On 7th March 2013, Thursday, 7:30 PM, I attended the Malayalam service led by Pastor Tinu George from the El-Shaddai Ministries, Kottarakara, at the Emmanuel Assemblies of God, Upper East Coast Road. The service started with beautiful praise and worship by Anil Adoor and Sham Siva from El-Shaddai Ministries. The anointing was awesome during Praise and Worship.
Pastor Roy Henry then welcomed Tinu George on stage to share the Word of God.
There is no change in the Word of God but the Word of God can change us, said Pastor Tinu. God sent His Word and healed the people. There is power in the Word of God to cleanse you and make you holy. Quoting Revelation 1:3,3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.
Luke 11:1 And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.
The will of God for our life is to be like Jesus. We must study the life of Jesus, said Pastor Tinu George.
Jesus prayed all night. When Jesus was baptized, He was praying and then the Heavens opened.
Luke 3:21
21 Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,
Jesus was 30 years old when He started the ministry. He always prayed during night and performed miracles during day. Before choosing the disciples, He prayed whole night.
Luke 6:12-16
12 And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. 13 And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles; 14 Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, 15 Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes, 16 And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.
God chose ordinary and made them extra ordinary people. In prayer, Jesus discovered the coming events. Before making important decisions, He prayed. In Gethsemane, He prayed. When He endured the heavy burden, He prayed. It was in prayer, Jesus submitted to the Will of God. The life of Jesus was always prayer. Jesus experienced great victories out on the front lines as He ministered to the needs of the people – teaching, opening blind eyes, unstopping deaf ears, healing all manner of diseases, raising the dead. They were won before He went out on the front lines, in PRAYER.
The disciples asked Jesus how to pray. They didn’t ask how to perform healing or how to cast out demons but How to PRAY. They discovered, the secret of healing and deliverance in the ministry of Jesus was His Prayer life.
If your prayer life is weak, you must pray from today. Jesus gave importance to prayer life. If you study the history of mighty men of God, the secret of their successful ministry is their prayer life. The reason, Yoido Full Gospel Church is the largest Pentecostal church in the world is because of Dr. Yongi Cho’s prayer life and that’s also the reason for revival in S.Korea.
God told Abraham, if there is one righteous person, He will not destroy that nation. A prayerful person is a blessing to his family, workplace and everyone around him. God is God of a man who prays. What’s the real prayer life? In Luke 11:5-8,
5 And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; 6 For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? 7 And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. 8 I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.
The actual prayer is the intercessory prayer.
Daniel 6:10
10 Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
Daniel prayed not only during trouble but also during good times. He prayed 3 times a day, kneeling. Elijah prayed kneeling. David prayed facing Jerusalem. A kneeling prayer is the most effective and beneficial but now a days people pray on bed or sofa and then feel sleepy.
In Genesis 32:22-24,
22 And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok. 23 And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had. 24 And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
Jacob sent his 2 wives and children to Jabbok and he was alone with God on the other side. In prayer, Jacob wrestled with God. In the prayer room, God changes the situation. In Prayer, God changed Jacob to Israel ! If God is the one who has blessed you, then nobody can take away your blessing.
4 steps to lead a successful prayer life:
- You must know the way and pray at any time.
- You must have a daily relationship with God.
- You must be persistent in prayer. Sometimes, you may get discouraged, you may not get the answer. In the parable of Luke 11: 5, the man had the confidence that God has the food (blessing) and that he can approach Him anytime. He might have had the experience of receiving else he wouldn’t have gone to God. Even though God told him to come later, God never said He didn’t have food (blessing). If you don’t get discouraged in prayer, you will get what you want. Pray always continuously and persistently.
- Ask specifically, don’t be vague. The man in the parable asked for THREE LOAVES OF BREAD ! In the book of 1 Samuel 1:8-12, Hannah asked for a male child in prayer.8 Then said Elkanah her husband to her, Hannah, why weepest thou? and why eatest thou not? and why is thy heart grieved? am not I better to thee than ten sons?9 So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the Lord.10 And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore.11 And she vowed a vow, and said, O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.12 And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli marked her mouth.13 Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.14 And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee. 15 And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord. 16 Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto. 17 Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him. 18 And she said, Let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad. 19 And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the Lord, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah: and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the Lord remembered her. 20 Wherefore it came to pass, when the time was come about after Hannah had conceived, that she bare a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the Lord. When Hannah prayed, she was conceived immediately but the delivery happened months later. In the same way, there is a time for conception and time for delivery when you pray. What you see in the prayer room is what you get. After the sermon, he led people into Worship. The anointing was powerful as he rebuked the evil spirits and prayed for healing and deliverance. People came forward to testify the healing. It was 10:15 pm when the service ended. Praise God for an awesome time 🙂
