Paul’s letter to the Philippians is generally quite positive. He doesn’t address any theological hot button issues. This is a church community that has sacrificially supported his ministry and joined him as “partners” in the gospel, risking their lives and livelihoods to spread the good news of Jesus Christ. It’s a good, solid, healthy church, one that Paul feels very close to.

And there are conflicts. Especially between two leading women in the community. The conflict is significant enough for Paul to address, albeit briefly, in a public letter:

I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

It’s interesting to me that Paul doesn’t list the issues that are creating this tension. He doesn’t take sides. He refrains from getting into specifics. He doesn’t become heavy-handed or judgmental. He pleads rather than demands. He knows from personal experience that conflict in any relationship is as normal and inevitable as the common cold.

Relationship is always a dance. Some of us are more adept at this dance than others. None of us is perfect. We all bring to our relationships both strengths and weaknesses, gifts and wounded places. No matter how hard we try to avoid it, we will step on each other’s toes. There is so much that we don’t understand about the other’s reality. Communication carries inevitable landmines.

This post isn’t about how to solve conflict. I sense that one of the biggest obstacles to conflict resolution is our discomfort over the fact that it’s happening at all. I suggest, and I think Paul does too, that conflict is normal, inevitable and always an opportunity. It’s as much a sign of health as of unhealth. It’s how we grow.

It’s how our nation was born. Sharon and I have been gradually working our way through the PBS series, John Adams. What heated conflicts and extreme differences of opinion marked the debates and actions of the founding fathers! Given these tensions, it seems miraculous that a constitution like ours was crafted and ratified. It’s equally remarkable that leaders with such different personalities, political philosophies and views on human nature were able to not only work together but, in many cases, be friends. Iron sharpening iron.

I find it interesting that Paul doesn’t blame the devil for what’s happening between Euodia and Syntyche. He doesn’t blame anyone. He just encourages them to “agree in the Lord,” and accept assistance from others, if need be. I don’t know what Paul meant by the words “agree in the Lord.” I don’t think he meant that if we all seek the will of God, we’re always going to have the same take on every issue. The Greek word for “agree” is symphoneo. A symphony consists of different people playing different instruments, making different sounds, and playing different parts. There is a wide variety of instruments in this symphony we call the church, but only one Maestro.

The “Wall” and the journal entries in the Prayer Tent help me appreciate the complexity and richness of our community. What different voices! What poignant struggles! What dissonant cries of anguish and hope! And yet, all this diversity in that holy space somehow makes us feel more one, doesn’t it? Is it because of the almost palpable Presence of the Maestro? Do we sense that everything that happens in that tent is somehow under the direction of the Great Conductor?

One of the joys of staying in Northampton is the close proximity of my parent’s house to Bradlaugh Fields where I can take our dog and she can run around to her heart’s content. While walking around today I spent the time praying and reflecting for an hour as part of the Divisional 24/7 Prayer Week. See also 10 November 2008. The wonderful irony being that Charles Bradlaugh was a prominent atheist in the 19th Century and MP for Northampton.

I sense that our 24/7 prayer week is going well. From comments and notes that I’ve read and heard, I gather that God is meeting many of you and speaking into your life. I read one prayer on “the wall” that spoke to me this morning. I don’t know who the author is:

I am sending out an uncommon prayer Lord –
     Make it hard for me Lord
     And I know I may regret telling you this later
     Put every obstacle in my way
     Do this so that I may stumble and then experience your grace
     Do this so that I must seek you out
        and find you in the most unlikly places
     Do this so that the world knocks me around,
        bruising and battering me
        and in doing so…
     it smooths all of my rough spots
        turning me from one in a thousand pebbles at your
        feet — to a remarkable treasure in your hands.

This over-the-top prayer didn’t sound quite so over-the-top when I read my epistle reading for this morning: “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perserverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking in anything” (James 1:2-4).

