"It was praying that rent the heavens;
praying that received direct answers there and
then. The spirit of intercession was so mightily
poured out that the whole congregation would
take part simultaneously for hours! Strangers
were startled to hear the young and unlettered
pray with such unction and intelligence as they
were swept up to the Throne of Grace by the
Spirit of God. Worship and adoration was unbounded.
Praise began to mingle with the petitions as
answered prayer was demonstrated before their
very eyes." James Stewart
Fervent
prayer prepares the way for revival. Day and
night intercession and worship is a big key to
revival. The combination of intercession and worship
was a major part of the past revivals in history.
Why are extended times of prayer so important?
There are so many reasons. Prayer changes us,
it sets us free from worldly pursuits, it opens
the way for uninterrupted time with God, it builds
unity, it gives us a burden for what is on God's
heart, it brings us into deeper humility and repentance,
it draws us closer to God and brings revelation,
it teaches us the Word, and it brings answers
to prayer. The benefits are vast. In all my studies
about revival, I have seen that day and night
intense, earnest prayer was one of the major keys
found in all revivals. And it was prayer and worship
together that brought the power of God to earth
in a mighty outpouring of His Spirit.
Unity
Created by the Spirit of God
God
brings forth beautiful, spontaneous worship and
when blended with prayer, it becomes a powerful
weapon of His glory. I find this to be true as
God's people grow more familiar with the "Harp
and Bowl" model (the model of Biblical
prayer combined with worship and antiphonal singing).
The Biblical prayers bring forth the antiphonal
singing, singer adds to singer, and a beautiful
unity comes forth as the very Word and will of
God are prayed through the Holy Spirit. I have
been in several IHOP prayer meetings. Each one
is unique and powerful, testifying to the creativity
of God's Spirit. Here is a testimony taken from
the Welsh revival of 1904 of how powerful worship
and praise was to the spirit of God.
"The
fact is, unless heard, it is unimaginable and
when heard indescribable. There was no hymnbook.
No one gave out a hymn. Just anyone would start
the singing, and very rarely did it happen that
the hymn started was out of harmony with the
mood at the moment. Once started, as if moved
by a simultaneous impulse, the hymn was caught
up by the whole congregation almost as if what
was about to be sung had been announced and
all were responding to the baton of an invisible
human leader. I have seen nothing like it. Such
was the perfect blending of the mood and purpose
that it bore eloquent testimony to a unity created
only by the Spirit of God. Another witness testified:
'The praying and singing were both wonderful.
There was no need for an organ. The assembly
was its own organ as a thousand sorrowing or
rejoicing hearts found expression in the Psalmody
of their native hills.'"
Not
only is there a beautiful unity through the spontaneous
worship created by the Spirit. In the same way,
there is a beautiful unity when worship and prayer
with the Word of God are combined. There is great
strength in praying the Word of God. It heightens
our awareness of the mind and heart of God. It
adds tremendous strength and authority to our
prayers.
How
the Combination of Prayer and Worship Prepares
the Way for Revival
"May
the praise of God be in their mouths and a double-edged
sword in their hands, to inflict vengeance on
the nations and punishment on the peoples…
to carry out the sentence against them. This
is the glory of all his saints. Praise the Lord."
Psalm 149:6, 7, 9
How
does 24-7 prayer and worship prepare the way for
revival? Why is the combination of prayer
and worship in 24/7 prayer so important? When
we praise God and use His double-edged sword (the
Word of God) in intercession, vengeance is inflicted
on the nations. Vengeance is God's just retribution
on those who have attacked his Kingdom. We are
at war, and God's Kingdom is under attack. The
combination of worship and prayer releases God's
judgment against sin and rebellion on earth. It
opens the way for revival. Here are some reasons
why the combination of prayer and worship help
in extended times of passionate prayer that is
so key for revival. Never has there been a revival
without extended times of intensive prayer. We
will never see the final world revival ushering
in the second coming of Christ without 24-7 prayer
in the nations. Here are some of the reasons why
it is so vital in revival.
- It
brings us into the reality of heaven
- We must realize that worship and prayer are
combined together in heaven around the throne
of God. We are in the process of bringing heaven
to earth in our cities and nations. We are copying
what heaven is doing by combining the interaction
of the harp (worship) with the bowls of incense
(prayers). See Revelation
5:8.
- It
unlocks our hearts
- I find it so true personally how the atmosphere
of worship and praise opens my heart in a greater
dimension to fervent intercession and a greater
passion for Christ and His ways. I cannot help
but move to a higher level in my intercession
when praise and worship are combined. I find
this true corporately as well in 24-7 prayer
meetings.
- It
increases our faith
- I have seen and experienced how the singers
fuel the intercessors, and the intercessors
fuels the singers until all seem to move into
a higher realm of faith. The Word of God is
prayed with greater certainty, with deeper passion,
and with an unquenchable faith.
- It
attracts us to enjoyable prayer
- There is no doubt about it. God wants us to
enjoy prayer. There is no way we can move into
day and night prayer without an enjoyment of
it. It is much too hard and strenuous a work.
We need our hearts to say, "Yes, I want
to do this! Yes, our city can get into this
because God is making it enjoyable."
"The
Lord will release joyful or enjoyable prayer
to His church. Enjoyable prayer is prayer
that will continue night and day (Luke
18:8). Enjoyable prayer is not necessary
for prayer ministries meeting once a week
but it is vital for prayer ministries going
24 hours a day."
- It
increases our perseverance in prayer
- Many times I have heard people say that the
time goes by so quickly. There seems to be an
ability and grace to pray for longer lengths
of time when prayer and worship are combined.
Many who find it hard to pray for any length
of time suddenly are able to spend hours in
the prayer room.
- It
brings forth an anointing for spiritual warfare
- The atmosphere of day and night prayer and
worship combined breaks the hold of the enemy
in cities. It opens the way for a freedom for
the proclamation of the Gospel. The Kingdom
of God invades the territory. The combination
of prayer and worship releases God's justice
as seen in the verses above. Praise and worship
combined with prayer is a powerful combination
and a mighty force against the kingdom of darkness.
We come into agreement with God's heart.
"There
is an irrefutable law in history that revival
(justice) is released in a measure whenever
night and day worship and intercession are
offered. Wherever night and day prayer has
emerged in history there is always a Divine
breakout of speedy justice. It cannot be stopped."
God
is giving a special grace and an increase in prayer
at this time in preparation for the end-time revival.
Some of us are just beginning to get started.
Don't be overwhelmed. A momentum is building and
a spirit of prayer and worship is being released
across the earth. My suggestion to you is to start
small. Buy the "Apostolic Prayers"
by Dwayne Roberts for members of your prayer and
worship team in your church, and begin to listen
to it over and over again. You can purchase this
CD through www.fotb.com.
We did this in our church. Everyone was listening
to the "Apostolic Prayers". The
"Apostolic Prayers" are a great
example of "harp and bowl" worship
and prayer sessions and a powerful way to prayer.
I use it regularly in the nations where I go to
minister. We use it in the atmosphere of our home.
Some people like to play it all day long. This
will bring you into the atmosphere of what prayer
combined with worship is like. It will create
a hunger in your soul and an excitement in your
heart for praying the Word of God. And it will
begin to touch your church and city with the atmosphere
of heaven. It will prepare you and your city for
revival.
"Intercession
is agreement with what God promises to do. Intercession
is expressed by declaring what He will do. In
heaven the worship and intercession flow as
one river. When we tell God who He is then our
faith expands with the revelation of the transcendent
God of power and beauty. Then when we agree
with what he will do in intercession we do it
in great faith." Unnamed quotes by Mike
Bickle
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