Transcript Slide 1

®
Chapter
4-6
www.praytimer.org
Chapter Four
Christian Intervention–Becoming an
Intercessor/Prayer Warrior
 Every believer should include something
eternal in every day.
 Believers have priestly responsibilities
including prayer (see 1 Pet. 2:9).
 Church leaders should model the role of a
prayer warrior.
 What could happen through a daily, personal
quiet time with God? The postmodern culture
desperately needs each believer to become a
prayer warrior.
Becoming a Prayer Warrior
 Most believers are blessed to know a
prayer warrior.
 Every believer should be such a
blessing.
 Five characteristics for those who wish
to become prayer warriors:
1. Prayer Warriors Remain
Connected to the Vine.
 Becoming a prayer warrior begins and
matures through our relationship with
Jesus.
 Jesus is the vine and His followers are
branches (see John 15:1-11).
 Jesus alone embodies the complete
will and purpose of God.
 Pruned to bear fruit (see John 15:2).
– A believer’s purpose is to bear fruit.
– Fruit of the Spirit: “Love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal.
5:22-23).
– Eternal fruit of helping people meet Jesus
– Believers will be pruned to bear more fruit.
– We should be willing to be pruned.
 Abide in Jesus.
– Jesus says, “Abide in Me, and I in you.
As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself
unless it abides in the vine, so neither
can you unless you abide in Me” (John
15:4).
– John 15:7 adds, “If you abide in Me, and
My words abide in you, ask whatever you
wish, and it shall be done for you.”
– Abiding in God’s Word shows us how to
pray effectively.
 Jesus as our example.
– Do not replace God’s Word with the
opinions or teachings of other people.
– Theological errors often develop because
it is easier to ask someone their opinion
than research the biblical text.
– Read carefully. Listen carefully.
 Ask whatever you wish.
– The privilege of asking is determined by
abiding in Christ.
– To ask “whatever you wish,” you must
abide in the Word (see John 15:4-6).
– Love and joy are missing from the
postmodern culture (see John 15:9-11).
2. Prayer Warriors Remain Grounded in
the Bible.
 Helps detect decoys and false
teaching.
 Below are seven characteristics of
biblical prayer:
1.Recognize the struggle between
emotion and knowledge.
– Emotion and knowledge struggle in almost
every prayer and spiritual warfare movement
worldwide. We can focus too much on
emotion or knowledge.
– The issue is to discover, teach, and
practice biblical truth.
– In Genesis 4:7, the Lord warns Cain that
“sin is crouching at the door; and its
desire is for you, but you must master it.”
– “For where jealously and selfish ambition
exist, there is disorder” (Jas. 3:16).
– Luke explains that jealousy caused
conflict with kingdom activities (see Acts
13:45).
– Balance is needed between God’s sovereignty
and human responsibility.
– Even professional ministers succumb to
using manipulation to advance their personal
agenda. Now they are unhappy and are
begging God to rescue them. Or worse, they
are making life and ministry miserable.
– People must train their emotions or they will
be led captive to every passing impulse or
reaction.
– Be careful that knowledge doesn’t replace
faith.
– It is very important for believers to approach
prayer, spiritual warfare, and ministry with
loving, biblical knowledge instead of
untrained emotional reaction.
2. Pray in Jesus’ name.
– Jesus instructs believers to “ask in My
name” (John 14:13-14). Praying in Jesus’
name means asking anything that is
consistent with His character, nature, and
personality.
– If people do this, Jesus serves as the
mediator for that request.
– Jesus paid our sin debt.
– Praying in Jesus’ name flows from a
believer’s heart. Unbelievers do not have
access.
3. Intercede with righteous prayer.
– James 5:16 (NKJV.) reads “...pray for one
another. . .The effective, fervent prayer of
a righteous man avails much.”
– Religion often calls for people to act
good.
– Christianity calls for us to become holy
(see 2 Tim. 1:9).
