The need to apply your inbuilt impact prayer power

The need to apply your inbuilt impact prayer power 

Note: these are supplemental notes to our podcast "Unleash Prayer Impact already within you" found at www.africhristpodcast.com

Everyone has faith according to Romans 12:3, the Bible says that to each one of us God has dealt or given a measure of faith. In Matthew 17:20 Jesus compares the faith within us to a small mustard seed.  Just  as this small mustard seed can grow into an enormous tree that feeds and shelters and supports many, our “mustard seed  faith” so to speak, can move enormous mountains in our lives.

Prayer is  the vehicle necessary to transform our faith from our spiritual being into our physical natural realm. Prayer is the heartbeat of the believer, and is a necessity not an option in this transaction. 

In order for us to worship, serve, speak to and/or hear from God, we need prayer. Sometimes prayer is secluded, some times it is public. Sometimes it is quiet sometimes it is loud. Sometimes it is long sometimes it is short duration.  Do not be bogged down by methodology.

Prayer is a form of worship. The Bible says in John 4:24 that God is Spirit and they that worship him, do so in spirit and truth, that’s all we need!

God seeks out a praying people. It’s a wonderful thing to seek after God, it is much more wonderful to be sought by the Almighty God!

We may ask,  “How could an Immortal and Almighty God really seek out mortal, weak and imperfect man?” The answer is twofold:

Grace and 

Agape unconditional love. 

It’s a relationship not forced but desired and freely established when we open and allow our spirit to meet with his Spirit.

The scriptures tell us that God is indeed seeking out for a praying people. 

John 4:23-24 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to strengthen those whose hearts are  fully committed to him

So what does the “eye of the Lord”mean? God is not a creature that has blinking physical eyes and we have seen that he is Spirit. God is all knowing and is ever present, he never slumbers or sleep.  I like to look at it like this:

Imagine an orchestra playing a song. The conductor stands in front directing. Every member plays their instrument with a different sound but in concert. The conductor’s ear is attentive to each instrument and directs with his hands, calling, fading and signing each player to maintain harmony. He is in charge but each musician is in control of their instrument. He is “sovereign” but has delegated control to each musician. He has an intimate knowledge of each song and instrument as well as his musicians. 

That’s how God is with each one of us. He is sovereign but has delegated us with authority to control our lives. He has an intimate knowledge of each one of us, his musicians and our instruments which we could call talents or calling in life. 

Prayer brings us in his presence, his courts, the orchestra to play. We can play the instruments of our lives elsewhere but there’s no harmony outside his will. Prayer brings us in intimate contact with his will for us. Remember Jeremiah 29:11 says he has a plan for us to help us succeed.    

“Prayer is key to individual and church spiritual growth and maturity.There are two ways to get into this intimate orchestra the Lord’s presence, (1) individually or (2) group and/or corporate fellowship

1. Individual Prayer 

The Praying Duo‘s Example

Individual prayer is intimate and is a one on one encounter with our creator. The Bible encourages us to be joyful as we pray without ceasing in 1 Thessalonians 5:17. What does that mean? Is that all we live for? In another version it says “never stop praying” so we  should always be in the mode of prayer even when we are not in the mood to pray. 

Individual prayer may be in form of worship and/or fellowship with he Lord. It may also be a petition for help and sometimes very urgent help. 

Let's look at examples of two women in the Bible. One was in a prayer of continual fellowship that included fasting with a longtime goal of waiting for the fulfillment of a prophecy. Waiting on the birth of the Messiah. The other was the urgent petition of a barren woman, that led to the birth of a prophet, Samuel.

Because of these two women’s fervent prayers, the Biblical landscape was changed. Hanna was younger and the Anna was older, but both were  focused in prayer. They show us that fervency and perseverance in prayer are inseparable. They lived in different Biblical times but each prayed and waited for a child, Samuel and Jesus. It is interesting that these two children were described in the Bible with characteristically very similar words. Hanna shows us an example of importunity in prayer while Anna shows us perseverance and patience in prayer.

Hanna and importunity

“1Sam. 1:9-15. So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the LORD. And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore.And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the LORD, that Eli marked her mouth.Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee. And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD. ”

Anna

“Luke 2:36-37 There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.”

“Prayer was a powerful tool in the hands of these otherwise common ladies and it transformed them into Biblical prayer giants who prayed with impact.  Hannah previously barren reaped the reward of a son, Samuel through importune praying. 

The psalmist would later say in Psalms. 113:9 

He settles the barren woman  in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the LORD. 

