Some have emailed me saying they want to pray for the nations, but need help. I have written this from my heart to you, along with some links to resources and to some recent prophetic messages that have been very helpful to me:
How to pray for the nations
As I type this, Misty is singing: “Whom have I but You? Whom have I but You? Though the mountains fall, they fall into the sea. Though the questions asked will never be resolved. I have You! I have everything! You have me! And I’m gonna be okay! Hold us together when the world is shaking! Hold us together when the world is quaking! Oh, my heart longs for You! Oh, my heart burns for You! Holy Spirit, I ask, as You are shaking things, would You tenderize the hearts, the hearts of Your people. You said in the latter days you would raise up the love songs in the night, Lord, I ask for that love songs to break forth in the earth. Give us the oil of love, the oil of worship, the oil of intercession, of communion with You. We confess our dependence on You. We take the time to lean into You!…Be still and know He is God! In the midst of the shaking, I have calmed and have quieted my soul. Like a weaned child with his mother, is my soul within me.
We are living in shaking, quaking times. It is a serious time and God has said a lot about these days in the Bible, in both the Old and New Testaments to prepare us.
Be a Child
So to know how to pray, we just need to be like children. Whenever I get too complicated, I tell myself to be like a child. Dial down, think like a child.
Jesus said, “You (Father) did hide these things from the wise and intelligent and did reveal them to babes. Yes, Father, for it was well-pleasing in Your sight!” Matthew 11:25
That is so amazing. We can know what is on His heart. It says that the things which eye has not seen, nor ear heard, these things we can know by the spirit, because the spirit searches out all things, even the depths of God! (1 Corinth 2: 9 – 14) We can know the mysteries of God’s heart. We have access to His heart if we choose to search it out. It is an invitation, He woos us to do this, but not everyone goes for it. It is open to everyone who chooses! God wants us to seek Him out and ask Him things! He loves to answer us. It is glory of God to hide a matter, and the glory of kings to search a matter out (Prov). Call upon Me, and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you do not know, He says in Jeremiah 33:3.
We can be children and call to Him and ask.
Jesus said many times in John 14 – 16, ask anything in My name, and I will do it, if you abide in Me! It is a continual invitation for us to ask! He wants us to pursue a relationship with Him. Communication is how relationship is built.
A Kid in a Candy Store
Really, it is like a kid in a candy store. We can ask ANYTHING! So, take a look and tell God what you want to see happen in the situation. What is needed? Ask for it. He invites us to invite Him in to situations. He has set it up so that He does not move, until we invite Him to. Why? Because He wants us to work with Him. Think of every possible way God could move into that situation. You have this amazing privilege to ask, so think largely, ask largely, in everyway possible, because God desires to move extravagantly at the sound of your voice. It is amazing really! So few take advantage of this privilege, or we ask so little, just for those things in our little world. We can ask, and God moves!!! Wow ~ Selah! Let’s think about it, and let’s do it!!!
So, praying for the nations begins in being like a child:
Children Are Told to Obey Their Parents, So We Should Obey God, As A Child
To be a child, we just simply do what He, Jesus tells us to do. Jesus said to watch and pray when you see these things happening! “Watch” means to watch what God is saying and doing, watch what is happening in the news, in the world around us, and watch what the Bible says.
What things happening?
There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Luke 21:25 & 26
You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs. Matthew 24:6&7
How do I watch?
1. Watch what the word of God says. Read the Bible A LOT! With prayer…with your spirit, with the mind of Christ. In 1 Corinthians 2: 9 – 14 it says we are to combine spiritual thoughts with spiritual words, and that we can know the mind of the Lord, by the spirit. It says that the natural man cannot understand spiritual things because they are spiritually understood. Just like a child, ask the Lord to open up revelation. Ask for a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. He will reveal things to you. It says in John 16:13 But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.
If we read the word, we get a sense of His great plan for the nations. Not just His plan to save me from my sins and take me to heaven. Much more! Then we can ask for the nations according to His plan. He said, “Ask of Me for the nations… for the ends of the earth!”