4. Practice persistent prayer.
– Luke 11:5-13 teaches more about the
intercessor than intercession. This is not
an example of changing God’s mind to
agree with us.
1) It is a legitimate need,
2) He persisted on behalf of others,
3) He persevered.
– Prayer is not an excuse for our cowardice
or laziness.
– Luke 18:1 (KJV) says to pray without
fainting.
– Prayer warriors pray unceasingly.
5. Include evangelistic prayer.
– Evangelistic prayer intercedes for lost
people.
– Pray to have a broken heart for lost
people (see Luke 15).
– If we who believe in prayer are not
praying for lost people, who will?
– “There has never been a mighty revival
without mighty praying.”-Torrey
6. Agonize in prayer.
– Praying in Jesus’ name is hard.
– Agonize (strive) together in prayer (see
Rom. 15:30).
– In Luke 22:44, the same word describes
Jesus’ prayer in the garden.
– Act 12 records the story of the church
praying on Peter’s behalf.
7. Pray in unity.
– Praying in Jesus’ name brings unity.
– Matthew 18:19-20 describes the
importance of unity in prayer.
– God honors unified prayer.
– Praying in unity does not mean
compromising theological truth.
3. Prayer Warriors Listen for the
Lord to Speak.
 The Bible often mentions the Lord
speaking (see 1 Kings 19;Acts 16:7).
 Much of our prayer is more talking
than listening.
 Prayer warriors must carefully seek
to hear the Lord’s voice.
 Include Bible study time during
every personal and corporate prayer
time.
 It is difficult for believers to discern
the voice of the Holy Spirit from the
voices of Satan or our own desires.
4. Prayer Warriors Pray in Truth.
 In John 8:44, Satan is described as “a
murderer…and does not stand in the
truth because there is no truth in
him…for he is a liar and the father of
lies.”
 Satan consistently seeks to undermine
and dismiss the truth.
 Notice how he slowly raises our
tolerance of evil.
 Our prayer is empowered by walking in
the truth.
 You shall know the truth (see John
8:32).
– The nature and source of truth should
become the core of our cultural debate.
– Satan wants us to believe that truth is not
attainable.
– Satan tries to convince humans to
exchange the truth of God for a lie.
– Notice how Satan lures the believer into
the powers of darkness.
 What is truth?
– The prevailing relativism has many people
looking for truth.
– Truth is exclusive of error.
– Ravi Zacharias writes that “all truth is
God’s truth, and truth cannot be in conflict
with itself.”
– In John 12:48, the Word of God is shown
as the standard by which humans will be
judged.
▪ The Truth shall set you free
(see John 8:32).
– Discovering and choosing the truth has
become a difficult decision for the individual.
Jesus is the Truth.
– The truth that sets people free is Jesus. It is
not education, technology, social reform, or
even autonomy from rules. Jesus is the way,
the truth, and the life (see John 14:6). Jesus
is not one of many ways, part of the truth, or
some of the life.
– Satanic influence in the culture wants
humans to believe that truth is not
attainable. This eventually can cause
even believers to pray without faith.
– Truth is not dependent upon opinion
polls.
5. Prayer Warriors Create a Prayer
Plan that Helps Them.
 Some prayer plans become hollow
rituals.
 In Matthew 6:9-13 and John 17, Jesus
provides a model, not a ritual prayer for
believers.
 A prayer plan can provide direction and
focus in the believer’s prayer life. It can
help to maximize and organize our
prayer time.
 The believer’s desire should be to
encounter the God who answers
prayer.
6. Prayer Warriors Help with a
Comprehensive Prayer Ministry.
 A comprehensive prayer ministry will
cover every ministry of the church with
prayer.
 It will not happen automatically. It
requires leadership.
 Great Commission Praying to support
Matthew 28:18-20.
Three Goals in a Great Commission
Prayer Ministry
1. Personal Prayer Goal (see 1 Thess. 5:17).
Renew a personal passion for Jesus
through praying unceasingly.
