Once when I was traveling in a northern province of China, I saw clearly what God can do if we’ll pray over the threefold cord of spiritual, civil, and military leadership. Standing at my hotel window watching the sun rise over the Himalayas in the early morning light, I could see the Chinese army marching on the streets. I could sense the Gospel-deprived darkness they were enforcing there.
As I prayed for the leaders of that army and for the government officials in China, I realized that through the prayers of the Church, the anointing of God can go into the darkest places on earth. Just as it went into the pit of hell after Jesus was crucified and raised Him from the dead, the anointing can ride on the wings of prayer into any nation, government office, or military headquarters— no matter how ungodly they may be.
When we pray for civil authorities, the anointing becomes like a heat-seeking missile. It seeks out people in powerful places who can open doors for the Gospel. It seeks out people of influence who can pave the way for godly standards to reign. The anointing can empower them to enforce laws and bring peace so that God’s work can be done and people can be saved.
If we don’t pray, the opposite will happen. Satan will use government and military leaders for his own purposes. He’ll use them to keep great masses of people trapped in lightless, spiritual prisons.
Dear praying friend, we can stop him from doing it! By praying for leaders all over the world, we can open those prison doors. We can release the heatseeking missile of the anointing so that people can be set free.
Scripture Reading: Psalm 2:1 – 12
On the chilly March night in 1972 when Lynne Hammond took her first step into a life of Spirit-led prayer, she had no idea what was about to happen. All she knew was the hunger in her heart for God wouldn’t let her sleep. In the few short months she’d been born again, her desire to fellowship with Him had grown so strong she could hardly contain it. “Help me, God!” she cried. “I want to know you. I want to be able to talk to you. Please, teach me to pray!”
Suddenly, a heavenly presence flooded the room. Lynne sensed waves of spiritual fire sweeping over her and a beautiful language began to flow like a river from within her. Although she’d never heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, she knew instantly, without a doubt—this was God!
What began that night soon blossomed into a life of prayer that ultimately became a ministry of prayer when, in 1980, Lynne and her husband, Mac, founded Living Word Christian Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Under Lynne’s leadership, the prayer ministry at Living Word has become an internationally recognized model for developing effective pray-ers in the local church.
A teacher and an author, Lynne publishes a newsletter called Prayer Notes, has written numerous books, and currently serves as the national prayer director for Daughters for Zion. Her passion for inspiring and leading others into the life of Spirit-led prayer continues to take her around the world to minister to believers whose heart cry, like hers, is “Lord, teach me to pray!”