prayer

Voicing Praise Will Shake the Faulty Foundation of Lies

ChelanLeave a comment

One night, it was around midnight, on the other side of the planet, two guys were thrown in prison – wrongfully. But their prayer and praise and hymn singing resulted in earth and soul-shaking miracles.

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The very foundations of the prison were shaken. This was literal. Today, we do not find ourselves in literal prisons – but rather, demonic strongholds, or fortresses. These strongholds also have foundations. What would be the foundation of addiction, for example? The foundation of depression? The foundation of pride? I would venture to suggest that the foundation for most if not all demonic strongholds – that which all outward symptoms are built upon, is deceit. Lies.

When we see our prison-like circumstance as an opportunity to lift up the name of Jesus (in prayer and praise), the very foundation upon which demons have been stationed – becomes powerfully shaken! The core of their arsenal, their “Big Guns”, Lies, are dismantled. Rendered impotent.

And as a result, every time, there is a releasing. There is a spiritual opening of doors, and breaking of chains! 😳

There is a supernatural freedom that accompanies the proclamation of Truth.

But notice – the last 4 words of this passage. “Everyone’s chains were unfastened.”

Freedom did not just come to Paul and to Silas. But when they used their voices in the midst of their utter agony, sitting in their pools of blood, to give praise to Jesus, and lift up expectant prayers…everyone around them who was held captive became free! Paul and Silas’s decision to praise in the prison directly resulted in not just their own release, but the release of everyone else in that dungeon.

Our praise in duress. Our fervent, expectant prayer. Our singing – can do the same. Make it loud. Our God will shake the enemy to his core. He will open doors that were sealed and locked before. He will unfasten tight chains that were once the source of pain.

When have you encountered immediate freedom from bondage after deciding to sing, praise and pray to Jesus?

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Outpouring

ChelanLeave a comment

Vs1: There’s an outpouring of your Spirit

out of our hearts, out of our homes

An outpouring of your Spirit –

into the streets, into the public places

 

Vs2: There’s an outpouring of your Spirit

out of the church, out of our songs

An outpouring of your Spirit –

into our work, & into the lowly places


Pre-Chorus:

So I will go, go into my world, world

and I will love, love every boy and girl! 

Yeah, I will go, go into my world, world

and I will pray for FREEDOM every day

Chorus: 

Freedom,  Freedom be released

From your Kingdom

 Kingdom be released!

Bridge: 

Give me a mind not divided, not distracted

But the mind of Christ

Give me a mind set upon you, set upon truth

The mind of Christ


Chorus

Vs2: There’s an outpouring of your Spirit

out of the church, out of our songs
An outpouring of your Spirit –
into our work, & into the lowly places

Pre-chorus:  So I will go…

Chorus x2   Freedom…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_QoWrlITPI

Freedom’s Door – a poem on prayer for freedom

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This is a poem I wrote for an article for Abolition Now, about the power of prayer for freedom. They decided to wait on the article part and only published the poem for now…

Freedom’s Door

I hear your voice call out to Me

Most times it is My symphony

Most times it is all that I need

To move, to act, to pour.
Believe, I fashioned you this way

Let’s talk and laugh throughout the day

I’ve placed them in your path for you

To move, to act, to pour.
So move again, and you will see

My Spirit in community

Each act of faith, a rugged key

To open freedom’s door.
Dash the mountain with My Word

With authority assured, and

Speak to me, My Kingdom’s shine,

You open freedom’s door.

FreedomsDoor

(photo credit: Kathy Lebron)

Learning Not to Box – Tracy from Red Cross & Daniel from Xbox

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So, the Red Cross called to confirm a donation appt & I asked her right after, “Hey, off topic, but is there anything at all, I can pray for you about?”

She said, “Hmm. Actually yes! You can pray for me to be able to help care for my neighbor Helen who is 92, & had a stroke. Her sister, 94, died last Tues. Helen’s been my neighbor for 8 years; she’s a missionary’s daughter. I want her strong and in that house of hers as long as possible.

So I got to pray for Tracy and Helen and God gave me a word for Tracy DURING my prayer, that she would be a Voice Of Hope for not just Helen but her whole neighborhood!  She thanked me and said, “Well now I just wanna go and knock on everyone’s door and be that to everyone!”

Ha! The Lord is so good!

He meets me every single time I step out! And I’m not the only one. This simple act of asking to pray for someone is possible for every believer and we get opportunities to do it every day by phone in person and even in chat-boxes.

I was receiving help from an Xbox support person via chat, for over 2.5 hours the other day to straighten out Braylon’s account that had gotten all tangled up with his best friend’s security information. After we were done, I asked him the same thing. I thought, as I typed it, that he might have had emotional stress. He replied right away in the chat box,

“Bless your heart. Thank you. I could use all the positive energy I can get, actually. My mom passed away from breast cancer…and today’s my birthday.”

