Today’s prayer focus concerns the power of togetherness in prayer and in worship.
Throughout our 12 days of The Christmas Prayer Challenge, I have encouraged you to consider praying with friends. There are several reasons for this. We live in a culture that is connected more than at any time in history, but is more isolated and alone than ever.
The internet gives us a false sense of connection and we lose the intimacy of a face to face, voice to voice conversation. There are fewer hugs, less reading of body language and less social grace. Our souls crave companionship. In fact, in the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, he said everything that was created was good. The only thing that was not good was the missing element- companionship for Adam. He needed a wife.
God created us for intimacy, for fellowship and for union. Our first union he created us for is union with God and the second is union with our spouse and then fellowship with family and friends.
In our time, we have Christians who have lots of theology about God, but no intimacy with God. We have spouses who have a legal relationship, but no depth of companionship they need and crave. We see relationships that are nothing more than “likes” and responses on a screen on social media for the world to see. There is very little one on one time for interaction, let alone time for what we were really created for- time with God together.
Time with God together should not just be time talking about God or going to a Christian concert. Those things are fine and good to do, but there is a loss of deep fellowship in talking to God together. Sharing your hearts in God’s presence is a beautiful and uniting practice.
In my experience, the people I pray with are my real friends. We know each other on the deepest levels and see God answer prayers that we travail together for. This may seem like an alien concept to you or scary or intimidating. But, really, we do not need to be afraid of what God has ordained for us or created us for.
In fact, he even makes provision for greater power when we pray in groups. Here is an incredible revelation about the power we have in prayer when we pray with others to bind and loose things on earth as they are in heaven.
Matthew 18: 15-20 “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
“Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
“Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
Here is a scripture that I have greatly misunderstood in the past, but if you read it in context, you see the Father’s heart for intercession for the lost. If there is someone who claims to be a Christian who is living in unrepentant sin, go to them to discuss it with them, if they want to continue in their sin, bring the elders of the church to them to help you persuade them, if they still refuse to repent, Jesus said treat them like a pagan.
Well, in the past, I thought that meant to ignore them and refuse to associate with them. NO!!! It means to treat them as unsaved, as if they are going to hell and need salvation. The immediate next verse speaks of intercession TOGETHER for this person in an urgent manner.
We need to stop just trying to do our spiritual walk on our own. We need to share Jesus together, we need to help those struggling together and we need to pray for them TOGETHER, binding Satan’s work in the lives of our friends and family. We need to loose the work of God in the lives of those who need it by asking the Holy Spirit to do what he wants to do in their lives.
Jesus tells us to do this. Jesus PROMISES God will work when two or more agree on anything in Jesus’s name. God promises to work when we gather together and pray TOGETHER. This isn’t just a nice bless the pastor 1 minute prayer…although God is there for that, too.
God wants us to be serious about his kingdom coming in and through prayer, or Jesus never would have told us this. In the Lord’s prayer, Jesus gave us the instructions to pray, “Your kingdom come, your WILL be done on earth AS IT IS IN HEAVEN.”
If we read the WILL of God in the earlier part of Matthew 18, we see it clearly,
The Parable of the Wandering Sheep
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.
“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.
I recently have had several friends who’s children had wandered from God and were lost. One received the best Christmas present of her life this year, as her son just accepted Christ and repented of his sin! Believe me, the families receiving this hopeful gift have been praying together with believers and asking and pleading for salvation for their loved ones.
Some have been praying for years. But, God is faithful to answer our prayers, and he does not want us to pray alone, in our prayer closet all the time. He wants us to join together in prayer with other believers to see the lost come home.
This Christmas, give yourself, your family and your God the gift of renewed, unified, fervent prayer. He wants to loose his Spirit and angels to work in your prayers. He wants to pour out his power to move mountains with faith. He wants to bind the work of the devil in the lives of your loved ones.
Be the difference.
Be the incense going up before the throne.
Be like Jesus, who intercedes for us day and night at the right hand of the Father. You will find great joy in intercession with other believers, and I do not mean just sharing a prayer request on Facebook. Let’s get back to praying together for each other and for the lost. In Jesus name!
PRAYER for fellowship with prayer (for those who are new to this or feel alone and would like to find someone to pray with…)
Father, in Jesus name, I am not used to praying with other people on a regular basis. I don’t even know where to start or what to do. I am not even sure who I would pray with. I need your guidance. I want to draw closer to you in prayer. I know that Jesus you said that people who love you who pray together experience the promise of you answering their prayers in power. I want to experience you in a new way and in power.
Lord Jesus, I want to give you my time. It is hard to find time to get together with other believers and fellowship, let alone pray together for any period of time. I give you my time, I give you my schedule. I pray against Satan’s tactics to isolate me from praying with other believers.