“Finish its work.”  A stone can be a good and even precious stone, as we are when we are born again in Christ. But in order for the work to be finished and for the stone to be polished, it must be thrown into the rock tumbler where stone grinds stone, like iron sharpens iron. This is what happened during Israel’s forty years in the wilderness and Jesus’ forty days in the desert. This is what it takes not just to be but to become sons and daughters of God.

Paul writes: “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship.” And then, a little later: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” And what is that purpose? “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son….”

Instead of being a slave to fear, may I allow each jagged rock — whether in the form of people, interruptions or temptations — to polish the still-rough stone of my “self” today, so that I may one day reflect the glory and image of my Lord and Brother Jesus Christ.

We normally have the last week of our holiday entitlement in October, but this year it’s November. We travelled down to Northampton to stay with my parents, and do some jobs for them. On the way Marta and I called in at our DHQ for an hour of prayer with other members of the divisional prayer team we belong to. There is a week of 24/7 prayer, for more details click here!

It feels good to be in the Prayer Tent again. Very good. I appreciate the new elements Rob added around “call.” Yesterday I sensed God speaking into my life through each of these visuals. For example, the visual for the places we live out our call is a compass. My take on it is that just as the needle of a compass always points north, the inner compass of a Jesus Follower always points to Christ.

The CD I most often play in the tent is Jeff Johnson’s Vespers, and my favorite song on that CD is “Christ Before Me:”

Christ, when I lay down,
Christ, when I rise.
Christ in my journey.
Christ in my heart.

Christ go before me.
Christ be my shield.
Christ deep within me.
Christ in my heart.

Christ before me. How do I know Christ in my heart and in my life? Sometimes it works to picture his face. (There are two beautiful pictures of Christ’s face in the prayer tent.) But I wonder if it makes even more sense to picture his back.

Jesus didn’t say, “Look at me,” but rather “Follow me.” I’m guessing that we’re not going to know Christ very well if we’re continually looking to see what he can do for us rather than what we can do for him. Christ is on a mission. We follow him as he carries out that mission. We play our part, with his Spirit guiding and empowering us. We are grateful for those times when he turns his head and we get a glimpse of his face. But we are likely to miss those times if we’ve not stayed close on his heels. This can only happen if we’re seeking to serve rather than to be served.

On Sunday I suggested that we pray the Lord’s Prayer often this week, praying with and for the person in the tent when we say ”our.” The Lord’s Prayer is especially for people whose eyes are glued to Jesus’ back — the One who is continually praying and working for the Father’s Kingdom to come and for the Father’s will to be done. For ourselves, we merely ask for our most basic needs to be met, for forgiveness (but only inasmuch as we have forgiven others) and for help with temptation, because we know how these areas can distract us from Jesus’ back, even cause us to lose our way altogether.

The persistent and pronounced drum rhythm in Jeff Johnson’s song make me think of the heart. What keeps my heart beating? Where is the needle of my inner compass pointing? The song’s drum cadence also has an almost military feel to it. This journey of following Christ’s back is not for the fainthearted. When Jesus set his face toward Jerusalem his disciples were in awe — they could only wonder what this would mean for him and for them.

I think of a line from another hymn: “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.” Trust: we can focus on Jesus’ back because he has our back. If we are staying close to him, he will use every circumstance of our mind, heart and body today for his ongoing work of fashioning us into his image. Obey: there will be things for us to do today – needs for us to meet, commands for us to obey, instructions for us to follow. Please don’t worry if you only rarely see his face. We all have work to do.

Here is a taste of what I’ve been doing with the Burn in the past year and a half.

The election results are in. I congratulate Mr. Obama on his victory and wish him well. I pray that he will ‘act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with his God’ (Micah 6:8). I pray especially for the miracle of humility.

