[i]Blest be the tie that binds our hearts and souls to God
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Bless God! we had a precious time of prayer Friday evening, Saturday, and Sunday afternoon. It was a time of seeking the face of God for our individual lives, for our families, for our churches, and for God to move in mightily in manifesting His presence.
We started out Friday evening with a precious time of prayer with around seventeen people. Much time was spent invoking the presence of God for the following day. On Saturday we had most of our church family there plus a few from Texas, Arkansas (praise God that Josh Parsley was able to join us!), and St. Joseph, MO. We started the morning session with reading the first six chapters of Acts together, and then we went to our knees and had a time of confession and praise mingled with intercession for different areas. After lunch we joined back together and watched a video by Doug Small entitled Entertaining God, the main emphasis was on entering into intimacy with God in prayer. Then we broke up into families and each family sought God together. After that everyone was on their own to pray alone or in small groups. We ended off the evening with praise and worship to our great God.
Oh God is good. This afternoon after church we ladies gathered together and had a most precious time in prayer crying out to God for different needs. There was one thing in particular I was burdened about and God really did do a work, praise God! I can testify that we do serve a prayer-answering God! Alleluia! Its hard to describe the rejoicing in my heart this afternoon as I realized how He had worked in answer to prayer.
There was such sweetness amongst us as believers, and I know that was because we were praying together. Fellowship that is just centered around food and fun just isnt the same as fellowship that comes out of prayer. It really is vital for the spiritual health of a church to pray together.
Every church should have days like this, days where we seek God, have fellowship that is centered on Christ, and rejoice in our God. To be together on your knees confessing sin and seeking God corporately is powerful and uniting.
I hope this is just the beginning of such days and weekends for us. And I pray that the burden to pray spreads across the world with Christians uniting all over in true, intercessory prayer.
One of the tragic cries in Isaiah is This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of blasphemy: for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth. Isa. 37:3. God has burdens that His people need to pray through. How many times has a great work of God been aborted because of a lack of praying through? Oh, we need to pray, and not just pray, but pray through! Are we willing to have God place His burden on us and travail until it is finished? Are we willing to give up hours, days, and even food to pray and weep? Are we willing to become vessels that God can burden with the things that burden His heart?
I hope that those who joined us at the mercy seat from different places in this world were also blessed in interceding at the Throne of Grace.
From every stormy wind that blows,
From every swelling tide of woes,
There is a calm, a sure retreat;
Tis found beneath the mercy seat.
There is a place where Jesus sheds
The oil of gladness on our heads;
A place than all besides more sweet;
It is the blood bought mercy seat.
There is a scene where spirits blend,
Where friend holds fellowship with friend;
Though sundered far, by faith they meet
Around one common mercy seat.
There, there, on eagles wings we soar,
And time and sense seem all no more;
And heaven comes down, our souls to greet,
And glory crowns the mercy seat.
Oh, let my hand forget her skill,
My tongue be silent, cold, and still,
This bounding heart forget to beat,
If I forget the mercy seat!
[url=http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/f/r/fromevsw.htm]source[/url] |
