Although stopping the prayer is illegal based on the Bill of Rights, they are so afraid of the power of prayer that they ruled against it anyway.
http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=1413774
(Please repost this with the name of the judge so we can pray for his or her salvation.)
No one is free when they live in fear. What does the judge fear?
Circuit Court Judge is Afraid of Prayer
August 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Leadership with No Easy Answers
August 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Leadership through command and control is doomed to fail. No one can create sufficient stability and equilibrium for people to feel secure and safe. Instead, as leaders we must help people move into a relationship with uncertainty and chaos. Spiritual teachers have been doing this for millennia. Therefore, I believe that the times have led leaders to a spiritual threshold. We must enter the domain of spiritual traditions if we are to succeed as good leaders in these difficult times.
Margaret Wheatley, Leadership in Turbulent Times is Spiritual
I’ve been doing a lot of study of the book of Habakkuk lately. John Maxwell, in his The Maxwell Leadership Bible, calls this book of Habakkuk “Leadership with no easy answers”. The very first verse of the first chapter begins:
The burden which the prophet Habakkuk saw.
I have two words circled in my Bible: “saw” and “burden”. What did Habakkuk see? The following verses describe a nation much as America today. Habakkuk then hurls three questions at God. In the first question, he is asking if this is a chosen (or “Christian”) nation, why is all this going on? Where are You in all this? The wicked surround the righteous. Justice never goes forth, and there is strive and contention.
The Lord answers Habakkuk, and the answer is shocking. The Northern Kingdom has already been taken away, and the Lord tells Habakkuk that the Southern Kingdom will be taken away by another nation that is far more wicked than Israel itself.
Habakkuk then asks God what is going on. Do you really know what you are doing here?” (Maxwell) In Habakkuk’s second and third questions, he expresses his confusion to God and is asking how this can possibility be right.
Ever been there in your own life? If God is good and loves you, why would he take that spouse, or that child, or leave you jobless?
What does Habakkuk do? As the second chapter begins, we see that Habakkuk says he will “stand his watch and wait to see what God will do. And watch to see what He will say to me…”
Habakkuh says he will wait. Sometimes the hardest thing for a leader to do is wait. I remember after the Billy Graham crusade here meeting Bob Crider, a local evangelist, in a local restaurant. I knew he was involved in the local and massive prayer summits at the coast where hundreds of pastors gathered at times to pray for the coming of the Holy Spirit in Portland. I asked him when the pastors would begin acting, moving beyond the prayer. His answer touched me deeply. “Carl,” he said, “we must wait for the Lord to speak.” It’s hard for a leader to wait.
Habakkuk waited, but it was an active waiting. The word “watch” is used twice in the verse, and a different Hebrew word is used each time. When he says “I will stand my watch”, the word refers to the role or functional gift of the watchman. Ephesians 4 describes the five-fold functional gifts of the Holy Spirit, and here is another functional gift. The watchman stationed himself on the walls of the city and watched 24/7 for what was going on outside the city.
The second time the word “watch” is used, it refers to a motivational gifting (1 Cor 12). It translates as to lean forward, to peer into the distance. It’s an intentional action birthed from passion.
The Lord answers Habakkuk, and the answer is in the second chapter. He is to write the vision on a billboard, so that anyone reading can read it even if they are running. THE JUST WILL LIVE BY FAITH. The third chapter is a prayer of praise and becomes a worship experience on the part of Habakkuk. The concluding verse (and I love it):
The LORD God is Carl’s strength;
He will make Carl’s feet like deer’s feet,
And He will make Carl walk on Carl’s high places.
Several lessons we can learn from this:
- The healing was birthed from Habakkuk intimacy with God. The for for God used throughout the book is LORD, which translates as Yahweh, the intimate name for a God who is loved, loves, and is love.
- Habakkuk was a praying leader. We must be praying leaders.
- We must wait for our answer, but expect it.
- The action is birthed from a burden, a passion.
- It’s OK to ask God questions.
- The greatest leadership principle here is trust. Habakkuk knew he wasn’t in control.
