Almost two weeks ago the Lord prompted me to compile the words He has given me to share over the course of the last year. I spent a significant amount of time going over those words and meditating on them and reflecting on how they have impacted my life. The Lord has laid it very heavily upon my heart that these Words from Him are for all of us who are truly His people. Quite often He will deliver a word and all that the Lord intended to teach with the Word will not be understood until I have gone through a crisis experience.As I continue my walk with the Lord I continue to learn how He works with me and how He teaches me, tests me, disciplines me, and rewards me. I continue to grow in Him and He continues to lead me as I subject all that I have and all that I am to Him. I am mentioning all of this now in order to provide the context for what it is I am about to share about a recent experience.
As many of you know, I have a thorn in the flesh in the form of a severe chronic health issue that quite often brings me to the point of crisis. Sometimes the periods of crisis are short, and other times they are prolonged periods of an intense nature that lasts for months. Over the course of the last several years it has become apparent that the Lord uses these seasons of crisis as a means of refining, teaching, disciplining, and maturing me. Without fail at the end of these seasons, however long they may last, there comes a rather tangible and significant spiritual upgrade in one form or another.
As I write this I am convinced that there are others of you who are reading this who understand this pattern in a deep and profound way. My God works through crisis and His people know and embrace the narrow road of affliction and suffering and understand His way of discipline and refinement.
I have been in a rather prolonged health crisis since last November which began with a nine day hospital stay. I have never really bounced back from that event, and while I have been carrying on the best I know how it has been quite evident that I have been on the verge of another crisis that would land me in the hospital for a prolonged stay. Two weeks ago that serious and significant health crisis hit and I was in the hospital for another nine day stay. During this season the Lord began to stir my spirit in a very intense manner and I was filled with the yearning to be closer to Him through intense prayer than I had ever been before.
It was a manner of stirring and desire that I have never experienced before, and the fact that it was coming during a time of serious crisis was no accident. As I wrote before, I know as I write this now that there are those for whom this message is intended that have been enduring crisis' of your own in one form or another and it is in the midst of these intense periods of struggle that the Lord gives us all that we need.
Throughout the entire time I was in the hospital I was engaged with the Lord in a manner of prayer that was very intense. I found myself in a season of necessary real time prayer coming with real time answers. The Lord was moving me to call out to Him for all things, great and small, and I was seeing Him move in an undeniable way as He went about answering those prayers and carrying me through the worst of the crisis.
As I settled in for what I knew was going to be a prolonged stay, the Lord began to reveal to me the deeper lessons behind the Words He had been giving me recently and the experiences I had been having. One of the most absolute important points the Lord made to me came through listening to an mp3 by Russ Dizdar in which Russ discusses the power that sin has in compromising our prayer life and hence our power to be effective for the Lord.
Two points in particular that the Lord brought to me were the sin of the eyes and the sin of the mind. What we see, what we watch, and what we look at matters. When we begin to pollute our eyes with wickedness we are compromising ourselves, and the sin of the eyes quickly moves into the sin of the mind because what we see quickly becomes the focus of what we are thinking. If the enemy can get his foot in the door by getting us to engage in the sin of the eyes and then work on us to begin to sin with the mind we will quickly lose our anointing, and with it our power which means we have now lost our ability to be effective in whatever it is the Lord has called us to in how we serve Him and His people. When we find ourselves in this very dangerous position we are like sitting ducks that the enemy will gladly take out.
Throughout my entire stay the Lord continued to bring to mind the importance of prayer and the absolute necessity of walking closely with Him so that we have the power we need in times of supernatural conflict. He continued to stress the importance of keeping our eyes and minds clean and thereby not allowing the enemy to compromise us as we will need all of the spiritual prayer power the Lord wishes to grant us in the massive spiritual conflicts that will soon be upon us.
Earlier today I was watching a video of a David Wilkerson sermon entitled "Hell-Shaking Prayer" and while I was watching the video the Lord gave me the following Word:
Tell my people that now is the time to become powerful in prayer. Prayer is your greatest weapon and only defense. Call upon Me in prayer as I am your greatest ally. It is the power of prayer that will see you through and not your physical preparations.
What was once just a part of daily life will require supernatural provision and intervention. Now is the time to learn to seek Me in all things great and small. In the days that lie ahead you will need to pray in real time and be able to hear and obey Me in real time.
All that you have come to know will soon be shattered and shaken and shall no longer remain, yet I will remain. Cast your eyes and hope upon Me and make Me the only object of your faith, because all else will fail you in the days that are to come.
I am calling you to prayer just as I called my disciples in Gethsemane. Now is the time to stay awake and pray that your faith does not fail. Pray for one another and pray for yourselves as only those found in Me will be able to stand when all that is around them falls. Prayer must be as breath as it will be your source of life.
