By Maria Maria #560 CM/FM 3339 9/00

Dear Family,

1. Here we go with Part 3 of our series on prayer. It's my hope and desire that each of you will let the spirit of prayer become more and more a part of your life so that you can play your important part in all the action ahead!

Love, Mama

Awesome and Magnificent Power!

2. (Jesus speaking:) When Moses raised his arms in prayer to Me at the banks of the Red Sea, I stretched out My hand and parted the waters, and I held them at bay until the last of My children were safely on the other side. When the shepherd boy David loaded his sling, looked up to Me and whispered a prayer‚ I guided his stone and brought down the giant Goliath. When Elijah besought me for the rain I had promised, I sent the showers in great abundance. Likewise, at Zarephath, when he cried unto Me, asking for the soul of the widow's son, I returned life to the boy's motionless body.

3. When Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego cried out to Me as they entered the scorching furnace, I descended and walked with them in the midst of the fire, and the flame did not harm them. When the prophet Isaiah petitioned Me on behalf of Hezekiah, asking for a sign of his healing, I turned back the time. When Jonah cried out to Me in his affliction, I answered and placed him upon dry ground.

4. How much more will I do for you, My loves‚ in these days of mighty miracles? Let this encourage your faith, for in these days of action, here I stand, ready, willing and waiting to perform yet greater things on your behalf. Let this encourage your faith‚ for I tell you, I am here and I am ready.

5. Do you see? Can you grasp it? Will you claim it? Oh, what great power I put within reach of your frail human hands. There's nothing like it. It has no equal. It cannot be duplicated. No one can steal it away from you. It will never be lost. It is never misplaced. Such great and awesome magnificent power! It can only be released at the sound of your prayers. It is only delivered unto you at the touch of your faith. So it is, My loves, that your desperate, full-of-faith prayers can radically alter any situation or heart and supply any need.

6. Fear not to put Me to the test. Call unto Me. Declare your faith and remind Me of My promises. How it pleases Me when you display your knowledge of My Word. Claim it! Call down the power! Intensify! Pray passionately! Pour out your strong emotion to Me in your prayers. Get excited! Expect Me to work, and stand back and see Me do what you cannot do for yourself. Pray extreme prayers and you'll get extreme answers!

7. As you unite this day, wield your power, My loves, for I am here, ready and willing and waiting to answer every prayer. Let this be your confidence; ask anything in My name and I will do it. (End of message from Jesus)

The Temple of Prayer

8. (Jesus speaking: ) Thank you‚ My loves, for setting aside this time of prayer as sacred and holy. Thank you for being true to your calling as intercessors for My children. Thank you for being willing to put aside your work for this time [our prayer morning], in order to concentrate fully on your prayers for the Family and to pull down My seeds. I look forward to ­spending this time in the Temple of Prayer with you.

9. This is not time in the temple of rest, and it's not time of relaxation of spirit. It's not the same as what your Father David called "Temple Time"—time spent resting in My arms, letting Me refill you. This time is different. It is your time of spiritual war. It is the time when great progress is made in every area that you take time to focus on. It is a time when wonderful things happen in the spirit. Tremendous and awesome things are made possible because of this time you spend in prayer.

10. It's no wonder that at times it would tire you a bit, or would make your regular work seem easy by comparison. The ­Enemy fights this time that you spend in the Temple of Prayer. He tries to distract you. He tries to hit you with tiredness and weariness. He tries to hide from you how important it really is. He tries to make you think of all the things you could be doing to get ahead in your work‚ instead of praying. If you feel like that—which would be natural—see it as the Enemy's attack, because he knows just how deadly it is to his kingdom, his works, and his attacks, when you unite in prayer.

11. Setting this time aside is a sacrifice. Stirring yourself up in the spirit takes effort. But each bit of spiritual effort that you put into prayer is multiplied many times over. I take those prayers and I multiply them and empower them to fill each need that you bring before My throne. Not one is wasted. Not one moment, not one second, not one thought that you send toward Me, petitioning Me on behalf of one of the requests, is wasted or lost.

12. Each specific prayer is helpful to your brethren or you and your work for Me and lost souls. Each promise claimed is powerful. Each bit of effort, each time you put yourself in the shoes of the one you're praying for and earnestly beseech Me for those things that I put on your heart to pray for, it creates that wonderful vacuum for My power, which rushes in and does those mir­acles that man can never do. When you pray with all your heart‚ all of Heaven is freed to come to the rescue, to fill in the gaps, to supply specifically for the needs, to heal, to touch, to save‚ to complete the miracle.

13. Fighting in the spirit takes something out of you. But at the same time, I also pour into you. I strengthen you in spirit. Taking time to pray desperately and fervently strengthens your spiritual muscles. It gives you greater understanding of the needs of others. It helps you see things more in My spirit. It shortens the distance between you and Heaven, you and the spirit world‚ you and those who are trying to help you. It not only helps those that you pray for, but it does wonderful things for your life and spirit and heart as well.