What other lessons do you see?
What did the Queen of Scotland Fear More than the Armies of England?
August 1, 2011 By 2 Comments
I fear the prayers of John Knox more than all the armies of England
Queen of Scotland
Joihn Knox
Throughout history, there have always been leaders who emerge in cities and regions, take the leadership in praying for the coming of the Holy Spirit, and claim their city or region for the Lord. We often look to these men and women as “John Knoxers” – willing to risk everything, including their life, on the line. I think of Julio Cesar Ruibal in Cali, Columbia, who died as a martyr as he rallied the churches there to take the lead together against the drug lords. There is the story of John Woolman, who let the Quakers to free their slaves years before the rest of the country. I can think of the “John Knoxers” who have led in my own city of Portland – Dr. Joe Aldredge, Terry Dirks – that had a contagious passion and could talk of almost nothing else but seeing our city swept by the power of the Holy Spirit.
What about you? What is your passion? What do you pray for?
What is our greatest peril?
July 27, 2011 By Leave a Comment
“Our greatest peril is not the power of the enemy, but our own prayerlessness.” Ronshausen
Carl took some badly needed R&R with a friend at a resort in Tahoe last week. Loved it. You can see the pics at:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2014980128241.2109634.1055950054&l=e79bb04739&type=1
Guidelines for Strategic Prayer
September 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment
- Pray to discern God’s vision.The prayer warrior is like a watchman/woman, seeing what God is doing projected in the future. (See 2 Samuel 18:24-26 for an example of the watchman role. The watchman here saw things the rest of the people could not see yet, yet they had already happened. He seems as a prophet for that reason.)
- Pray strategically into the vision. Since the warrior has already seen what is going to happen, the strategic prayer is like a sword or arrow into the heart of the enemy (Isaiah 49:1-2)
- Believe in the vision and act on it as if it is already going to happen. You are not so much praying “if it is your will”; but rather discerning God’s will and praying it into existence. Strategic prayer is the only way we can move the finger of God (Numbers 14:10ff). Wow! It appears the prayers of ONE man saved an entire nation. The reason this was possible was because Moses knew God’s agenda and could pray and act into it. Look at the Model Prayer – “Your will be done on earth as it is already done in heaven…”. This is not so much a petition as a demand in the name of Christ and in His authority.
- Encourage feedback from those for whom you pray. This enables others to gain encouragement from the answers to your prayers, to praise God for what He is doing, and get better clarity on His vision, purpose, and strategy.
- Praise God for answered prayers. Share what God is doing with others. Sing about it. In this way you enable others to launch strategic prayers into the visions God gives them. The Enemy hates praise music and will leave. Dance. Celebrate.
- Secure your information. What you see, pray, and act on is very strategic. Treat it that way. Don’t necessarily share it with others unless directed by God. DO share what God is doing.
Have intercessory prayer warriors praying for you. Praying strategic prayer puts you on the front line. It puts those praying for you on the front line of danger. Soldiers that on the front line are in a dangerous position and some will fall. It’s also the most exciting place to be.
Prayer: And the Special Grocery List
May 7, 2010 By Leave a Comment
SPECIAL GROCERY LISTLouise Redden, a poorly dressed lady with a look of defeat on her face, walked into a grocery store.She approached the owner of the store in a most humble manner and asked if he would let her charge a few groceries.She softly explained her husband was very ill and unable to work; they had seven children and they needed food.John Longhouse, the grocer, scoffed at her and requested that she leave his store at once.Visualizing the family needs, she said: ‘Please, sir! I will bring you the money just as soon as I can.’John told her he could not give her credit, since she did not have a charge account at his store.Standing beside the counter was a customer who overheard the conversation between the two. The customer walked forward and told the grocer that he would stand good for whatever she needed for her family. The grocer said in a very reluctant voice, ‘Do you have a grocery list?’Louise replied, ‘Yes sir.’ ‘O.K’ he said, ‘put your grocer y list on the scales and whatever your grocery list weighs, I will give you that amount in groceries..’Louise hesitated a moment with a bowed head, then she reached into her purse and took out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. She then laid the piece of paper on the scale carefully with her head still bowed.The eyes of the grocer and the customer showed amazement when the scales went down and stayed down.The grocer, staring at the scales, turned slowly to the customer and said begrudgingly, ‘I can’t believe it.’The customer smiled as the grocer started putting groceries on the other side of the scales. The scale did not balance so he continued to put more and more groceries on them until the scales would hold no more.The grocer stood there in utter disgust. Finally, he grabbed the piece of paper from the scales and looked at it with greater amazement.It was not a grocery list, it was a prayer, which said:’Dear Lord, you know my needs and I leave this in your hands.’The grocer gave her the groceries that he had gathered and stood in stunned silence.Louise thanked him and left the store. The other customer handed a fifty-dollar bill to the grocer and said; ‘It was worth every penny of it. Only God Knows how much a prayer weighs..’THE POWER: When you receive this, say a prayer. That’s all you have to do.