2. Watch in the place of prayer. The Bible cannot be understood without a life of prayer and fasting. He opens it up to us as we diligently seek Him. He calls us into the secret place with Him. Jesus said to the disciples: “So you men could not watch with Me for one hour? Keep watching and praying, that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Matthew 26: 40,41 “Call upon Me and I will show you great and mighty things which you do not know” Jer. 33:3, “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with ALL your heart” Jer. 29:11
3. Watch the news reports from the nations and it will give you an idea of what to ask and pray. CNN and CBC have short up-to-date clips online. Or read the newspaper. It helps me to see what is going on, and to hear and see the stories of people in these situations. It moves my heart to pray. Watching the story of the tsunami, and following along, has helped me pray. Just seeing what people are going through. Likewise the uprisings in the Middle East.
4. Watch the prophetic. Ask for dreams and visions. He said He will pour out His Spirit on all flesh, on all mankind, and your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. He gives dreams, visions. Pay attention to prophetic things, because God said He will give words and dreams and speak this way.
Misty’s prophetic song about a a serious change of season that is making her spirit tremble:
As I type this part, I realized that Misty is singing these very words which are a prophecy about her sensing a serious change of season that is making her spirit tremble: “Listen to what the Spirit is saying. Get out of the routine! Oh, watchmen on the wall. Open your eyes! What do you see? Shake off the lethargy and complacency. There is something bigger going on! There is a change of season and I can feel it in my spirit and it is trembling. There is something bigger going on! There is something more! And I want to hear what the Spirit is saying! I want to hear what the Spirit is saying. Don;t want to just play comfortable music that makes you comfortble. Don’t want my own heart to fall asleepWhat is on Your heart oh God! Raise up the friends of the Bridegroom! ake us truly watchment on the wall! Opne up our eyes Make us know the times and the seasons! Wake us up oh, God!!! Raise up Your messengers. Wake us up, Oh God!!!
We want to be the ones who stand when the earth is reeling like a drunk man! Tottering like a drunk man! We don’t want to be confused. There’s going to be a turning around. It’s just a matter of time!!! Awaken the watchmen!!! Sound the alarm!!! Where are the prophets! where are the messengers! Awaken the watchmen! Awake! Awake!! Seer, what do you see! If you don’t prophesy! I am about to shake everything that can be shaken! I am about to break everything that can be broken! Where are the prophets!!! Awake! Awake!!! Sound the alarm!! Blow the trumpet in Zion! Tell the people! Tell the people! Awake!! Awake!! A mighty whirlwind has gone out and He will not relent until He has performed every intent of His heart! I am the Lord, God and I never change! I am the same God of Elijah, the same God of Sinai. I am an all consuming fire! Jealousy is my Fire! And my prophets prophesy lies in my name! And I am about to roar like a lion! Oh, My people! the apple of My eye! Oh, America, wake up!! Oh, America wake up!!! Oh, My people, I love you, I cherish you! The judgment of God begins in the House of the Lord! Wake up! For I am a refiners fire! I don’t want your tradition! I don’t want your buildings. Me you have forgotten! You have forgotten! But I have not have forgotten. Before that Great and Terrible Day! I will shake you. I love you too much that you would fall away!
So return to your first love! Return to your first love! I return to my first love!
My Dreams a Few Days Before the Earthquake and Tsunami
Ask for dreams and interpretations. ie. I had several dreams a few days before and also the very morning of this earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan.
A few days before everything broke out in Japan, I had a very unusual dream and I knew it was significant, so I wrote it out and drew a couple of pictures of it in my journal. I shared it with my husband and also with Barb, one of the PGHOP leaders. I dreamt is was walking down a very long wide hallway of a government building. It had polished floors. Then it turned to the left and the hallway continued with big windows all along the one side. Finally the hallway opened to a large goverment agents office with a curved counter and many desks behind the counter. Everyone was busy working at their desks. The back wall behind the desks was all windows overlooking the ocean. It was gray and windy outside, and the waves were choppy, unsettling. I marvelled at the view. No one seemed to paying attention to what was going on outside.
