Category: Prayer Initiatives

Freedom Prayer Sheet for September 1, 2020

Tuesday Morning – Freedom Prayer Sheet
Tuesday, September 1, 2020

 

When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

2 Chronicles 7:13-14 NKJV

 

Prayer for Yourself:

  1. Friend check: how are you handling the change all about us?  Are you struggling?  Are you stressing?  Are you keeping a positive outlook?  These are very difficult times that there seems to be no end in sight.  Be sure you pour God’s Word into your head and heart each day and pray for yourself.  Seek out a friend to be a prayer/share partner.  Don’t try to go it alone!
  2. In Jesus’ darkest, loneliest hour – the Garden of Gethsemane – (Matthew 26:36-46) He went to prayer, and in John 17:1-5, He prayed for Himself for strength to bring Glory to the Father through what He was facing. Look what He did!  He became the Savior of the whole world!  Our prayers are a lifeline to life!  Pray for yourself!

 

Prayer for Your Family:

  1. Pray for your children and grandchildren, by name! Pray for your siblings and for your parents if they are still with you.
  2. Pray for any specific needs of your family members!

 

Prayer for the Church:  the church gathered (Covenant Life Church) and the church dispersed (other houses of Christian worship) here and throughout the world. 

  1. Pray that God will keep the church on the cutting edge of what is happening around it at all times. That we will be awake and alert!
    1. PRAY FOR SPONTANEOUS REVIVAL TO BREAK OUT IN ALL OF AMERICA AND AROUND THE WORLD!
  2. These days of uncertainty and distress are days of opportunity for the Body of Christ, the Church. Pray that…
    1. We will not miss a single Kingdom opportunity to give a witness for Christ and lend a helping hand
    2. That God will give answers for those asking questions or leveling accusation
    3. For strength and courage to stand firm in the heat of the battle.
    4. The church, (that’s you and me) will always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the reason we have such hope in us!

 

Prayer for our Community of Residence:  Lake Co., Fruitland Park, Florida, and surrounding communities:

  1. Continue to pray for school district administrators, local school faculty, staff, and especially students.
    1. Here are a few of the things at stake with the opening of school for students and workers alike: income, learning, reconnecting with friends students and teachers, the educational journey of students from grade school to post high school education.

 

Prayer for our Government:  Local, County, State & National:

  1. The President, Congress, Judicial, and all other government offices, and personnel need to remember the Constitution of the United States and how it has prevailed for centuries, in keeping America under the favor and blessing of God. Many Americans may not like it now, but a number of heroes – to many to forget – have given their lives to defending and carrying out the mandates it provides.  We are not in need of any kind of revolution to change our way of life in America as some might feel.   We need a revival from heaven in America that will turn Americans back to God!  During a very dark time of the civil war, President Abraham Lincoln issued this proclamation to the country, calling for a day of fasting and prayer.  He identified the nation’s sin like this:   “We have forgotten God.  We have forgotten the gracious hand which persevered us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us;  and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own.  Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.”    This was true in 1863 when it was first written and it is true today – America has become “too self-sufficient” for God.  We have become too proud to pray to the God that made us.   We are a nation divided.  The traditional motto of the United States of America is Epluribus Unum – “out of many, one.  We are a nation divided that needs to be brought together.  We have gotten to where we are, because we, as a nation, have forgotten God!  Psalm 19:7 declares, “The wicked shall be turned into hell And all the nations that forget God.”  (Psalm 9:17 NKJV).

 

We have been far too tolerant of sin and now we are reaping a harvest of blatant sin that is costing America far more than we can afford to pay.  Diversity, one of the goals of tolerance, has robbed us of real, genuine love for God, and for people.  It is time to draw a line in the sand in our prayers, and stand upon the principles of truth given to us in the eternal Word of God, the Bible!   It is time to rise up in faith and call those things that are not – righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit – as though they were.