14. So enter in fully, My loves, to this Temple of Prayer. Leave all your thoughts of business and work and worries outside, and dedicate this time to Me and to your precious Family. As you dedicate this morning to helping the Family through your prayers, I will in turn pour into you, and you will feel the rewards poured out. Your work will go easier, you will be more in tune, and you will be blessed by seeing the answers to your prayers, every one!

15. Give this tithe of your time wholeheartedly‚ knowing that it is the most important percentage of your work that you will ever do. I take it and multiply it many times over, and you will find once again that you never lose by giving! Thank you for giving so faithfully through your prayers. The Enemy tries to make them seem less important than all the other hard work that you do. But in reality, this is the most im­port­ant work you will do—praying for these requests that need your intercession. Each time you stop to pray for someone, you are putting into action a chain reaction which results in miracles! Neglect it not—for interceding for your loved ones is your most important duty. (End of message from Jesus.)

Pray as if Their Lives

Depended on Your Prayers

16. (Mama:) The next three messages from the Lord were given to parents and shepherds of a few different young people who were going through rough times. Since many of you, young and old, are shepherds, parents or friends of folks who are being tested, I'm sure that you'll gain some helpful insight from these messages, as well as find beautiful promises of the Lord's power to work in your loved ones' lives if you'll fight in prayer.

17. (Jesus speaking:) If you really love them, if you really want to see them make it and continue to be used by Me, then you're going to have to fight for them in spirit. You're going to have to make some personal sacrifices. You're going to have to take some of your time‚ every day, and specifically devote half an hour or more to praying desperately for them—and while you're at it, praying for all of your loved ones around the world who are hanging in the balances, those whom the Enemy is buffeting and trying to defeat and dissuade from following closely by My side.

18. What the Enemy is ultimately trying to do is destroy their usefulness. That's his whole intent and purpose‚ and he'll stop at nothing to carry out his plan, unless the battle is turned in the opposite direction. Yes, the outcome of this battle is determined by their yieldedness. But the outcome of this battle is also determined by you and your prayers. Through praying you give them more power to yield, more help from the spirit world.

19. If you really love them—and I know that you do—then you have to be willing to make whatever sacrifices are necessary. If you really love them, give your blood, sweat and tears through your prayers. It's not enough to just pray casually whenever you think about it; you must fight the ­Enemy with all of the power that I have placed within you, all of the power of My Spirit.

20. There's no time to lose. You can't start tomorrow; you have to start today. You can't give up on these that you love. If you saw them literally bleeding and wounded on the battlefield, would you leave them and give up on them? No, you would give or do whatever you could for them‚ even to your own hurt, even if your physical life was in danger, even if you were wounded or bleeding. This is how I see things in the spirit.

21. They're bleeding, they're wounded, they're weak, but you can't leave them and give up on them. You've got to do what you can. You've got to love them by never ceasing to pray for them. Pray for them as if their lives depended on your prayers, and this act of love will do more for them than anything else you could do. (End of mess­age from Jesus.)

Your Prayers Are

Their Life–support System

22. (Vision:) I see a picture of our loved ones on hospital beds side by side. They're hooked up to all sorts of machines. Each machine is labeled with big bold letters marked "Intercessory Prayer—Life-support System."

23. (Jesus speaking:) Your prayers are the life-support system that is sustaining the life of these young people at this moment. Your prayers work to sustain their pulse rate—keeping their hearts beating steadily toward Me. Your prayers have worked to keep their body temperature on an even keel. Your prayers are sustaining their respiratory rate, helping them to breathe in a measure of My Spirit—and this is keeping them hanging on.

24. Your prayers are keeping them alive; they're creating the conditions where­by I might strengthen them and nurse them back to full health. They haven't been able to breathe in My Spirit‚ eat and digest My Word, nor eliminate the toxins and waste the Enemy has tried to poison them with on their own, yet your prayers are making this possible.

25. Your desperate prayers can be likened to their respirator; they're opening the passages so that I can supply them with the oxygen of My Spirit. Your prayers are breathing life into them, helping them to gain strength in spirit day by day.

26. Your prayers have released highly skilled spirit helpers who stand by, helping to monitor their progress and fight by their sides. These mighty ones in spirit have fought to ward off further deadly attacks of the Enemy, who would seek to annihilate them once and for all.

27. They are still in need of intensive care, but you must not be weary in prayer, for your prayers are sustaining their very lives. I know, My dear ones, that it seems a slow process. It's not always easy to see visible progress while they're still in intensive care; you're not always able to easily detect their signs of progress. But you must take it from Me, the Master Physician, that progress is being made.

28. Please don't turn those life–support machines off, for it is because you so faithfully keep them running that I am able to sustain their lives and their usefulness to Me. It is through your prayers that I am able to bring them back to full health.

