Power Of Midnight Prayer
The devil knows very well that a united church is the avenue through which God wants to spread His will, save lost souls, display His Power and ultimately humiliate the enemy. So he will do everything to see that the church does not expand and that it is also kept in permanent confusion.
I once served in a church in the oil-rich city of Port Harcourt, Nigeria. This church had existed for 13 years before we came. Up till the time we came, the not-too-large building was yet to be completed. There were no doors, no windows and no ceiling in the church. The membership was going down rapidly. Only a few friends from the same tribe kept coming to the place. The power of God was not there and very few people were making what looked like progress at the place. And not just that, the members and ministers lived in immorality and practiced witchcraft, even inside the church.
––I remember once our prayer team was holding vigil and I suddenly announced that somebody (a young man) in our midst was practicing occultism, bringing charms into the place and still coming to pray with us. And immediately, the senior pastor interrupted me and reminded me that he was still in-charge. He was living the same life as the young man – in immorality and witchcraft.
Months later, the same man was accused of various immoral acts and the worse; he planned to poison me for exposing their diabolical and immoral activities in the so-called house of God. But God’s power, presence and grace were heavily upon me. These kept them off. In fact, he acquired the poison, but the Spirit of God informed me that he was afraid to use it on me. Yes, He builds a hedge of protection around those that fear him!
You needed no prophet to tell you that this was completely a dead church. A church with a beautiful name but was held down by the powers of darkness. When we came there, God led us to form a praying and deliverance team. (It is imperative for every church to have a standing and formidable praying and deliverance team). We started holding prayer meetings every night in that place. Sometimes we would fast in the daytime, and come to the church to pray through the night. I mean real intercessory prayers. We did that consistently for several months.
What was the result? The power of God came mightily upon the church. The chains and yokes of Satan were broken off the place. The powers of darkness were chased away, though not without fierce resistance. But God prevailed. Miracles, signs, wonders and powerful deliverances began to take place in the place.
Consequently, the membership began to grow rapidly. The once dead church was revived. The building was completed and the members began to prosper tremendously. The members also became more dedicated to God. This is what midnight prayers can do. In fact, we extended such programmes to other churches and also got the same results. The glory, power and blessings of God will come down when the church learns how to exploit the power of midnight prayers.
––Now let’s go back to Paul and Silas. They were terribly beaten and thrown into that dreaded underground cell. The bible said that around midnight they began to pray and sing praises to God. Unusual! People that were severely beaten with wooden rods, instead of nursing their wounds and pains, decided to sing hymns and praises. Now, when we serve God in an unusual way, in unusual environment, He will begin to do unusual things on our behalf. True!
Again, I also believe that it will only take a man that is filled with the Holy Spirit and has sold totally to God to sing and praise God in such an excruciating, humiliating, harrowing and extreme situation.
What do you do when the enemy strikes? Do you weep and blame everybody, including God? Or do you genuflect and look for a way to escape; even if it means denying your faith? We must ask God to give us the spirit of courage and faith, even in the face of life-threatening situations. The bible said that God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power.
Then, why would these men of God wait until midnight before doing what they did? I believe they must have known something about the potency of the midnight prayers. They must have known that great battles of life are best fought at midnight hours and it is also possible they have had the experience in the past. After all, the apostles held so much to what they learnt from their master Jesus.
He was also doing it at midnight. They sang and prayed. These are the two main businesses during midnight battles. We will take them one after the other. The first is prayer.
PRAYER
Chapter Four
Prayer
Prayer is communicating with God. Making your requests to God and receiving answers from Him. It is a two-way communication between man and God. God variously in the bible encouraged us to commune or pray to Him. In fact, the word of God said that we did not receive because we have not asked. Jesus Himself said that,
“And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will be given what you asked for. Keep on looking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And the door is opened to everyone who knocks.”
Luke 11:9-10And this is exactly what we do in midnight prayers. It is a time to commune, relate, and communicate with God. It is a time to ask, seek, knock and make our request known to Him. If fact, I see the midnight prayer more as a time to knock vehemently and violent on the doors of heaven. And you heard what Jesus said, that it is when you knock that the door will be opened for you. So, if you have been asking and seeking and have not had your breakthrough, now you must begin to knock.
Through prayers we birth the will of God on earth. Through prayers we break the yokes, chains and bondage in our life and around us. Through prayer we stand in the gap for others. And through prayer, we draw souls into the kingdom of God. We must go into midnight prayers with all these in mind. Praying is like admitting that as humans, we are limited, but God remains infinite and omnipotent. He can do all things.