Meanwhile, the kingdom of God moves on. Next Sunday we’ll be starting another 24/7 prayer week. This week I learned that there has been quite a jump in the number of churches and groups doing 24/7 prayer over the last year. Before last year the number of groups participating each week ran between 15 and 30. This year 50-70 groups have been involved. Carla Harding, who was part of the very first 24/7 prayer group in Chichester, England, offers her reflections:

Why this continued growth and new depth? What’s our Father got up His sleeve? I don’t know the answer to this question. I don’t confess to know the mind of God, but I have a few suspicions based on some of the fruit I’m seeing in our little slice of the pie…Unity, a passion to share Jesus, lives yanked from comfortable materialism to committed discipleship, lifestyles of conversation with our Father rather than a duty to pray, hearts changed by touching Christ’s heart, attention shifted to those who need help, identity shaped, dreams given, battles fought, people changed and places transformed. As the world gets darker, the Church is getting brighter. We may always have the poor with us, there may be nothing secure: not politics, property, finance or relationships in this world, but there is hope. A light that dazzles, a light we are becoming infused with and His name is Jesus. What might God be building? I think a temple made of people where the presence of God permanently dwells bringing His kingdom and kindness with every step of their feet.

A word that comes to mind as I read Carla’s thoughts is “authenticity.” Mud-slinging presidential campaigns and plunging stock markets make us wonder whether our vote or portfolio is based on reality or on illusion. We may wonder the same thing about our prayers and religious activities.

Many of us yearn for spiritual authenticity. I think that’s what drew us to the prayer tent earlier in the year. God met us there. More life has been lived since the tent was last raised. It’s time to go deeper still.

So everyone, I have great news to share with you . . . My trip to Amsterdam and Kenya is 100% Funded!

PRAISE THE ALMIGHTY ONE!!!

Now all that is needed in $9600.00 for YWAM plus 600 per month (or a total of around $13200.00) I know that this number looks impossible but I know that it is NOT IMPOSSIBLE!

Please I encourage you to give. When you give you are sowing seeds into the Kingdom of Heaven. When you sow into missions and the nations you reap the rewards as if you were the one reaping in that land. Those who sow receive the same reward as those who sow. It is biblical!

Thank you to everyone who has given!

And whether you have given or not I pray that the LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

Global Bridegroom Fast – Nov 3, 4, 5

The first Monday through Wednesday of every month all of our staff join with Christians around the world for three days of fasting, worship and prayer.

The Global Bridegroom Fast (GBF) is a monthly global solemn assembly of believers in to Jesus for three days. We are calling believers worldwide to join together in prayer and fasting for revival, motivated by experiencing love for Jesus. This is a time when we are called to listen to God directly, not just the words of man. This is not an event but an entirely new lifestyle in the grace of God; we will continue in this fast until Jesus returns.

On Sunday, October 26th, a car full of us went up to the Cleveland International House of Prayer to listen to a speaker named Allen Hood. Allen is the Associate Director of IHOP Kansas City and the Dean of the Forerunner School of Ministry. Upon stepping into the room where the meeting was being held, you could feel the Spirit hovering in the atmosphere. Usually it takes a few songs to get into the “mood” of worship, but all of us agreed that the thickness of the Spirit facilitated the transition. We were instantly worshipping with songs we did not know, but to a God we all had in common. People of all races and ages were in the room. The worship team played prophetic worship, and led the people into the Throne Room of God. Then Allen got up to speak.

When Allen Hood stepped onto the platform, I experienced something I thought I would never get the chance to experience. I had often heard of the “olden days” when preachers would open their mouths and the congregation would instantly become so convicted that people would run to the front in repentance, pouring out tears and moans without an invitation! I frequently wondered how this could possibly happen. I have never heard a sermon so convicting that I could not adhere to the protocols of a church service. However, when Allen Hood spoke, I was overtaken by the weigh of the Spirit. Within three minutes, tears were pouring down my face and continued to do so until the service closed. I was so convicted. Allen did not yell. He was not condemning. He simply spoke the truth and the Spirit confirmed his words by penetrating the hearts of the congregation with His Glory. My chest felt like exploding. The Words of God felt indescribably heavy upon my conscience. I was surprised by this new, raw sensation of Christ.

