TheCall Detroit Part TWO

I remember people talking about 11/11/11 months ago.  It seemed like everyone was wigging out and talking about making the best wish ever.  For some reason the world has dubbed the time 11:11 incredibly significant, and many people say that 11:11 is the best time to make a wish.  This means that 11:11 on November 11^th, 2011 will be supremely awesome, apparently.  There will never be another 11:11 on 11/11/11. 

But I think it’s sad that we’ve relegated such a neat date to just making wishes.  What’s in a wish?  A wish is a nice thought you send into the air and it dies there.  I realize this sounds somewhat harsh and maybe pessimistic, but if you really want to change something, PRAY ABOUT IT.  James said that the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective(James 5:16)

So how about on 11/11/11 you do more than just wish.  How about you pray and fast and contend with believers around the nation, around the world, for a fresh outpouring of God’s Spirit!  Pray for revival!  Repent on behalf of our nation!  Seek the face of the Lord with sincerity!

I wanted to write a (much) shorter blog for today and give some more encouragement to fast and pray.  To begin I wanted to share some powerful thoughts from a book I just finished reading, A House That Contends, by Lou Engle and Sam Cerny.  The final two chapters were all about what makes up a contending house of prayer (elements such as: a unified community that does not gossip or slander, commitment to night and day prayer, boldly declaring scripture and the prophetic words of the Lord and commitment to victory at all costs).  The component of a contending house of prayer that struck me the most was “sieging the gates of hell until victory comes.”  What powerful language and truth!  The following is a quote from that chapter,

“To lay siege is to abandon the right to quit.  A siege by definition is a long-term offensive strategy to compel an enemy to surrender.  When a siege is lifted, there can be no victory, for the enemy is then prematurely loosed from the vice grip of God… The following quote became our siege battle cry, ‘When the victors when they come, when the forts of folly fall, find my body near the wall.’ I don’t want to be one who just simply enjoys the spoil of war.  I want to be a part of a company who sacrificed everything to prevail against the gates and stood until the powers were compelled to surrender” (A House That Contends, 75).

Read it again.  There’s just power within that paragraph…  To stand firm and prevail against the powers of the enemy…  I want to be one of those people.  It is my heart’s desire that you, too, would stand with us in prayer.  To unite the nation with prayer!  That people from Kansas City, Detroit, Dassel-Cokato, Minnesota and all around America would join hands in prayer and fasting. 

So come.  Join the siege with us.  Arm yourself with the word of God, with fasting and with prayer.  We will lay siege until the gates of Hell fall and victory comes through Christ!

I really want to give some more encouragement and practical information for those of you reading who are planning on joining with TheCall in fasting or prayer.

Know your identity.  As a Christian you have the Spirit of the living God within you.  Try to wrap your mind around this—the God who created the world and raised Christ from the dead is now living inside of you.  You have the uncreated, unfathomable, most glorious being of all time INSIDE OF YOU.  Imagine taking the universe and stuffing it into a tissue box and the tissue box not exploding!  THAT IS US!  How can we have such power within us and contain it?  God certainly made us special—we are vessels for His glory and power.  Imagine how demons feel when you enter the room?  They shirk back and say, “Oh, there’s one with GOD inside of them!”

Do you realize the sheer power you have and the authority Christ has given you?!  Satan has fed us so many lies to keep us from walking in the authority of Christ.  We think we’re disqualified because we aren’t perfect; we think that because we fall, we cannot be used by God.  NO!  God loves us and wants to use us even in our moments of weakness.  He sees our hearts and the way we want to pursue Him with everything and He LOVES US.  And He has given you all authority over demons and oppression because He lives in you. 

God already conquered Satan with Christ’s death, resurrection and ascension.  Now we need to walk in such a way that reminds Satan that he has been beaten.  Satan wants to have one last crazy party on earth and he wants to take millions with him to Hell.  But we will not stand for that.  No, we will firmly grasp the authority given to us by Christ and we will cast off all that hinders us. 

Walk in your identity, child of God.  I have an infinitely longer blog coming about this, but this is my short overview.  Haha…  Let me know if I need to clarify anything!

Here are some more suggestions for those of you wanting to fast but not really knowing what to do:

• Do a media fast for a day—this could be everything on your computer, television, your phone, texting, etc.  Or do a partial media fast for an extended period.  For example, I’ve been doing a Facebook fast for over a month, but I’m letting myself get on Facebook twice a week primarily to update my blog!
• Prepare for spiritual warfare.  Fasting does not feel easy—it’s hard.  If it were an easy practice, more Christians would do it!  Because of its difficulty, Satan has made it a “radical thing.”  When you realize that fasting is a normal Christian practice, Satan gets upset.  He sees you being stirred to pursue God with everything, so he attacks you harder and stronger.  THIS is when you need to remember to walk in your identity and rebuke him in Jesus’ name!  You are a child of God who is seated above every demonic power.  They must submit to God within you!
• Do not disqualify yourself if you mess up.  I said this in my last post, but I need to reiterate it.  Stumbling does not make God love you less.  He is not disappointed with you.  The only one keeping you from finishing the fast after you’ve stumbled is yourself.
• Remember that every prayer makes a difference.  Even five-second prayers can move mountains.  Even when you don’t feel super anointed and when you feel like you’re just speaking into the air, know that God is listening.  

So that’s that.  It is Wednesday when I post this.  We leave on Saturday at 3 AM.  I may or may not be posting something Saturday night before we leave, but I’m not sure if I’ll have time.  Tons of homework to do before we leave!  Keep our company in your prayers, please. Pray specifically for:

• Safe travels to Detroit.
• A spirit of complete unity among us.
• Total health and absolutely no sickness.

Thanks guys!  Be blessed!

Rachel

(Originally posted November 2nd on Tumblr)