29. Don't be weary in prayer, for little by little they're making daily progress. Little by little, they're being cleansed from the dangerous levels of poison and toxins that have built up in their systems. Little by little, they're taking in more vital nutrients that are helping to build their strength. (End of message from Jesus)

Setting Things in Motion

30. (Jesus speaking:) If it weren't for your desperate prayers for this one right now, he would float off into dark oblivion. Your prayers are sustaining him. With each prayer you utter, I have sent reinforcements. I've surrounded him with strong ones, mighty warriors in spirit, to stand guard over him and to help ward off the Enemy's vicious attacks and subtle attempts to waylay him. I've placed many spirit helpers about him to keep him and influence him for the good during this time of trouble. I've assigned him an extra personal helper, a mighty archangel to stand at his right side, one who will caution him when he begins to veer too far to the right or to the left.

31. Your prayers are holding him steady. They're maintaining him so that I have an opportunity to work in his heart. Your prayers have opened a channel by which I've been able to whisper in his ear and speak to his heart. Because of your prayers, I've been able to keep him afloat. Your prayers are helping to clear his vision, as they blow away the dark clouds that shroud him.

32. Because of your prayers‚ I've been able to set in motion a series of events that will take place in his life. Things are lining up, key situations and scenarios are coming into focus—many things, many happenings, ordained by Me, that will help work toward pulling him through.

33. Your prayers are sending energy through his veins. They're his lifeblood at this moment, when he's too weak to walk on his own. Your prayers are his life support. Without the strength of your prayers, he would falter; he would float off.

34. Just a little while, just a ways down the road, and the scenarios I have set in motion will begin to take place. But you must keep your prayers coming; you must not let up. For without this prayer power behind him, all will not be able to come to pass.

35. As you continue to keep your prayers flowing upward in a steady stream‚ I will continue to work and bring many victories in his life. You must see him through to safety and to victory. Be encouraged‚ for each victory will be yours also‚ and you will see the fruit of your prayers and revel in the great rewards I have for you, all because you prayed, because you stayed faithful and true, because you held up the arms of My son. (End of message from Jesus.)

How Does He Do That?

36. (Question: ) Sometimes we pray very hard for something and then it works out differently than the specific thing we were praying for. In cases like that, how did those prayers get used and what did they accomplish?

37. (Jesus speaking:) I'm a moving and changing God. I never stand still, and many things don't follow a specific pattern. I love to change, keeping you on the edge of your seat, ready and expecting anything to happen.

38. When you pray‚ you have a certain mindset. You know what you want, when you want it, and most of all, how badly you need it. Your perspective on your prayer request is narrow in comparison to My view of it. You don't see the fine details; for the most part you miss all of them because your mind and heart are so focused in a specific direction.

39. You pray, "We need You to do a miracle, Lord. Please have Your way and answer!" I take what you ask and I give you the answer. But because your vision is directed in one way, you don't see that all along I was using your prayers to accomplish what I know is best. You're facing one direction, aiming all your prayers where you want or think they should be heading.

40. It's not that your prayers weren't answered; they were. You just didn't expect My answer because you weren't looking for it. You only had your eyes on one goal, a very tiny part of the whole picture. I work on a big scale, I don't like to be limited, and I know that you trust Me with the right outcome. So because you desire My will above all, I'm able to redirect your prayers like bullets ricocheting and finding the target I had in mind. The only difference between a bullet and prayer is that a bullet is not controlled; it ricochets and everyone drops‚ afraid of where it might end up. But when I redirect prayer, I know exactly where it's heading. I'm a God of precision, and nothing misses the mark when I aim. You were simply looking at the wrong target. (End of message from Jesus.)

41. (Jesus speaking:) Nothing happens by accident—especially to My children who are praying and seeking Me. There are times when I ask you to pray specifically for something, both because this is an exercise of your faith and because I delight to answer and reward that faith. It is good to be specific in your prayers. But at the same time, when you pray for one specific answer in one specific way and consider that the only way I can answer, then you limit Me. You hinder My ability to give you a different answer in a different way that might have met your needs even better and have been exactly what you needed, even though you did not realize it. I do not hold this against you‚ though. I know that you're flesh and oftentimes do not see the full picture, but only what you consider the limitations that are in place. For this reason‚ because I know your heart, I'm able to override these things and answer in unexpected ways.

42. But there are times when factors change, or when for any variety of reasons I must work things out differently. There are many factors that can affect the outcome of a certain course of action. There are people's individual and personal choices involved‚ and while My Spirit can move within people to use them for My purposes, they don't always heed that tugging of My Spirit, and so I must work around their decision to bring about My will in some different way.

43. Or sometimes it's a case where you simply didn't know what you were asking, or how a specific request was not entirely in line with My will. But your prayers don't limit Me from answering in the way I know is best‚ even if the answer doesn't come in the way or form that you expected.

44. So are those prayers wasted? Of course not. No prayer is ever wasted. ­Every prayer is heard and answered in My time and in My way.

45. So why pray?—Because it shows Whose side you're on. It shows Who you're working for‚ Who your Master is. You are called to be My servants, tenants, and stewards of My Kingdom‚ and as such you must bring your requests before Me, to beseech Me to work on your behalf, to supply the needs for this part of the Kingdom, or strengthen My defensive forces in that part of the Kingdom. This is your task and responsibility.

