This abbreviated article is taken from Crosswalk and written by Debbie Przybylski of Intercessors Arise International,
“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when the reaper will be overtaken by the plowman and the planter by the one treading grapes. New wine will drip from the mountains and flow from all the hills.” (Amos 9:13).
Community transformation is when a culture is impacted by the presence of God. His supernatural power flows into the city and affects every level of society. Our cities are filled with spiritually homeless people who don’t know who they are or where they are going. There is an emptiness without God and we must invite Him into our cities.
Our communities are looking for identity and God’s presence is our identity. We must believe that revival and transformation will affect everything. We need a sense of purpose and the authority of God in our city. Only Jesus can change a city and a nation. Jesus told His disciples, “Without me you can do nothing.” One day God will rule the whole world because He is God of all (Ezekiel 48:35, Isaiah 62:4).
There is evidence that God is bringing transformation to communities around the world. George Otis, Jr. (producer of the Transformation Video series) has witnessed evidence of God’s willingness to transform spiritually barren communities in areas where believers have determined to exchange passive dissatisfaction for active, prevailing prayer. But history tells us that people do not change until they are aware of an imminent crisis or an immediate opportunity. We as humans must be persuaded that our present circumstance is desperate and that time is running out quickly. We must realize that our condition is not only broken or painful, but very dangerous.
If we are only disappointed, most of us won’t change. We think our condition is only temporary or that time is on our side. Our society will change and we will take action in prayer only when we get desperate. Then we will be willing to do the impossible.
Then we will fervently pray for our cities. We need to ask ourselves: “Are we desperate enough for revival and city transformation?”
How to Pray for Transformation in Your City
“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you” (Isaiah 60:1-2).
Transformation is the reflection of God’s character coming forth in every way possible. This is what we want in our cities. Let us not draw back at such a critical hour. We are now at the desperate stage in our cities. Let us move forward in prevailing, passionate prayer by the grace of God and seek Him for transformation and revival! This is an opportunity that we must grasp now.
The following are principles that can bring life to your city. They are adapted from The Quickening DVD:
*Pray and invite God into your city.
God wants to be invited into our communities. He wants His presence to become so strong that men see themselves as lost and start coming to Him. If God is to increase our spiritual appetite, we must ask Him. First we must be emptied of our own satisfaction and feel the awareness of our emptiness. We are “undone” like Isaiah which will cause a cry from our heart (Isaiah 6:5-8). As God’s watchmen, we must call on the Lord and invite Him into our cities.
“I have posted watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth” (Isaiah 62:6-7).
*Pray for holiness and humility.
God is drawn to holiness and humility. If we want to be change agents in the city, we must be changed agents. The humble and the poor in spirit He brings to himself. The biggest thing that impedes unity is our own pride. What is ready to die? We have to make the basic decision,“I will not be offended by others.” God uses humility and broken people. A sincere heart cuts into the frozenness of the world.
“Has not my hand made all these things, and so they came into being?’ declares the Lord. ‘These are the ones I look on with favor: those who are humble and contrite in spirit and who tremble at my word” (Isaiah 66:2).
*Pray for corporate revival.
It begins with individual obedience and solitary decisions. The most important thing is that we begin. It’s not what we do but why we do it. Man is impressed by activity but God is impressed with obedience. We will encounter resistance and get discouraged, but God is focused on us. We must make that commitment ourself and search out a core group who have that commitment. It starts with a few who won’t give up, press on and keep praying and crying out to God month after month with fasting, prayer and humility. This will have a domino effect.
“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” (James 5:16).
*Pray for unity.
Biblical unity is a majority with God. It’s not based on numbers. Unity is a byproduct of relationships. When kingdom connection occurs, we then live under kingdom rule.
Where two or three hungry hearts join together in the cause of revival, God is there.
The presence of God unites people in a supernatural unity. Leaders must be committed to a community.
“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity… For there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life forevermore” (Psalm 133:1, 3b).
*Pray for fervent prayer among the churches in your city.