Allen spoke about a great deal of things. However, the theme of it all was that the End Times are near and the people of God need to understand the times and fall on our knees in repentance and intercession. Allen was broken hearted that humans haven’t a burden for 24/7 prayer. He said that the angels and creatures of Heaven worship God 24/7 crying, “Holy, Holy, Holy”. However, God did not send His Son to die for them. He did not save them. Yet we, humans, who are redeemed by the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, have no burden to worship Him continually.

Another thing Allen Hood spoke about was sin. Sin, he said, is not like dirt on our bodies. It doesn’t just passively sit there waiting for the next wash. Sin is like a virus! Sin is aggressive, not passive. It is always looking for a foothold to take and move up on to consume our entire being. Sin is like E. Coli. Who in their right mind would enjoy injecting themselves with a small dose of E. Coli just for the thrill of it? Yet we do so everyday with our sin.

Overall, the experience was one I will never forget. I hope to hear to him speak whenever the opportunity arises. He is a man so full of Scripture that I am both convicted and ashamed at my own lack of knowledge. I am inspired to become a woman of the Word, and to spend a great deal of time basking in prayer to know the Lord as he does. My hope is that many will join me to attend the Onething 2009 conference this year and visually see and listen to people who have spent an incredible time in both God’s Word and His Presence. By doing so, may we seize the opportunity and guidance to do the same. May it inspire us. May it convict us. May it spur us on the run the race of Jesus, giving up everything for our Lord and King.

Some of you may have heard about the trip that I’m taking to Africa next month–well some of the details have changed. Let me fill you in.

I’m leaving the US of A on November 29th (the day after Thanks Giving) to head to Amsterdam. We, me and a team of four others (Sean Feucht, Michael Miller, Michael Mauldin, and Jack Smith–this is one blaze crew!) will be arriving in Amsterdam on Saturday November 30th. We have a couple of services lined up for Saturday night and Sunday, where we will speak, teach, release, impart, and BURN with upto 1000 kids who are hungry for the presence of God!

I’m excited about this! I love Europe and the Netherlands is one of my favorite places–probably because of the cheese.

Monday we will be heading to Nairobi where we will be visiting the slums, teaching, training, imparting, and  traveling around the region tapping into whatever God is doing wherever He is doing it! Over there we are also going to be connecting with TheCall for 12 hours of praying and fasting for this war torn nation.

This is going to be an intense trip!

Please remember to keep me in your prayers. I have not yet fully raised the funds needed for this trip (or YWAM). So please keep that need in prayer, and if you would like to give a tax-deductible donation to help support me as I raise funds please leave a comment or email me!

I will be keeping you all informed about Kenya and Amsterdam right here! So subscribe or bookmark this site on your browser so that you can check back stay informed.

Thank you!

Es gibt Worship, bei dem man nicht sofort an den Worship denkt, den man kennt. Und genau den mag ich. Seit einigen Tagen geistern in meinen Boxen Agents Of Future herum. Und ich kann jetzt nicht vielmehr schreiben, als dass sie mich total wegblasen. Mehr Infos hier. [via indievisionmusic]

Agents Of Future - I Tasted You

Agents Of Future - You Can Change My Mind

Auf meiner Flickr noch ein paar Bilder vom 24-7 Prayer vor 2 Wochen. Wenns klappt, bald auch noch ein paar Pluslounge-Bilder.

Update: Neuer Daniel Benjamin Song auf seiner Myspace, unbedingt reinhören!