 

  1. Pray for our President to sustain under pressure and increase in His favor from both God and man every day.
    1. That he will be firm in his decisions, forward in his leadership, and faithful to his duties. Hold him up in the battle for the soul of America just as Aaron and Hur held up Moses’ arms and Israel prevailed in the battle over the enemy. (Exodus 17:8-16)
  2. That Americans will “wake up” to the takeover attempt of radical, leftist thinking, that intends to change the way of life we have enjoyed from the beginning, in the U.S. of A.
  3. That a spiritual revival of renewal to God will break out in the White House, in the Congress, and in the Supreme Court.
    1. That those who are not praying will begin to pray
    2. That those who are not reading the Bible will begin to read it and act upon its precepts and promises.
    3. That the change will be evident in all of these branches of government
  4. Pray that the election process for our President and other important leaders in this nation will not be sabotaged, undermined, or stolen from the candidate duly elected by the populous of American voters who express their vote. And may Gods will be done in the election of all of the leaders of this nation!
  5. Freedom of expression is under assault in America. Pray that Congress and the Justice Department will break up technology monopolies and aggressively protect our freedom of expression – free speech.

 

Freedom Prayer Sheet Sept. 1, 2020 download

 

Prayer Points for August 18, 2020 Freedom Prayer Group

Tuesday Morning – Freedom Prayer Initiative 

Tuesday, August 18, 2020

“Then the Lord appeared to Solomon by night and said to him: “I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to prayer made in this place. For now, I have chosen and sanctified this house, that My name may be there forever; and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually.”

2 Chronicles 7:12-16 NKJV

Prayer for Yourself:

  1. Friend check: how are you handling the change all about us?  Are you struggling?  Are you stressing?  Are you keeping a positive outlook?  These are very difficult times that there seems to be no end in sight.  Be sure you pour God’s Word into your head and heart each day and pray for yourself.  Seek out a friend to be a prayer/share partner.  Don’t try to go it alone!
  2. In Jesus’ darkest, loneliest hour – the Garden of Gethsemane – (Matthew 26:36-46) He went to prayer, and in John 17:1-5, He prayed for Himself for strength to bring Glory to the Father through what He was facing. Look what He did!  He became the Savior of the whole world!  Our prayers are a lifeline to life! 

Prayer for Your Family:

  1. Pray for your children and grandchildren, by name! Pray for your siblings and for your parents if they are still with you.
  2. Pray for any specific needs of your family members! 

Prayer for the Church:  the church gathered (Covenant Life Church) and the church dispersed (other houses of Christian worship) here and throughout the world. 

  1. Pray that God will keep the church on the cutting edge of what is happening around it at all times. That we will be awake and alert!
    1. Revival has come to Seattle Wa., at the very site known as Chop or Chas which was on our TV screens so much recently for something bad. People were singing to God, baptizing those who professed Christ and the Gospel of Jesus was going forth.  While it was not without protest from Satanic cult members present,  also, a revival was obvious in the worship, response, and smiles on the faces of worshippers and those receiving salvation.
    2. PRAY FOR THIS KIND OF SPONTANEOUS REVIVAL TO BREAK OUT IN ALL OF AMERICA!
  2. These days of uncertainty and distress are days of opportunity for the Body of Christ, the Church. Pray that…
    1. We will not miss a single Kingdom opportunity to give a witness for Christ and lend a helping hand
    2. That God will give answers for those asking questions or leveling accusation
    3. For strength and courage to stand firm in the heat of the battle.
    4. The church, (that’s you and me) will always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the reason we have such hope in us!

 

Prayer for our Community of Residence:  Lake Co., Fruitland Park, Florida, and surrounding communities:

  1. Pray for school faculty, staff, and students as schools reopen for the business of educating our children.  A special prayer is being held today (Sunday, August 16, at 7 PM at all Lake and Sumter County schools for the opening of the school year.  Please go to the school nearest you and pray with other believers gathered there.