Abraham Lincoln, the former American President understood this very well when he said,
“I am oftentimes driven to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I have nowhere else to go.”
True! He knew that it was only from God that he could find help at the time of need. Thank God for such men. America is blessed to have had such godly men as leaders. These are the people that laid the solid foundation for that most prosperous and most powerful nation on earth today. I pray they retain this foundation. (Read my recent article In God We Trust? on www.ezinearticles.com/gabrielagbo).
There are numerous great men and women in the bible who knew, sought and received God’s deliverance at their time of need through prayers. Look at the accounts of Samuel, Jehoshaphat, Esther, David, Moses, Joshua, Elijah and Daniel. Let’s take a look at a few of the very powerful ones. See the account of Samuel in 1Samuel 12:16-18,
Samuel
“Now stand here and see the great thing the LORD is about to do. You know that it does not rain at this time of the year during the wheat harvest. I will ask the LORD to send thunder and rain today… So Samuel called the LORD, and the LORD sent thunder and rain. And all the people were terrified of the LORD and of Samuel.”
Jehoshaphat and Judah in danger
“After this, the armies of the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites declared war on Jehoshaphat. Messengers came and told Jehoshaphat ‘A vast army from Edom is marching against you from beyond the Dead Sea. They are already at Hazazon-tamar.’ (This was another name for En-gedi.) Jehoshaphat was alarmed by the news and sought the LORD for guidance. He also gave orders that everyone throughout Judah should observe a fast. So people from all the towns of Judah came to Jerusalem to seek the LORD.”
2 Chronicles 20:1-4
Esther
“Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same. And then, though it is against the law, I will go in to see the king. If I must die, I am willing to die.” Esther 4:15-16
Joshua
“On the day the LORD gave the Israelites victory over Amorites, Joshua prayed to the LORD in front of all the people of Israel. He said. ‘Let the sun stand still over Gibeon, and the moon over the valley of Aijalon.’ So the sun and moon stood still until the Israelites had defeated their enemies. .. The sun stopped in the middle of the sky, and it did not set as on a normal day. The LORD fought for Israel that day. Never before or since has there been a day like that one, when the LORD answered such a request from a human being.”
Joshua 10:12-14
All these people have something in common. They knew the power of prayer, sought it at the time of extreme difficulty and God answered them. They changed the course of nature, stopped the Sun and the moon, drew down rain in dry seasons, shut the mouths of lions, dislodged their enemies, and cheated death through prayers. People like Enoch and Elijah virtually refused to die. My God!
Truly, there is nothing impossible for a man that prays. Prayer is also acknowledging that God is your source at all time. He should be consulted in the minor as well as on the major issues. He wants to commune, relate and partner with us in all issues.
Another thing we want to bring in here is faith. You cannot achieve anything in prayer, especially midnight prayer without faith. You must believe that God exists. You must believe that He can do all things. You must believe that He loves you and is willing to answer your prayers. You must have faith in His promises and His words. And the bible comes in to say that this faith comes by hearing the word of God. And this takes us to the role of the word of God in making an effective prayer.
Word of God
For our prayers to be effective, we must pray God’s words. Praying God’s word is knowing what the word and promises of God are, then offering them back to God. To do this, we must read, meditate and appropriate His word to our life and needs. The power and glory of God comes when we appreciate and personalize His words. The word of God is the will and mind of God. And He does nothing outside His will.
“We can be confident that he will listen to us whenever we ask him for anything in line with His will.”
1 John 5:14––Now, how can we know His will? That is through His written word – the bible and through His revealed word – Rhema (this includes prophetic words, visions and dream). Let’s see in the bible few examples of those that prayed the word of God and achieved maximum results.
Jehoshaphat Prayed the Word
When Judah was faced with the danger of imminent attack by a group of enemy nations, King Jehoshaphat prayed the word of God. He prayed the promises of God to their forefathers and God came swiftly to their rescue.
“Jehoshaphat stood before the people of Judah and Jerusalem in front of the new courtyard at the temple of the LORD. He prayed ‘O LORD, God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you! O our God, did you not drive out those who lived in this land when your people arrived? And did you not give this land forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham? Your people settled here and built this Temple for you. They said, ‘whenever we are faced with any calamity such as war, disease, or famine, we can come to stand in your presence before this Temple where your name is honoured. We can cry out to you to save us, and you will hear us and rescue us.”