Breakthrough, fervent prayer releases destiny. It’s desperation and humility, a foundation of fervent, persevering prayer when we become desperate for God. People of travailing prayer have a determination with a desperation that says,“We will not let go of you until we hear from you.” Allow Him to break and mold you. Pray for your city’s destiny. We forget that God is the God of destiny, and we are people of destiny. Prayer has to be more of a priority, and we must hear the trumpet call.
“They all joined together constantly in prayer” (Acts 1:14).
God is looking for leaders who will stand in the gap for their nation who don’t care who gets the credit. They are not stakeholders but shareholders. They give God the glory. Revival leaders are often unlikely choices. The measure of leadership is not influence with the public but influence with God
TC Kim
Facilitator - Transform USA
http://www.transformusa.org
https://www.facebook.com/kimtwusa
There are many stories these days of government trampling parental rights, but what happens when parents are the ones doing the trampling?
Recently on BreakPoint we talked about the tough case of recently deceased Charlie Gard—the terminally ill baby whom British courts decided should die in the hospital rather than travel to America with his parents to seek experimental treatment for his rare condition. In that commentary, I said that the government had overstepped its authority, taking away the right of Charlie’s parents to make decisions for their son.
But another story shows that there’s another side to this coin. The parent of a Canadian newborn not only wants to make a crucial life decision for him or her, but also force the government to recognize that decision. Now I say “him or her” because it has been hidden whether little Searyl Doty of British Columbia is a boy or a girl. Only the child’s mother, who identifies as a “non-binary trans person” and is taking male hormones, knows the truth.
Searyl made international news when this baby received what his or her mother is calling the first ever “genderless” document issued by any government. The Gender Free I.D. Coalition, an activist group Searyl’s mother participates in, seeks to “remove all gender/sex designations from identity documents,” and in this case, they appear to have gotten their wish. The card issued by British Columbia lists Searyl’s sex as “U,” presumably for “unknown” or “unclassified.”
Searyl’s mother (who, again, would prefer I call her a “parent,”) said in a statement that “It is up to Searyl to decide how they identify, when they are old enough to develop their own gender identity.”
Doty believes so deeply in liberating children from biological sex that she’s a complainant in a case currently before the province’s Human Rights Tribunal, arguing for genderless government I.D. She’s also applied for judicial review of her child’s birth certificate, which British Columbia still says must list either male or female.
Doty’s lawyer says requiring such a designation violates the baby’s rights “as a Canadian citizen to life, liberty and security of the person.” And by the way—folks, I promise I’m not making this up—this lawyer refuses to use capital letters in her name because it’s oppressive.
Now why am I telling you all of this? Because in contrast to the Charlie Gard case in which the government overstepped its sphere of sovereignty, this is a case of a parent overstepping her sphere of sovereignty as well as crossing the line into abuse.
And no, I don’t think “abuse” is too strong a word for a mother who refuses to acknowledge the biological reality of her child’s sex, and to raise him or her in denial of such reality. The potential for harm here is great, and not only should government officials refuse to accommodate it, they should stop such practices, even if necessary, removing the child from that home.
Of course, I don’t expect for a moment the Canadian authorities will actually do this. But they should. And Christians shouldn’t be afraid to say so.
And just as there are limits to the state’s authority over the family, there are limits of the family’s authority over the state. A parent doesn’t have the right to force the government to violate its responsibility to recognize reality either.
God designed the family before all other institutions to produce, nurture, and protect children. The state isn’t competent to do this, and neither is the market, the academy, or even the church. But when the family fails to fulfill its God-ordained role—when parents try to deny a fundamental and biological truth about who their children are, they’ve failed.
It’s awful to watch governments steamroll one family to end Charlie Gard’s life, while failing to intervene in Searyl Doty’s life. Because children are helpless against our social experimentations, Christians can’t simply retreat from the public square or concede the clash of worldviews. The bad ideas of adults in any sphere of authority often have small victims.
NEXT STEPS
Bad ideas and faulty ideologies have consequences, and they also have victims. Children shouldn’t be those victims. As John has urged, let’s not retreat but rather be pro-active in the public square, encouraging families to nurture and protect children, promoting reality and the truth of God’s design.
