My morning prayer time now includes watching the news. What? How could that be?
Never in a million years did I think that could ever happen. I’ve always needed 100 percent silence and isolation during my quiet time, no distractions of any kind. Furthermore, I stopped watching the news many years ago, thinking, “What’s the use? It just makes me fearful or angry or both!”
However, God is doing a new work in me when it comes to prayer, and I sense that He’s sounding this prayer alarm for all of us, as evidenced by the recent release of the movie War Room.
Only last week, I was lead to develop an “End Times Prayer Manual” and began teaching it to prayer groups to inspire, encourage, and provide practical tools for releasing that which is on God’s heart in these times. A few days later, I went to see War Room, which powerfully impacts hearts with the criticality of prayer, our most powerful weapon of warfare!
When teaching, I often share that God has given us “tool belts” to wear that are filled with spiritual weapons of warfare. However, knowing how powerful and effective they are, the enemy doesn’t want us to use these weapons or to even know they are there. As a result, we never take them out of our belts! If we could only see that when we use a spiritual weapon of warfare such as prayer, we become warriors literally wielding a sword through the air in every direction with the power to release angels and dislodge demons.
As we saw in the movie, prayers reversed the direction of a marriage doomed to failure—which would have resulted not only in hurt and bitter parents, but a deeply wounded child full of strongholds that could keep her in bondage the rest of her life! Truly, the enemy truly comes to steal, kill and destroy!
God is sounding the alarm that it’s time to start pulling this prayer weapon of warfare out of your tool belt. The battle is heating up, in fact it’s raging, and you can no longer afford NOT to use it—that is if you are interested at all in saving your life, marriage, family, job, community, your country. After all, it is the prayers of the saints, filling the bowls of incense in heaven, that will release God’s end-time purposes of eradicating evil on this earth, implementing righteousness in every nation and every sphere of life, and accomplishing His ultimate goal of bringing heaven to earth.
You may still be asking, “Why have I incorporated watching the news into my morning quiet-time prayer routine?” It is so I can respond in prayer instead of fear or anger. God is not calling you to be fearful and stressed when you watch the news. His power is not released when you get frustrated and angry and then share this with others. On the contrary, this only aligns you with the enemy and increases his reign.
Reacting in fear or anger does NOTHING in the heavenly realms other than give the enemy a handle and more influence on this earth. An angry, critical attitude might puff you up as more righteous or holy than others, but it does no good in the spiritual realm.
As was clearly communicated through War Room, it is by forgiving, repenting and praying that you release God’s power to work in the situation and then miracles happen. You want revival? It has to start with your own repentant heart and with a continual attitude of prayer.
Some believers have been able to get by on minimal or surface prayer, not really aware of or believing that they are actively engaged in a constant spiritual battle. Warning! Times are changing! God is sounding the alarm that a lukewarm or nonexistent prayer life is just not going to cut it anymore. He’s calling you to hear this alarm to pray and wake up to the reality that you have a role to play in these times! And that role is not to be fearful, stressed, frustrated and angry just like everyone else!
When I watch the news, I turn the sound way down, and as I read the headlines scrolling across the bottom, I begin to pray for each and every story. I pray for the families of the police officers who were slain, for the politicians who are lying or supporting causes that will bring judgment on this country, for individuals so broken and deceived by Satan that they are dedicated to lifestyles that increase the enemy’s reign in their lives and on this earth.
So I encourage you to try it. Transform your “watching the news” time into a prayer time, and bring the news into your war room! Pray for each individual on your screen, each headline scrolled across the bottom: to take away the veil of deception in their lives; that their eyes and hearts would be open to the truth; that Yeshua would reveal Himself to them in a personal way and meet every need; to break the deceptions caused by the false beliefs Satan has created; to demolish the stronghold of pride in them; to bring healing of the strongholds in their hearts that control their behavior; to block the enemy from shooting fiery darts filled with lies about themselves and about God. Declare Ephesians 3:16-19 for these individuals.
Like it or not, the spiritual battle is heating up, and it’s time to choose life or death. I believe the movie War Room was produced because God is using it as a way of sounding the alarm to pray. He is preparing you for what is to come. Will you listen to the alarm and start using your prayer weapon of warfare or will you allow the darkness to overtake your life, your family, this country and the world?
You can remain in fear, stress, anger, and frustration when you watch the news, align yourself with the enemy, and look just like the rest of the world; or you can confess these things, use your prayer weapon of warfare, be a light in the darkness to draw others to God, and partner with Him to release HIS end times plans and purposes. The choice is up to you!
I pray this blog is a blessing to you and draws you into deeper intimacy with God and His purposes for you in these times. Please let me know how it impacts your life. I’d love to hear from you! Either comment below or email me at [email protected]. {eoa}
Jeanne Nigro is a frequent speaker at conferences, congregations and retreats worldwide. Jeanne Nigro Ministries provides relevant, practical, life-transforming teaching of hope and healing to experience deeper intimacy with God and to be ready for Yeshua’s return and millennial reign. All of Jeanne’s teachings and blogs are available on her website at jeannenigro.com.
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