At times God may place a person, situation, or special need upon your heart in a gradually deepening concern. You may be reminded of it repeatedly during your prayer time. (Google image, Man praying)
Perhaps you feel led to place it on your prayer list. You may pray for the person off and on over a period of weeks or months. Then you realize that your concern has become a spiritual responsibility and that your love for the person being prayed for is deepening constantly.
It may even be for a period of hours or days you feel the prayer concern much intensified. God is calling you to a special prayer responsibility. Then one day you may feel the deep, deep instant prayer burden that I have just described.
I remember a deepening prayer concern that I carried over a period of months for a loved one. Then came a two-week period when I found this person often on my heart, and I used free moments again and again to pray.
But one afternoon I was powerfully gripped by an instant prayer burden. I prevailed for several hours in deep prevailing intercession, and then God lifted the burden.
I late found that at the exact time, several thousand miles away, God had answered that prayer. Thousands of God's children have had similar experiences.
[Dr. Duewel then cited other's instances of prayer and definite on-time answers where God had intervened in time for the protection of loved ones.]
4. Long-term burden. God may give a long-term prayer burden to His children. Undoubtedly all Christians should carry long-term prayer burdens that they should include in their daily prayers and especially in their longer times of prayer.
These long-term prayer burdens may be for such needs as an evangelistic campaign, with prayer beginning months in advance, or it may be for the granting of a missionary visa, a person's healing, or someone's salvation.
For as far back as I can remember, my mother had a prayer burden for China. Then when God called me as a child to India, Mother prayed for India and China every day.
She not only prayed, she gave sacrificial gifts to support missionary work of OMS International (One Mission Society) in those two nations. I cannot remember a family prayer time when my mother did not pray for both nations by name and pray at some length with deep longing and earnestness.
In fact, for the last twenty to thirty years of her life, I cannot remember hearing her pray one day in daily family prayer for these two nations without weeping because of the heavy burden she was carrying for their salvation.
She was a very quiet person, not highly emotional, but she loved so deeply that she prayed with burdened tears day after day for these people. Think of the reward God will give to such prevailing, burden-bearing intercessors!
You can take on your heart a prayer ministry for one or more people, carrying for them a long-term prayer concern that God can deepen into a real prayer burden.
You can become that person's prayer partner, and you can enter into every phrase of that person through your burden-bearing prayer. (Check today's popular post featured below:#76 Become Prayer Partners)
5. Long-term prayer burdens that call for movements of prayer. Many of the items in the previous list are so urgent that they call for whole movements of prayer. You can become a part of the movement of prayer for worldwide revival, for the Muslim world, for world harvest, or for unreached people.
You may be able to receive prayer bulletins from several sources relating to such movements of prayer in which you desire to participate. Do all you can, not only to carry a prayer burden continuously, but also to enlist the prayer of as many other people or groups as possible.
May God make us all prayer mobilizer
Used by permission of the author and Duewel Literature Trust, Inc., Greenwood, Indiana, (with Jean's impressions added)
Mighty Prevailing Prayer
#109 Gradually Deepening Your Prayer Concern
by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
(pp. 197 -200) Zondervan
Father, we've found that a person, situation, or a special need seems to come upon our hearts, and that it becomes a gradual deepening concern.
Sometimes there is a continual burden for a situation or person, that doesn't go away, but tends to remind us of the need for days, sometimes over longer periods of time.
There are situations where others need to be enlisted to help pray; a friend, or to enlist the prayer of as many other people or groups as possible.
In Jesus' name, we ask for guidance and help, Father, as we want to be effective in our praying in agreement with Your Holy Spirit. Amen.
Sometimes there is a continual burden for a situation or person, that doesn't go away, but tends to remind us of the need for days, sometimes over longer periods of time.
There are situations where others need to be enlisted to help pray; a friend, or to enlist the prayer of as many other people or groups as possible.
In Jesus' name, we ask for guidance and help, Father, as we want to be effective in our praying in agreement with Your Holy Spirit. Amen.
Today's Bible verse-
Today's quote-
(Romans 12:1 NIV) "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship."
"Life is prayer. So today, if you are struggling, like me, to get on your knees and speak to God. Take heart. God hears your life. He sees your needs. He receives your communication in everything you do. Posture your actions, your heart, your thoughts, and your lips to be about the work of God and the glory of God. Embrace that. Live your life as a sacrificial prayer to the Glory of Jesus. Because he is faithful to hear you, answer you, and commune with you. Not only in a prayer closet- but in every breath, step, thought, and deed." (Taken from his post, Prayer: Don't Do it, Be It Excellent message!)
Today's question:
Do you know that when God restores our inner man through salvation, we can then go on with what He's called us to?
God's call on our lives is His desire to empower us to benefit the Kingdom of Christ through local church groups, daily growth in faith, and in Bible studies. We can develop our Christian walk to become like Jesus, learn of God's direction for our lives, and become sweet-smelling-living sacrifices unto His glory through these activities.
Today's popular post:
Dr. Wesley L. Duewel: There is tremendous blessing in being a prayer partner with one or several others. Each prayer partner can agree to uphold the other specially in prayer.
Upcoming posts-
#110 Prayer Burden Described
27th- Thursday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
When You're Hit with Life's Hammer
29th- Saturday's post by Ron Hutchcraft
#111 How to Carry a Prayer Burden
5/2- Tuesday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
#112 How to Be Available tor Prayer Burden
4th- Thursday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
to occasionally read posts you've missed,
or would now like to read.
or would now like to read.
Below, you have an opportunity to leave a comment.
I invite you to also read the verse(s) from
my book in each blog posting.
31-day Devotional
+ Jean's testimony
[Maybe just choose a title each
day that interests you]
Sample verses from p. 109-
Lord God, May Our
Hearts Come to Know
"As days go by we'll start to sing
To You our grateful praise.
Our heartfelt love we want to bring,
And our hands we will raise.
What we have learned it's our desire
To hold onto this hope.
We pray our faith You'll set on fire
So with life we can cope."
To You our grateful praise.
Our heartfelt love we want to bring,
And our hands we will raise.
What we have learned it's our desire
To hold onto this hope.
We pray our faith You'll set on fire
So with life we can cope."
(Published by Lighthouse Publishing
of the Carolinas. Used by permission).
A great gift for someone who may need help
to prepare for marriage, and for those in a
to prepare for marriage, and for those in a
marriage, wanting some helpful advice.
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