Anna, through unceasing prayer and fasting reaped the reward of seeing and welcoming Jesus  the Messiah, God’s gift to the world. Prayer has its rewards because God rewards the people of faith who diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 says “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him

2. Corporate and/or group prayer

Prayer is an equalizing force that is for the whole church body.  Your church or group does not have to be in a certain geographical area or be of a certain size. Individuals do not have to be “super spiritual”, “intercessors”, church officials or ministers. In fact, many times the praying people are regular people such as Anna, without office, title or rank but simply obedient Christians. Prayer matures Christians individually and corporately because being in the presence of Jesus imparts unimaginable wisdom, power and revelation knowledge similar to what we saw in the apostles’ experience.

Acts 4:13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

Jesus gave us the minimum requirement for group fellowship in Matthew 18:20 when he said “where 2 or 3 are gathered in my name, there I am with them”

“For there to be viable church growth in the true sense of increasing new believers as well as maturing all believers, as opposed to shifting believers, prayer has to be at the heart of every Christian church. In the book of Acts we see a powerful, vibrantly growing and maturing church that was under-girded by continuous prayer. The disciples were always prayerful prior to making tough decisions that required supernatural wisdom for effective ministry.

Acts 6:3-7 Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient[…]”

“Here we see that to the disciples after the ascension of Jesus, prayer was central in:

Specific ministry appointments

Increase in church numbers (harvest)

Obedience and adherence to the faith by church leadership

Harmony in the church body

While, the resistance to the early church above was mostly from an external religious spiritual and physical attacks, today’s spirit of apathy is insidious thus the case for and need for much more prayer. Prayer within our churches, homes and fellowships. Holy Spirit led prayer, could be short and precise or extended if necessary. Apathy to prayer leads to compromise, and is especially dangerous if it’s from within the church.

Prayerlessness: The “flat tire” believers 

Imagine driving a car that has only one side of its tires inflated. One may continue to drive it, but the ride will be rough and damage to the car will inevitably come. Such is a church or believer that is doing everything else but leaves prayer out of the equation. The imbalance in an individual or church body will lead to spiritual stagnation, lack of progress as well as unnecessary “damage”. Guidance by the Holy Spirit diminishes and actions and programs become more carnal in nature.

As mentioned earlier, the church founders in the book of Acts saw the danger of prayer-less Christianity and declared:

 Acts 6:2-4 “Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.” 

Accepting the Lordship of Jesus Christ helps us Rediscover our gifts and talents

Accepting the Lordship of Jesus Christ helps us Rediscover our gifts and talents 

When God created the Universe, the Bible says that he looked and what he had made and declared that it was good. However he did not assign guardianship until after he created man in his own image. 

He specifically gave man ownership, guardianship and responsibility that he did not give to his other creation outside of their species. In the process he gave man abilities and gifts we call talents.

   

When we accept the Lordship of Jesus Christ Christ in our lives, there is a resurgence of this commission in our lives and we then have a chance again to restart our lives and gain footage again.

There are benefits for using your gifts as well as consequences when you don’t. But if we miss it, God in His mercy has provided a redress through Jesus Christ.

Below we have some reminders of this relationship that he has with us as well as us to our environment.

God’s Divine action	Scripture reference	Scripture quote
1. God has it planned	Jeremiah 29:11-13 NLT	“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.”
2. Well equipped and given all the tools we need	II Peter 1:2-3 NKJV	“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,”
3. God enables and anoints all the talents for performing the call	Exodus 31:6 NLT	““And I have personally appointed Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, to be his assistant. Moreover, I have given special skill to all the gifted craftsmen so they can make all the things I have commanded you to make:”
4. Parental guidance & advice from God	Judges 13:8-12 NKJV	“Then Manoah prayed to the LORD, and said, “O my Lord, please let the Man of God whom You sent come to us again and teach us what we shall do for the child who will be born.” And God listened to the voice of Manoah, and the Angel of God came to the woman again as she was sitting in the field; but Manoah her husband was not with her. Then the woman ran in haste and told her husband, and said to him, “Look, the Man who came to me the other day has just now appeared to me!” So Manoah arose and followed his wife. When he came to the Man, he said to Him, “Are You the Man who spoke to this woman?” And He said, “I am. ” Manoah said, “Now let Your words come to pass! What will be the boy’s rule of life, and his work?””
4. God set and has expectations for the use of our gifts & talents	Matthew 25:14-15 NLT	““Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone. He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.”
5. Rewards for Performance	Matthew 25:19-23 NLT	““After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’ “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together! ’ “The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’ “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’”
6. Consequences for non performance	Matthew 25:24-26, 28 NLT	“Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’ “But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver.”
7. God’s redirection, mercy and change through Christ	2Corinthians 5:16-17 NLT	“So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”