Only By Prayer and Fasting (Part 2 of 2) | 02.02.12

The following blog is a continuation from Part 1:

Faith comes by hearing both the Word that's already been spoken (Logos) as well as hearing what the Holy Spirit is yet saying (Rhema).  If we can't posture ourselves to hear, then it begs to be asked what exactly are we saying when we open our mouths to praise GOD?  Oh, that's right: WE DON'T... because THAT'S the praise team's job, just like it's the preacher's job to motivate us, the teacher's job to study the Word for us, and the intercessor's job to pray for us.  If we can't MOTIVATE ourselves, STUDY for ourselves and PRAY for ourselves, then we need to REEVALUATE ourselves because our faith apparently is in man and not in GOD.  Why do we place more faith in another man's ability to hear from GOD than our own?  Simple: we're too apathetic and lazy to do that which is necessary to hear from GOD for ourselves.  The whole point in Jesus reconciling us to the Kingdom and filling us with His Spirit is to the end that we indeed be able by the power of the same Spirit to boldly articulate prophetic utterances, consistently receive a Rhema Word and fervently pray for Heaven's earthly intervention OURSELVES.  However, all of this requires us being able to hear from Heaven.

Jesus Himself said that some things ONLY come out by prayer and fasting (Mark 9:29).  That's a key to the Kingdom, folks!  Prayer and fasting IS NOT an option if we plan to walk in the power and authority of the Holy Ghost.  Neither can we expect the divine enabling of GOD to be granted when we refuse to discipline ourselves to exercise this Kingdom strategy and receive divine instruction.  Our problem is that we want Kingdom results with worldly strategies, but it's not designed to work that way.  We can only say that which has already been said in order to manifest in the physical realm that which has already been accomplished in the spiritual realm.  Therefore, if we cannot posture ourselves to hear what Heaven is saying, then the fruit of our lips is basically of no effect.  It's just useless noise, which is the epitome of purposeless praise.  That's just how important fasting and prayer is to praise and worship.

Our ability to release the sound of Heaven into our earthly atmosphere is dependent upon us resounding (or echoing) what we hear in the realm of the Spirit.  If our spiritual antennas are unable to pick up Heaven's frequency, then our bodies most certainly cannot amplify Heaven's sound.  However, a life of prayer and fasting conditions the body to be subject to the indwelling Holy Spirit in that we can now "flow in harmony with Heaven's blueprint" (as Minister Steve Lawrence says).  We say that we're tired of church as usual; but if we really are, then we would commit ourselves to a whole lot more consecration than we have been.  It's not that the days of miracles, signs and wonders are over, friends.  It's that the days of the church being as disciplined in the practices of the early church seem to be over.  Let's do what we must in order to bring the glory of GOD back into our corporate worship services and, more importantly, our daily lives outside of the sanctuary.  There's a dying world that needs to come face to face with a living Savior, and it's up to us to make the introduction.