46. My responsibility is to weigh those requests and answer them in the best way possible. I see the bigger picture and I know how to bring about your requests in a way that's best for all. But you must still ask to set the ball in motion‚ to get the gears moving, to get the answer coming.

47. If it doesn't always come in the form that you expect, that's because I know better, and because My ways are higher than your ways.

48. But most of the time I delight to give you just what you ask for and what you have faith for, and even to give you the desires of your heart that you did not have faith to specifically ask for, simply because of My great love for you. (End of message from Jesus.)

49. (Jesus speaking:) I always bless prayer. Prayer enables Me to accomplish My perfect will. Much has been said about specific prayer, importunity in prayer, and many promises have been given that I will answer prayer. All this holds true, and these are valid spiritual principles. Yet there is another side to prayer which I will address now.

50. There are times when, in praying‚ people are misguided. They believe that a certain thing is within My will or is what I would want when it is neither My will nor My desire, or not My timing. Often it's simply something that they want very much. So they pray, they seek Me earnestly, they claim My promises, and are then surprised‚ sometimes disappointed, to find out that I didn't answer in the way they thought I would.

51. But now we're talking about a case when a person is desperate, their heart is right with Me, but they just don't see the full picture like I do. Well, in a case like that, I take those prayers and I channel them into what I know is the true, earnest desire of that person's heart.

52. For example, say that there's a young person who earnestly desires to go to a certain country as a missionary. They're having difficulty with their visa‚ so they pray and pray desperately that it will come through, but it doesn't! Their motives were right—they wanted to serve Me and reach My sheep on a needy and difficult field. So what went wrong?

53. Well, would you consider the poss­ibility that I know that, because of their specific gifts, talents‚ and even needs and desires‚ they'd be happier on another field? I know that if they get to their desired field, they'll like it, but that there's another field that they'll like even more, and where they'll fit in better as well. Maybe they're a little weak physically or don't do well with ­extreme high or low temperatures. Or maybe I know that this young person is earn­estly looking for a mate‚ someone to love and serve Me together with, and the person they're meant to join up with is not in the place they were planning to go, but in another mission field that's just as needy and where they can be just as fruitful—in addition to fulfilling this other desire of their heart.

54. What I have done in this case is taken the prayers that were prayed and used them to the full. They enabled Me to release My angels to work on behalf of the one who brought forth the request and to bring him into a fruitful land, to a needy missionary post, and to be of greatest use to Me and to the lost. I didn't answer his specific requests‚ but that was only because I knew something he didn't—something that I chose not to reveal to him.

55. Why, you ask, would I work this way? In cases like this, why not just show someone in prophecy that they're praying for the wrong thing and tell them what the right thing is to pray for, rather than answer­ing prayer in what you think is a rather round­about way? Well, sometimes such information about themselves or insight into their own future would be too much for the poor person to take. You are human and have your limitations. When your mind is loaded with too much information or you have too many or too great decisions placed on you at once, sometimes you can't think or even pray clearly. Of course, if you come before Me with specific questions I will specifically answer them—but I won't always tell you everything.

56. Back to our scenario: Maybe when this young person prayed and asked Me if he should plan on going to this particular field, I spoke and confirmed that he should. Was My counsel wrong? No‚ it wasn't. In preparing him to move to that field, I knew he'd be getting the right preparation of body and spirit to move to the other field that I had in mind too.

57. There are a lot more factors that could come into play here too. If in your life you run into a situation where you pray very hard for something, for yourself or for someone else, and then I do things differently, don't assume that something went wrong. Maybe it did, but maybe it didn't. If it did, then it's not necessarily your fault as an intercessor in prayer. Maybe the trouble was at the other end, or someone else somewhere made a wrong decision that interfered. Or maybe everyone's hearts and spirits were right, but I just have a higher plan in mind, something you wouldn't have conceived of or even thought to ask Me about or let My messages get through about, because it was so off the beaten path of your natural thoughts and understanding.

58. I'll be happy to explain it to you, though, because in each case where it seems like maybe your prayers aren't being answered, the truth is that if they were heartfelt, sincere‚ earnest prayers, I did answer and did use those prayers—just maybe not exactly in the way you thought! (End of message from Jesus.)

59. (Jesus speaking:) You ask Me how your prayers get used and what they accomplish when things work out differently than the specific thing you were praying for. I give you a picture of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. As they went into the fiery furnace they didn't know the outcome, but they were praying I would protect and keep them. But what did they say? "But if not… ." But if not, they were willing to die trusting Me.

60. Such should be the attitude of those who pray for something specific, whether I answer their prayer or not. When they pray‚ they don't know the final outcome, and if the answer isn't what they expected, often it's a great test of faith. Because of their love for Me and their faith in Me, I take those prayers, and when the testing comes I pray for them that their faith fails not. For when My children are faced with such situations in their lives, it is often a crisis of faith for them. It's a time when the Enemy tries to sift them as wheat. So I take that fervency with which they have prayed and I pray for them.

