One day as I was seeking the Lord about positioning myself for the glory, I was reading Acts chapter 13 and the Holy Spirit began to move upon the first few verses in a unique way. I knew He was trying to get something across to me through them and I knew it was important. So I just kept reading and meditating the verses He was quickening to me.
Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away. So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. (verses 1 – 4)
As I prayed and pondered that passage in my heart, what struck me most about it was the fact that this group of ministers in the church of Antioch gathered together for the sole purpose of ministering to the Lord. They weren’t trying to get something from Him. They just wanted to give something to Him.
They even set aside eating and fasted for a while so they could focus completely on God. They weren’t focusing on each other. They didn’t come to give their attention to a preacher or a church leader. They came to put their attention on God alone, to worship and bless Him.
I’m not even sure they were looking for the Holy Spirit to move in any particular way. But He did. As they ministered to the Lord, He spoke to them and said, “Separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”
As I thought about that, suddenly the truth behind it hit me. The ministers at Antioch separated themselves further unto God, and He responded by supernaturally separating them further to His purposes. They took time apart from the normal duties of life to honor Him, and He set Saul and Barnabas apart from the ordinary lives they’d been living and sent them on one of the most glorious missionary tours the Church has ever seen.
That’s the kind of supernatural separation we need today. It’s the kind of separation that will propel us into greater degrees of the glory and open the door to the world-changing plans and purposes of God.
Scripture Reading: Psalm 150:1 – 6
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!”