For the next several weeks this prayer focus is key for us. Even though it is an 8-Day Prayer Focus, there is enough revelation here for you to use repeatedly. Since we just finished Purim, let's begin by understanding its significance. Overall, this 8-day focus is more devotional than most, including study suggestions to help you develop for such a time as this. This prayer focus is also more confrontational than usual because of this time frame. I would suggest you read through each day's focus in the morning and then go back and seek the Lord with the scriptures at noon and at night.
(Day 1) A Time to Embrace Change but not to be Tossed to and fro by the Wind!
The clear message of Purim is that anyone who plots to destroy the Jewish people will always fail. History is full of examples of this truth. Pharaoh plotted the destruction of the Jewish people in Egypt, but the Egyptian army was drown in the Red Sea. This is celebrated during the Feast of Passover. Haman's attempt to kill all Jews failed, which is celebrated at Purim. Antiochus Epiphanes tried to wipe out the Jewish people. His failure is celebrated every year during Hanukah. Hitler tried to blot out the Jewish race. Both he and his "Third Reich" were destroyed. Instead of annihilation, the state of Israel was born! We must understand that God's covenant land will never be destroyed. By watching closely the world events that are centered around Israel, we can better understand God's sovereign plan.
Read Psalm 121
Read Exodus 2-6
Read Esther 1-4
Memorize Ephesians 4:2-16 (Review your positions and connections in the Body)
(Day 2) 2008-- A Year to Passover, Overcome, and Go Through into FREEDOM!
Purim fell approximately one month before the beginning of Passover. The Biblical Feast of Purim (Esther 9:18-28) is celebrated in the final month of the Hebrew calendar. I believe this is a significant timing so we end a season in victory and are freed to cross over into our future. Nisan, the first of months, begins at sunset on April 5. This leads us into our Passover season (Leviticus 23:4-8). Passover was the time of crossing out and over into FREEDOM! The dates of this Feast are very significant. Passover commemorates the final plague on Egypt when the firstborn of the Egyptians died and the Israelites were spared. Passover is linked with the power of the blood smeared on their door posts (Ex. 12:11, 21, 27, 43, 48). Passover was also called the feast of unleavened bread (Ex. 23:15; Deut. 16:16) because only unleavened bread was eaten during the seven days immediately following Passover (Ex. 12:15-20; 13:6-8; Deut. 16:3-8). Unleavened bread reflected the fact that the people had no time to put leaven in their bread before their hasty departure from Egypt. The observances of Passover are found in Joshua 5:10-12 (the plains of Jericho near Gilgal), 2 Chronicles 30:1, 3, 13, 15 (during the reign of Hezekiah); and 2 Kings 23:21-23 (Josiah's unique Passover).
During New Testament times, large crowds gathered in Jerusalem to observe this annual celebration. Jesus was crucified during the Passover event. He and His disciples ate a Passover meal together on the eve of His death. During this meal Jesus said, This is my body, and this cup is the new testament in my blood (Luke 22:7, 19-20). The New Testament identifies Christ with the Passover sacrifice: For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us. The word denotes the lamb that was slain at the feast (Mark 14:12-14; 1 Cor. 5:7). The use of wine (Luke 22:17, 20), of sauce with the bitter herbs (John 13:26), and the service of praise were introduced. Passover was a type of the great deliverance wrought by the Messiah for all His people from the doom of death on account of sin, and from the bondage of sin itself, a worse than Egyptian bondage (1 Cor. 5:7; John 1:29; 19:32-36; 1 Pet. 1:19; Gal. 4:4, 5).
Get Ready to Crossover! I would encourage you to read the chapter on The Blood War inGod's Unfolding Battle Plan.
(Day 3) 2008-- A Time for Leadership to Awaken and Overcome at the Gate!
The day related to Purim was the date set by Haman by casting lots (pur) to murder all the Jews in the kingdom. Because of the alertness of Mordecai at the gates of the city, and the fasting and intercession of Queen Esther of Persia and the Jewish people, this day became a day of battle with great victory for the Jews, as their enemies were destroyed. In the time of Esther, we find that the enemy had entered the gates and was planning to overthrow the covenant blessings God had for this people. In the book of Esther, Mordecai had exposed the enemy's plan and taken his authority at the gate. The Lord says in Matthew 16: 18, "And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. This is not a time for hell to prevail at your gate. Esther and Mordecai worked together for deliverance! Haman, who used astrology and the casting of lots, was overthrown by God's ordered timing.