2. Corporate Prayer Goal (see Matt. 21:13;
Luke 19:10).
Reclaim the church as a house of prayer
with a passion for lost people.
3. Kingdom Prayer Goal (see 2 Chron. 7:14;
Matt. 28: 18-20).
Respond to God’s call to unite believers in
focused prayer for global evangelization
and awakening.
A Suggested Process for a Great
Commission Prayer Ministry
1. Select (through prayer) a prayer
coordinator
2. Select (through prayer) a prayer council
3. Pastor presents a sermon series on prayer
4. Pastor hosts a prayer banquet
5. Refocus the Wednesday night prayer
meeting
6. Provide a prayer room
7. Create a prayer chain or watchman network
8. Provide many ways to involve people and
call them to prayer
9. Provide ongoing training
10. Participate in Campus Prayer Journeys/See
You at the Pole
11. Cover the community with regular Prayer
Journeys/ Prayer Walks
12. Encourage individual prayer through
resources available
13. Launch new prayer groups
14. Create praying affinity groups for people in
your congregation and community
15. Develop prayer lists
16. Participate in North American and
International Seasons of Prayer for
missions and missionaries
18. Create Lighthouses of Prayer
17. Schedule a prayer time during worship
services
19. Work with the state and associational
prayer coordinators
Conclusion
The postmodern world needs more believers
to become prayer warriors. Become a prayer
warrior by abiding in Christ, staying
grounded in the Word, and by praying in
truth. Create a prayer plan that works for you
and for your congregation. Include the
personal, corporate, and kingdom goals.
Help your congregation cover every ministry
and person in the church and in the
community with prayer.
The next two chapters present more
information about using the PrayTimer
software for personal and corporate use.
Chapter Five
Maximizing Personal Prayer Time
 Personal prayer time. Renew your
relationship with the Lord.
 Prayer allows you to be involved in making
an eternal difference.
 Use tools to maximize your prayer time.
 Exceed your “comfort zone” of prayer.
 Consider using some kind of daily
intercession schedule to remind you of
prayer needs.
 It is not essential to use any software or
schedule to pray effectively.
 Pray longer than you plan your prayer time
First, Plan A Daily Prayer Time.
 The discipline of a daily prayer time
requires commitment.
 Everything in our daily schedule tries to
reduce or delete our time with God.
 Set a time for prayer least likely to be
interrupted. This is one reason many
prefer an early morning prayer time. This
requires the discipline of going to bed
early enough to get the needed sleep. It
requires replacing our entertainmentdriven habits with the desire to make an
eternal difference. Give the Lord time
when your mind is sharp and you are
refreshed.
 Many believers find they need to
schedule additional prayer times as the
prayer request lists grow longer.
Second, Adapt the ACTS acrostic.
 The purpose is to pray for as many
specific requests as possible in a day.
 Personal and corporate prayer times
can include all four ACTS components.
 Adoration – This is often overlooked
during prayer time.
– “Worship” in Matthew 28:17 means to bow
the knee.
– Praise and adore the Lord for who He is
(see Matt. 6:9).
– Cherish His presence and allow Him to
work in and through your life (see Matt.
22:32-34).
– Be still and know (see Ps. 46:10).
 Confession – Do this daily (see Matt.
6:12).
– Ask the Lord to “search your heart” (see
Ps. 139:23-24).
– Accept His forgiveness and cleansing
(see 1 John 1:9; Jer. 31:34).
– Personal confession time is different
from corporate confession time.
 Thanksgiving - Give thanks for all
things (see Phil. 4:6-7).
– Thanksgiving differs from adoration.
– Thank God for specific things, such as
blessings, people, open doors, and
serving Him.
– Thank Him for His goodness, loving
kindness, and faithfulness (see
Ps. 100:4-6).
 Supplication - We are called as
believers to intercessory prayer.
– We are to pray for others (see Heb. 10:1925; Rev. 1:4-6).