Habe noch zwei Lieder der Agents hier hochladen dürfen.

and in light of my previous post, i am so pleased to say that in the midst of it all, young people at Spark 08 responded to reach out to the poverty stricken of our world. as i spoke on joining God in the rubble of our world, i offered some practical responses. to see young people not just reach out to their own community of ballymena, but to those living far off was humbling.

through the amazing Living Generously project sponsored through 24/7 prayer, here’s how they did it:

Guatemala
:: providing 2 street children a safe and comfortable place to stay for a week
:: paying for a loving home to be provided to 3 scared & malnourished street kids
:: provide schooling for 5 of the poorest of the poor
:: sponsor a couple to become houseparents for a family of street children
:: provide medical care for 3 street children
:: pay for the first stage of detox for a street child
:: give a street child the chance to go to school
:: provide meals on a rehab program for street kids
:: help support 3 high risk families to keep it together

Malawi
:: supporting a child in the Maoni Orphanage

Ethiopia
:: providing a child sponsorship package to 2 children for one month

Colombia
:: house a child at risk from Colombia’s terror groups

UK
:: provide a trip to a Theme Park for 3 young people with special needs

India
:: support a building project to home AIDS orphans and provide medical care

humbling…

So, via FHL we helped LoveOSU host a 24/7 prayer event at OSU called “OSU Week of Prayer”. It’s all rather confusing so it is simpler to say a bunch of my Christian friends and I helped host a week of continuous prayer at the Ohio State University last spring. A professional videographer came and took some shots and made an awesome movie for Campus America. A lot of my friends are in it. I was at a mission trip in Europe during the filming. So, I’m ecstatic that the final results of the film are finished so I can see it! I’m so proud of them. I’m so proud of what God is doing in American students. Here it is. Click it:

For almost a decade, Misty Edwards has been a worship leader at the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, Mo. IHOP is a 24-hour prayer center that has not closed its doors since it initially opened in 1999—a place of refuge regardless of the time, weather or season. Founded on a prophecy that has since grown into reality, IHOP heavily encourages prophetic worship to act as a companion to their ongoing prayer. Edwards has gathered fame across the globe with her worship, songwriting and strong voice. However, this hasn’t changed her commitment to her roots. Edwards is passionate about IHOP and about an intimate understanding of Scripture—so much so that her priority remains to lead people into worship there, even when opportunities to tour continually come beckoning.

You’ve been quoted as saying, “I have a great desire to see the knowledge of God flood this generation. I mean the real knowledge of God, not the distant Sunday-school version, but the true encounter with the Uncreated.” Can you elaborate on how you relate this through your songwriting?
 
I first ask that the knowledge of God would flood my own heart so that I am not just throwing out a bunch of words and rhetoric that mean nothing to me. I try to write out of an honest heart, and if I am not growing in the knowledge of God, then my songs will reflect that. I write songs by looking right at Jesus from my heart and actually singing to a real person who is listening and moving at the sound of my voice. If I am reaching for “true encounter with the Uncreated” in the secret of my heart, then I end up writing songs with that same reach. To know Him is an endless journey of hunger and satisfaction, then more hunger and deeper satisfaction. “Deep calls out to deep” as the Psalmist says (Psalm 42:7, TNIV). It is our glory to search Him out and not think we have Him figured out just because we memorized the top 10 Sunday-school stories. There is so much more to God than that, and I want to uncover Him and discover Him through His Word under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. I pray that the songs I write would bring people not only into an intellectual understanding, but a true heart connect with the God who is bending over the balcony of heaven to listen to them sing words that move Him and impact Him. Even if they are simple songs, I pray that they at least impart hunger for a greater affection, a deeper understanding and a living encounter with this One called Love.
 
 
Where did the idea to construct the “prayer room” to resemble the Tabernacle of David come from?
 

Wow, I wish I’d noticed this earlier in the month!

