“Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression…” (Isaiah 58:1)
This is exactly what took place on Tuesday night, when the man of God stood before us and pronounced the words that the Lord had given him for us. “We as a people have lost our hunger and passion for God.”
At the beginning of this year, the message given to us from our Pastor let us know that God had spoken to him that we had already crossed over Jordan, it was now time to divide the land. As Bro Shelley preached the Joshua series of messages, we were taught about the inhabitants of Canaan and the spiritual applications they would have in our lives. He warned us that it would take wisdom to move through “Canaan,” and not pick up the spirits of the inhabitants.
As we look back to past sermons, and back to examples given to us in the Bible, we see the cause of our condition. We have ignored the warnings and allowed the spirits of the land to influence our lives. The Bible clearly warns that if we do not utterly destroy them, if we show mercy upon them, or make covenants with them, or give our children in marriage to them, they will cause our children to turn away from following God. We haven’t physically married our children off to these influences, but we have allowed these influences and spirits into our homes, thereby turning our hearts away from following the Lord.
The physical enemies that Joshua fought are symbols of our spiritual battles. The Hivites, if you’ll remember, trusted in their own human ability. The Perizzites despised positive change. They were a people who lacked a vision for progress. The Girgashites represented ignorance, and a lack of spiritual training. The Hittites were violent and rebellious. The Amorites dwelt on the summit and were full of pride. The Jebusites were the intimidators; they invoked fear in their enemies and dared anyone to challenge them. And the last of all the tribes Joshua had to conquer were the Canaanites, the merchants of materialism, speaking to us of our need to conquer the love of money.
In Deuteronomy 7:1, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites are listed by God as seven nations, greater and mightier than Israel. Only by obedience to God’s Word would they be defeated.
On June 10, the man of God sounded an alarm. He said that there were some spirits working among us that are bigger, and wiser than we are. He said the only way we would be able to address these spirits would be by prayer and fasting. This came as the third prophetic step in a series of steps leading to our deliverance as a Body. In obedience, we started fasting corporately twice a week. Then camp meeting came and our schedules were interrupted. We feel it is time to return.
We have been praying faithfully as a Body. No doubt, many among us fast as individuals. But God has also called us to fast corporately as a Body; we must obey this step also. Fasting, as our Pastor has taught us, intensifies our prayers and causes the knock on Heaven’s door to be a little louder. It is a crucifying of the flesh, causing us to be humble and submissive before God. Fasting and prayer can restore the loss of hunger and passion for the Lord. It will help us to see our true spiritual condition. It will bring the brokenness and true repentance needed to restore our relationship with God.
On Tuesday night, the man of God called us to repentance, so we feel that we should begin this prayer directive doing just that – repenting as a Body. Moses, Daniel, Ezra, and others stood in the gap for the people as intercessors. Allow the Lord to use you tonight as you enter into your prayer time to stand in the gap and repent for yourself and the people.
- Repent for allowing our love relationship with the Lord to grow cold.
- Repent for losing our passion and hunger for God.
- Repent for allowing the influences of this world to separate us from God.
- Repent for our lukewarm condition.
- Repent for our lack of respect for authority.
- Repent for our attitudes and hardness toward God and His servant.
- Repent for our lack of respect toward God’s House.
- Repent for not obeying God’s Voice when He speaks.
- Repent for harboring bitterness and unforgiveness toward our brother and sister.
- Repent for allowing the precious things God has blessed us with to become common.
- Repent for not coming to God’s House prepared.
Bind the Spirits of Witchcraft & Stubbornness:
We must not let up, as we move together in unity, to pray against the strongholds that have paralyzed this Body.
Remember that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. So bind the spirit of witchcraft and loose the Spirit of Obedience. Bind the spirit of stubbornness and loose the Spirit of Submissiveness.
Bind the Spirit of Defiance:
Bind this spirit that defies authority and challenges the man of God to keep him from speaking the Truth.
Bind the Spirit of Fear:
This spirit working in our lives keeps us from obeying God. Remember the Lord warned us that He, the Lord, would divide the people this time. He would divide between the fearful and the faithful. Bind the spirit of fear and loose the perfect Love of Jesus Christ to motivate us to good works.
Our Church Body:
Pray for those three keys that we need as a Body.
