In Jesus' NameSample

Prayer 911

It was the middle of the night when my phone rang. Someone was calling with a “Prayer 911.” Their family was in crisis; their situation was dire. If God didn’t move, life as they’d known it would be dramatically changed forever. Prayer was the only solution to their emergency, and they needed someone to stand with them. They asked for wisdom, strength, encouragement and a renewed faith to believe God’s Word for their situation. We prayed together, and the next day they began to experience a miraculous breakthrough. The Enemy’s hindrances were thwarted, and God broke through with favor and provision! Prayer had made a difference!

It’s not uncommon for us to arrive at a place of “Prayer 911”—a moment of crisis when the Enemy has done all he knows to do to discourage, disappoint and distance us from the plans and purposes God has for our lives. We’ve become weary from the battle and we need to know His will and clearly hear what He’s saying in the midst of the assaulting fear and confusion. All we can do is stop what we’re doing and pray immediately. It’s at times like this that we need to stand on His Word and apply Ephesians 6:13 (AMP): “Therefore put on God’s complete armor that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place].”

“Prayer 911” situations often leave us in weak, vulnerable places. The Enemy will try to take advantage of our vulnerability by doing everything he can to get our thoughts focused on the impossibility of the situation rather than on the One who can change the impossible. Satan doesn’t want us to remember that “No weapon formed against [us] shall prosper” (Isaiah 54:17) or that “nothing is impossible with God” (Luke 1:37, NLT). Yet it’s during times like these that the Word of God (the sword of the Spirit) sustains us and gives us the ability to say, “In the face of all trials, tests, temptations and tribulation, I cut to pieces the snare of the Enemy by speaking the Word of God.”* We must consciously capture every thought that goes against who the Word tells us God is, and replace it with the Truth. The Bible says to take “every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). When we do that, He is able to replace those lies from the Enemy with His empowered truth.

As you take your thoughts captive, you need to delve into the Word of God. These teachings have been preserved for us as a road map through life. All 66 books of the Bible are God-breathed and are there to guide you, to bring answers and to bring comfort. Maybe everything has been taken from you—look up the story of Job. Maybe you’re being forced to sacrifice something precious—read the stories of Abraham and Moses. Maybe you need to get out of a bad situation—turn to the Psalms and read David’s cries to the Lord. In His wisdom and love, God included stories in His Word about real people who experienced real crises, so we could see how He answered in every situation when His children cried out to Him in prayer.

If you’ve been standing strong but have become weary or need encouragement or support, ask friends to join you in seeking confirmation on how to pray about your situation. Then pray, fast and stand firm. Your persistence in prayer and exploration in the Word will not only yield the move of God in your situation, it will craft you to be more like Him. And the more like Him you are, the easier it will be for you to have peace in your time of needing “Prayer 911.” His thoughts will be your thoughts, and His Word, your answer.

The more you pray, the less you’ll panic. The more you worship, the less you worry. You’ll feel more patient and less pressured.
~ Rick Warren

Prayer

Father, forgive me when I get upset when answers don’t come immediately. Replace the lies the Enemy has used against me with the truth of Your Word. Help me to understand that through the process of persistence in prayer and studying Your Word, the Enemy will be defeated, and I will become more like You. Have Your way in me, Lord, and reshape me to look just like You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Activation

• Pray
• Read the Word
• Fast

Memory Verse

Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:12–13 (NIV)

*Taken from the book Prayers That Avail Much by Germaine Copeland.