CONTRIBUTED BY BREAKPOINT DAILY
More and further discussion at http://breakpoint.org
My word …will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. Isa 55:11
TRANSLATION OF THE SCRIPTURES
This is one of the areas that the devil tries the hardest to stop. People come to believe through God’s Word. It is very hard to sustain a church (new believers) unless they have the Word in their own language. Those doing this work are asking for prayer for each of the groups they are working in.
Translation is being done for 15 different groups, some are large groups, others are smaller. In two of the groups each time a project like this was started the devil blocked it.
PRAY
- Pray that the work might not be blocked by the evil one by sickness, death, family problems, or in any other way.
- Pray for heath for all those involved
- Pray for those teaching them how to do this work, that they may be able to stay in country and not lose their papers
- Pray for those learning to learn quickly and well
- Persistence - this is a long process
- Completion of each project
JESUS FILM PROJECT
The translation of the film for Muslims. Changes are being made on physical things in the film that are offensive to them (like Jesus going into the temple with shoes on, hand actions, etc). Some of these changes could cost up to a million dollars, but the suggestions have been well received. Then language is needed that is acceptable and not offensive. Pray for this huge project Pray for wisdom from God to see and make the right suggestions.
STABLE GOVERNMENT
The Prime Minister is being accused of money laundering and corruption (he has been thrown out twice before for this). Opposition parties are against him. A high percentage of the lawyers are against him. It has been on the floor of Parliament again and again, and is supposed to come up for the final time on the 17th. PRAY God’s will: If he is thrown out who would take his place? It would probably be much harder for Christians and foreign workers.
Thanks for PRAYING for PAKISTAN!!
Global Prayer and Missions Leaders from around the world are linking together in unprecedented ways.
There is a great need in this season to see how we can collaborate together in more effective ways. We would like to share this opportunity with you.
As a part of this conference there will be a Prayer Track
You will be fully engaged and embedded in this influential and impactful network conference (Ephesians 3:20). We will look at how to be more effective and intentional together (Luke 10:2).
Global prayer and missions leaders will be sharing on the value of collaborating together (John 17:20-23). You will hear from top mission leaders as they share current stats, trends and prayer needs of finishing the task (Matthew 24:14).
As we spend the week together we will become familiar with what is still needed to see a shift from NO Scripture, NO Missionary, NO Church, NO Known Believers, to adoption and an intentional strategy toward getting the Gospel where it has not been previously (Revelation 5:9 & 7:9).
Who Should Attend?
If you identify with one or more of the following categories, this conference is for you!
Sending Organization/Church
You want to send (or help send) gospel workers to plant multiplying churches among Unengaged, Unreached People Groups (UUPGs).
Resource Provider
You indirectly engage UUPGs by gathering resources (i.e., finances, training, or media tools).
Mission Mobilizer
You promote the engagement of UUPGs by increasing awareness, vision-casting, and connecting potential gospel workers and resources with engagement opportunities.
Prayer/Prayer Leader or Mobilizer
You promote the engagement of UUPGs through prayer in building a platform of prayer, awareness building, vision casting and connecting prayer as a foundational aspect and resource with opportunities among UUPGs.
Registration Information:
Early Registration: $175/person (ends November 14th)
Registration: $200/person
Note: Registration cut-off is December 2, 2017
Register and find out more information about travel, lodging, transportation, etc. by visiting: www.finishingthetask.com
The NEW annual Hindu World Prayer Focus calls Christians and churches worldwide to take 15 days October 8-22 to learn about and pray for our world’s over one billion Hindu friends. That period also encompasses the significant Hindu Festival of Light (Diwali). The informative prayer guide booklets will help Christians to know how to pray for the people(s) growing up within this major and very diverse world religion.
Diwali (or Deepawali) is known as the Festival of Lights, and is one of the most important annual celebrations for Hindus, lasting about 4-5 days. While (similar to Christmas celebrations in the Christian world) it has historical and religious roots, Hindus celebrate it by lighting and displaying rows of small oil lamps, participating in family gatherings, consuming special sweets and watching fireworks.
It is not our intention with this prayer focus to disparage India or the Hindu religion in any way. We recognize that both are far too complex and too full of great traditions to simply or easily condense, explain or take lightly within a mere booklet.