I am praying for you to have favor at the gates and be raised up for a time such as this. Biblically, a GATE is a place for contending, watching, making sacrifices in worship, doing business transactions, administering justice, and giving public addresses. The GATE is the object of a foe's attack and therefore must be strengthened (Judges 5:8; Psalm 147:18).
Now review your call to leadership and contending in days ahead. Read Isaiah 1. Also read John 1, which will show you how the Lord called Peter. Read Matthew 16 to see Peter's revelation and then his emotional resistance to change.
God is raising up new Mordecais and Esthers to influence the world in days ahead. These individuals will do radical exploits in His name. Esther is a book where the destiny of God's covenant manifest by legislating authority at the gates can be seen. The gate of a city was where all business transactions and legal matters occurred. The city gate was also the place where entrance into the city was permitted or forbidden. A Biblical gatekeeper was one who guarded access to a place. Mordecai was a good gatekeeper. He knew the enemy had a plot and plan. The enemy will attempt to set a decree against you. Mordecai overheard the plan linked with Haman to annihilate God's covenant people in the land where Haman had prepared a noose for God's covenant people. Mordecai also knew he needed a connection to prevent the enemy's plan from prevailing. Esther was his connection, who had been positioned by God for such a time as this. Many of you are being positioned to see the plan of the enemy. Others of you are being positioned to be the connecting point to overthrow the enemy. I am praying that any plot of the enemy to try and stop the covenant blessings of your inheritance from coming forth in your life would be revealed. Find your divine connections and overthrow the enemy's plan!
Trusting in God is one of the ways that you overthrow a curse. With Passover beginning at sunset on April 19, we think of Moses! One of the keys to Moses' life was that he was ordained as a prophet from birth. Even though his insecurity would tell him he could not speak, God had ordained him as a prophet. His mother and father's faith would eventually result in delivering all of Israel. This would also give Moses authority to split the sea for the escape of God's people. He also would receive the Law that would set the commandments and boundaries for mankind. There are new boundaries for you to obtain this month. Let the prophetic gift arise in you. Let a new level of deliverance begin. He waited 40 years to be found and put in service. Do not be discouraged. The Lord knows where you are.
(Day 4) A Time of Spiritual Discipline and Preparation!
In our day, we are still in a time of battle and victory, a time of voluntary fasting. The Fast of Esther (Esther 4:14-17) is still relative for us today to enter into a new place of authority and gain favor. Men and women must work together this hour to defeat the enemy s plan. The key to Mordecai s life was his watchful eye at the gate on behalf of the King and God s covenant people. The key to Esther was her positioning and preparation. The word prepare means to make or get ready, to put together, to produce a frame for a future building, to gird oneself for action. This is a time to remember that in the midst of hostility we can be prepared for such a time as this. Through preparation and discipline the favor of God can rest upon us. Esther went in to the king, gained favor and grace in his sight, and was exalted into the royal position of queen. In Possessing Your Inheritance, Rebecca Wagner Sytsema and I devote a chapter to discussing the spiritual disciplines necessary for us to develop in our lives: meditation, prayer, fasting, giving, warfare, worship, work, and rest. Rate yourself on a scale of 1-10 in each discipline. (Details on how to purchase Possessing Your Inheritance are below.)
What does this say to us? If we allow the anointing of God to rest upon us and allow the beauty of holiness to surround and transform us, we can gain great favor. If we remove the leaven from our lives, we will be ready to depart into a new place as the Lord leads.
Read Psalm 92
Read 1 John 1 and 2
(Day 5) A Time to See Your Hidden Blessings Manifest!
Esther is a non-Jewish name. Her original Jewish name was Hadassah, but her Jewish identity was a secret, and remained hidden. Esther became the bride of the king. The prophetic reference to the Church as the Bride of the King, but with Jewish roots despite a Gentile appearance, is very interesting. Esther would not escape the fate of the Jews, just as the destiny of the Church is directly linked to the Jewish people (Israel). Hadassah (means Myrtle) is an evergreen tree with glossy leaves and white flowers. They were used for perfume and as seasoning for food. The myrtle tree had a religious significance for the Hebrews (Zechariah 1:8-11) and was a symbol of peace and joy. Ask the Lord to show you what is hidden that belongs to you. Ask Him to let you hear the blowing of the wind in the trees in a new way.
Read Isaiah 52
Read John 3
Read Matthew 13 & about uncovering the hidden treasure.
(Day 6) A Time of Confrontation and Overthrow of the Enemy's Stranglehold!