Anyone can go to the Prayer Room’s website and sign up for free subscription for the month of September.  The prayer room at IHOP has been founded upon the concept that we are called to create for God a dwelling place [temple] here on earth.  While most ‘temples’ are occupied Saturday nights and Sunday mornings, this one runs 24/7 and is coming up on it’s 9th birthday as a house of night and day prayer.  It incorporates constant worship, intercession, and meditation on the Word.  I find myself leaving it on while doing other things [dishes, homework, etc] as a means to strive to pray unceasingly and maintain that internal connection with the Holy Spirit throughout the day.  Check it out! You might even see me in there

For those who may have been confused by a certain Facebook status, HOME was the name of the 24-7 annual gathering this year.  I just got back this morning.  It was an indescribable week.  Met so many new people.  Learned so much.  Heard so much.  Thought so much.  If only I had been sleeping, I might have taken more in!!

Just doing a brief stop over at home before heading out tomorrow for two retreats.  Not the best timing, but hopefully there will be lots of rest next week.

For now it’s laundry, some of my actual job and real food off real plates in my real kitchen.

Dear Saints,

This is Adam Hood, a local watchman for the San Francisco Bay Area and I have an urgent prophetic charge for the hour. Since 2005, The Lord has used me to activate and mobilize united regional prayer and has repeatedly spoken to me the past 3 years that it’s time to build a house that pleases HIM. (Haggai 2:2-8) During the 10-day ‘Until’ prayer event in 2007 (where approximately 40 congregations and ministries of varying ethnos and denominations united in prayer for 240 hours of continual prayer), the Lord brought me to Luke 19:42-46. God was warning me that we are in a day of visitation and that He is requiring and gracing the Church in the San Francisco Bay Area to establish His 24-hour house of prayer for all nations, as a priority NOW. Since that time, Isaiah 62 has been a directive word from the Lord for the San Francisco Bay Area to come into the fullness of its redemption and glory. Yet there have been many distractions and great resistance, which have temporarily hindered this vision from coming to pass.

Recently, there have been prophetic words about destruction spoken over San Francisco. Yet in the Scripture, God sent Jonah to Ninevah to preach judgment, but then relented as the Ninevites humbled themselves. God knows how to get our attention in a way that brings forth repentance and alignment with Him. We are in a season where we have literally been termed ‘forsaken.’ But the Lord says, in Isaiah 62,‘You shall no longer be termed ‘forsaken,’ nor shall your land anymore be termed desolate, but you shall be called Hephzibah and your land Beulah, for the Lord delights in you and your land shall be married.‘ This promise is in the context of, and hinged upon, the watchman watching day and night, until he establishes and makes Jerusalem a praise in the Earth (Isaiah 62:6-7). This is about the global Bride of Christ, arising here in San Francisco (the end of the Earth from Jerusalem), the fullness of the Gentiles, and the One New Man, both Jew and Gentile united in the Spirit, as spoken of in Scripture(Isaiah 62:11-12). This is about the glory of God being revealed from the Golden Gate of San Francisco to the Golden Gate of Jerusalem, where the Lord will enter the temple and bring the ultimate consummation to this ultimate revival.This is about God’s fullness and it’s time!

‘And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony and they did not love their lives to the death.’ - Revelation 12:11
This Scripture brings revelation of our corporate victory over all of the power of the devil. We now have bold access with freedom to the Father to hear His voice in sweet communion, and to co-labor with Jesus in the Spirit, that He may receive the full reward of His suffering. It’s true priestly intercession, where the blood was applied to the ear, the thumb and big toe of the priests, as a picture to us declaring our ability to hear the voice of God, to work His works and walk in His ways! It’s about the finished work of the cross. It’s about denying ourselves daily, carrying our cross and following Him. He knows exactly how to save His church, our nation, and the nations of the world. He doesn’t need our methods, models or help, but rather delights in our intimate communion and radical obedience. His blood is enough! Rejoice!

