Great preaching isn’t the only thing we can draw out of ministers. All kinds of manifestations of God’s power can flow through them if we’ll just release our faith for them.
In Matthew chapter 10, for example, Jesus told His disciples that when they went into a house and it was worthy, “Let your peace come upon it” (verse 13). In other words, it was possible for the peace of God to literally emanate out from the disciples and be received by the people in that household.
If that was true for them, how much more so for us who are born again and baptized in the Holy Spirit?
I had an experience years ago that proved this principle to be true. I was called by a businessman to come minister to a friend of his who was in a mental hospital. This friend had tried to kill himself while he was in that hospital by tying the bed sheets together and trying to hang himself. He was so tormented that he would thrash in the bed and flail his arms day after day unable to rest or sleep.
When I walked into that mental ward, the oppression was so great I felt like I was in a vise. But as I stepped into the room where this man was, something happened. His sister was sitting beside him in a rocking chair and she locked into the anointing of God in me. I could feel her drawing.
I didn’t say a word. I didn’t lay hands on that man. I just stood right there in that room with my arms folded as the power of God began to flow from my spirit. Within minutes the man was in total and complete peace. He had not slept in days, yet instantly, he fell asleep and slept and slept.
Dear, precious pray-er, there are so many things we could receive from God, so much of His power we could unleash if we would just by the Spirit begin to draw from the ministry gifts God has given us. But for us to do that, we must develop a further reverence for those gifts. There must be a greater respect for divine things. The Lord wants to reveal to us great hidden treasures, but if we don’t esteem them, those treasures will stay hidden away.
So we must move into a greater reverence. We must pray more for our ministers. We are standing on the verge of some great and wonderful things, and we must lock our arms and our hearts together to bring forth the fullness of Him who is Christ in us, the hope of glory!
Scripture Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:25
On the chilly March night in 1972 when Lynne Hammond took her first step into a life of Spirit-led prayer, she had no idea what was about to happen. All she knew was the hunger in her heart for God wouldn’t let her sleep. In the few short months she’d been born again, her desire to fellowship with Him had grown so strong she could hardly contain it. “Help me, God!” she cried. “I want to know you. I want to be able to talk to you. Please, teach me to pray!”
Suddenly, a heavenly presence flooded the room. Lynne sensed waves of spiritual fire sweeping over her and a beautiful language began to flow like a river from within her. Although she’d never heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, she knew instantly, without a doubt—this was God!
What began that night soon blossomed into a life of prayer that ultimately became a ministry of prayer when, in 1980, Lynne and her husband, Mac, founded Living Word Christian Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Under Lynne’s leadership, the prayer ministry at Living Word has become an internationally recognized model for developing effective pray-ers in the local church.
A teacher and an author, Lynne publishes a newsletter called Prayer Notes, has written numerous books, and currently serves as the national prayer director for Daughters for Zion. Her passion for inspiring and leading others into the life of Spirit-led prayer continues to take her around the world to minister to believers whose heart cry, like hers, is “Lord, teach me to pray!”