of him. He knows there is much work ahead for the workers in order to dig deep, and they must be willing to pay the price of hard foundational work. We also need to dig a deep foundation because we are building something of great significance and stature. We must be steadfast in prayer as we begin. Mike Bickle, founder of the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, says the following:

“The first key is to be steadfast in prayer regarding a House of Prayer and to have an architect’s mindset. The architect’s mindset sees the big picture. To work with others to build a house of prayer, we must all think on the big picture. The more I understand the big picture, the more sense of responsibility I feel about getting the foundation right. What are we doing today that will impact tomorrow? I remind our staff that a building site starts with digging a large hole to build the foundation.”

It takes time and patience to build a solid foundation for day and night prayer. It takes great persistence in prayer. It can start with a couple two-hour segments with a committed group of people made up of worshippers and intercessors who will be faithful and steadfast. It may start with a one-month or one-week House of Prayer. Or it could start with increased prayer in your own church and your own life. We must pray that the foundation will be laid properly. We must have the persistence and steadfast heart to see a House of Prayer started in our church or city. We won’t see it with a microwave mentality, but God is looking for long-term faithfulness and persistence.

There are many examples of those who have stood the test of persistence. One was the American astronomer Clyde Tombaugh who discovered the planet Pluto. Astronomers calculated its’ probable orbit, but being only a “suspected” heavenly body, it wasn’t even tangible. Tombaugh took up this challenge in March of 1929. Time magazine recorded the investigation: It was the most dramatic astronomic discovery in nearly one hundred years.

He examined scores of telescopic photographs each showing tens of thousands of star images in pairs under the dual microscope. It often took three days to scan a single pair. It was exhausting, eye-cracking work—in his own words, “brutal, tediousness.” And it went on for months. Star by star, he examined 20 million images. Then on February 18, 1930, as he was blinking at a pair of photographs in the constellation Gemini, “I suddenly came upon the image of Pluto!”

You may not be trying to discover a planet, but you are attempting something that is challenging and may be exhausting at times. But it will be worth the effort. Astronomer Clyde Tombaugh saw Pluto with the eyes of faith, and you are beginning to see the possibilities of prayer in your city through the eyes of God. The day of smallness has great significance in God’s sight (Haggai 1-2; Zechariah 3-4). Every House of Prayer will start small, but we can’t despise the day of small beginnings. We read in Zechariah 4:10: “Who despises the day of small things?”

Realize that the starting of every House of Prayer is a dramatic accomplishment in God’s eyes. It will change the face of your city. Increasing prayer in your church is also big in God’s eyes. Right now you may be looking at starting 24/7 prayer in your city, but think about your church as well. Scale it down to size and adapt this to your church even as you consider your city.

Think and pray with the eyes of faith of how to begin to lay a strong foundation.

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOP-KC

The Biblical Examples of Prayer

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IMG_1230Did you know that the first prayer meeting started in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8)? The priests in Exodus and Leviticus had to keep the lamps in the temple burning day and night (Leviticus 6:13). They worked in shifts with non-stop prayer, worship, and singing because the fire on the altar was never allowed to go out.

Did you know that Israel began as a nation at a prayer meeting when called to rule as priests after leaving Egypt (Exodus 19:6; Revelation 5:10)? The first project given to Israel was to build a worship sanctuary (House of Prayer, Exodus 25:2). When King David became king over Jerusalem, he established day and night worship (1 Chronicles 15-16).

In the New Testament, we see that Jesus Himself began His public ministry in the wilderness where He fasted and prayed for forty days (Matthew 4), and He ended His life in a prayer meeting in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26). During His time the Essenes, one of the four branches of Judaism, believed in praying for 24 hours. The early Church began in a prayer meeting (Acts 1-2) and will end in a global prayer movement (Isaiah 62:6-7; Luke 18:7-8; and Revelation 5:8; 8:4).

The very end of the age will be a huge battle over two Houses of Prayer—the Holy Spirit’s prayer movement and the antichrist’s end-time worship (Revelation 13:8). In Revelation 4-5 we will worship around God’s Throne in the New Jerusalem (Revelation 4:8). The fact is clear—God’s plan in the Bible was to make intercession central.

And something on a huge scale is presently developing.

The prayer movement is quickly spreading around the world, but it is not without persistent prayer and hard work. As you read about the establishing of Houses of Prayer in cities and see the largeness of the task, you may be tempted to ask yourself several questions:

  • Is 24/7 prayer possible for my city?
  • Has this ever been done before?
  • Can we have faith for such a big venture as day and night prayer
    where we live?
  • What is the value of such intensity in prayer hour after hour and day after day?

These questions are legitimate because we need to really believe in prayer in order to pay the price. It will cost each one of us time and effort. We can’t begin and then quit. We are in this for the long haul. These questions have an answer that should motivate each one of us.

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOP-KC