There is a true story of a wife who prayed for her unsaved husband for thirteen hours after he had been declared dead by seven different doctors.    She refused to leave his bed side insisting that the Lord had told her that he would receive Christ and be adopted into the family of God.   When the doctors said that he was dead, she insisted that he either was not dead or that God planned to raise him from the dead in either case she would not remove herself from her kneeling position beside his bed; and she refused to allow them to move his body.

After thirteen hours he opened his eyes and she ask him “what do you wish my dear?”   He said that he wanted to go home and she agreed to take him.   When the doctors strongly resisted stating that this would kill him, she simply told them that they had had their chance and she was going to take him home.    You can find this story told by the man who was declared dead in the booklet “Praying Effectively for the Lost” [pages 30-31] by Lee E. Thomas.

Few of us have seen such an answer to prayer.   But perhaps fewer still have prayed with the conviction and persistence of this faithful wife.   There are some parts of this story that we must fairly assume.   First it is apparent that this woman had spent time talking to the Lord about her unsaved husband.  Further it is clear that in this process God had spoken to her in a way or ways that she clearly understood that God had promised her that Hewould save her husband.    In addition it is balanced to assume that when she heard God’s promise she fully and completely believed what she heard.

God is in the redemption business.   From the fall in the Garden of Eden forward God has been in the business of deliverance.   God provides for us His love, His mercy, and His grace and asks us to receive His salvation.    While the gift of redemption is free, there is a cost.   When rightly understood salvation costs us the choice of our loyalty.    When we were headed directly for death and the eternal lake of fire we could choose to be loyal to ourselves and to our sin.   But once redeemed, our loyalty must shift permanently to our new king, the Savior of our soul.  The woman in the story above was not loyal to the medical community or to common sense; she was completely loyal and entirely dependent on her Savior, Jesus Christ.

The bible tells us that Christ Jesus humbled Himself to become obedient to death even death on a Roman cross.   Further it tells us that this attitude or perspective should be ours.

Philippians 2:5-8 (AMP)
⁵ Let this same attitude and purpose and [humble] mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus:
⁶ Who, although being essentially one with God and in the form of God [possessing the fullness of the attributes which make God God], did not think this equality with God was a thing to be eagerly grasped or retained,
⁷ But stripped Himself [of all privileges and rightful dignity], so as to assume the guise of a servant (slave), in that He became like men and was born a human being.
⁸ And after He had appeared in human form, He abased and humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even the death of the cross!

Notice that Jesus let go of all rights and privileges [of which He possessed more than anyone on earth] and humbled himself to be obedient to the precise plan of God.    My wife recently brought to my attention an article written by Beth Moore which is imbedded in  her recently published study “Children of the DAY”   This article, p.128, is entitled “Intercessory Prayer for Awakening.”    Since this material is copyrighted we may not reproduce any part of it her;  however I believe that it is appropriate to share that Beth provides us with the sense that perhaps God is waiting to bring an Awakening to our Nation because we are afraid to release everything and ask God to do anything He desires regardless of how it will impact us personally or organizationally.

This brings us to a heart searching question  ..... do we desire revival for what it might do directly or indirectly for us?  Are we, with regard to revival, a little like the disciples who thought that when Jesus came into His kingdom that they would become the main men in the metropolis.    If we occupy any part of this space, we should repent and pray for the transformation of our hearts.   Revival is not about us.  It is about His kingdom and His glory, period.

                Have Thine own way Lord, Have Thine own way

                Thou art the potter, and I am the clay.

                Mold me and make me After Thy will

                While I am waiting, Yielded and still     -  Adelaide A Pollard   1907

Another woman shares what she has recently heard from the Lord.    Anne Graham-Lotz recently sent an e-mail to many who regularly hear from her.   Her e-mail is copied below.

Blow the trumpet...sound the alarm...for the day of the Lord is coming.  It is close at hand-- Rend your heart and not your garments..  Return to the Lord your God...   Joel 2:1, 13

As you may know, my husband is in declining health. I am no longer traveling and speaking as much as I have for the last 26 years since I am staying home to care for him. As a result, I have had time to be quiet and listen more to the whispers of the Spirit. He has revealed things to me in the stillness that I'm not sure I would have heard in my former busyness.

One of the things He has impressed on me is that we are living at the end of human history as we know it. In light of this, He has given me some practical assignments. One was to be the Honorary Chair for the National Day of Prayer 2014 this past May.. He gave me the message I was to deliver, which was from Joel 1...the Day of the Lord is at hand. It was a message warning that judgment is coming.

Just recently, He has given me another assignment, which is to call His people in our nation to prayer. This assignment came indirectly from a Syrian pastor through a National Day of Prayer attendee. In obedience, I am blowing the trumpet...sounding the alarm...issuing a national prayer initiative entitled 7 7 7: An Urgent Call to Prayer. The Call is for God's people to pray for each of the first seven days in the seventh month-July 1-7. Then on the 7th day, July 7, we are to pray and fast for 7 hours. The purpose is...

·         For God the Father to restrain, protect, and deliver His people from the evil that has come into our world.

·         For God the Son to be exalted, magnified, and glorified in His church, in our nation, and in our lives.

·         For God the Holy Spirit to fall on us in a fresh way, compelling the church to repent of sin and our nation to return to faith in the living God, resulting in a great national spiritual awakening.

I'm asking you to partner with me, and send out the word to everyone on your email address list, or who follows you on Facebook or twitter. I will be sending out an eBlast this week and next, which you can access at http://www.annegrahamlotz.com/events/urgent-call-to-prayer/. Please feel free to use it, and place your name in the paragraph that includes mine to make it more personal for your constituents. Feel free also to forward this letter.

I will provide a prayer I have written for each of the 7 days to help unite us in one spirit and one voice as we cry out to God. Those who receive the eBlast are invited to sign up for the daily email prayers. Please be assured there is no other agenda in this initiative. This is not about promoting anything or anyone. This is all about calling God's people together to pray, before it's too late, and judgment falls on our nation.

Urgently,

Anne Graham-Lotz

Is it possible that the problem with our Father sending revival immediately is that we have a priority for our dignity over His downpour? (Words inspired by Beth Moore)  Is it possible that we are judging the prayer initiative in which we will participate based upon who is leading?   Or could we be holding back based on some determination of denomination or doctrinal leaning?

Are you ready to release all of your thoughts and desires your hopes and expectations and completely rely upon God’s plan to open the heavens and come down whatever this may look like and however it may affect you personally?

In the passage from Philippians above we see two primary things.  First Jesus humbled himself such that he held on to nothing; but emptied Himself of all of His honor, and dignity and position in order for the will of the Father to be done in and through Him.   And second, we see that we are commanded to do exactly the same.

Will you join me in praying for God to soon send a strong wave of His spirit to accomplish His plan and His purposes, magnifying His power and His glory alone?   God help us to so pray!