– Spend time praying for specific people,
including people in states, countries, and
involved in events, (see Acts 12:5; Rom.
10:1).
– Pray for those in authority (see 1 Tim. 2:16).
– Pray for lost people (see John 17:20).
– The PrayTimer prayer lists are helpful for
specific daily supplication.
Third, Include Prayer List Categories.
 You cannot cover all of your prayer
requests in 5 minutes a day.
 Prayer list categories allow believers to
remember important requests.
 Prayer categories can help believers
pray consistently with the Great
Commission.
Include a Category for Believers
 Many prayers in the New Testament
were for believers.
 Paul modeled and taught this practice
(see Eph. 1:15-19; 1 Thess. 3:11-13).
 Believers should intercede for each
other daily.
 Include missionaries in your daily
prayer time.
Include a Category For Unbelievers
 Evangelistic praying should include
prayer for unbelievers.
 Prayer on behalf of lost people is
taught by Jesus (see John 17:20).
 Do not presume that people are saved.
 If we who believe in prayer are not
praying for lost people, then who is
praying for them?
Pray for unbeliever’s HEARTS to be
changed
 Pray for receptive and repentant Hearts
(see Luke 8:5-12).
 Pray for their spiritual Eyes and ears to
be opened to the truth of Christ (see 2
Cor. 4:4; Matt. 13:15).
 Pray for them to have God’s Attitude
toward sin (see John 16:8).
 Pray for the person to be Released to
believe (see 2 Cor. 10:3-4; 2 Tim. 2:2526).
 Pray for a Transforming life (see
Rom. 12:1-2).
 Pray for God to Send them into His
harvest field (see Matt. 9:35).
Pray for Believers and Unbelievers
Involved in Evangelistic Missions Events
 These events allow God to use His people to
influence the lost world for Christ.
 Prayer for events focuses on praying for
everyone involved in those events.
 A biblical mission event will always be
evangelistic.
 Three ways to pray biblically for outreach
events:
1. Pray for people before the event.
2. Pray for people during the event.
3. Pray for people after the event.
Pray for Believers and Unbelievers
in States, Provinces, and Countries
 Jesus wept over the people in the city of
Jerusalem (see Matt. 23:37-39).
 God must intervene person-by-person,
state-by-state, and country-by-country.
 Intercession helps soften hard hearts so
that unbelievers accept Jesus.
 Pray for revival and spiritual awakening
(see 2 Chron. 7:14).
 Pray for the Lord of the harvest to send
laborers into His harvest fields (see
Luke 10:2).
 Pray for state denominational leaders
to increase in God’s wisdom, conduct
themselves honorably in all things, and
grow in favor with God and man (see
Luke 2:52).
 Pray for open doors for the gospel to
be taken to the lost (see Col. 4:2-6).
Include a Category for Personal,
Spiritual, and Physical Needs
 Jesus prayed for Himself (see Luke 22:3945).
 Jesus prayed for personal, physical, and
spiritual needs.
 An important personal need is for each
believer to share Jesus with unbelievers.
 God honors prayers for divine encounters.
 Praying for personal, spiritual, and physical
needs is not selfish, as long as you are
seeking God’s face; not just God’s hands.
Biblical examples of personal prayer
needs:
Pray in
repentance and
belief in Christ
Pray we can forgive
(see Mark 1:15).
everyone (see Luke
11:4).
Pray in
confession of
sin (see 1
Pray that we will not
John 1:9).
be led into
temptation (see
Pray for our daily Luke 11:4b).
bread (see Luke
11:3.
Include Other Categories
 Under these categories, you can create
a number of additional sub-categories.
 Create a category for people in your
profession or interest group.
 It is overwhelming to realize how many
people we should be praying for.
 If we who believe in prayer are not
praying consistently, then who is
praying?
Schedule How Often to Pray for
Each Request
 The number of prayer requests require
prayer warriors to set up a prayer
schedule.
 Some requests, like the National Day of
Prayer, are only once a year.
