Standing Ready
We have discussed many different aspects involved with prayer over the last seven weeks. I have spent time documenting my prayer journey that the Lord took me on when I asked Him to teach me to pray. These eternal truths will not end with me, but resonate in those seeking Him in this area. I firmly believe in the value and power of sharing our life stories, and am compelled to share these things even if only one of you is interested in this style of prayer. Your prayer journey will not look exactly like mine. God will use your personality and unique gifts to lead you in prayer. That is why God used creativity, worship and dance to birth intercession in me. I had no desire or plan to spend much time praying for others. But as I leaned into Him, He had other plans and wanted to include me in them. So, it does not matter what your personal style is, how old or young you are, or your level of health or mobility, God has a plan and wants to include you in what He is doing. And although you may have your own needs, He may have you pray for others first and focus outward. But make no mistake, He knows the state you are in, and cares about what you’re going through. I am absolutely convinced (I can’t state this strong enough) that His plan includes your freedom and victory as you rest your head on Him and listen to His heartbeat.
Here’s a review (& clickable links) of the concepts He taught me on this journey:
When I take delight in the Lord, He gives me the desires of my heart. (Psalm 37:4)
When I dwell on Him, He dwells with me as a resting presence. (Ex. 26, Romans 8)
The power comes when I agree with God in prayer. (Hebrews 13:15)
I’ve been given authority to act on my Father’s behalf, and He’s entrusted me with the master key to the business of His Kingdom. (Psalm 149:5-9)
He fights the battle, and manifests His power when I worship Him. (Psalm 32:7)
Acting on what God directs, releases a response in the spiritual, and brings a breakthrough. (1 Cor. 15:36)
When I raise up a prayer banner, it is a prophet act of lifting high the name of Jesus. (Psalm 20:5-9)
A PRAYER OF BREAKTHROUGH FOR YOU
I want to share with you a prayer God gave me, but to do that I need to give a little background that will help you to understand. Many are using the tambourine and dance method that originated with Magrate Yap, a Malaysian Chinese woman of God. In 1987 while attending Christ for the Nations in Dallas, Texas, with her husband Michael, God birthed in her this method of the Christian Dance. Being trained at the London Ballet, Magrate was no stranger to dance. But during this time at Christ For the Nations, God began to release in her that which she had closed the door to when she became a Christian. THE DANCE! Since then, she has plowed the ground, preparing the way for men, women, and children from many nations to skillfully dance in worship to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords with many styles including tambourine, streamers and flags. I am eternally grateful to Magrate for being a catalyst of Christian Dance in my life, and taking time to mentor and invest in me.
The tambourine and dance has become a universal language of sorts for worshippers. At dance conferences people come together from many countries. Even though they cannot speak to each other in their native language, they are able to dance in unity with the same tambourine patterns. Tambourine and Dance is a series of choreographed movements, which are called patterns. These patterns are similar to sign language in that they have specific meanings. Each pattern depicts a scripture or prayer, which is called forth in worship.
I was at one of these conferences, when I received a prayer of breakthrough from the Lord. During a time of worship, I began to tap the tambourine in front of me and then shake it over my head. As the song continued I was impressed to keep doing this movement. This went on for at least twenty minutes until I began to move my tambourine back and forth to the right and to the left over and over again. This lasted for about 10 more minutes until I felt a sense of completion with it. I began asking God what I was doing and what the movements meant. Later, when I was on the plane going home, God told me it was the breakthrough pattern. As I drew out the movements of the tambourine onto paper it showed a picture of a wall being broken through, and I was amazed to see how it fit into the 16 count beat of a standard pattern.
Besides the obvious visual illustration you can see in this image, there is a series of choreographed movements depicting this scripture.
“God has broken through against my enemies, just as water breaks through a dam.” 1 Chronicles 14:11 (NIRV)
The breakthrough prayer:
Father God, I bring You this wall and stronghold I am facing right now.
You are the only One who is able to break down this wall and set me free.
I yield it to You, asking You to tear it down with Your mighty right hand!
I speak to this wall of crisis and conflict to be broken, and brought down in the name of Jesus. Thank you God for Your mighty power, and for being The One who fights my battles.
Holy Spirit, I ask You to flow through like a powerful rushing current, pouring down your mercy, grace, and freedom in this situation. Amen.
READY TO GO
Following God’s lead is a powerful and energizing adventure. Many of us live in a structured way and our prayer lives fit in to that. But there are times we need to jump in the car and leave everything when God says to go. This is exactly what I did a few months ago when I was working in my kitchen and heard God tell me to go to the State Capitol and pray. I had no agenda, just walking and listening to what was on God’s heart. At one point, He showed me a bowl that had every prayer ever prayed for our State, and every prayer from believers who worked in these buildings I was walking around, for corruption to be exposed and righteousness to be established. Awe and reverence washed over me, as I realized it wasn’t just me. I belong to a family, larger than I can comprehend. I was joining my voice with a host of others who had walked before me, and prayed right where I was walking. My prayer was also rising up with thousands of others, in Washington DC and all around our country who were gathered and praying during Awaken The Dawn that weekend. The weight of this revelation had a humbling impact on me, and I felt the reality of BELONGING to the Body of Christ. Romans 15:6 NASB “…so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Just drop everything that is consuming your time, and focus on The One who holds your future in His hands. Just listen, and let Him know you’re open to what He has to say. I’ve found, doing one thing that God is saying right at that moment rarely interferes with everything else I am doing. Sometimes it’s just a quick phone call, meeting a physical need of someone, or praying for whatever He places in my spirit at that very moment. It is also freedom and healing. I could have let a physical struggle be my excuse for not going, but instead, God took every pain from me as I walked and talked with Him.
Thank you for taking the time to visit me here, giving me an opportunity to share all that's happened on this adventure that I call my prayer journey.