2 Chronicles 20:5-9
––Great! Jehoshaphat knew the word of God and simply threw it back to Him. It is not that God forgot His words and promises. But He will always want us to affirm our faith in His words and walk in His will. Jehoshaphat was reminding God of His promises to Abraham and also to King Solomon during the dedication of the Temple. Let’s see them:
Promises to Abraham
“As the sun went down and it became dark, Abram saw a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch pass between the halves of the carcasses. So the LORD made a covenant with Abram that day and said, ‘I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt to the great Euphrates River – the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.” Genesis 15:17-21.
Promises to Solomon
“So, Solomon finished building the Temple of the LORD, as well as the royal palace. He completed everything he had planned to do. Then one night the LORD appeared to Solomon and said,
“I have heard your prayer and have chosen this temple as the place for making sacrifices. At times I might shut up the heavens so that no rain falls, or I might command locusts to devour your crops, or I might send plagues amongst you. Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land. I will listen to every prayer made in this place, for I have chosen this Temple and set it apart to be my home forever. My eyes and my heart will always be here.” 2 Chronicles 7:11-16, 1 Kings 9:3
Jehoshaphat knew all these promises and promptly threw them back to God at the time of need. And because God cannot deny His words, He immediately responded and saved Judah from the imminent danger. He took over the battle, the three nations killed themselves and Israel had victory. Praise God!
Daniel Prayed the Word
Another good example is Daniel. He knew and prayed the word of God for the deliverance of the children of Israel from Babylonian captivity, and he received the attention of heaven swiftly:
“It was the first year of the reign of Darius the Mede, the Son of Ahasuerus, who became king of the Babylonians. During the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, was studying the writings of the prophets. I learned from the word of the LORD, as recorded by Jeremiah the prophet, that Jerusalem must lie desolate for seventy years. So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with Him in prayer and fasting. I wore rough sackcloth and sprinkled myself with ashes.”
Daniel 9:1-3.
Now, Daniel and the children of Israel were taken into captivity in Babylon. There, Daniel read from the writing of Jeremiah and understood that it was time for Israel’s captivity to end. It was meant to last just for seventy years. Then, he began to pray on that divine promise and consequently got favourable results.
––Let’s see the promises that Daniel prayed:
“The truth is that you will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised and I will bring upon you home again. For I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me. I will be found by you,’ says the LORD. ‘I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you again to your own land.”
Jeremiah 29:10-14
These were the promises Daniel prayed on. If you don’t know the word and promises of God for your life, you will overstay in captivity. You must strive to know what the word of God says concerning you, your family, your country and the church. You must know what the word of God says concerning your health, your finances, your children, and your marriage and then pray on them, if you must get the desired results.
Jesus prayed and acted the Word
Jesus also understood this principle that was why He said that He does nothing except what He is directed to do from above. He would always seek for the will of His father to be done. In fact, at a stage He said that He was going (acting) according to how it was written of Him. That means that everything about him has been written down in heaven. His was just to follow the divine script. No wonder, He always got the maximum result of His prayers. When we know and pray God’s word, all things will become possible to us.
Let’s also briefly see what some of the veterans of prayer movement have to say on this:
R.A. Torrey in his work ‘How to pray’ wrote that,
“Mere intellectual study of the word of God is not enough; there must be meditation upon it. The word of God must be revolved over and over in the mind with a constant looking to God and His Spirit to make that word a living thing in the heart. The prayer that is born of meditation on the word of God is the prayer, which soars upward to God’s listening ear.
“The word of God is the instrument through which the Holy Spirit works. It is the Sword of the Spirit in more senses than one. The person who wants to know the work of the Holy Spirit in any direction must feed upon the word. The person who desires to pray in the Spirit must meditate on the Word, so that the Holy Spirit may have something through which He can work. The Holy Spirit works His prayers in us through the word. Neglect of the word makes praying in the Holy Spirit impossibility. If we seek to feed the fire of our prayers with the fuel of God’s words, all our difficulties in prayer will disappear.”
Then, E.M. Bounds also elaborated on this theme in his book, ‘The Necessity of Prayer’:
“Prayer draws its very life from the bible. It places its security on the firm ground of scripture. Its very existence and character depend on revelation made by God to man in His holy word. Prayer, in turn, exalts this same revelation and turns men toward that word. The nature, necessity, and all – comprehending character of prayer is based on the word of God.”