 PrayTimer provides an import file to
place missionary birthdays on your
schedule.
Create a Daily Intercession Schedule
 These suggestions can be adapted to
your personal or congregational
preferences.
 Schedule daily prayer requests to
maximize your prayer time.
 The purpose is to help every believer to
pray for as many specific prayer
requests as possible on any given day,
week, month, or year.
 Use these suggestions to include
specific prayer requests for individuals
by name.
Conclusion
• Begin seeking ways to maximize and
expand your personal prayer time.
Plan a time for daily prayer. Seek to
bring balance to your corporate and
personal prayer time. Consider
creating category lists to help you pray
specifically for unbelievers, believers,
and personal spiritual and physical
needs.
Chapter 6
PrayTimer® Software Instructions
 The PrayTimer® CD-ROM is available at
the back of this book. For more
information and updates visit
www.praytimer.org.
 The software provides calendar options
in daily, weekly, and monthly calendar
views. It provides tools for individuals,
prayer coordinators, and church staff
to manage, print, and distribute
personal, congregational, or small
group prayer requests. Page-by-page
instructions are included in this
chapter.
Motivation for Personal Prayer
 A personal prayer time
begins with the
motivation to grow in
Christ. Otherwise, the
software is just a toy or
another program.
 Growing in Christ
requires at least three
actions on our part:
First, choose God’s will over our will.
 Jesus agonized over the impending
pain of the cross (see Luke 22:42).
Jesus agreed that God’s will was (and
is) better than individual will. We must
choose God’s will.
 Jesus stands at the door of our heart
and knocks (see Rev. 3:20).
 When the Holy Spirit moves into our
heart, He rearranges the furniture
(desires, attitudes, self-made theology).
Choose to exchange your will for God’s
will.
Second, growing in Christ requires a
change of heart.
 It is difficult to give the Lord access to
every room in your heart.
 The New Testament refers to the
“heart” as the seat of human will and
emotions (see Matt. 22:37).
 There are several benefits to allowing
the Spirit to change our hearts.
 First Benefit: Purity
– The culture views purity as an
embarrassing word.
– Jesus told His followers, “Blessed are the
pure in heart” (see Matt. 5:8).
– Believers need daily time with God for
cleansing.
– In Matthew 12:34(NKJV), Jesus gives an
indicator of a contaminated heart, “...out of
the abundance of the heart the mouth
speaks.”
 Second Benefit: Pray Unceasingly
– 1 Thessalonians 5:17 encourages
believers to pray unceasingly.
– Hebrews 4:12 refers to the Word of God
discerning the attitudes and actions of
the heart.
– Learn the Word of God.
 Third Benefit: Sharing with Others
– Romans 10:9-10 says that people must
believe in their heart and confess with
their mouth.
– We more easily confess to others that
Jesus is Lord when He fills and overflows
us.
 Fourth Benefit: Comfort
– Jesus said, “Let not your heart be
troubled” (John 14:27).
– Our time with God provides peace that
passes understanding.
– There is great comfort in knowing God is
in control.
Third, growing in Christ requires
fellowship with God.
 The heart must become obedient to
God, through His Son, Jesus, and in
the power of the Holy Spirit.
 Devote yourself to learn more about
God and to fellowship with Him (see
Acts 2:42).
 Publicly identify yourself as a follower
of Jesus’ teachings.
 Every believer should be active in
church (see Heb. 10:25).
 Satan will provide many excuses
about why you do not need to join
or attend church.
Instructions for the PrayTimer®
Software
 Visit www.praytimer.org for updated
versions, updated download files, a
Quick Start Guide, online help files,
answers to Frequently Asked
Questions, and printable copies of
each.
 Load, open, and overview the software.
Conclusion
• Effective prayer requires a commitment
that flows from a relationship with
Jesus Christ. The challenge is to keep
prayer as a priority of our lives without
becoming a lifeless ritual. It does not
matter what process or material you
use. Renew a personal passion to pray
unceasingly.