At the same time, as Christians, we long that all the world’s people(s) will have an opportunity to freely see, hear and understand the grace of God incarnated in Jesus Christ. To this end, we inform ourselves, pray for and want to support opportunities to make that grace known also within the world’s Indian and Hindu communities.
Won’t you join us? For more information and a short introductory video www.pray15days.org Already in a growing number of languages/nations, if you don’t see yours, why not offer to translate and/or distribute in yours? Email+ This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Russia: 755 U.S. Diplomatic Staff to be Expelled, President Says. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia will expel 755 U.S. diplomatic staff and could consider imposing additional measures against the United States as a response to new U.S. sanctions, Reuters reported July 30. Moscow ordered the United States on July 28 to cut hundreds of diplomatic staff and said it would seize two U.S. diplomatic properties after the U.S. Congress approved new sanctions on Russia. Putin said in an interview that the diplomatic and technical staff would have to leave Russia by Sept. 1. When it comes to responding to Washington's actions, Moscow has creative options for retaliation.
U.S.: Bombers Fly Over Korean Peninsula. The United States flew two supersonic B-1B bombers over the Korean Peninsula in a show of force on July 30 after North Korea's recent tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles, the U.S. and South Korean air forces said, Reuters reported. The bombers took off from a U.S. air base in Guam, and were joined by Japanese and South Korean fighter jets during the exercise. The flight was in direct response to the July 28 North Korean missile test and the previous July 3 launch of the "Hwansong-14" rocket, a U.S. statement said.
Another successful THAAD test as tensions over North Korean threat grows. NBC reports the U.S. conducted a test of its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) defense system in Alaska by launching a ballistic missile over the Pacific Ocean. The target was fired by a U.S. Air Force plane and intercepted by THAAD, according to the Missile Defense Agency on Sunday. This was the second such test in a month by THAAD interceptors. The U.S. has deployed THAAD in South Korea to guard against North Korea’s shorter-range missiles, an action that angers China, which claims the system’s radar can probe deep into its territory.
ISIS claims attack on U.S.-backed troops. The Atlantic reports ISIS claimed on Friday to have attacked a U.S.-backed formation near Raqqa, the group’s de factor capital in Syria. The alleged attack against Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) – a Kurdish group allied with the U.S. – took place in the Homs province. ISIS claims it destroyed two armored vehicles and killed 53 Kurdish fighters. Meanwhile, SDF claims to have captured 40 percent of Raqqa and ISIS jihadi are in retreat.
CONSEQUENCES
Iran’s expanding influence across the Mideast. BuzzFeed reports Iran has tens of thousands of Shi’a representatives who are armed and decisively engaged across the Middle East seeking the regime’s singular objective of growing the Shi’a crescent, stretching from Afghanistan to the Mediterranean Sea. Those jihadi form a dominant force in the region, enabling Tehran to execute its coherent strategy, upstaging a coalition of Sunni dominated nations and the White House’s strategy for the region. Much of Iran’s success is attributable to the secretive Quds Force of the IRGC and its commander General QassemSuleimani.
PACOM commander focuses on three major regional threats. The Military Times reports Navy Adm. Harry Harris said his command is focused on three major threats: North Korea, China’s interactions in the South China Sea and the spread of ISIS to the Philippines. These distinctive threats are a serious challenge to the command’s reach and stretch its resources in the vast Asia-Pacific. Adm. Harris told the Japan-U.S. Military Statesmen Forum in Washington, D.C., on Friday that North Korea is an “immediate threat to our alliance.” “While I don’t know if those missiles can actually hit what they’re aimed at, but like in horseshoes and hand grenades, getting close is all that’s needed when you’re dealing with nuclear weapons.” Note: I’ve twice visited the Asia-Pacific command this year and I have seen the growing anxiety there over the many challenges on their plate.