61. It's a time when My children must decide if they will follow and believe Me though everything around them points that they shouldn't. There may not be any "logical" explanation. There may be every indication that I should have answered as they prayed, that I was going to answer as they prayed. They must choose to stand in the midst of seeming defeat and say, "But if not, I will trust Him."

62. This is the great victory. This is the ultimate gift of love and faith in Me. This is what makes soldiers out of mere men and women. This is when My children take steps into the world of the spirit and embrace the "strange truths" of that which they cannot see.

63. Not one prayer, one promise‚ one moment of desperation in seeking Me is wasted. Not one. For with what measure you mete, it is measured unto you again, pressed down, and running over. Those who have been so tested in this manner—and all My children will be at one time or another—when you arrive in Heaven, you will see that I Myself have interceded on your behalf.

64. As I prayed for Peter, My apostle, so I pray for those who are tested in such a manner‚ and after they are converted they are able to strengthen their brethren as never before. For they can testify to others that we walk by faith and not by sight—that it is faith in the Word that never fails. Heaven and Earth will pass away, but never will My Word pass away.

65. Often when My children are tested in such a manner with prayers that are not answered as they expected‚ depending on the intensity of their prayers, their faith can be sorely tested. Even those who think themselves strong in faith have been buffeted, some even wounded seriously and shaken to the foundation of their faith. It is then that I pray that they will not become totally discouraged and give place to ­despair and allow the Enemy to win by giving up.

66. I pray for their faith in My Word, that though all around them looks contrary to what it should be and it looks like I have forsaken them, the truth is that I have not. What I am doing is demonstrating a practical lesson‚ sometimes learned through tears and heartache, that faith is the victory—the victory that overcomes the world.

67. You are in the world, but not of the world. Your faith is going to be tested more and more as the days of darkness come upon you. You will need to be able to walk by faith and not by sight. You may go through experiences that will appear to you as defeat, but in reality are part of My plan and will bring about victory in the end.

68. So it is with your prayers—they don't fail. My Word does not fail. Forever it is settled in Heaven. But you must remember that your thoughts and ways are not My thoughts and ways. As the heavens are higher than the Earth, so are My thoughts and My ways. You will never be able to fully understand or explain Me. That is a mystery of our love for one another. But you will be glad that you trusted Me. You can be assured that all things will work together for good to you who love Me and whom I have called according to My purpose. You can be assured of that because you have the sure word of prophecy and My written Word. (End of message from Jesus.)

69. (Jesus speaking: ) It is good to be specific in your prayers. But at the same time, when you pray for one specific answer in one specific way and consider that the only way I can answer, then you limit Me. You hinder My ability to give you a different answer in a different way that might have met your needs even better and have been exactly what you needed, even though you did not realize it. I do not hold this against you‚ though. I know that you're flesh and oftentimes do not see the full picture, but only what you consider the limitations that are in place.

70. For this reason, because I know your heart, I'm able to override these things and answer in unexpected ways. You still move My hand through your prayers, though not in the way you originally thought would be best, or not in a way you thought of at all. For My ways are higher than your ways. Your prayers were not pointless or useless. You will often later see the reasons for Me answering in a different way, but even if you don't, trust Me that I know what's best. I know all and see all, and only want what's best for you, My love. (End of message from Jesus)

Does God Deceive?

71. (Question:) When the Lord tells us to head toward a certain field or start on some course of action and we confirm that with Him, yet it later turns out that the field or course of action was only to get us started elsewhere, isn't He deceiving us? In a way‚ it could even be said that He's lying to us, since He's telling us to go somewhere or do something but He actually has something else in mind. What about that verse, "God is not a man, that He should lie" (Numbers 23:19)? It's not a lie in a bad sense, but isn't it a lie nonetheless?

72. (Jesus speaking:) It is true, I am not a man that I should lie. If My children ask for bread, I will not give them a stone. However, the workings of the spirit world are not such that they can be defined in your carnal mind. If one of My children desperately prays and asks Me for guidance, for confirmation, for an answer, and I know the final outcome and ultimately what My highest will is for them, just because I do not lead them there on a direct path from point A to point B does not mean that I am deceiving them or lying to them.

73. Yes, many times My will is straightforward and I do lead in a direct path, with no detours or sidelines. Other times I lead and guide step by step because the path My children are to take is not direct; it is convoluted and full of detours. I do this because of the things I want them to see along the way, the lessons I want them to learn, the situations I want them to experience and grow from.

