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Last Wednesday night Canberra Declaration held a special webinar to launch our Wave of Glory: 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting from 28 August–17 September. It was a night to celebrate!

From this Monday, we will be praying and fasting for a ‘red wave’ release of the glory of God to sweep our nation and the nations of the Earth, in the lead-up to the World Prayer Assembly in Perth. (Register for Wave of Glory here!)

Watch the full webinar here!

Mike Bickle: Reluctant Prayer Intercessor

One of our special guests on the webinar was Mike Bickle, founder of IHOPKC. Mike is world-renowned for his leadership in calling the Church to pray. His story of how God moved him to become an intercessor is fascinating and filled with humility.

Mike wanted to be an evangelist. He wanted to share the gospel with people every day. And he did not want any ‘call to intercession’ to interrupt that. His view at the time was that ‘prayer intercessors’ were just lazy evangelists. They should spend more time making something happen rather than praying that something will happen.

But he felt God called him to intercessory prayer. There was a problem: he didn’t want to do it. Yet, there was something that was impossible to avoid: The Bible teaches that prayer is not optional.

So, he made this promise:

“God, if you promise me that evangelism will be more effective, I will endure prayer. I will put up with it.”

He began to have daily prayer meetings. They weren’t at all enjoyable but he kept on enduring.

“Then I got the surprise. I started enjoying God in prayer. I never signed up to enjoy God! That was a total surprise. We’re labouring together with Him. Not for Him; with Him. When we do it with Him we get the chance to enjoy Him while we’re working and shifting the spiritual atmosphere to see the increase of the glory of God on the Earth. It’s beautiful the way God runs His kingdom.”

His view on prayer shifted dramatically. He came to realise that much more evangelism will happen much more effectively if we chip away at the spiritual atmosphere through prayer!

God Wants Partnership, Not Puppets

God could simply implement whatever He wants, whenever He wants, and do so efficiently without flawed, weak and broken human beings. But He didn’t want that. He didn’t choose that.

From the very beginning, God has always wanted partnership. He wanted to walk side by side in the garden (Gen 3:8) while His earthy creatures exercised their authority under His authority (Gen 1:26–27). That plan has never changed. Because God never changes, the plan never will.

God already knows what He wants us to pray for. He doesn’t need information. He wants relationship and conversation. We’re not coming to the throne of information transfer. We’re coming to the throne of grace (Heb 4:16).

It’s as if God says,

“I’m a Father. I want to do it with you. I want to do it through conversation with you. I’m so committed to this conversation because I love you… that our hearts connect, that I’m not going to do it unless you say it.”

Some believers are waiting for God to move sovereignly, thinking that results will come whenever God determines it.

However, it doesn’t work like that. It’s as if God says,

“I’m going to starve you off your couch of just wasting time, doing this, that and the other. I’m going to starve you off your couch by holding back my power until you get up and talk to Me. And when you get up and talk to Me you’ll see My hand move.

“You’re going to get so desperate to see things happen in your life, your nation, your city, your family, your grandchild (this is how it happened to me) – I finally gave in to talk to Him. And shock of my life – I started enjoying it! (But not immediately.) And I said, ‘Lord, this is beautiful!’”

An Astonishing Verse: Ezekiel 22:30

Ezekiel 22 is a depressing read. Jerusalem should be described as the “city of the great King” (Matt 5:35). Instead, it’s called the “city of blood” (Ezek 22:2). The city is full of murder, idolatry, adultery, contempt for parents, and much more. God’s response?

“As silver is melted inside a furnace, so you will be melted inside the city. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have poured out my wrath on you.” (Ezek 22:22)

Then God speaks in verse 30:

“I searched for a man among them who would repair the wall and stand in the gap before me on behalf of the land so that I might not destroy it, but I found no one.”

God didn’t want to destroy the land – which is simply astonishing considering the context of Ezekiel. Truly, God’s bright love shines most sharply in the backdrop of the deepest, darkest pit of evil.

But since there was no intercessor, He had no choice but to consume “them with the fire of my fury” (Ezek 22:30).

Because He “found no one”.

A Call to Intercession to Release God’s Glory Across the Earth

The Bible clearly teaches that God wants to bring blessing to His creatures. But he will do so only in partnership with His people.

“God speaks and He moves our heart. Then we speak it back to Him, and it moves His heart. Then He opens His hand, and releases His resources onto the earthly realm.”

“It’s about enjoying the interaction with Him while He’s releasing His power. It’s a wonderful way to run the universe.”

Every believer is called to be a praying intercessor (Eph 6:18).

Whether reluctant or enthusiastic, let’s take up the call to pray and fast during these 21 days. We’ll find that much more evangelism will happen much more effectively. And that we will enjoy Him.

Just ask Mike Bickle.

Yours for the glory of God,

Samuel Hartwich and Warwick Marsh

PS. Registrations are still open for the World Prayer Assembly. Register here.