So I prayed pretty simply for him in the chat, and here’s a screenshot of the end of it.


I don’t even know where he was in the US. I wasn’t face to face or even speaking with him, but God transcends through space, time and proximity. He gives us unconventional ideas, and they actually work!

Give it up for my God! When I stopped putting him in a box, he said, “Actually, this chat-box will work just fine, today, thank you.”

I will keep stepping out because he meets me every time and shines through my every move. My every word. He transcends.

My Kinda Dance – repentance and forgiveness

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After Break Free tonight, talking and praying with my awesome friend and prayer-sister Samantha about sex trafficking, I had to stop by Freddies on my way home. I figured I might possibly run into David from about a week ago (https://chelan.me/2015/02/21/david-from-freddies/), but wasn’t sure. What made me wonder, is that I’d picked a random sermon to listen to on my way home from some church called Victory, in my Podcasts. I’d never listened to one from there before. This guest speaker was preaching all about King David. She was specifically using him as a prime example for us to embrace repentance along with forgiveness.

As Freddie’s was closing, I picked a line to check out and then saw it was his line! But he had to shoo me away to self check out. I left, a bit bummed, but then saw him again at the main doors a few minutes later. I turned to him, “DAVID. I told you I’d pray for you, remember?”

He smiled, and I watched it come back to him. So I asked him there in front of the electronic double doors by produce, what I could pray for him about. He said for a stressful real estate deal set to close March 13th or 18th? to go through successfully. And then he asked me if I had anything he could pray for.  I thought about it…& said sure! I applied for a part time job and want it, only if God does. So direction on that.

He placed his hand on my shoulder and we stood there, basically strangers but brother and sister in Christ, and prayed for each other as his co-workers exited the store every minute or so.

After he prayed for me, I prayed for his real estate deal but added a part that I’d just heard from that sermon: that God would help him to see repentance for what it is – a turning away.  And when we turn away from sin, we are turning toward our God who loves us deeply. I prayed for a desire to always turn away and then turn toward, trusting that there will always be a great freedom found there.

He lit up even more and mentioned that there was power in that prayer, & that he feels like what I prayed for him should be “reciprocated”, back to me. And I received it. Cause I’ve always had a hard time with repentance for some reason. But now I’m realizing its the step to take before asking for forgiveness. Like they’re dance partners.

I was thinking, our hands, if they are still filled with undealt with (unrepented of) sin, they will not be able to be filled with his gift of forgiveness. It’s a give and then get. A bit like a spiritual dance. Move toward God a few steps and give up the sinful action or attitude and then move back a few and get freedom and joy that comes from receiving His forgiveness. And a bonus comes when we gain victory over that area. Praise God!

Now that’s my kinda dance.

On the way home from there, the Lord gave me a new song with these words:

Vs1: There’s an outpouring of your spirit – out of our hearts, out of our homes. An outpouring of your spirit – into the streets, into the public places.

Vs2: There’s an outpouring of your spirit – out of the church, out of our songs. An outpouring of your spirit – into our work, & into the lowly places.

Pre-Chorus:

So I will gogogo into my worldworldworld and I will lovelovelove every boy and girl! Yeah, I will gogogo into my worldworldworld and I will pray – for freedom every day

Chorus: 

Freedom freedom be released

From your Kingdom.

 Kingdom be released!

Bridge: 

Give me a mind not divided, not distracted.

But the mind of Christ.

Give me a mind set upon you, set upon truth.

The mind of Christ.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_QoWrlITPI

My Fatherless Friend

ChelanLeave a comment

They came to our house yesterday. And I let the surface talk last for as long as I could. When the conversation took a turn to a local senior in high school committing suicide last week, we felt a heaviness and discussed the importance of being there for people, because you never really know the depth of their inner struggles. I looked at her mom who, at those last few words, began to cry. I leapt up from my sofa to hug her.

My friend was crying because her children lost their dad in a nearly head-on collision last February. The anniversary of their loss is creeping up quickly and something or Someone in me said it’s not spoken much about. Speak on it.

I’m tired of surface.

I said resolutely & punctuated it with another hug. Her daughter a Freshman in high school, stood “strong” a foot away. I knew I had to give her a message of God’s love and pray for them before they left. My favorite movie line has always been “Carpé Diem boys, seize the day”. And as mom left the room for a moment, I did just that by the grace of His Spirit and looked straight into the girls eyes, calling her by name.

Your heavenly father loves you so much. I see him like he’s on the porch, just waiting.

She started crying too.

And you, you’re not a prodigal. But like that story, you go away but when you come home to him, know that he’s right there. Arms are wide open. He looks ahead and sees you out of the corner of his eye. He lights up with excitement. It’s you!! He stops what he’s doing and takes off…runs to you and wraps his big arms around you.

