I'm back from Arizona and there's been a lot brewing on my heart. I'll give more on my trip and what's brewing in a few days because we're just about to jump into our normal monthly 3-day fast. But I just wanted to post this quickly...

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Just a quick update - I'm here with Justin Rizzo we're sound checking today on the Mall at the Call DC. There's been lots of spiritual attack, situations out of control, issues going on back in KC, etc, so pray for us! The Lord is so good, and satan can't undo what will be done tomorrow in the Spirit at the 12-hour prayer meeting... But keep the team in prayer! Bless you!!!

In just a few days I’ll be on my way to Washington DC to participate in a very large prayer meeting. The Call DC, a prayer meeting being held this Saturday (8/16) on the Mall in DC, is a nationwide gathering of the body of Christ to ask the Lord for revival in the church and mercy on our nation.

“Gather yourselves together, yes, gather together, O undesirable nation, Before the decree is issued, Or the day passes like chaff, Before the LORD’S fierce anger comes upon you, Before the day of the LORD’S anger comes upon you! Seek the LORD, all you meek of the earth, Who have upheld His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden in the day of the LORD’S anger.”
(Zephaniah 2:1-3 NKJV)

I’ll be attending with Justin Rizzo and our worship team, and we’ll be leading worship for some of the segments during the 12-hour prayer meeting.

If you're not able to attend, be sure to pray along with us on GodTV from 10am-10pm EST (DirecTV channel 365 or online at www.god.tv for free).  read more »

The other day I remembered again that there is such a wealth of history and depth in Christ that the saints of old walked in. My roommate has a book of old Puritan prayers, and one of them, entitled "Spiritus Sanctus" (Latin for something like "Holy Spirit") is really powerful. I've started to pray this one regularly for the past couple of days since reading it. Now don't just read it below - pray it too, focusing on Holy Spirit who lives in you! May the communion and fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you today (2 Cor. 13:14).

O Holy Spirit,

As the sun is full of light,
the ocean full of water,
Heaven full of glory,
so may my heart be full of thee.

Vain are all divine purposes of love
and the redemption wrought by Jesus
except thou work within,
regenerating by thy power,
giving me eyes to see Jesus,
showing me the realities of the unseen world.

Give me thyself without measure,
as an unimpaired fountain,
as inexhaustible riches.
 read more »

Okay, so it's been WAY too long since I've written here. The main reason is because I am currently without a laptop computer, but thanks to God's gracious provision, a brand new one is arriving early next week. I have had so much I've wanted to write about, but the old fashioned way I've been journaling these past few weeks (pen and paper) just doesn't seem to work all that well for web readers :)

The main thing the Lord has been speaking to me about is how little I know Him as Father. I'm so convinced that the revelation of God as our Father is absolutely critical to understand if we want to mature in our love for Him. We can't expect to grow in our revelation of Jesus as the Bridegroom if we first don't understand that the Father is longing for a family. I suppose there are aspects of Christ as the bridegroom that one can see without the revelation of God as Father, but living off of that revelation alone leaves us with an incomplete and perhaps even a distorted picture of who our God really is. More on this next week when I get a laptop back and transcribe my thoughts from paper back to my e-journal!  read more »

In light of the healings that have been happening in Lakeland, I've started reading Leonard Ravenhill's "Revival God's Way" once again and it's been provoking my heart in a profound way. I'm collecting my thoughts for a small series of posts on the topic of revival.

I'm convinced that revival is what the church so desperately needs. But I'm also convinced that it is not going to come in the way we are expecting it to, nor will it be nicely packaged, predictable, or containable, and will certainly not come without offending the hearts and minds of the church. The revival to come is one of the ways God will shake everything that can be shaken before His return. (Hebrews 12:26-29) I'll develop these concepts further in upcoming posts. But today I'll just start with this provoking quote by Ravenhill:

Any true revival can be proven by the fact that it has changed the moral climate of an area or nation. Perhaps the offense of true revival is that:

It cannot be organized. (The wind bloweth where it listeth.)
It cannot be subsidized. (It does not need financial backing.)
It cannot be advertised. (There is nothing more self-advertising than a fire, and revival is fire from heaven.)
It cannot be computerized. (God alone knows the extent of His power.)
It cannot be regulated. (We cannot lay a theological track for it to operate on.)
It cannot be rationalized. (It is a divine mystery beyond finite minds.)
It cannot be denominationalized. (It leaps over doctrinal barriers.)
It cannot be nationalized. (Preachers by the hundreds have been flying to Korea to see what God has done in that country. Most have gasped at the packed churches and returned sad that our mechanical services are so sterile.)