 

Prayer for our Government:  Local, County, State & National:

  1. The United States Congress through the COVID 19 crisis, has been passing some monumental, financial legislation to help the nation through the crisis.
    1. Here are some valid questions:
      1. Where is this money coming from?
      2. Are we passing debt on to our children and grandchildren – even generations beyond them – in this legislation?
  • Assuming this money comes from the tax base of the U.S.A., are there expectations of raising taxes or, recouping the money in some other way?
  1. Pray for wisdom along with genuine compassion to prevail among legislators in deliberating over expenditures during this unprecedented season of crisis.
  1. Pray for our President to sustain under pressure and increase in His favor from both God and man every day.
    1. That he will be firm in his decisions, forward in his leadership and faithful to his duties
  2. That Americans will “wake up” to the takeover attempt of a radical, leftist thinking movement, that intends to change the way of life we have enjoyed from the beginning, in the U.S. of A.
  3. That a spiritual revival of renewal to God will break out in the White House in the Congress and in the Supreme Court.
    1. That those who are not praying will begin to pray
    2. That those who are not reading the Bible will begin to read it and act upon its precepts and promises.
    3. That the change will be evident in all of these branches of government

Intentional Focus in 2020 Requires Prayer and Planning

Late last year during November and December the Lord started speaking to my heart to stop “scatter praying”.  I had to stop and meditate on what that even meant.  It dawned on me how many times we use responsive prayer.  By that I mean we pray in response to a need brought to our attention.  I am not saying we don’t pray for others on a regular basis, just that most of our prayer not premeditated and intentional.

I asked Him to bloom that out to me in a greater measure.  In doing so I realized there were several things and people that keep coming to my heart time-after-time.  I got a notebook and started making pages for each person, event or subject that concerned my heart.  Under that page, I will over the coming year write down what is on my heart about each thing, then find Scripture verses to meet the need.  With that done, now I can focus as often as I need to on those things written down. They are before my eyes as often as I want them to be.  It is working so far.  I started out with a fairly long prayer, then add to them as often as those people or events come to mind.  By focusing deliberately it has helped me release the concern to His heart and declare the Word of God over each situation.

I pray you think about doing something similar.  We can see the hand of God move when we all agree with the Word of God over our situations.  God bless you richly in your prayer life this year.

The Sacrifice of Praise includes a Contrite and Broken Heart

 

Thesis #26: “The New Apostolic Epoch”  By: P. Douglas Small

11/10/19 

We offer sacrifices of praise, like the Hebrews, while we ignore sacrifices of contrition and brokenness – of sin and trespass.

The ear that hears the rebukes of life will abide among the wise. He who disdains instruction despises his own soul, But he who heeds rebuke gets understanding. The fear of the Lord  is the instruction of wisdom, and before honor is humility.

Proverbs 15:31-33 – NKJV

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise.  (Psalm 51:17 – NKJV)

The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.

(Psalm 51:17 – NLT)

Prayer:  “Lord, the sacrifice you desire from us is not living a perfect life, but, being a worshipper who lives to bring praise and honor to Your Name.  One of the ways we worship you is by being repentant and living our repentance every day.  Only You could fix the “brokenness” in us caused by sinful disobedience.  We humbly confess the great need sin caused in us!  We pray Your forgiveness continues to work toward us because we continue to need it!  We ask that You forgive us and receive us as Your needy children.  With a contrite heart, we repent before You and trust that You will receive us and use us for Your glory here in the earth today.  In the Name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior we pray, Amen!

 

Reverence God in Prayer

Thesis #25: “The New Apostolic Epoch”  By: P. Douglas Small 

Rather than persistently, intentionally, reverently invoking God’s Presence and inviting Him into the experience of worship, we assume His Presence.  He is, at His own house, in a worship event in His Name and for His honor, in many – perhaps most – Evangelical-Pentecostal worship events, rumored to be present and taken for granted.  His Omnipresence (God is everywhere) is substituted for the welcomed, quickened, and dynamic sense of His presence.  There is no invocation, no coming before His holiness in a conscious and reverential sense.