It’s the responsibility of the church in this hour to stand in our kingly and priestly role and to watch and pray like never before to prepare the way of the Lord! Verse 10 of Isaiah 62 says, ‘Go through, go through the gates! Prepare the way of the people; Buildup, build up the highway! Take out the stones, lift up a banner for the peoples.‘ More than ever before, there are floods of distractions throughout the body of Christ. It’s time to no longer be children tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting (Eph4:14).
The greatest Goliath of the hour is the religious rebellion and spiritual pride in the church. The devil comes as an angel of light to deceive, even within our current Christian culture.
‘So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun; when the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.‘ - Isaiah 59:19
God has been graciously waiting for His church to align in obedience to Him in this day of visitation. 2Corinthians 10:6 states, ‘…and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.‘ It’s His Kingdom come and His will be done or it will be shaken to the ground, and that right quick! (Heb 12:27-29) This move of God is not primarily about healings, signs and wonders, although there will be many. This move of God will be primarily identified by abiding in communion with the Father and radical obedience. In other words, ONLY DOING WHAT THE FATHER IS DOING (John 5:19). This accurate emphasis will birth authentic apostolic reformation with a sustained revival in its wake,like no other. It’s about hastening the fulfillment of Jesus’ prayer in John 17, ‘that we may be one as He is one in the Father, so the world will know and believe…‘ This move of God is not like revivals of old, but will reveal and establish the church in glory with Christ as the head of the body, and will bring forth the greatest harvest of souls ever imagined!
‘This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek your face. Selah!‘ - Psalm 24:6
King David was prophesying about this harvest of souls- that young and old, from every tribe, tongue and nation, that everyone together in this prophetic generation would seek His face. IT’S TIME!

It’s time to accurately discern the spiritual seasons that we are in and align accordingly. Isaiah 2:2 says, ‘Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains and shall be exalted above the hills and all nations shall flow to it.’ Jesus named His house a house of prayer, and this is the place where He and His church will rule and reign from over all other mountains of influence. This is the spiritual season that we are in now and God is here brooding over us, ready to release it as we prioritize united 24/7 prayer, praise and worship. It’s time to make His praise glorious, and give God the glory due His name, for God inhabits the praises of His people! He is great and greatly to be praised and we should settle for nothing less than ‘on Earth as it is in Heaven,’ where He is ever praised! San Francisco will become a holy habitation for the Lord- a city on a hill for all the world to see.

There is an urgency- a ‘now’ grace for 24/7 united and corporate prayer, praise and worship to be established in our region. With this promise: ‘For thus says the Lord of Hosts: Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and the dry land; ‘and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of Hosts. ‘The silver is Mine, the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’says the Lord of hosts.’ Haggai 2:6-9

The pattern in Scripture shows that if the people of God corporately return and seek the Lord’s face in prayer, forsaking their own ways, that God is so willing to redeem and bless abundantly (2 Chronicles 7:14). Yet it’s not enough for us to just have prayer meetings- it’s time to build a house that pleases the Lord! It’s time for a holy reformation, starting with the altar of worship being established and the temple being rebuilt where all the tribes of God’s remnant join in the work.
‘You also as living stones are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.’ 1 Peter 2:5
Let those who have ears hear!

The Lord recently showed me in a dream that there are 3200 consecrated men and women ready right now for this great work. For God’s priority to be realized on our watch, we will need the glorious inheritance in the saints being released- this means you! This will require your prayers, your time and your heart, as the Holy Spirit convicts and leads you…
‘…to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places…” - Ephesians 3:10

The Lord has made it very clear to me that we are in the final countdown in the eleventh hour in this, our day of visitation… please do not take this word lightly! Please forward this clarion call to the saints in your sphere.