Many people express an interest in revival. There are not so many deeply concerned about it, and fewer still burdened for it, still fewer heartbroken for it. Yet, spiritual revival is not an alternative for the nations right now. It is imperative.

-Leonard Ravenhill, "Revival God's Way", p. 64

The “buzz” in the evangelical world about the “Lakeland Outpouring” or “Lakeland Revival” is widespread across the internet. If you haven’t heard about it, here’s a quick summary – about 35 days ago, a Canadian evangelist named Todd Bentley was holding meetings at a 700 seat building in Lakeland, Florida. The power of God began to break out at these meetings and doctor-confirmed miracles began happening. Since then, nightly meetings have been going on, the venue has changed to a 10,000-seat convention center, and healings are happening night after night.

This healing power has even touched us in a powerful way here at IHOP. A young teenager who is a part of the Children’s Equipping Center here at IHOP named Kelsey had been diagnosed with serious autoimmune diseases several years ago. She was in constant pain and needed an IV drip to live. We had been praying for her healing often. In faith, her family took her down to Lakeland despite her constant pain. The folks there prayed for her, and she was completely healed! She came back with an amazing testimony, and just yesterday she went to the doctor and her blood work came back completely normal. That’s the power of God… See this link for more of Kelsey’s story.

I’m so grateful for what the Lord is doing down in Lakeland and I’m excited for the Lord to pour out His promise of supernatural healing even here in Kansas City. But at the same time that I’m desperate for such a move of God here, I’m trembling on the inside at the prospect of it actually coming.  read more »

Prayer is one of the most foolish things (in the eyes of the world, anyways) that we can give our time and energy to. What is it about closing our eyes and talking to an invisible God that He enjoys so much? It often times seems so dry, so weak, and an utter waste. But in His absolute wisdom, the Lord gave us some mind-blowing promises if we would give ourselves to the place of prayer.

Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. (John 16:24 NKJV)

Jesus says boldly "Pray, because it is designed to increase the fullness of your joy".  read more »

In a 6am prayer meeting briefing late last year, my friend Joel made up the word “moracles” to describe musicians prophesying under the anointing of the Holy Spirit. At IHOP-KC, when a singer prophesies and sings over the room in a declarative way, we call it an “oracle”. Joel’s thought was “why not have a musical oracle where all of the musicians prophesy together?” We call that a “selah” in the spirit of the Psalms, but I think a “moracle” is distinctly different from a “selah” in concept. Rather than a “let’s pause and meditate on what this was saying” contemplative posture, a “moracle” is a declarative prophecy from one or all of the musicians emphasizing something last sung or something entirely new. Music is a language in itself that has the power to transcend the cultural language barrier to touch hearts at a deeper level.

Only a few of us knew about Joel’s new word, but I had someone prophesy the very same word over me a few weeks ago. He spelled out the word “m-o-r-a-c-l-e-s” and said “does that mean anything to you?” It took me a second to realize what he was saying as well as to realize that only the Lord could have given him that word, because only two or three others knew about it. My friend Jordan was in the room and, being a part of the original conversation with Joel, instantly knew what he was talking about as well.  read more »

Today is “super Tuesday”, a day in our nation when almost half the country has primaries to elect America’s next president.

As I am praying this morning, I am stirred in my spirit once again about the state of our nation and what we are putting our hope in as a people. If you really look at the problems of our nation, there is no candidate running for president that would have the ability to fully reconcile America’s issues. The message we are called to preach as believers is that ultimately, the kingdoms of men will fail and only one Man will succeed in reigning over the nations. This is the gospel of the Kingdom. We need the Lord to come with revelation on this for the church across our nation today.

Israel is our primary example from the Word. From Samuel’s day, they continually put their hope in human leaders and did not want God Himself as their leader. They did not submit to His law, His ways, and did not heed His messengers and ended up under God’s judgment time and time again. What makes us think America is any different?  read more »