I went to the counter to hand in some paperwork. I was told I had to wait in the waiting area where these cushy chairs were. They gave me a number and it was a very distinct #23. I was frustrated, annoyed, irritated, because all I had to do was hand in the papers, so why did I have to wait for an hour, etc. So I asked for an envelope so I could mail it to them instead. I went to an island counter to write out the address, and then walked outside. There were a few people together and we looked out toward the ocean. The building was built RIGHT on the EDGE of the ocean on charcoal coloured lava rock. It was like six feet from the water, a little higher than sea level. I looked around I thought they could build concrete picnic tables and then the employees could sit out there for lunch breaks and coffee breaks on nice days.
Then we noticed that something was heading for the shore from out in the ocean. We looked an a locomotive hauling a barge was heading to shore full tilt. It was going around 60 miles an hour (that is what I sensed in the dream). It did not slow down but came so fast and I was shocked because it came right up onto land and kept moving at the same speed right inland past us. It went under this big machinery and just weaved around it and went on and disappeared out of sight. Nothing slowed it down or stopped it!
I woke up!
I knew it meant something, but WHAT!!?
I began to pray for understanding.
That day, at PGHOP we were watching a teaching from The Bride of Christ by Mike Bickle, and when he mentioned a verse, I knew that verse had something to do with this dream:
The anger of the Lord will not turn back until He has executed and performed the thoughts of His heart. In the latter days you will understand it perfectly. Jeremiah 23:30
Also, I thought about a train and a barge. A determined person is sometimes said to be like a steam engine, and it is said that someone barges in…they just push their way into a situation. Things don’t stop them. So whatever this was about, it was about something that was unstoppable and determined, and it would move at the same pace on land or water, so to speak. Little did I realize that it was the picture of the tsunami.
I looked up the #23 and found it on two christian dream interpretation sites. The number 23 means DEATH. There have been thousands of lives lost in this tsunami!
The morning of the quake, I dreamt that Teresa Nozu (my friend who is a pastor in Japan) and I and another woman were praying over a man, who was the woman’s husband. He had had a heart attack or something like that and was lying down semi-conscious. I began to speak the clear gospel to Him, saying that “Salvation is in Jesus!” He began to awaken back to life.
So I now am praying for the rapid spread of the clear gospel message right now in Japan. I am praying for the releasing of the Holy Spirit on God’s people to speak boldly and clearly the message of the gospel.
That morning before I knew about the earthquake and tsunami, I also dreamt that my granddaughter, who is a toddler, dissappeared. I was alarmed and went looking for her. I found her wet, lying wrapped in a wet comforter on a wet floor. Her clothes were wet, her hair was wet, and her diapers were wet. I took her and began to look for clean diapers and dry clothes.
So when the news of this tsunami came that morning, I had a particular burden to pray for little ones to be kept safe in a supernatural way, and to be found unharmed. I rejoiced when I saw the news about the little girl baby that was found safe and sound after several days in the debris! Praise the Lord!!! A dream can guide us to pray. Because God let me see a dream about my granddaughter, my feelings were really involved. It helped me to pray. God is so smart on how to get us to pray and focus uniquely on certain areas.
My Vision About Japan – a Child in a Pink Blanket
Psalm 2:8 says to Ask of Me for the nations. I remember Cindy Jacobs once saying, praying for a nation is like praying for a person. Think of the nation as a person. This helped me. For instance, when we were praying for Japan on Wednesday night at pghop, at the end of our prayer time I saw a vision of a child lying down to sleep with a pink blanket. I felt we were rubbing the baby’s back, soothing her to sleep as we were praying. We were comforting Japan through our prayers. God was comforting Japan.