74. Receiving things in prophecy is like eating; you take a bite at a time. You do not sit down at a meal and eat it all in one bite. So it is in your walk with Me. I lead and guide you step by step, one step at a time, and after you take one step, then you receive the faith and strength to take the next one. I do not always reveal everything to you at once, just as you do not eat a meal all at once. Each prophecy is like a step in the direction I want you to take. Just because one prophecy says to go this direction and then the next says to make a right turn and go in that direction does not mean that I am failing or deceiving you. I am only leading you on the path you are to take, the one which will get you to your final destination. Just because the path takes a detour or goes far out of its way before it gets to its final destination doesn't mean the directions were wrong or flawed. It just means that I chose this path for you because I had a plan and purpose in mind, and a particular route I wanted you to take to get there. (End of message from Jesus.)

Prayer Starts the Process

Of God's Will

75. (Jesus speaking:) If you're praying for the thing that is My will, or even if you're praying to know what My will is, then you start the process of My will being done. The fact that you pray and ask Me to do it, to work in a certain direction‚ makes it happen.

76. You might not even know what specifically to pray for, but just the fact that you're thinking and praying about the person or situation unleashes the power of My Spirit to move and work. You don't even have to know what My will is in every situation or for every person, but if you just pray and ask Me to bless, to help, then it is done. I honor your prayer, and because you pray I can fulfill My will.

77. I know the full chain of events. I know what needs to happen first before something else can happen, and often when you pray‚ you start the motion, the movement toward My will being done. Even if you don't know the end result of My will, your prayer helps it to be accomplished. I always answer prayer. I'm bound to honor the prayers of My children and to answer them. (End of message from Jesus)

Some Prayers "Take" Slower

78. (Jesus speaking:) I cannot always answer every prayer right away‚ although most of the time I do, or at least in a very short time span after the prayer was prayed. Many times I answer promptly because people need the answers and it encourages their faith. But at other times I take longer because there's a bigger purpose, a lesson that needs to be learned.

79. Many times prayers for a change in people's lives are the ones that take longer. When you pray for supply or things of this nature, I can answer quickly. However, when it comes to the prayers that are asking Me to work in people's lives, this is a different matter. It's not that I don't answer but it's because I do not force anyone, and much is left up to the person's choice and decisions.

80. I cannot force anyone to follow or obey or yield. The choice to love and serve and follow Me must be left up to each individual. However, because of prayer I can and do engineer circumstances to make people desperate, to come to the end of themselves‚ that will help them come to Me, to look to Me, to show them clearly that I am the way, the truth and the life.

81. There are many things I do in both the short term and long term because of people's prayers‚ but because you're dealing with people and they must learn and grow and make decisions and choices and sometimes learn through experience, this just takes time—sometimes a long time. But your prayers are working all the while, ­every day, even if you don't see the results immediately. The prayers are always working, always effective, always fruitful and always effecting change. The prayer you pray today that you don't see answered right away is just as powerful as the prayer you see answered tomorrow. It will be answered, even if it's answered in 20 years. You may have heard stories of how a woman in some church prayed for her alco­holic husband to get saved, and people thought her prayers were in vain, but then 20 or 30 years later he got saved. All those prayers were heard and answered; if she had not prayed them‚ she wouldn't have seen the miracle.

82. Prayers for people often take time. I have to work in the person's heart, and it takes time for them to learn and come to a decision on their own. It's a little like a sculptor who begins to carve a statue out of granite. He sometimes takes years, chipping here a little and there a little and sometimes hardly seeing any progress at all. Yet in time it begins to take shape, and eventually you have a beautiful statue. It's sometimes the same way with prayers you pray for people and their circumstances, the changes they need to make‚ etc. You have to chip away with your prayers, constantly, faithfully. Some people can be pretty hard, just like stone, but over time your prayers will bring about the beautiful results in the finished product—that changed life, the work of your faithful prayers—and you will see that it's worth it all‚ every prayer. (End of message from Jesus.)

Witness Through Prayer

83. (Mama:) For those in our Home, who can't go out and witness much for the sake of our security, most of our witnessing is done through prayer. These next two messages were given specifically for us‚ one during last year's Christmas season‚ but I think you'll find they apply to your situation too. I know that there are also many of you who for some reason or another aren't so involved in the day–to-day outreach or big pushes, because you're having to "stay by the stuff" caring for the kids and all—and you too can witness through your prayers!

84. (Jesus speaking: ) You, My dear brides who labor behind the scenes, are a very integral part of the Christmas witnessing. Through your prayers‚ I will send you out among your brethren and among the crowds to personally witness. Your prayers are what will complete each and every Christmas witnessing team around the world. In order for their success to be assured, you must go with them. You must accompany them on their mission.

85. Through your prayers I will send you with your brethren as they go out among the needy. Oh, how they need your prayers, for this Christmas season is monumental! I wish to do great things, thrilling things, miraculous things. According to your faith and prayers, it will be done. As you uphold My Family in prayer, you will be right there with them, in heart and mind and soul, reaching out to the lost, wooing them, loving them, holding them, comforting them‚ soothing them, and winning them into My Kingdom.