U.S.- Iran tensions rise as Washington imposes new sanctions on Tehran. Agence France-Presse reports Iran vows to press ahead with its missile program in spite of new U.S. sanctions, fueling the rhetoric between the two countries. Meanwhile, Tehran and Washington accused each other of the latest provocative manoeuvres in the Persian Gulf where a U.S. helicopter deployed flares. The U.S. Navy said it responded to an IRGC vessel that raced at high speed and came too close to one of its vessels. An Iranian government spokesman said his country “will continue with full power our missile program….We consider the action of the U.S. as hostile, reprehensible and unacceptable, and it’s ultimately an effort to weaken the [2015] nuclear deal.”
North Korea celebrates latest ICBM Launch and warns U.S. against sanctions. Yonhap News Agency reports North Korea on Sunday warned of “a stern action of justice” if the U.S. seeks more sanctions in response to the Friday’s ICBM test. “If the United States sticks to its military adventurism against us and super-intensive sanctions schemes, we will respond with a stern action of justice as we have already declared,” a North Korean spokesman said.F
South Korea asks U.S. for more powerful ballistic missiles. The Atlantic reports South Korean president Moon Jae-in asked the U.S. to open negotiations that would allow South Korea to build more powerful ballistic missiles to counter North Korean aggression. Evidently Pyongyang’s Friday launch of yet another ICBM nudged President Moon to make the request which evidently was welcomed by the U.S. national security advisor H.R. McMaster. This is a remarkable turn-around for Moon who won his office on a platform that favored dialogue with North Korea and opposed to hosting U.S. missiles. Predictably the request upset China which issued a statement saying that “THAAD won’t solve South Korea’s security concerns, won’t solve the related issues on the Korean Peninsula and will only further complicate issues.”
RELATED ISSUES
Iraq: Shiite Leader Muqtada Al-Sadr Visits Saudi Arabia. Iraqi Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr arrived in Saudi Arabia on July 30 in what is his first visit in nearly 11 years, Al Arabiya reported. The Saudi minister of state for Gulf affairs greeted al-Sadr on his arrival. Al-Sadr enjoys a wide base support as leader of al-Sadr political movement. Al-Sadr last visited Saudi Arabia in 2006. The trip highlights Saudi Arabia's interest in Iraq, which has developed ties with the kingdom's regional rival, Iran.
Robert Maginnis
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
www.facebook.com/RLMaginnis
We are sharing this word about North Korea, from Rick Ridings who many readers will remember from the World Prayer Assembly:
My friend Dutch Sheets sent out a call to prayer and prophetic word concerning North Korea yesterday on July 7th. That same day, I was with a team at the border of North Korea to pray. I had been speaking for a conference in Seoul, and the Lord had spoken beforehand to go after my speaking to the DMZ, the “Demilitarized Zone” along the cease-fire line that became the border with North Korea. I have ministered in conferences in South Korea many times in the past seven years, but never felt I had a release from the Lord to go to the DMZ. But this time, I felt a compulsion to go there for a specific ‘prophetic action’.
We went as a group of five, including a pastor who had escaped from North Korea, and who leads a church in the area near the DMZ. Two other local Korean pastors joined us there, making a team of seven praying on 7.7 on the Gregorian calendar and during the year 5777 on the Hebrew calendar.
I felt strongly that I was to drop a plumb line there, and proclaim from Isaiah 28:14-18 over the regime of North Korea. These verses speak of floods of water ”overflowing” hidden lies, exposing them and sweeping them away. It says that the flood will come in waves like a whip against those evil rulers, and annul their covenant with death.
When I proclaimed the same verses in Washington, D.C., in January 2016 (Patti and I were leading worship in “David’s Tent”, a place of 24/7 worship and prayer at the base of the Washington Monument), I stated that flooding would happen in Washington as a sign that the Lord would do this spiritually. Immediately afterward, heavy rains started, and the next day the Washington newspapers reported flooding there, and soon after that many political secrets were exposed.
The same thing happened along the DMZ region bordering with North Korea! As I finished proclaiming these spiritual floods to expose the lies and sweep away the North Korean regime, a heavy downpour of rain started (during a time they had been experiencing unusual drought), and the next day, the news reported flooding in that area along the DMZ.
I had taken a small piece of the Berlin Wall that I threw over the barbed wire face declaring that the same LORD who brought down the Berlin Wall and Soviet communism in a sudden surprise, would bring down the barrier between North and South Korea to reunite them and bring healing to the Land.
