We felt the Lord’s presence and heard God speaking to us in the Inspire Prayer Gathering on 5 December. We gathered on Zoom with people from England, Northern Ireland, Ethiopia, and the USA – Kentucky, Indiana, Kansas, New York State, Texas. There were people who have been part of Inspire since it began, and some who are just getting involved. Some were able to join us for the whole meeting and some just dipped in for a while. But everyone was blessed and Jesus was very present with us.
Here is a glimpse of how the Lord drew us close into His presence.
CALL TO PRAYER
The nights around us grow longer
But in you, O God we hope
The days are growing colder
But in you, O God we hope
We are caught up in the cycle of life and death
But in you, O God we hope
Gracious God, fill this time of prayer with the promises of new life and help us to carry your hope into the world.
Amen
Adapted from ‘All the Earth is Waiting’, Katie Z Dawson, Abingdon Press 2017, p. 105
PRAISE
SONG: Listen on Youtube: There is Hope that Burns Within My Heart, Stewart Townend
PROCLAMATION
A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of might,
the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—
and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.
He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,
or decide by what he hears with his ears;
but with righteousness he will judge the needy,
with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth;
with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.
Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist.
ISAIAH 11: 1-5, NIRV
REFLECTION
Think about your life with Jesus over the last few weeks.
- What tall trees of your ambition or hopes have been cut down?
- What green shoots have you seen in your recent prayers or faith walk?
- Which of the seven spirits are you seeking: the Spirit of the Lord, of wisdom, of understanding, of counsel, of might/strength, of knowledge, of fear of the Lord?
- What failures do we need to confess?
- What delights of godly fear and righteousness can we pray for?
Prayer: I confess how I operate out of my own might and strength. I seek to humble myself before the Lord whenever I am flexing my own strength. I declare that the Lord is my strength, my power and my might. Amen
Prophetic Image: A carousel with horses. A horse without the carousel goes nowhere and a carousel needs many horses to make it complete.
As we waited on the Lord about the image other things came to mind:
- The horses are like our fellowship (band/house fellowship/prayer gathering) together on the way of life with Jesus.
- Jesus JOY
- Jesus on the horse laughing and smiling, riding with us in all the ups and downs of life
- Jesus is having fun! He invites us to take the way of the cross for the JOY set before him/us.
RECOGNITION
Think about you life in the community of the Inspire Movement
- How have you been blessed in/through Inspire recently?
- What Beacon of Hope or Prayer Bowl articles inspired you?
- Have you experienced new fellowship or learning through the School of Discipleship?
- Where have you seen God? In fellowship band, meeting with neighbours, fasting/abstinence, new travels, daily readings, new worship songs, connecting/re-connecting with friends.
- What prayers of thanksgiving and strength for the next step(s) do we need to make for ourselves, for Missioners, for the Movement?
Sharing: In the midst of the discombobulation of my life right now, my fellowship bands have been my rock and Inspire (global) is my faith family.
Testimonies: The Lord has been placing dots (seeds) around the Movement and we see more and more connections emerging from past and present dots. It is exciting to see missional communities being planted with Inspire principles and practices in St Louis, MO, Kingsport, TN, Minneapolis-St Paul. The fasting study group through Advent has drawn people in to deeper and more powerful relationship with Jesus. The Advent devotional has been taken up by Sunday schools and other groups as well as families. There are constantly emerging testimonies of the reach of Inspire to the UK, Europe, Philippines, Africa and across the USA.
Word from the Lord: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-3
As we reflected on the Word we felt the Lord highlighted some things:
- He is the pioneer and perfecter.
- It is for JOY that Jesus invites us to persevere
- The temptation is real to grow weary and lose heart but we help one another to keep focused on Jesus.
- We are witnesses to the beauty of Jesus.
- The Lord is watching over His Kingdom as it grows through the Inspire Movement.
- This Prayer Gathering is a vision of the ‘cloud of witnesses’. Here we have representatives of the generations of Inspire, of different ages and stages of life, from different time zones, different places or origin and different locations right now.
- I see the dots that have been, and are yet to be, joined by the Spirit creating the cloud of witnesses.
- What God is doing around the Movement are the green shoots from the stump of Jesse.
- I feel a bit like the carousel that has been going round and round and up and down but has gotten slower and slower until the horses are all at the bottom and it feels like it is over. I am not expecting to be hopeful. But my fellowship bands keep me up when I am down, they give me hope and shine Jesus light in my life.
RESPONDING
Think about how Jesus is inviting you to respond to Him today.
- What are you expecting on your faith journey this Advent season?
- Who will you share the joy and peace of Jesus with?
- How does the Good News of Christ’s birth prompt you to new possibilities?
- What new habits of the means of grace/spiritual disciplines is Jesus inviting you take up in the New Year?
- What gifts do we need to pray for in each other during this Advent season:
- the Spirit of the Lord,
- the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
- the Spirit of counsel and might/strength,
- the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord?
Declaration: Jesus IS on the throne. He has, is and will, win over all the powers and principalities of this world. He is supreme and sovereign over all.
Prayer: Lord let us not be distracted by the lies and distractions of the enemy. Draw us back to look upon you and hold our the promise that His Kingdom IS coming and is already here. Amen
Prophetic word: We have Jesus. He has won the battle and is seated on the throne, and He knows where we live! He knows what we are and He is WITH US. We have a Lord who is engaged in the business of His church.
God did not give us a spirit of fear, but gives us the Spirit of fear of the Lord and of self-control so that we might be witnesses at home and in the places that we are.
Rise up sons and daughters of the most High God. We are not ashamed of His name!
Prayer points as we respond:
- Redemption of a long season of hurts in the formation of new fellowship band for a new season. We are expecting great things from God!
- Jesus has asked me to write a book about Him! Pray that I will be persevere as I would rather be talking about Jesus than writing! I have been surprised by joy in the journey.
- New opportunities for God to move in a community in Northern Ireland where a revival prayer meeting is beginning.
- Inspire School of Discipleship – making plans but being adaptable to follow the blow of the Spirit. Extending opportunities for engaging with Inspire in different ways.
- Family gatherings over the Christmas season to be places to experience the presence, power and peace of Jesus.
- Young people need the peace of Jesus and the church does not seem to be doing a very good job. Praying for the skills to share the Good News and the Spirit to connect us with the younger generations.
- There are un-reached people in the places that we live! We need to be every-day, every-where missional disciples with Jesus.
SENDING OUT
May the Holy Spirit forge a new heart in us this Advent ―
a heart for peace, not war,
a heart for hope, not fear.
May the stars of the Advent sky lead us out of darkness into the lap of God
where peace becomes your shelter and love becomes your home.
May we awaken and be ready,
for the Prince of Peace is coming to bring peace to a warring world.
Amen
From ‘Prepare the Way’, Pamela C Hawkins, Upper Rooms Books, 2016
If you feel God is saying something as you read this page, or if you would like someone to pray for you, we would love to hear from you. You can contact the prayer team anytime at: [email protected]
The Inspire Prayer Gathering meets several times a year on Zoom so that people from around the world can join in. Dates are published in the monthly Prayer Bowl (click here to subscribe) and on the prayer pages of this website (click here to read more).