After receiving the Word and writing it down I began to reflect on what the Lord had just told me and the Lord showed me how important prayer will become in the final days. This became evident as the Lord highlighted what happened in Gethsemane immediately prior to His betrayal. The events of Gethsemane were that of division, Jesus divided Himself, Peter, James, and John away from the rest of the disciples and then in the garden Jesus separated Himself from Peter, James, and John. With these two divisions we see three separate classes. The Jesus type, which is a model of the Bride/Barley, Peter, James, and John which represent the Wheat, and the rest of the disciples who represent the grapes. If I am losing you here, then you may wish to give serious consideration to breaking off and reading Bob's work before continuing.
- The Testimony of Gethsemane - Part 1 - (The Mount of Olives)
- The Testimony of Gethsemane - Part 2
- The Testimony of Gethsemane - Part 3 (Your Final Exam)
I had never really given much consideration to how important the role prayer played in what transpired that night in Gethsemane in regards to the division between Jesus and the other three. Jesus asked them to keep watch with Him and to pray so that they might not fall into the temptation. He expressed that His soul was deeply grieved to the point of death, and even with Him saying that and with all that was going on the three disciples, representing the Church, fell asleep!
It was only Jesus who was able to press in and pray it through. The other three slept while Jesus suffered and prayed.
I cannot stress how deeply the Lord put this on my heart today, people. It is my sincerest hope that the Word the Lord gave me to share is enough to convince you of the extreme importance of prayer in these final days, but if it is not then please allow the following passages from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke to convince you!
36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to His disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and distressed. 38 Then He said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.”
39 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.” 40 And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour? 41 Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
42 He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, “My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Your will be done.” 43 Again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. 44 And He left them again, and went away and prayed a third time, saying the same thing once more. 45 Then He came to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Get up, let us be going; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!” ~ Matthew 26:36-46
39 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.” 40 And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour? 41 Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
42 He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, “My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Your will be done.” 43 Again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. 44 And He left them again, and went away and prayed a third time, saying the same thing once more. 45 Then He came to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Get up, let us be going; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!” ~ Matthew 26:36-46
24 And there arose also a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be greatest. 25 And He said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who have authority over them are called ‘Benefactors.’ 26 But it is not this way with you, but the one who is the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like the servant. 27 For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at the table? But I am among you as the one who serves.
28 “You are those who have stood by Me in My trials; 29 and just as My Father has granted Me a kingdom, I grant you 30 that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
31 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; 32 but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” 33 But he said to Him, “Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death!” 34 And He said, “I say to you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me.”
35 And He said to them, “When I sent you out without money belt and bag and sandals, you did not lack anything, did you?” They said, “No, nothing.” 36 And He said to them, “But now, whoever has a money belt is to take it along, likewise also a bag, and whoever has no sword is to sell his coat and buy one. 37 For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘And He was numbered with transgressors’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.” 38 They said, “Lord, look, here are two swords.” And He said to them, “It is enough.”
39 And He came out and proceeded as was His custom to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples also followed Him. 40 When He arrived at the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” 41 And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and began to pray, 42 saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.” 43 Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. 44 And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground. 45 When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow, 46 and said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not enter into temptation.” ~ Luke 22:24-46
28 “You are those who have stood by Me in My trials; 29 and just as My Father has granted Me a kingdom, I grant you 30 that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
31 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; 32 but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” 33 But he said to Him, “Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death!” 34 And He said, “I say to you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me.”
35 And He said to them, “When I sent you out without money belt and bag and sandals, you did not lack anything, did you?” They said, “No, nothing.” 36 And He said to them, “But now, whoever has a money belt is to take it along, likewise also a bag, and whoever has no sword is to sell his coat and buy one. 37 For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘And He was numbered with transgressors’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.” 38 They said, “Lord, look, here are two swords.” And He said to them, “It is enough.”
39 And He came out and proceeded as was His custom to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples also followed Him. 40 When He arrived at the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” 41 And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and began to pray, 42 saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.” 43 Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. 44 And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground. 45 When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow, 46 and said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not enter into temptation.” ~ Luke 22:24-46
We will soon be entering into a season the likes of which the world has never seen, yet the Lord has been preparing a people that will have the anointing and "hook up" that will be more than commensurate to the task at hand! Now is the time to abandon all other pursuits and seek the Lord for everything you are worth and with everything you have. To put it plainly, we are running out of time and there are so very few of us who truly grasp the correct time and extent of the lateness of the hour.
If you find yourself in continual crisis of one form or another then rejoice and know that the Lord is preparing you in the refining fire of this "frying pan" season to ensure that you will have all that is required as the transition into the "fire" season begins. Make no mistake about it, we are in that transition and we will be in the flames of the fire season before too long!