I was in prayer conferences in Germany during the time preceding the reunification of Germany. I had heard their sincere confession of the sins of their forefathers and their nation towards the Jewish people. And we proclaimed at that time, as they had humbled themselves in many corporate gatherings and confessed the sins of the nation (as in 2 Chronicles 7:14), that the LORD would heal their divided land as He promised.
I have now been in, and know of, many conferences where South Koreans have confessed the sins of their nation, and felt this was the time I was to proclaim that the LORD has heard and will bring about the reunification of Korea with a sudden event. Only afterward, did I find out that Dutch Sheets had sent out on the same day we prayed at the DMZ (July 7th) a prayer alert where he explained that he had recently prophesied in South Korea that “…the man-made barrier between North and South Korea would be removed, and the rebirth/rebuilding/ restoration of all of Korea would happen so amazingly fast that it would be a sign and a wonder to the world”.
I believe that Satan would love to use North Korea to bring great devastation upon the world, and to hinder the LORD’s calling on all of Korea to be a great missionary sending nation, especially impacting the Middle East. But our God is greater! Let us pray for His plumb line of justice and righteousness to continue to be extended over North Korea, for His floods to expose their regime’s lies, to “annul its covenant with death”, and to bring about its collapse and the liberation of North Koreans to worship the LORD. Let us pray for all of Korea to be one reunited, healed and mighty missionary sending nation!
Rick Ridings
http://www.succathallel.com
Prayer is about God and His purposes for our world. It is not just a devotional activity or punching the clock to satisfy a sense of religious duty. It is getting in sync with Him for the joy of that most intimate of relationships and out of that prayer partnership to see our personal situation, community, nation, or far-off people groups changed in favor of His kingdom and values. It is the way we transact business with God to see His kingdom manifested in our day-to-day lives, our own neighborhoods, and at the other side of the world where there is pain, suffering or lostness.
Jesus taught that we should pray that His “kingdom come” and “will be done on earth as in Heaven”. He gave staggering promises about the power of prayer to groups of people, always using the plural “you” to underline the importance of united prayer for seeing breakthroughs to transform our communities and world. In Matthew 18:18-20, He affirmed that “whatever” we bind or loose on earth, even just two or three of us, will be bound or loosed in heaven. In this way, whatever we agree about, “anything”, can be affected deeply by such praying. Prayer with others is therefore the most powerful thing we can do as His followers. It is the most important way we become agents of His transformation for our darkened and desperate world because it brings the God of the impossible into situations that are way beyond human solution.
United prayer was the culture of the early church. They “joined constantly together in prayer” (Acts 1:14). All the breakthroughs, from Pentecost on, came out of this culture of prayer agreement as the Spirit led them. In order for us to see modern-day breakthroughs in reaching the remaining unreached peoples, we also need to start with God in prayer. Missions is a supernatural business, involving His intervention in the calling of the right people to go as missionaries, the binding of principalities and powers that hinder, and the receptivity of the target people to the Gospel. The integral involvement of the Spirit of God all the way through is of paramount importance, and that is why engaging in prayer for His clear guidance, strategy and help is so essential. If we want the same results of the early church that “turned the world upside down” through their mission efforts, we need to connect with the same source of power and wisdom they had.
This year at the Finishing the Task event, for the first time ever there will be a specific track dealing with this issue-- the linking of prayer and mission. We will deliberate together as to how we can achieve a greater convergence between the prayer and mission movements and how an ongoing culture of prayer can become practically integrated in efforts to disciple the remaining unreached peoples for Jesus Christ. Please pray with us for an effective time towards these ends.
Even now, let’s obey Jesus and pray to Him, the Lord of the harvest and the Lord of breakthrough. Enlist others to pray with you. Let’s also be encouraging churches, prayer groups, and especially the younger generation of youth and children, to adopt these peoples for ongoing prayer until they are reached. (Excellent prayer cards for this purpose can be found at https://joshuaproject.net/resources/prayer.)
John Robb
IPC Chairman
www.ipcprayer.org