1 Kings 8:1,5-10,14 – NKJV:

  • Now Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the chief fathers of the children of Israel, to King Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the City of David, which is Zion.
  • Also King Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel who were assembled with him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen that could not be counted or numbered for multitude.
  • Then the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the Most Holy Place, under the wings of the cherubim.
  • For the cherubim spread their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim overshadowed the ark and its poles.
  • The poles extended so that the ends of the poles could be seen from the holy place, in front of the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside. And they are there to this day.
  • Nothing was in the ark except the two tablets of stone which Moses put there at Horeb, when the Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.
  • And it came to pass, when the priests came out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord,

14) Then the king turned around and blessed the whole assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel was standing.

1 Kings 8:1,5-10,14 – NKJV

Prayer:  Lord, we count it the highest honor and privilege that You would honor us with Your Presence anytime.  The fact that You are “omnipresent” – with us all the time – should give rise to a commanding consciousness, to always revere and worship Your Holy Presence!

We repent before You this day, asking Your forgiveness for our failure in never ceasing to remember You with our praises, adoration and thanksgiving!  You are our God, this day we declare Your name before any who hear and all who listen!  May we never forget the love you extended to us when we were hopelessly trapped in sin, bound for hell, lost without YOU!

May each one of us who value our relationship with You, seek to recognize the markers of Your Presence, both within us and in our surroundings.  May we live in such a way that others can see You through the lives we live before them.

In the Name of Your Son and our Savior, Jesus of Nazareth, we pray!  Amen!

What is Worship?

Thesis #21: “The New Apostolic Epoch”  By: P. Douglas Small 

“Prayer’s primary purpose is transformation.” 

We have reduced worship to its ingredients – music, praise, extended hands, vibrant and joyful song, and a positive good news message.  In all that, we miss true worship.  Worship is, as the word suggests, a declaration of value – worth-ship.  It is the worth of God that elicits true worship.  And that requires exposure to God, and to His Presence – that God be seen and revealed.  Our humanistic version of worship obscures God and fixates instead on our worth.  All that we are and bring to worship pales in comparison to the incomparable and sovereign God.  It is a candle against the sunlight, a breath against a storm.  Such contrasts foster humility, so absent from contemporary worship (1 Chronicles 16:25-29; Psalms 99, 100; Revelation 4:8-11)

25) For the Lord  is great and greatly to be praised; He is also to be feared above all gods.

26) For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the Lord made the heavens.

27) Honor and majesty are before Him; Strength and gladness are in His place.

28) Give to the Lord, O families of the peoples, Give to the Lord glory and strength.

29) Give to the Lord the glory due His name; Bring an offering, and come before Him. Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!

(1 Chronicles 16:25-29 NKJV)

Psalm 99:1-9

01)The Lord reigns; Let the peoples tremble! He dwells between the cherubim; Let the earth be moved!

02) The  Lord  is great in Zion, And He is high above all the peoples.

03) Let them praise Your great and awesome name— He is holy.

04) The King’s strength also loves justice; You have established equity; You have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.

05) Exalt the Lord our God, And worship at His footstool— He is holy.

06) Moses and Aaron were among His priests, And Samuel was among those who called upon His name; They called upon the Lord, and He answered them.

07) He spoke to them in the cloudy pillar; They kept His testimonies and the ordinance He gave them.

08) You answered them, O Lord our God; You were to them God-Who-Forgives, Though You took vengeance on their deeds.

09) Exalt the Lord our God, And worship at His holy hill; For the Lord our God is holy.

(Psalm 99:1-9 NKJV)

Psalm 100:1-5

01)Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!

02) Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing.

03) Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

04) Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

05) For the Lord  is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.

(Psalm 100:1-5 NKJV)

Revelation 4:8-11

08)The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!”

09) Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever,

10) the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying:

11) “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.”

Revelation 4:8-11 NKJV

Prayer:  O God, keep us on task in our worship of You.

You said in the Bible that “…the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will  worship the Father in  spirit  and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”  (John 4:23-24 NKJV).  With all our heart, soul, mind and strength, we believe that time has come!

Your worth and value to us can’t be spoken in a single day or even at a certain time.  It can only be lived by demonstrating our loyalty, our devotion and our own personal faith in Your sovereignty over our lives!

We can, and we do, give you thanks, as our creator, as the creator of the whole earth!  May our worship be birthed from knowing You, not from doing what we think is the right thing to do in our worship of You. You have made Yourself known to us through the Word of God and by the Holy Spirit.  Guide us each day to know You better and better, that we can make you known to others through the testimony we live before them.    Lord Jesus, we want to know You!  And experience the mighty power that raised You from the dead. WE want to suffer with You! We want to share in Your death, so that one way or another we will experience the resurrection from the dead!  (Taken from Philippians 3:10-11 NLT)

In Your Name Jesus, we pray!  Amen!

Let us worship God with a pure heart

Thesis #20: “The New Apostolic Epoch”  By: P. Douglas Small 

Seeing God’s love and ignoring His holiness, we design positive and nurturing worship services free from conviction of sin, actually making people comfortable in sin, and simultaneously placing them in a worship event with a holy God – such actions are blasphemous.

“…that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word,….”  (Ephesians 5:26 NKJV)

“Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God.”  (2 Corinthians 7:1 NLT)

Prayer:  Lord, let the intent of our worship be to come before You so that we may experience Your unequaled love that causes us to feel accepted, Your healing grace that works the miracle of cleansing salvation in our sinful hearts and Your convicting Presence that calls and prepares us for a life of holiness. We desire to get “better” Lord, at being Your children and living as Your servants in this world.  We accept the challenge of making this world a better place because we are here.  Come by Your Spirit and lead us on in our journey through this world to become a better people because we know and obey You!  In the Name of Your Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ we pray!  Amen!

Prayer brings Christian growth and development

Thesis #19: “The New Apostolic Epoch”  By: P. Douglas Small

 

Last week:  “Love affirms, but God’s holiness challenges us.  Prayer centers us in God’s love, but, then His Presence exposes us to His holiness – and moves us by grace and consecration, into deeper levels of His likeness”… 

This week:

…Prayer, then, is the basic context for Christian growth and development, not preaching, not left-brain discipleship programs.

The assumption here is that there is more growth in discipleship through prayer than any other personal effort.  I agree with the assumption!  I have personally grown more in my faith and my relationship with God from taking my Bible, opening it and reading it, and praying my way through what I read, to understanding and practice.    What happens in a church worship service is of little consequence if it does nothing to command the way we live our lives outside of that worship experience.  Prayer is more about personal change than any other practice in the Christian faith.  When you pray, it is just you and God.  One on one!  There should be no distractions, no hindrances to hearing Him as you commune with Him and He with you in your session of prayer. With the Word of God before you, the Holy Spirit within you as your guide,  through your prayers, and your own personal hunger for righteousness, for holiness…you will grow in your relationship with God!

Let’s pray:  “O God, You are my God!  I want to be your disciple, so I read Your Word and pray for understanding to apply what I read.  I ask, Holy Spirit, that You would put a deep, abiding hunger in our hearts now, for more of the Scripture and for more of close encounters with the Father!

Lord, we have found this world to be a confusing, messed up place and we don’t want to be it’s next victim!  So, with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, we turn to You, asking that you be our daily guide through the Bible so that each day we live is used to honor and glorify You before others.  We will do our best to honor the appointment with You in prayer, each day, keeping it above all others.

We love You Lord, and desire Your Presence within, to heal us and prepare us for Your use in this world and for our future with You in heaven!  AMEN!