I. That each person would have a revelation of the Word delivered in this hour
II. An understanding of the times
III. A right spirit
We must also pray that we would have the gift of discerning of spirits. This is so needed in this hour to protect and keep us.
Pray for Our Services:
There is a quote we’d like to share with you from the book, “Fasting for Spiritual Breakthrough,” by Elmer L. Towns. He said, “On our knees we pray as if everything depends on God, but we get up and work as if everything depends on us.”
We must take an active roll in the services. It is not enough to pray for them. We must come willing to press our way in. We must come willing to sing, willing to praise, willing to pray, willing to support the preaching of the Word, and willing to tarry in His presence.
Brother Shelley & Family:
Pray for our Pastor, he stands in great need. Physically he is doing better, but this battle we are in is taking a toll on him mentally. We must guard our spirits during the preaching of the Word and not allow ourselves to resent him for being the mouthpiece God is using.
We must separate the man from the mouthpiece. We must show honor and respect to God’s vessel. We must support him in prayer. Take an opportunity to show your appreciation for his obedience to lead this Body. Remember our words can build or tear down. Let’s be found faithful to God by speaking Words that build our Pastor.
Pray for Sis Stacey. As the helpmate to the man of God, her battles have also intensified. She has been a blessing to our Pastor and this Body. Let us lift her up as she faithfully supports him and cares for their two little ones. Pray for Benjamin and Joshua. Pray for Sis Shelley. Pray the blessings of God upon them. Pray for the peace of God to be in their home. Pray that God will protect the Shelley family from evil.
Let us not let up in praying for our Pastor’s health. He was limping on Tuesday night. Continue to bind the generational curse of arthritis. Bind the spirits of gout, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Loose divine healing.
Pray for Our Young People:
The enemy is working overtime to cause them to not heed the Voice of warning. The enemy is trying to sever their relationship with the man of God, the Watchman. We must pray for the integrity of this relationship, because it is vital for their survival.
Pray for a Release of Finances:
Continue to declare a release in the Name of Jesus. During last week’s prayer chain, one intercessor reported seeing what looked like something hanging just above our heads, bulging as though it would burst, signifying abundance. In this vision the enemy had held back our finances, and our prayers were like an instrument trying to puncture it. In the past, as we have prayed for our finances, when the trickle would begin to flow, we’d let up in our praying. But the Lord told us to pray until the flow of abundance comes.
Pray for the Outreach Ministry:
- Pray for the website
- Pray for the radio broadcast
- Pray for the short-wave radio program
- Pray for the telephone hook-up. Continue to especially pray for a good connection overseas. Also, pray that the language will not be a hindrance in Romania.
Pray for America:
We must continue to pray for our country. Pray against every planned attack, that God would bring protection and intervention.
- Pray for President Bush and his family that they would be protected from harm. Pray that he will continue to bow his knees every morning and seek God’s face for direction. Pray that he will continue to be a man of integrity.
- Pray for our troops in Afghanistan. There have been miracles of protection and it is because of prayer. They have reported the searching of caves to be very dangerous. Two servicemen have lost a foot because of land mines this week. Pray for their continued protection.
Pray for Israel:
This little nation needs our prayers as never before. A news report this week listed the President of Iran saying that if they had the capabilities, they would be able to wipe out Israel with one nuclear bomb. The Muslim world wants to see Israel destroyed. We must stand in the gap for Israel’s protection.
- Pray against the suicide bombers. Pray that they will be exposed before harm can come.
- Pray for the relationship between America and Israel.
Pray for the New Year’s Meetings:
With the meetings less than one week away, we must not let a day go by without preparing. May we fast and pray this week to see God’s Hand move among us.
Pray for all those that are traveling to have safety on the roads and in the airways. Pray for Bro Shelley as he prepares his messages.
We are hoping to start a prayer list soon. So far, we have not yet added the different prayer requests to the prayer directive, but an urgent request has come in. Sister Judith’s sister, Esther Johnson, called her at 3 am this morning to tell her that her son Andrew was in the hospital in intensive care. He is 9 years old and has been diagnosed with Juvenile Diabetes. He was rushed to the hospital and was almost in a coma. Please pray because this is very serious and Sis Esther is not handling it well.
Thanks to all once again for your support and faithfulness to watch in prayer.