This is time to overthrow decrees that have been set against God's covenant people that would stop us from corporately advancing. Those anti-Semitic decrees hate God's sovereign plan for the Jews as well as Christians that have been grafted into that plan. Nations that profess Christianity must rise up now. Esther prayed and fasted three days prior to setting the wheels in motion to overthrow the enemy's plan. She had faith to go into the King's court because she was fully prepared at the end of these three days of fasting. Fasting helps prepare you for what you must face for your victory ahead. Esther was at the right place, at the right time, and did the right thing. Therefore, she had victory over the enemy. Your faith can overthrow any decree the enemy has established against you. The enemy prepares a noose to tighten around God's promised plan for your life. Faith breaks the power of that noose. Declare your Haman's noose will begin to break.
The Lord is releasing new revelation on strategies to overthrow the enemy's plan. There were two things I was quickened over. There are times when we cannot win by pressing to overturn/reverse an unrighteous decree.Whereas this is usually the norm (and what we press for in the laws of our nation), Esther gives one example where a bad and evil law was irrevocable (according to the laws of the Medes and Persians). So the strategy the Lord gave to her (through the pagan king) was to make another law which would stand against the first law, and enable deliverance and life to come to the Jews. In this Purim Month the Lord may be releasing similar strategies whereby we can counteract and overcome evil edicts and laws in our society and nation.
Securing victory and overthrowing our enemies can often involve several stages of war. Whereas Esther and Mordecai successfully warred to secure a decree that would allow the Jews to protect themselves, this was only another step in their deliverance. It s quite possible the Jews could have survived the day that their enemies hoped to overpower them, solely based on the new level of fear their enemies had for the Jewish people. However, if they had not gone on the offensive and destroyed their enemies as their decree allowed them to, they would not have secured lasting protection. In that case, in due time, under new leadership (like the Hebrews in Egypt with a new pharaoh), the Jews could have been oppressed and targeted for destruction once again. At the close of this Seven Year War Season, we must not be content to settle for preserving victories and the issuing of righteous decrees. Rather, we must fully war to the end of our battles to see complete deliverance and victory enforced, and the opposite of the enemy's plans occur.
This is a season to speak faith and ask for new revelation! Ask the Lord to anoint your speech and open your eyes to the revelation He is releasing at this time.
(Day 7) Face Your AMALEKITE and Break the Power of his Noose!
In Esther 3:1, the evil Haman is described as being a descendant of the Amalekite king, Agag (1 Sam 15:8). Therefore, besides the Book of Esther, another passage from the Tanach (Hebrew Bible) is read at Purim, Exodus 17:8-16. This is the account of Joshua's defeat of the Amalekites at Rephidim as Hur and Aaron held up the exhausted arms of Moses. When Moses' hands, gripping the "Rod of God", became heavy, the warriors in the field began to lose the battle. Verse 12 says that with Aaron and Hur's support, Moses' hands remained steady until the coming down of the sun. In the Hebrew, the word "steady" is "emuna" - and his hands were faithful until the coming of the sun." After the battle, Moses built an altar and named it, YHVH-Nissi: the LORD is my Banner. The word "banner" can also be translated "miracle." STUDY THIS AND DECREE MIRACLES ARE BEGINNING TO COME INTO YOUR ATMOSPHERE. The spirit empowering Amalek is at the back of all anti-Semitism. Exodus 17:16 states that "The LORD has sworn, the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation." Deuteronomy 25:19 commands that His people are to join in with Him in the battle until the memory of Amalek is blotted out - that Israel must not forget!
Deuteronomy 25:17-18 further describes the tactics of the Amalekites: "They met you along the way and attacked among you all the stragglers at your rear when you were faint and weary" (emphases ours). So Amalek does not only seek to take occasion from the tiredness and exhaustion of leaders, he also lurks behind to pick off those inexperienced foot soldiers who are "faint and weary" and lagging behind. To remedy this, Israel developed a "rear guard" (see Numbers 10:25 and other places). The Hebrew for "rear guard" is "me'aseph"- its root is the same as that for the verb "to gather". In ancient armies, old, experienced soldiers, would be placed at the rear, not only to guard from enemies attacking from behind, but also to "gather" the loose ends, the stragglers - and to keep them pressing forward. The word Amalekite means to toil or work under hard labor.This is a time for you to break out of legalistic, hard labor. The Amalekites were a nomadic tribe of formidable people that first attacked the Israelites after the Exodus at Rephidim. Amalek, the grandson of Esau (Gen. 36:12), inhabited the desolate wasteland of the northeast Sinai Peninsula and the Negev. They were the first to attack Israel after the Exodus (Num. 24:20). This is where the Lord revealed Himself as Jehovah Nissi. He declared that we would war with Amalek from generation to generation. The antichrist spirit today is linked into this Amalekite spirit. Israel won the initial battle (Ex. 17:8-16) and because of their atrocities, God commanded Saul to exterminate the Amalekites (1 Sam. 15:2-3). Saul disobeyed, and the Amalekites were not defeated completely until late in the eighth century B.C. (1 Chron. 4:43). Haman the Agagite (Es. 3:1-10; 8:3-5,) thought by the Jews to be Amalek's descendant, from whence sprung Haman's hatred toward their race.