Well said by these spiritual generals. Now, we can also know the will of God and pray it through the messages we receive from dreams, visions, discernment, word of knowledge and word of wisdom (prophetic words). God through these revelation gifts can make known His will for an individual, for the church or for the people. And when you sense that the message is coming from God and pray it, it receives answers. I can testify to this. I receive most of my revelations from God through dream and visions.
Though, God also speaks to me through other means, but dreams and visions have become predominant. When I dream, it comes out exactly the same. Some nights, I do have as much as three to four dreams, all carrying different revelations. So, I don’t joke with my dreams at all. Consequently, when I am praying, the things I receive in the dream form a substantial part of my prayer points.
In fact, most times, as the dreams come, the vibrations will instantly wake me into midnight prayer (which is mostly intercessory). Each of us should know and master the surest way that God speaks to us. Jesus said that His sheep would hear His voice. And if you are truly a son, you will always recognise the voice of your father. Since prayer is communication, you and God must have a common ‘medium’ of interaction. This is very important.
So, when praying in the midnight with my team, we don’t lack prayer topics. We receive these points from the word of God (bible), revelations and other prophetic gifts. Through all these we can discern what the will of God is in any given situation and pray accordingly. By God’s grace we always have the results to show for this.
I wish to also comment on the imperativeness of having a prayer and deliverance team in every church. With all humility, I believe that a church without a prayer team is just like a city without walls. Prayer team serves as watchtower, shield and hedges, guide and spiritual lifeline of any church. They detect the evil plans of the enemy against the church.
They protect the church against the arrows and attack of the enemy. And they also draw down the glory and power of God to the church. I can not be in a church without a standing prayer team. I will feel powerless and exposed. We will say more on prayer groups later. But let’s first comment on other things that also aid our prayers.
Praying in Tongues
For your prayers to be effective, especially during the midnight battles, you must learn how to pray in tongues. It is very difficult if not impossible, to pray effectively for very long hours in the night (which sometimes last for days or months) all with plain languages. You will definitely run out of words. But when you speak or pray in tongues, you pray according to the direction of the Holy Spirit and you will never lack words to express your requests, because the spirit knows exactly what requests to make according to the will of God.
If you have been practicing this, you will know what we’re talking about here. You don’t get tired easily and there is always a sense of strength and accomplishment that envelops you after praying in tongues.
Look at how 1Cor. 14:4, 28 puts it;
“A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally in the Lord.”
As he speaks (prays) in tongues, the spirit refills him with more strength. So he can stay on without getting physically tired. Then, also when you pray in tongues, you are talking to God directly through the spirit encoded words. Who can understand God more than the Holy Spirit? The Spirit surely knows what, how and when to make requests to the father. He knows the will and programme of God more than humans do. So, we must begin to pray in tongues, pray in the spirit. In fact, what I understand as praying in the spirit is praying His word and praying in tongues. Or you can tell me more.
Please, also permit me to clarify something here. I would like us to know that there are three forms of speaking in tongues that I found in the bible. One is the speaking in tongues as an initial evidence of being baptized with the Holy Spirit. Two is speaking in tongues as a gift of prophecy. This is the one that requires interpretation. And some are also given the gift of interpreting tongues, according to the scriptures. Then, the third is the one we are discussing here; communicating directly and privately with God. This is the one that the bible said that it is only the Holy Spirit that can decode what you are saying; because your spirit is sending an encoded message to Him directly. And this in what we have called praying in tongues, praying in the spirit or groaning in the spirit.
Pray Until Something Happens (PUSH)
Anyone that is involved in spiritual warfare like the midnight prayer and other forms must have this principle as a banner. Once you know what the will of God is, you must be ready to pray until you see the manifestation or until God tells you clearly that He has answered your prayers. There are so many examples from the bible, but we will just mention two – Daniel and Elijah.
Daniel 10:12-13, “Then he said, don’t be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer. But for twenty-one days the Spirit Prince of the Kingdom of Persia blocked my way. Then Michael, one of the Archangels, came to help me, and I left him there with the Spirit of the kingdom of Persia.”
This biblical record gave us a rare insight into some of the activities that go on in the spiritual ream. Daniel was fasting and praying to God. And immediately he began to pray, on the first day, God sent Gabriel (a high ranking angelic being that stands in His presence) to go and deliver the answers to Daniel’s request. As Gabriel was coming, a powerful demonic principality blocked his way and he could not come through to meet with Daniel. Gabriel was there with the demon until another strong archangel – Michael (the Spirit Prince of Israel) came to his help. Only then could Gabriel go to dispatch the divine message to Daniel. Wow!