86. The success of this Christmas season for My Family worldwide hinges on your prayers. It is your prayers that will see My message through. Your prayers will deliver My Word into the hearts of the people, where it will take root and grow into strong trees—making disciples in all nations. It is your prayers that will hand-deliver My Christmas heartcry to those in need. It is through your prayers that I will pour down My power of protection and supply and safekeeping for your Family. Your prayers will sustain your brethren. They will rally My Family, sound the bugle‚ lead the troops, carry them, lift up their hands in the battle, and give them faith and courage to march on and win the victory of Christmas '99.

87. I wish to thank My faithful brides, My yielded channels‚ for your diligence and faithfulness to this, the greatest duty of prayer that I place in your hands. Such ­labor of love is a great thing in My sight. As you cry out to Me in prayer and supplication, not one request will go unanswered. The prayers you pray will return to you not an hundredfold, but a hundred times a hundred will the blessings of prayer return to you. Don't think that I will not bless you so greatly and so mightily for your labor of prayer. For great is your reward in Heaven—above and beyond all you could ever ask or think or imagine with the human mind. (End of message from Jesus)

Your Prayers Send Missionaries

88. (Jesus speaking:) Do you see the need for more laborers on these fields that are ripe already to harvest? Do you feel the call in your hearts? Do you hear of the need? Do something about it. Send missionaries through your prayers.

89. There are many who are missionaries awaiting My call. They are destined to go forth, to launch out of their cozy confines and to explode in a flaming fire of passion and heat of My Spirit‚ that many might be saved. But they will only go if you pray.

90. For the evil forces of the Enemy work at large. His minions seek to entrench and to keep My children stayed in the blob of the materialistic and comfortable System. Your prayers must uproot them. Your prayers must light the fire in their hearts, to cause them to see the need and go forth.

91. Your prayers can send forth missionaries—if you will but pray. How many missionaries would you make? How many disciples on these new fields would you win? None will be reached if these do not go forth as missionaries. And if you know these things—that your prayers will avail much and cause these ones to step out into the missionary anointing that I would place upon them—and you pray not‚ then you will account for the loss of fruit which the lack of missionaries will bring forth. Therefore pray, for I now put this burden upon you.

92. You may not see the fruit for some time. Sometimes prayers work slowly in people's hearts, but the time to pray is now, so that the work may begin. For if the vehicle has no power, it won't go anywhere. If you pray, I will send forth the mission­aries, and you will share in the reward along with each missionary who launches out to win many souls and disciples for Me. The Enemy will be furious and will put up a fight, but he cannot stop nor withstand the power of your prayers. So pray on! And let the victory be won! (End of message from Jesus.)

Prayer Activates!

93. (Jesus speaking: ) I have called you, My Family, to get on board with the Activated program and to begin a worldwide campaign to make disciples of all nations. This will require a lot of hard work and "doing" on your part—but even all your doing won't be complete without your prayers.

94. If you really want to make Activated bear fruit and reach and feed the sheep and change your part of the world, then you need to work with your prayers as well as with your works. One can't do without the other. You can't just sit around and pray for the Lord to make Activated succeed and not do your part! Yet neither can you just run around and work hard and expect that it will be as fruitful as I want it to be, if you don't add fervent prayer to the mix.

95. Pray that I will send laborers into My harvest. Pray that the "Word laborers" that are sent out via the mail and the mags you distribute will do their work in the lives and hearts of those who receive them. Pray that My Word will bear fruit. My promise is true that My Words will not return void, but will accomplish that which I please—and if you do your part to pray, you can be sure that Activated will accomplish great and mighty things! (End of mess­age from Jesus.)

Little Prayers

96. (Mama:) Whenever Peter and I are away from home on trips‚ we pray brief one- or two-sentence prayers for folks that we pass on the street or on the road. One truck driver in particular I was impressed to pray for, and when we got home I asked the Lord what my little passing prayer had done in that man's life. Also on that particular day I had prayed as we had passed a prison—that the Lord would help the inmates to find Him, and that if they weren't already having a revival in the prison that the Lord would start one. What did that prayer do? How much can you expect little prayers like that to accomplish, when you're not praying for a long time—you just pass by and pray? How much effect does a prayer like that have?

97. (Jesus speaking:) You don't have to know the results of every single prayer, but if you ask Me I'll tell you something about it. For example, when you prayed for the truck driver as he passed by you, even though just a little prayer, almost a thought, he felt it in the spirit and it encouraged him and lifted his spirit. I will honor your prayer for him, for he is one of My needy children and I will bless his life just as you asked that I do.

98. When you prayed for a revival among the prisoners as you passed the prison‚ though a short prayer, this is My will, and I am even now working through a pastor who has the burden to reach out to the prisoners and do more for them. I honor your prayer and will inspire and encourage the pastor to carry on and bring about My will in that prison.