Prepare yourself and watch your Haman hung on his own gallows. Break all compromise. Watch your enemy overplay his hand and you will end up victorious! Cross over and watch your new doors open!
Memorize Isaiah 26:4, Isaiah 28:6
Declare over your nation that the Amalekite structure will be revealed and overthrown.
(Day 8) Pray the Prayer of Confrontation!
To confront someone or something means to face them in hostility or defiance, or to come with opposition. Unlike the prayer of travail, which brings forth new birth, the prayer of confrontation directly addresses a structure that has been set in place in opposition to God's will. This type of prayer not only outwits the devil but also humiliates him and his forces in the process. God allows us to enter into this type of encounter to show His power over the territorial spirit(s) to which a particular group of people has been in bondage. As the LORD displays that His power is greater than that of a given demonic structure, that structure begins to crumble and those who were held captive are then free to follow Christ.
A wonderful biblical model for this type of prayer was Moses' confrontation with Pharaoh. As Moses declared God's will to Pharaoh in the earthly realm, he was also confronting in the spiritual realm the gods of Egypt - false deities (territorial spirits) - linked with the oppression and captivity of God's covenant people. Through the plagues and destruction unleashed upon the nation of Egypt as a result of Moses' confrontation, God's plan was fulfilled, the power of oppression was broken, and His people were released. In the revised Future War of the Church, Rebecca Wagner Sytsema and I examine how each demonstration of God's power through Moses was actually a power encounter with a specific Egyptian god.
- The Rod Becomes a Serpent (Exod. 7:8-12): Confrontation with serpent gods
- The Nile Turns to Blood (Exod. 7:14-25): Confrontation with the Nile gods
- The Plague of Frogs (Exod. 8:1-15): Confrontation with the frog god
- The Plague of Lice (Exod. 8:16-19): Confrontation with the earth god
- The Plague of Flies (Exod. 8:20-24): Confrontation with the god of toiletry
- The Cattle Die (Exod. 9:1-7): Confrontation with the Egyptian cow goddess
- The Plague of Boils (Exod. 9:8-12): Confrontation with the god of learning and medicine
- The Plague of Hail and Fire (Exod. 9:12-35): Confrontation with the original sky god
- The Plague of Locusts (Exod. 10:12-15): Confrontation with the god of the air, atmosphere & dry winds
- The Plague of Darkness (Exod. 10:21-23): Confrontation with the sun god
- The Slaying of the First Born (Exod. 12:29-33)
The tenth and most devastating plague was directed against a family of three deities. The first was Isis, the most important of all Egyptian goddesses, who assumed all the attributes and functions of virtually every other important goddess at some point in Egyptian history. Her primary functions were motherhood, marital devotion, healing the sick and the working of magic spells and charms. The second deity was Osiris, the god of the dead and the ruler, protector and judge of the deceased. The third deity was the son of Isis and Osiris, Horus the Child, a suckling child represented as a young boy sucking his finger. This final plague so overwhelmed the Pharaoh and so thoroughly defeated the gods of Egypt that the Israelites were finally set free. (excerpted from the revised Future War of the Church)
God's power has not diminished in the years since Moses! Power encounters through the prayer of confrontation that see people groups released from demonic structures are going to become more and more common as we enter the future war of the Church. We need to enter into an expectant mind-set that believes God will display His power greatly over the earth and over demonic structures in order to see great throngs loosed from Satan's grip. And from that mind-set, we must pray with unwavering faith prayers of confrontation according to His will.
This is a season to move into POWER CONFRONTATIONS! Allow Holy Spirit to direct your prayers in a new way.
Blessings,
Chuck D. Pierce
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