By Aaron Hermann
Please feel free to contact me through my Gmail account. (theultimateplan@)
Aaron, Bob,
ReplyDeleteSorry if this is a dumb question, but what is prayer? How do you pray? How do I know if I'm doing it right?
I hear lots of people saying "Pray," but nobody says what the word means. What should I talk about? Are there specific words to say?
It's hard to think of things to say when nobody is talking back...I usually think of 3 or 4 sentences then give up. When I try, I always feel like I'm doing it wrong...like God is probably saying, "You fool, that's not prayer!" I'm very confused, perhaps because I have no idea what I'm trying to do or what the goal is.
Hey Jonathan,
DeleteThank you for taking the time to write. Another person reached out with the same type of question and I with his permission I have included my response to him here in the comment section. I believe it may be of some help to you.
I would like to share a part of Matthew 6 with you. This is where Jesus was instructing His disciples in how to pray correctly. He instructed them to pray to the Father in the name of the Son, and nothing has changed since that time. So we pray to the Father and at the conclusion of our prayer we end by saying something along the lines of, "in Jesus' name I pray" or "In Y'shua's name I pray", etc.
It is critically important to not pray to Mary, any of the angels, "saints" of Catholic lore, etc. Any prayer of that manner will be going directly to the dark side, which is why the Lord gave us specific instructions regarding to whom we are to be praying.
Another very important point He made was in instructing them to not engage in "vain repetitions" like the heathens do. An example of this type of prayer would be the "Hail Mary" and "Our Father" prayers that the Catholics pray as they work down their Rosary.
5 “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
7 “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. 8 So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
9 “Pray, then, in this way:
‘Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 ‘Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 ‘Give us this day our daily bread.
12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’
~Matthew 6:5-13
A great example of prayer can be found in the Psalms. The Psalms are a perfect example of prayer as David was pouring out his heart to God in all sorts of situations. Perhaps reading through the Psalms and spending some alone time with the Lord will be a great way to get you started!
Prayer is our precious "alone time" with our Father, and it is as precious to Him as it is to us. Do not worry about what to say, just pour out your heart to Him and allow the Holy Spirit to lead and guide you. Don't hold back and don't restrain yourself.
I have learned that it is always okay to ask the Lord for help whenever we need it, and that includes in how to pray. Quite often I ask the Lord to help me know what to pray, when to pray, and how to pray. Quite often the only thing I can utter is, "Dear Lord, please help me!" and whenever that is all I can muster I find that it is enough. Don't be afraid to ask the Lord for His help is getting you going.
Most of all, enjoy the time with Him as it is such a precious and wonderful thing. He wants to spend time with us just as much as we want to spend time with Him! That took me a long time to grasp as it is hard to believe that the Sovereign God of the universe wants to spend time with us, but it's true!
This life is all about loving God and prayer is a part of developing that intimate relationship with Him. He loves you and wants to hear from you, so just ask Him to help get you started and trust that He is good and will answer that request.
Aaron
I can agree completely with this call to you to tell believers to continue in prayer,not once a day but to continue, it is a permanent state. My road (Lords teaching)to this understanding started many years ago with the Pat Robertson book on the 'Jabez prayer' what was different for me though and what the Holy Spirit showed me was not to pray for wealth, as was the idea behind the book, but rather to note that Jabez prayed to be protected from evil (temptation) and that his borders would be widened (knowledge and wisdom). Since coming apone this blog and that of Bob's Openscroll also that of Joseph Herrin "parables blog" and starting to be made aware of the signs and symbols around us seeing how the Music industry through disciples such as MCyrus parade and flaunt there affair with the enemy wow. I have switched off the TV permanently in my family, I am making my daughters aware and anyone who cares to listen, most of all the Lord is leading me to a state of permanent prayer and this through crises I did not fully understand or quite perceive to be the Lords leading till now.The enemy is blatantly spewing in our face whats to come saying and "so what are you going to do about it" Need I mention all that's suspended in mid air right now -Corruption in the highest places across the world,rise of lawlessnes through gay abandonment,in South Africa Child murder gangster-ism, rape robbery, political intrigue, Threat of Financial collapse lack of Justice to all and especially the financially defrauded -Financial manipulation,Child abuse False teaching -False doctrines, abuse of power,rise of Sodomy and idol worship across all nation -the proliferation of marketing of false religions.
ReplyDeleteThe Voices in the wilderness are few there will be know spiritual rise of believers in Christ -Jesus says as in the days of Noah : the gate is small : the road is narrow
Thank you for your work it has reached me, I am so thankful and what I have learnt in the last months trawling your blogs has been enormous.
Thank you for sharing this with us, brother! I am very grateful that this Word resonated with you. It is truly and honor and privilege to be serving in this late hour!
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