National Day of Prayer
May 5, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Thursday, May 6, has been designated as the National Day of Prayer.National days of prayer have been observed in America since 1775, when the Continental Congress asked the nation to join in a petition for divine guidance. Since that time, 34 of 44 U.S. presidents have called for days of prayer during times of crisis. The list has included George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush. National days of prayer have been the tradition of our nation from its founding.In 1952, Congress passed legislation establishing an official Day of Prayer. This was signed into law by President Harry Truman. In 1988, Congress passed an amendment that designated the first Thursday of May as the annual National Day of Prayer. This has been our cherished history, which is supported by millions of Americans of all faiths.Unfortunately, that heritage of prayer as an integral part of our nation’s history has come under unrelenting assault. On April 15, 2010, federal judge Barbara Crabb issued a ruling striking down the National Day of Prayer as unconstitutional. And now, a small group of noise makers in Albuquerque have demanded that the Pentagon cancel its planned National Day of Prayer on May 6th.We have a nation that has lost its way and has long left those principles our founding fathers fought gave there life for. We are supposed to have a freedom of religion here, yet over and over again the courts and various organizations have tried to take that freedom away. This year a federal judge in Wisconsin declared the National Day of Prayer to be illegal. Go ahead – let’s do an “illegal” act. Lead! Pray for the nation.For the Portland area, you can find a prayer meeting near you at:http://www.creatingnewworlds.org/nationaldayofprayer.pdfFor the larger Oregon listing and for other states as well as related articles, check::http://nationaldayofprayer.org/
What’s going on in Cali, Columbia – One of those four transformed cities?
April 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Remember that Transformation video that came from the Sentinel Group years ago with the stories of four cities that were totally transformed? One of those cities was Cali, Columbia – the center of multiple drug cartels. The city was transformed, but at such a cost. The pastor who was a major leader in much of this became a martyr. Now years later, what has happened? Is the city still transformed? What does Cali look like now? Ever wonder? Ruth Ruibal gives the report:http://www.glowtorch.org/Home/CaliColombiaUpdate/tabid/2766/Default.aspxThen join THE FIREPLACE on this site. It’s free.Order the original Transformations I video if you haven’t seen it.
Disciplines for the New Year
December 29, 2008 By Leave a Comment
What gifts would you like to bring to the Christ-King? Pick from the list or create your own as the Spirit leads you.
The Reality of Faith
February 11, 2008 By Leave a Comment
In reality, faith always springs from a relationship. You don’t have faith that it won’t rain for your party tomorrow or to win the lottery. Faith is the result of believing someone. It is an unconscious process of acting on something because we believe someone. If you scheduled that outdoor party tomorrow, it’s because the weatherman said it would not rain. You believed the weatherman. Faith is beyond reason. If we are acting on reason, it isn’t faith.When I had that GBS, it wasn’t reasonable that I would walk again. The doctors said I would not. I had to step out in faith beyond reason. I had to be a proactive step on my part. And there was a relationship, and it wasn’t with the doctor. It was with God. If I had believed the doctors I would never have walked again.(from The Illusion by Carl Townsend, (c) 2008