I am sitting down again to write to you concerning not only where I am but also where I am going. As you may recall, I recently moved to Kansas City to participate in an internship at the International House of Prayer (IHOP). The ministry of IHOP involves running a 24/7 House of Prayer as well as training people in ministry in the context of night and day prayer and worship. IHOP is something that is continually being knit closer and closer to my heart: practically, doctrinally and relationally.
As a Fire In The Night intern I am a part of the IHOP Nightwatch, which means ministering before the Lord in the Prayer Room during the night hours from midnight to 6 AM. I am now halfway though the three months of this internship and as God is expanding my heart in the place of prayer I am realizing that this place is somewhere that God is calling me to be. These past months have been of great interest, if not always easy. Yet now I feel God has made it clear that the next step for me is Track 2
Track 2 is an optional additional three months to Fire in the Night internship, beginning immediately following the end of Track 1 (which I am in now) on September 22nd. Track 2 focuses more on leadership development, both in the House of Prayer and the Church at large. The completion of Track 2 would allow me to go on to get on staff at IHOP (which is involves raising support and working as a missionary for the House of Prayer) and also counts for a semester’s credit at the Forerunner School of Ministry (IHOP’s Bible college).
As with Track 1, Fire in the Night Track 2 costs $1900, which covers housing and meals as well as training materials such a teachings, DVD’s and books. While asking for financial support is never easy, it is something God continually seems to force upon me so I learn my dependence on him. The bible says “I’ve never seen the righteous begging for bread” which is true, because at IHOP they just sit some out in the patio every once in a while so I can just take it and not have to ask.
I am asking that you pray about it and see if God is leading you to give. I feel blessed to have you all in my life and pray for you all. I so deeply appreciate your support. You can either make checks payable to me or, if you would like your support to be tax deductable you can make the check payable to The International House of Prayer and leave my name off of the check. You can send support to me at:
Kendall Beachey c/o Fire In The Night
3517 E Red Bridge Rd
Kansas City, MO 64137
I need to have all support in by no later then September 17, so keep that date in mind. Thank you all so much for all that you do, my prayers are with you as is my blessing. May God richly reward you.
In Christ,

Kendall Beachey

Come one come all to the PA Statewide 24!

I am currently securing a 2nd mortgage to finance a Cheesesteak Challenge for 2 very special intercessory families - that’s 9 cheesesteaks. Hopefully we have a bunch of pictures and stuff of this joyful occasion.

This year’s 24-7 international family gathering is called Home, explanation here.  It’s in Southampton, UK in September.  Look like it’s the place to be and tickets are going fast, so book your place.  I can’t believe it’s so soon!

Session 2 of Intro is winding down and has left me some room to spend more time in the prayer room over this week and next.  I have been soaking in the presence of God and just enjoying the freedom to be with Him and in His Word.  I am currently house/cat/dog/car sitting which has been wonderful.  Having the freedom of wheels is pretty sweet!  I am reading The Shack and will definitely give it a review on here when I am done.  I am also actively support raising.  I am about $500 per month short of the support I need to make it.  If anyone is interested in supporting the global prayer movement by setting a watchman like me on the wall, please e-mail me at juliapalermo@ihop.org or simply press the paypal donation button on this page to give a special gift.

Session 3 of Intro begins June 27th.  I cannot wait to meet our new group and watch as the Lord moves on their hearts and in their lives over the next 3 months.  I love my job!

Last night I got a chance to see one of the 24-7 “shorts” again. In this mini film (which is excellent), Brian Heasley talks about Ibiza and the 24-7 work there. The statement from the film that stuck with me was:

“Nothing will change this island but prayer.”

It’s interesting because just before I left Massachusetts I had a long talk with my pastor and he said he was finally realizing the same about that area. The ground is so hard and the spiritual issues are so deep that showing up to just “do church” will have no impact at all. The breakthrough has to be sown in prayer and then mission flows out of it.

It’s not really a novel idea, but it still revolutionary. To have the humility to realize that all the programs and good ideas in the world won’t make a dent. It’s only with prayer that the breakthrough will come. In Ibiza that means prayer on the streets - praying with the people, often at their most vulnerable moments. In other places that might look different. The Boystown “short” talks about prayer as justice - the importance of communicating God’s love to unloved people through prayer.

Prayer and breakthrough. In that order.