Tag Archives: strength

Build Foundational Strength        

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11226567_964511230278651_6881985017139642886_n“The Lord will test the endurance of this new praying church, but gradually the power of God will be released in the cities of prayer. The extraordinary presence of the living Christ will make miracles seem ordinary. Faith will once again rest on the demonstration of the Spirit and not upon the wisdom of man; multitudes will be genuinely saved… The only way we can stand victorious before our enemies is if we kneel humbly before our Lord together.” Francis Frangipane

In order to stay stable and secure in difficult days, there are several areas where we need to be strong. Building strength in the following four areas will help us to stand strong against the enemy:

  • Personally – In personal prayer and intimacy. Our entire lives must be built upon our relationship with God. Intimacy and praise is the key to living strong personally during times of stress. Knowing God and His character calms our heart and gives us courage.You are my strength, I sing praise to you; you, God, are my fortress, my God on whom I can rely (Psalm 59:17).
  • Corporately – In corporate prayer and worship. We must pray that the Church of Jesus Christ in every city increases its focus on prayer and worship, and becomes a praying Church and a praying community. As life becomes more difficult, praying corporately will become necessary. Together in prayer we will find God as our refuge.God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble (Psalm 46:1).
  • Relationally – In all our relationships. We must learn to walk in peace, forgiveness, and repentance on a continual basis with everyone. We cannot afford to become bitter or judgmental. It is time for the body of Christ to unite and to realize the power and strength of that unity.The LORD gives strength to his people; the LORD blesses his people with peace (Psalm 29:11).
  • Spiritually – In the Word of God. We cannot listen to the enemy’s lies any longer. This is a season where we must hold onto the Word of God as our truth in every situation we face. Learn more about praying the Word of God in chapter four.My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word (Psalm 119:28).

We need to be like Noah who knew God intimately and obeyed Him. He built an ark when people were partying and having an easy time. Could you have taken the courage to do that? Noah knew what God told him to do even when outward signs did not speak of a flood that would cover the entire earth. He continued in obedience and faithfulness even when he was the only one.

Many of you are called to be forerunners. You are called to promote, lead, and encourage the prayer movement in your church and city. You know what the Lord wants. You know that 24/7 prayer is critical for your city. The highest identity of God’s people now and throughout all of eternity will be through intimacy-based intercession as Sons of God and as the Bride of Christ. We are created to interact deeply with God’s heart. He will govern the universe in partnership with us through intercession.

This is your time to build a strong foundation. You may not be building an actual ark, but you are building a House of Prayer in your church or city. Like the ark Noah built, when the storm comes the Houses of Prayer will protect people from destruction and will provide a covering, bringing more mercy to that city or town being prayed for. You must faithfully build one brick at a time, believing by faith that when the storms come, your city will stand because it is built on the rock of Christ and on prayer (Matthew 7:24-25).

There are others of you who are not the ones to lead in building a House of Prayer in your city, but you are the supporters. You say, “Yes” to prayer in your heart. You are the ones who pray and hold up the arms of those who lead the prayer movement in your city or in your church. You know how necessary prayer is for your city and you support it willingly in mind, heart, and action. You want to know God deeply and are willing to unite with others even from different denominational backgrounds than yours. You are a very needed part.

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOP-KC

Displaying Strength and Taking Action

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11391378_968328796563561_8830578958915931122_n“If we are fully given to knowing Christ intimately, not only will we enjoy His presence, but also we will gain spiritual strength for whatever the future holds! The key, therefore, to living victoriously in the last days is not knowing timetables, but knowing God. Daniel foretold that, in the midst of worldwide distress, those who ‘know their God will display strength and take action’ (Daniel 11:32). From a position of knowing the heart and nature of God, in the midst of great difficulties we will “display strength and take action.”  Francis Frangipane

The King James Version of this verse says that God’s people will do great exploits. The definition of exploits in the Dictionary is “a heroic act, a deed of renown, a great or noble achievement.” This is what we must pray for in the Church. The Church of Jesus Christ will take action, do noble achievements and heroic acts for God that shall be known worldwide! But it starts in the prayer room. The governmental center of the world is in the prayer room. God’s power is released through corporate intercession. What a weapon for the Church! There are three realities mentioned here for the Church:

  • Know God – We will know God in spiritual intimacy.
  • Be strong – We will be strong in spirit to stand victoriously against evil.
  • Do exploits – We will do great exploits and experience the power of God.

In looking at our personal foundation, one of the most important truths that we must individually know is that God loves us deeply. We must know our identity in Christ. We are lovers of God and are deeply loved by Him. This will keep us strong and stable during difficult times. This will give us the confidence we need to do great things for God.

When we are called to lead or support the prayer movement, we must have the foundational knowledge that we are greatly loved by God. Although many believers do not have this knowledge in their heart because of past wounding, spending time in the presence of God in a House of Prayer can make it “real” personally. When we are alone in an atmosphere of praise, worship, and prayer, then we can hear from God more clearly.

Daniel needed to know God’s love personally. He sought the Lord in a 21-day fast (Daniel 10:2-3), got a vision from God (Daniel 10:5-6), lost strength because of the vision (Daniel 10:8-10), and then received a word from the angel Gabriel. He was told that he was greatly beloved and highly esteemed by God three times (Daniel 9:23; 10:11, 19).

Wouldn’t that dramatically affect your life if an angel told you that?

And yet, God wants to affirm each one of us in the prayer room corporately and in our own prayer closets in our home as well. Many times I have gone into the prayer room struggling with a personal issue and have come out with the assurance of God’s love and concern for me.

It is there, in that secret place dedicated to prayer, that we can hear the affirmation from our Father. And when we find it hard to receive His love, others in the body of Christ can help. We must know that God loves us because it will be our strength in hard times. Because Daniel knew in his heart that he was loved and highly esteemed by God, he was able to rise up in strength and do mighty things for Him. He stood up renewed in his spirit (Daniel 10:11).

We all feel the need to be loved and have a bigger purpose outside of ourselves. A visitation from heaven calling you beloved of God would change your life. It would give you an inner strength that would affect everything you do for God. You would become bold and fearless in knowing that God was on your side and highly esteemed you. You would have an inner peace that no storm could destroy.

Daniel had that kind of foundational strength.

It is time for us to align ourselves with God’s heart for us personally and corporately. As the Church of Jesus Christ, let’s build our foundational strength and receive the revelation that we are the “beloved” of God in our personal lives, our churches, and our city. When we truly have this revelation, we will praise Him from the depths of satisfied souls. We will want to be worshippers of God.

God desires that prayer and praise permeate every nation. We must align ourselves with heaven in order to see the powers of darkness broken over our cities and see revival break out. If all the Christians in a city knew their personal identity in Christ, they would be a powerful force in that area against the powers of darkness.

Through developing intimacy in the House of Prayer, we shall do mighty exploits for God’s Kingdom. Jesus is our model who continues to govern through prayer and reaches the nations through intercession (Hebrew 7:25). Let’s strengthen our foundation and align our lives with Him. In the prayer room we build intimacy through worship, reading and praying His Word, quietly listening, and many other ways.

“It is possible for Christ’s church to be so properly aligned with heaven that the Holy Spirit actually displaces the power of darkness over our cities. To the degree that the church is so joined to God, the Lord’s presence guards the city: crime and immorality proportionally decline; revival breaks out.” Francis Frangipane

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOP-KC