I acted as Him and hugged her with all my might. She was still crying.

He loves you where you are and no matter where that is, or what you’ve done, you can go home to him and he will be waiting. Open his word. He will speak new things to you, because his Word is alive and active within you. It’s not about church or the right friends. It’s about relationship with Him.

She may have lost her dad last year. But she will never ever lose her Father. And I’ll be damned if I let one more conversation stay on the surface and not share the Father’s love. The hearts and the healing of His children hang in the balance.

This year, I’m going deeper.

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Athey Creek’s Poet (pt.1)

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Saturday night my family attended a service at Athey Creek that gave a taste of the next evening’s concert: “A Christmas Together”, a compilation of several artists. I struggled with paying money I wasn’t sure we had to go the next night, but I knee that if I did, the main reason would not be to be entertained or even blessed by the worshipful atmosphere and talent. It would be to pray for Micah, the spoken word poet, for a condition he has had to endure for several years involving bleeding and inflammation of internal organs.

Saturday night he actually performed a poem about it. What a Fool, I believe he titled it. Track 11 at the link below.
http://micahbournes.bandcamp.com/album/alive-ill

The first half of this poem tried hard to intimidate me. But the rest gave me some boldness and encouragement. The Spirit of God wouldn’t relent yesterday (Sunday) as I kept vacillating. Should I go? Would it be worth the money spent, the time away from family, the emotional energy?
I decided it would. Because I knew that Micah was on tour and I didn’t know when I’d get to see him again to pray in person. To lay my hand on him and pray for healing for him in faith.

After the show, I kept my distance from him and watched as he mingled through an adoring crowd and signed CD’s for children. I dismissed the stalker vibe I thought I was giving out, and the thought of leaving when I lost track of him.

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I approached Jadon Lavic a fellow musician and friend on tour with him, but he didn’t know where he’d gone. I asked Tim Timmons and after an awesome little conversation on authority in Christ, he pointed me to a little room with a cracked door in the back corner of the sanctuary. It was the “green room”.

So off I walked. Whether he’d receive my offer in his heart, I wouldn’t know. But I knew he’d let me pray. “What a Fool” from the night before, gave that away.
I peeked in and singer, Sarah MacIntosh was seated on the ground; she greeted and welcomed me in and I saw Micah sitting on the couch to her left.

Abby’s Pizza Widow

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Last Wednesday night, at his mom and Bob’s, Ricky went to pay the Abby’s pizza delivery person and I faintly heard her thanking him…more than a normal “thanks”. As the front door closed, he came back into the kitchen and I asked him, “you tipped her more than normal didn’t you?” “Yeah.” He admitted with a smirk, “she walked back to her car crying.” “What?” I said, “we gotta ask her if she needs prayer!”

Angel piped up, “Is she gone yet?! Go go go!”

So with that extra boost, I had to go. I slid Braylon’s slides on and scurried out to catch her before she left. She was head-down, texting. Her headlights caught me waving and she looked up, surprised. Immediately she rolled her window down and asked me, “Was it a mistake?” referring to the tip, and ready for disappointment. I didn’t know how much he gave her. The point was that he acted in obedience. I could still see her tear lines on her face. “Oh, NO! That was no mistake.” Her tears gave me the perfect opportunity to ask, “Are you okay?” It was less awkward than starting out with “Can I pray for you?”.

She paused as I bent my knees and looked in her eyes, carefully gauging her comfort zone. “Yeah, I just…” She was having a hard time finding words. So I thought it was good timing to ask, “Is there anything I can pray for you about?” Her answer was unexpected.

“I lost my husband five years ago” she replied so transparently as her emotions kept trying to interrupt. “This time of year can just be so hard for me.”  We talked some more and she welcomed a prayer right there in the driveway. As I placed my open hand on top of hers, she took her other hand and put it on top of mine, a gesture of trust, vulnerability and faith.

She had been married to him for over 25 years. I don’t know what I prayed really, but I do recall bringing up God’s names, The Comforter and the Prince of Peace. She was so genuinely joyful as we finished talking, and thanked me twice for coming out to her car. This was the work of the Spirit. It was not because of me, or Ricky…it was because of the goodness of the God we’re getting to know more. We’re learning it’s His grace that gives us the boldness and power and a really cool sort of intuition we need to “go” when we’d otherwise stay where we are. It really is all about His love. His pursuit of every heart, through us. I love it!

A few days later, the Lord kept bringing her back to Ricky’s mind and so we stopped by Fred Meyer to pick up a card, and some gift cards for her – because maybe she needed some extra Christmas money and some gas money since as a delivery driver you have to pay for your own gas. We wrote in the card and dropped it off for her at Abby’s and found out she’d be working that night (last night). We don’t know what this will yield. But we know it will be good. Because we were representing a giving, loving God to this woman who was in distress. I know this Christmas will be different for her though. In a good way.