What Is God Saying Now? “Let Us Return To Corporate Prayer”
What Is God Saying Now? “Let Us Return To Corporate Prayer”
II Peter 1:12, Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.
One of the most important of the present truths in which God is speaking now is that the church must return to corporate prayer. We must include in our services more times for corporate prayer. Let’s not forget the command, as well as the promises of II Chronicles 7:12-16, where the Word of God says: (II Chronicles 7:12-16, And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice. If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I end pestilence among my people; If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place. For now have I chosen and sanctified this house that my name may be there forever: and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.).
I have adapted this passage of scripture and have applied it directly to The Harvest Center (our ministry), verse 14 tells us what God holds as His priority, that is; for us to humble ourselves and to pray, and seek His face (worship), and if we make this our priority, God makes us promises that He surely will keep, “He will forgive our sins and heal our land”. This is what will cause the Kingdom of God to come and God’s will to be done as well as granting us the desires of our heart. If we are going to see the church truly become the church of power and glory, we must become the house of prayer that Jesus said that we should be in Matthew 21:13 (my house shall be called a house of prayer….”). This means that most service times are too short because leaders want to accommodate the people. This says that our services must become longer to give more room for more prayer time. There is no prayer more powerful than corporate prayer, for the bible says in Deuteronomy 32:30 ,” How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except the their Rock had sold them……..”), this tells me that our effectiveness increases 80% when we pray corporately. Satan has a united kingdom, so must be the Kingdom of God that will unite for prayer and spiritual warfare.We can no longer operate at this prayer deficiency that we have operated in the years gone by. God is holding leaders accountable for this restoration of prayer back into the church. The true Apostles have the assignment as well as the anointing to bring about this restoration that is to put prayer as priority within the church.
One of the benefits of more prayer is, Prayer Will Keep Us from Falling into the Temptations of the Devil. Luke 22:40 the bible says: (“on reaching the place, He said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation), If we do not fall into temptation, there will be less sin in our lives. Before we can help anyone clean up their lives, we must cleanse our own lives of sin. More prayer is the answer. My assignment for this ministry is to raise an army of prayer warriors, and my prayer is that I impart to you the desire to join God’s prayer army. If you are a leader, you must mobilize your troops by establishing more time for corporate prayer in your meetings.
Another important benefit of corporate prayer is, it will draw the Power of Gods Holy Spirit to His People. In Acts 1:14 it says that the believers were in (prayer and supplication….”), and in Acts chapter 2:4 ( And there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind and it filled all the house where they were sitting, and cloven tongues like as of fire sat upon each of them and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit of God gave them utterance.), this was the empowering of the church for ministry. God wants to empower His church again but we must do our part, that is, to return to corporate prayer as our priority! Every believer must be empowered with the spirit of God, to be equipped for our assignment and ready for battle.
Our Mindset For Corporate Prayer Must Include:
1. You must believe that God will honor your prayer. Mark 11:24 says (Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it you shall have it).
2. Begin to praise and thank God first; worship Him for who He is. John 4:24 says that (“God is a Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth”).
3. We must pray from a clean heart if we want God to hear us Psalms 66:18(“If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me”) This means that we must repent of all sin in our lives, known and unknown, which is to turn away and stop the sin.
4. Always ask the Father, in the name of Jesus. John 16:23-24 (And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.)There is still power in the name of Jesus. Philippians 2:8-11 tells us that God has given Jesus (“a name that is above every name”).
5. Base your prayer request on the word of God, God’s will is His word I John 5:14-15 (“we know that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us…..”) God’s will concerning our prayers are in His Word, so let’s read His will, or His Word as the foundation for our prayers.
6. Every believer must be filled with the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking with other tongues, this is how we can pray the perfect will of the Father. Romans 8:26-27, is by praying in the Holy Ghost.
7. This also is how we build ourselves up for battle by building our faith Jude verse 20
8. This our most effective weapon of prayer, I Corinthians 14:1-2, says we speak the mysteries of God, to God thus, we bypass demonic understanding that causes us to doubt what God promises us in His Word. (I John 5:14-15 “If we ask anything….”)
As I close, here is the major key to the devil’s total defeat by the church and the restoration of Gods power being returned to His house, that is, when we truly make Gods house the House of Prayer.
I say, LET’S DO IT!!
Apostle Rufus L. Smalls