Children Live in a Posture of Reliance on Someone Bigger
Children know they need someone bigger to help them. They slip their little hand into ours. They crawl onto our laps. They put out their arm so we can put on their coat.
No one knows how to pray.
Even if we have prayed for years and years. In each situation we need to align in that childlike posture, to find out how to pray into it.
In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. Romans 8:26 & 27
When we invite the Holy Spirit to pray through us we will be amazed at how we are quickened to pray.
Children Believe
Pray in the Spirit (in tongues). When you don’t know how to pray, pray in tongues. I pace and pray with worship music playing, praying in tongues. You can pray for long periods of time this way, and incredible things are happening in the spirit realm. If you aren’t filled with the Holy Spirit, just ask Him for it and ask for tongues. It is a powerful tool.
If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?” Luke 11:13
Children Learn From Others
Pray along with the IHOP webstream. They usually focus on the nation that is going through something. As you listen and pray along with them, you will learn how to pray for the nations. I joined with the Mar 11/ 10am Intercession Set. One woman’s prayer espcially was very impactful as she prayed deeply with tears, covering many angles of prayer for Japan. The whole 2 hour set was pretty much a focus for Japan, but this woman prayed at about 1 hour and 35 minutes into the set if you want to hear it.
Also this set I am listening to as I type this, really helps to pray for Japan.
6 PM Thurs March 17 Misty Edwards
I pray a lot with the web stream in the background. It causes me to rise into the spirit. Often I find they are saying words almost identical to mine moments after I have said those words. It is prophetic praying and it is exhilirating.
There are resources of teaching on the IHOP website (www.ihop.org). There is a lot of teaching on the coming of the Lord. We have been listening to the teachings on the Bridal Paradigm and the End times from IHOP for 7 years, and it has helped to understand what are the plans of God’s heart from the scriptures. IHOP is a community who spend hours in prayer, worship, fasting and meditating on the scriptures. These teachings have come out of that place of deeply seeking the Lord. As we have listened to them, we have found that in most everything they are Biblically sound. Mike and other leaders often say, for those listening, not to accept anything just because we or anyone else is teaching or preaching it. Go to the Bible and study it, and see if these things are so. They are open to further revelation, and welcome the questions.
If We Misunderstand, We May Be Offended or Angry With Jesus
To be effective in prayer, we need to understand God’s Heart Purposes, or we may find ourselves offended and/or praying against His purposes. Since these shakings are called birth pangs, we need to position to pray for what is being birthed, rather than pray against the shakings.
Mike says in His Message titled The Endtime Revelation of Jesus: Bridegroom, King, and Judge:
(Here is the link if you want to watch it. I recommend it and his teaching on the Book of Revelation, on the Signs of the Times, and go on from there) http://mikebickle.org/resources/resource/2979 Those who misunderstand God’s judgments will be tempted to be offended or angry with Jesus. As God’s judgments unfold, many will lose their perspective and objectivity in seeing God’s love and wisdom. They need biblical perspective and understanding in order to rightly interpret the events as expressions of God’s love and wisdom. The purpose of God’s end-time judgments against the Antichrist’s empire is to remove all that hinders love and to stop oppression.
- A. The years leading up to Jesus’ return will see unique dynamics, both positive and negative. The greatest outpouring of the Spirit in history is coming. It will surpass the book of Acts in power (Acts 2:17-21). All nations will receive the witness of the kingdom with power (Mt. 24:14). As the light gets brighter, so the darkness will get darker—Satan will rage against the human race and God’s most severe judgments will be poured out against the Antichrist’s empire.
17In the last days…I will pour My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy… 20before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. (Acts 2:17-20)
21There will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time…22And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved… (Mt. 24:21-22)
- B. Forerunners proclaim from the Scripture what will happen before it occurs. They prepare people to respond rightly to Jesus by giving them understanding of His plans, so that they will be able to agree with what He is doing in that hour instead of resisting it. If people lack understanding, they will be more vulnerable to yield to fear, offense, confusion, compromise, and deception.
