“Prayer is not a preparation for battle; it is the battle!”

                                                                                            - LENORD RAVENHILL

Greetings Canada’s Kneeling Army,

I pray that this letter finds you abiding and abounding in all of the sufficient grace of Almighty God as you prepare to go into your prayer closets and prayer gatherings this First Friday. Matthew 7 says, “7 Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!”  This should be an exciting scripture for anyone who joyfully cries out to Almighty God every First Friday for spiritual transformation to take place from coast to coast to coast across this great nation we live in and love dearly!

Verse 8 says, “For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.”  Friends, this truth reminds us that everyone – not just the few or the most worthy, but everyone – who asks will receive. There is enough truth in this one scripture to shake this entire nation if we take it as Jesus declares it! Remember last month when our focus was to hold onto our confession of faith. Let’s build on that this month, keeping in mind that the disciples, like ourselves, were crossing over into uncharted waters (Luke 8:22-25) and were given a command from the Lord, but they began to lose heart when they listened to the whispers of death instead of the Lord’s command.

During this month of April, we turn our attention to an incident where an intercessor’s prayer was answered, but God seemed strangely silent. This account begs the question, “What do you do when you’re in a hurry and it doesn’t appear that God is?” Daniel 10:12-13 sheds some light on this very relevant question. “12 Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. 13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia.” 

Many times our prayer is delayed because of demonic activity. While we are waiting, however, we must be committed to staying grounded in our confession. While we are waiting, remember that Jesus said, “Don’t give up!” Luke 8:1, “ought always to pray.. “ was as relevant for the First Century believer as it is for us today. It reminds us that when we pray it reaches through a world of spirits, and the devil is ready to stop any good thing from getting through. Never forget that God answers immediately when we pray. However, as we’ve seen time and time again in scripture, it may take time for the answer to reach us in the natural. FACT: Answers to prayer always take some time. FACT: We are in danger of fainting while we wait. FACT: God always gives us one of three answers – yes, no, or wait. FACT: Don’t give up; hold onto your confession and remember it’s your profession!

Touching and agreeing,

Brian Warren

Executive Director, CIP