99. Even a short prayer has power and effect, and I work through those prayers to bring about My will. Sometimes your prayer is just what is needed to finish the chain of events, to complete the circuit, and then I'm able to fulfill My will. I give you the thoughts‚ the burden on your heart to pray for something or someone, and as you are faithful to do so, then I'm faithful to work behind the scenes to help and bless others. (End of message from Jesus)

Better Than Sci-fi

100. (Jesus speaking:) The effects of prayer are similar to what happened in the movie "Forbidden Planet" when their thoughts materialized through the giant computer. That was sci-fi, but this is real! That computer created monsters; My power creates goodness and life and beauty and helps to bring Heaven down to Earth. You have all the power of Heaven at your ­disposal—all you have to do is believe and receive.

101. That movie was a very good portrayal of the power of prayer, because in order to avail yourself of Heaven's full power you have to believe. It wasn't until they fully grasped how the machine worked that they realized its awesome power. The same is true of prayer. I am limited by your faith and how much you believe. If you're only expecting half an answer, then that's all you'll get. Full faith receives a full answer. This is why I can't do more miracles, because people don't expect them. I can and will do the mighty miracles that I've promised in My Word‚ but you have to do your part by expecting, believing‚ and receiving them! (End of message from Jesus)

The Complete Circuit

102. (Jesus speaking:) Many times you feel you must "do something," and indeed there are times you must. But don't neglect the power that is available to you—My power to work in hearts and change and im­prove situations because of your prayers. Heartfelt intercessory prayer is something worth putting into your schedule and devoting time to it every day. Your prayer time doesn't have to be all in one chunk; you can use those quiet‚ in-between moments to intercede in prayer, as well as during your Word time, quiet time and united prayer times. Bring the needs, problems and cares of your Home, your area, specific individuals, or yourselves, before Me. Pour out your hearts in prayer, claim My promises, and send My angels and spirit helpers into action to work for you. This can often be combined with your hearing from Me. It's a magical combination—your putting your needs into words and trusting Me to take care of them; as well as hearing from Me to find out what you can do to help.

103. Praying and not being willing to put feet to your prayers is insufficient. Coming before Me to ask what you should do without putting the doing into My court will also be found lacking. It takes both to complete the circuit. And what a powerful circuit it is, an unbeatable combination! This is how and where you will find your power and the way you will be able to rise to the challenges before you. (End of mess­age from Jesus.)

It Takes Two!

104. (Jesus speaking: ) Prayer is the flow of the Spirit. It's the transformation of hearts, the beginning of life, the start of miracles, the completion of the impossible, the "on" switch of My power. Prayer is all this, and so much more.

105. You've had prayer described to you as sweet perfume rising to My nostrils, and as I breathe in the fragrance I stretch forth My hand and commence to do all that you have asked. But take that concept a little further. An incense stick, unless it's lit, does not produce the fragrant smell. If it remains without fire, it produces no perfume. Your prayers are like that incense stick—unless they're lit, they cannot rise to Me. You must light the match of your desperation and ignite the incense stick‚ thus sending its fragrance up to Me. As I breathe deeply of that sweet perfume, My desire to answer all that you have asked rises, and I set My work in motion.

106. The perfume of your prayers is like a man smelling the fragrant perfume of his lover. The perfume wafts through the air and it excites him because he knows his lover is near. I am the same way with your prayers. I smell the perfume‚ it entices Me, and I do as you ask. I send the legions of Heaven to do as you ask. I would send fire from Heaven because of your prayers. I would open the floodgates for you. I would vanquish all foes simply because you uttered a simple prayer. But you have not because you ask not.

107. Many of you have lost faith in prayer. You've been taught and told about prayer for years and years, and you figure that because you've had such a difficulty making it a part of your life, maybe you'll never be able to use this weapon to the full. But this is a new day, the era of action, and that means action on My part as well as yours. There is no better way to begin this action than by getting your prayer gear in shape, and readjusting your prayer weaponry that you've left on the side or have not fully availed yourself of.

108. It's time to change all that! It's time to readjust your vision, pull up your socks, and start getting your heart stirred up. Prayer is the beginning step of this era of action. It's a wake–up call to start getting your antennas directed up once again. It's time to make Me your only wavelength. Stop running around trying to be the action hero—let Me do that. Let Me answer your prayers. And the first prayer you can start with is asking Me to make prayer a focal point of your life.

109. There's no better time than the present, so start now! Tomorrow may be too late, and you wouldn't want to find your skill with this weapon lacking because you didn't practice enough and you didn't get involved in the action when it began. (End of message from Jesus.)

Quotes in boxes throughout, taken from text.

Make Me your only wavelength. … Ask Me to make prayer a focal point of your life.

Call down the power! Intensify! Pray passionately! Get excited!

Expect Me to work, and stand back and see Me do what you cannot do for yourself. Pray extreme prayers and you'll get extreme answers!

Give this tithe of your time [in prayer] wholeheartedly, knowing that it is the most important percentage of your work that you will ever do.

It's a magical combination—your putting your needs into words and trusting Me to take care of it; as well as hearing from Me to find out what you can do to help.

Prayer is the beginning step of this era of action.

No prayer is ever wasted. Every prayer is heard and answered in My time and in My way.

Prayer enables Me to accomplish My perfect will.

end of file.