The Word and the Spirit emphasize Jesus as Bridegroom, King, and Judge at the end of the age. As the Bridegroom, He is filled with desire for His people. As King, He possesses all power. As Judge, He is zealous to intervene and remove all that hinders love, as He confronts oppression
150 passages in the Bible about the second coming of Jesus: http://www.ihop.org/Publisher/Article.aspx?ID=1000042099
Pray scriptures (apostolic prayers) One of the best scriptures to pray is Eph 1: 16 – 19 asking God to give unsaved people, and believers alike a Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of God. If we have revelation, we are able to reach out to Jesus and change comes into our lives. Also, John 6:44, since “no one comes to Jesus except the Father draws them”, we should ask the Father to draw believers into that place of prayer, intercession and travail, which in turn moves God’s heart to draws the unbelievers, so their hearts are opened to the Gospel.
Mike Bickle taught the best teaching ever on why to pray the prayers that are already in the Bible:
1. They are addressed to God, not the devil
2. They are for the church, for the Bride to become what she is called to be. If the Bride becomes what she is called to be, the world will believe
3. They are all positive prayers.
Here is the link on why to pray scripture prayers: http://mikebickle.org/resources/resource/1089?return_url=http%3A%2F%2Fmikebickle.org%2Fresources%2Fcategory%2Fihop-ministry%2Fharp-and-bowl%2F
Going Into A Deeper Place In Prayer
Rob Parker wrote about how we can become numb with all the desperate needs in the world, and he says in his last online newsletter:
Maybe you too need to ask God for an anointing of His compassion for those who are suffering in this world today. Perhaps our prayers would reach a deep place; an agonizing prayer that could move the hand of God for Japan, or somewhere else where there is affliction in our world.
Recent Prophetic Messages:
Special Bulletin from Morning Star Ministries on the Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami http://www.morningstarministries.org/
~ Bob Jones prophetic word from 22 years ago
Mike and Cindy Jacobs interview Marc Nuttle (advisor to 5 presidents) speaks about the economy of USA and globe. We are on a precipice and need to come out of denial, to properly begin to deal with this. There is still hope, as Marc gives a solution.
Great Harvest that will soon begin Bob Jones 22/2/11 http://vimeo.com/20264777
Encountering Jesus: Prophetic History of IHOP
I really recommend listening to this series. I have put the link to the first session below. You can find the rest on the website. The reason I recommend it, is it gives insight to what God is saying to the world right now through the spirit of prophecy. I listened to this 7 years ago for the first time on my days off at IHOP during my 3.5 month stay there in training and the prayer room. I would go for long walks sometimes 6 miles and be stunned at what I was hearing. God gripped my heart in an unprecedented way. I believed this. It is true, so it means a response. My response was to get the House of Prayer established in Prince George, and to do whatever possible to get the Bride to become a praying Bride, who longs for Him, and His return. This below is what is said about the series and then you will see the link.
Visions, Revelations, and Angelic Activity from IHOP-KC’s Prophetic History
Over the last 25 plus years, the Lord has graciously given us about 25 powerful prophetic experiences that provide insight into what will happen in the days ahead in Kansas City, the USA, and other nations. These supernatural experiences were given to several prophetic people in the 1970s and 1980s. They include times when various believers saw the Lord, heard God’s audible voice, saw an angel, or had prophetic dreams that were dramatically confirmed. These prophetic experiences are referred to as IHOP-KC’s prophetic history. Scripture, being the highest standard and guardian of truth, is our primary light in a dark world. However, the Lord sometimes gives us prophetic experiences to highlight aspects of our specific ministry assignment and to strengthen us in our faith to believe for the release of His extraordinary blessing.
This is a like a seminar on how to pray for the nations, so to go through everything may take a few days, but if you are serious about praying for the nations and the world in this serious time we are living in, it is the best thing to do to equip yourself.
God bless you,
Marja
