If you’re a member of the body of Christ, you are living in the midst of something big—much bigger than you could ever imagine in your own natural mind. Surrounding you is a huge network of individual callings and gifts, all designed to work together toward the fulfillment of God’s plans and purposes for these last days.
Over the years, I’ve discovered so many facets to this last-days move of God we are experiencing. Some people emphasize the rain or the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that God sends to bring in the great end-time harvest of souls. Other people emphasize miracles, signs and wonders. But a few years ago during a time of prayer, God revealed another very important facet of this divine move to me.
Fishers of Men
At the time, our church had a little downtown prayer mission where we would go pray every day for revival and for the city. One night we were down at the mission praying with one particular Scripture as our focus: Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest (Matt. 9:38 KJV). That Scripture was a burning desire in my heart as I prayed in tongues. At one point I spoke out in English, “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send…”
When I got to that word “send,” something just resounded and shook in my spirit man. Then the Lord spoke to my heart and said: “The operation of send is a motivating plan of God for the last days. It will thrust forth and hurl multitudes of people like missiles into the harvest fields of the world.”
You know, when man sends you out, there isn’t much power. But when God sends you forth, it’s a different thing altogether!
The Lord continued, saying, “I will make you fishers of men.” Then He showed me a big net He is in the process of weaving. The net is made up of people, and He is getting ready to throw it into all the earth.
In this huge, invisible net—this operation of send—every person has a part. In fact, I can’t begin to describe to you all the different facets and parts I saw in God’s motivating plan of send that night. Over the years, I’ve received even more revelation regarding this divine operation and all it entails, but God still hasn’t given me utterance for some of the things I’ve seen.
Recently I was reminded of something a friend of mine related to me in regard to the end-time plan of God. Her sister had gone to heaven and spoken with Jesus. As Jesus talked to this woman, He called this last move of God “the latter rain.”
My friend asked her sister, “What does that mean? What is the latter rain?
Her sister replied, “It is the hour of no impossibilities, in which all things are possible in God.”
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers
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!”