I ask, Lord Jesus, that you build your kingdom in my life, as I seek your will to fellowship in prayer with other people. I pray that my family will pray together more. I pray that our family will find another family or group of believers to pray with. God, I ask that you will provide fellowship for me to pray with other believers, in Jesus name.
For those who do not know for sure if they died tonight they would go to heaven. For those who want to repent and turn to Jesus Christ’s mercy and grace:
“Father God, I am a sinner. I am far from you. I have sin in my life that is controlling me. I have been walking from you and walking my own path far too long. I acknowledge that even though I know I do good things in my life, I can never be perfect and that in my goodness, there is still sin that needs dealt with. God, Jesus your Son came to die for my sins. There is no other way for me to be saved, except by the death and resurrection of your son, Jesus Christ. I ask, Lord Jesus, that you will come into my life, forgive me of my many sins and deliver me from myself. Fill me with your Holy Spirit. I receive you into my life and receive the Holy Spirit’s power and presence in and on my life, in Jesus name! God deliver me from all evil and teach me to walk in your ways. I command Satan to leave me, in Jesus name. I follow Jesus and your power over me, Satan, is broken, in the powerful name of Jesus! God, help me to find a group of Bible believing, truth-filled and Spirit-filled Christians to pray with and to worship with. In Jesus name, Amen.”
Binding and Loosing Prayer- Prayer to pray with another person to pray for the lost:
Father, in Jesus name, pour out your Holy Spirit to anoint our prayer time with your power. Lord God, we invite you here among us. You say that where two or three are gathered in your name, you are there in the midst of them and where two or more agree on anything in your name, you will do it!
We worship your name, Father God. We praise you for __________ (list things you want to worship God for.)
Father, Jesus said to pray to you that “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Today, we pray that your kingdom come and your will be done in the lives of our lost loved ones.
We pray for the people we know who are not walking with you. We pray for those who are lost in sin.
List people individually and pray this for as many people as the Lord leads you to pray for:
We bind Satan’s work in ______’s life, in Jesus name, because Jesus you said, “Whatever we bind on earth you will bind in heaven.” Jesus we pray for _____ that you will loose your warring angels to fight the enemy Satan who is lying to them and distracting them and warring against him/her, in Jesus’ name. We pray that you will rescue _____ out of the dominion of darkness and bring _____ into the kingdom of light in Christ.
We pray that the eyes of their hearts will be opened in Jesus name. Loose your Holy Spirit to speak to their hearts, to give them dreams about you at night and to draw them to you during the day. We pray the conviction of God on this person, in Jesus name and that the peace of God will overshadow them. We pray that they will repent of their sin and turn to the forgiveness of Jesus Christ.
We pray that you will release your angels to protect them, as they are wandering from you. We pray that you will bring them out of rebellion and bring them into submission to Jesus Christ. We pray that you will pour your love out in their heart. May they be drawn by your love. May they experience your power. Lord Jesus, do miracles to turn their heart to you, in Jesus name. Lord Jesus, We ask for you to do this quickly. We ask Lord Jesus for you to give us patience and endurance to pray for _____ as much as you want us to and for as long as we need to.
We trust you to work, Lord Jesus, even when we forget to pray or are in a weak place, we trust you to continue to work sovereignly.
Lord Jesus, give us faith to trust what you want to do. Help our unbelief. Help us to trust you for things that are greater than we can ask or imagine. Forgive us for years of walking in unbelief.
Move us into faith. Move us into power. Move us into victory. Move us into prayer. Move us, Lord Jesus!
Lord Jesus, We need you! Lord Jesus, the things we need you to work in are issues of the heart. They are issues we cannot do a thing about. We need hearts to change. We need attitudes to change. We need power. We are helpless without you. Lord, Jesus, please move in the attitudes of my heart and in the attitudes of people in my family and church and my friends. Soften our hearts, prepare us for the great work of God that will come when we pray for our friends to come to Christ.
Lord God, help us to obey you, even when others mock us or reject us or when others are doing their own thing and not following you. Help us to be faithful and not driven by the wind of our emotions. Speak to us, Lord God! Speak truth to us that we may be changed.
God, forgive us for rejecting time with you in your Word and in prayer. God open up our hearts to understand and desire your Word and to desire prayer. May they not be chores, but be vitally important to our walks with you.
Release your power in our lives here today to increase our faith and to grow in our walks with you. Reveal sin in our hearts that you want to deal with. Fill us with grace and forgiveness towards those who hurt us. Help us to be the difference in this dark world. God equip us to make disciples. May we be people of prayer and people who faithfully work in your kingdom.
Father, in Jesus name, move in power in our world! Raise up more believers to come to your throne. Teach us to pray fervently!
This Christmas, may I be a blessing to you, Lord Jesus. May my life glorify you. I love you so much! Thank you for sending Jesus, your Son, Father God. May I make you proud. When I stand before your throne, I want to hear you say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” May everything I do be done for you and not for my own glory.
In Jesus name! Amen.
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