Esther is a prototype of history’s hinge: a courageous woman who humbly and artfully spoke truth to power. Facing witchcraft and dark conspiracies in Persia’s power base, Queen Esther risked her life, armed with nothing but an undying love for her people, a providential position of authority, her own dignity and the secret arsenal of corporate prayer and fasting. Through her, a nation was spared annihilation.
Three years ago in a leaders summit in Fredericksburg, Virginia, our meeting was sovereignly hijacked as the Lord shifted our focus toward the hidden taproot of strength in the godly women of America. We began to envision something of a million women gathering on the mall in Washington, D.C., similar to the Promise Keepers gathering, that would be a last-stand breakthrough to hold back darkness in America. Those hours of corporate intercession were as strong and clear as any prophetic moment I have ever encountered in 30-plus years of prayer, but at the time we could not see how it could be brought to pass. Habakkuk’s statement seemed to be the counsel of the Lord to us, “If [the vision} delays, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay” (Hab. 2:3b).
The Truly Empowered Woman
That moment arrived Jan. 21, 2017, the day after the inauguration of President Donald J. Trump, as we watched hundreds of thousands of women take to the streets with the purported aim of “empowering women.” A vacuum had been created by this election, by historic women’s injustices, and it seemed a false heiress rushed in and was seeking now to become the hinge of history by framing the narrative of a future America that does not acknowledge God’s exalted view of women and His biblical design for her glorious purpose in the earth. Instinctively, we had a corporate knowing: It was the time for the true empowered woman to stand up, for the meek (strength-filled humility) shall inherit the earth.
Hundreds of thousands of women watched the March, heard the vitriol and could not identify with the radical ideologies being expressed that would not acknowledge God’s Word and ways in the public controversy. This new woman declared deep inside her heart, This is not my revolution. Now, like Esther, she is arising for such a time as this. It’s time for this corporate Esther to frame the future by recognizing and taking up her God-given role of persistent public persuasion in the open square as well as that of her humble appeal to God in prayer.
Fasting Through Purim
The Women’s March was the first shot across the bow, heralding a revolutionary rise against the president of the United States, “We the people” and in reality, the foundational biblical truths upon which our nation was founded. Soon after, the second shot was manifested publicly: an unprecedented global summons of witchcraft to curse President Trump, his Cabinet and all of those aligned with a biblical worldview. Suddenly, the whole controversy was elevated to a global spiritual dimension, inaugurating a spiritual battle that cannot be won on the playing field of protests and political arguments.
Only the church has the answer to this unprecedented manifestation of witchcraft. Spiritual strategy must be used to overcome this open-faced, brazen challenge of the powers.
According to Derek Prince, Haman (the adversary in the Book of Esther), was practicing divination through the casting of lots and was clearly aligning himself with demonic spiritual powers to destroy the whole Jewish population in the earth. Esther’s three-day fast broke the spiritual power channeled by Haman’s witchcraft. It effectively reversed the curse and shifted the whole public policy of the Persian Empire towards the Jewish people. I cannot stress this enough: We are in a similar day and a cataclysmic battle for the soul of our nation. We cannot live the same way we lived yesterday.
Recently, two women contacted me and asked me to use my influence to call for a three-day Esther Fast to answer this challenge. Immediately after, I experienced a life-changing dream where I saw a nation-wide Esther movement arising that alone could break a major spiritual power of death.
I knew then that I was to take my place as a Mordecai and call not only “Esther and her handmaidens” but the whole nation, to fast and pray for three days leading up to Purim. The Jewish holiday Purim celebrates God’s deliverance of the Jews through Esther’s fasting, sacrifice and courage. This year, Purim begins on Saturday evening, March 11.
Therefore, we are seizing this sudden moment for a three-day Esther Fast from sundown on Wednesday, March 8, through the evening of Saturday, March 11, to counter this witchcraft, to stand against the rising anti-Semitism, pray for the president and contend for the uprising of an Esther movement in America that will, among many things, reverse the decree of ’73, Roe v. Wade, just as Haman’s decree was reversed.
Let the women (and the nation) arise as Esther’s for such a time as this and take their place in the courts of heaven and in the public courts of man to shape history in this hour. If your heart burns, mobilize this fast to all your connections. Blow the trumpet in Zion! Call a fast!
Lou Engle is a revivalist, visionar, and co-founder of TheCall, Inc. For more than three decades, Lou’s passion has been to call believers into radical consecration through prayer, fasting and acts of justice.
A couple weekends ago I attended an apostolic conference in Hartford. The bishop was preaching on the significance of the Lord moving in & through New England. One thing he pointed out, which I already knew, is that Satan is not and cannot be a creator; he can only pervert that which is the Lord’s destiny. We all know that New England colleges & universities offers the highest level of education in the world. There are 8 Ivy League schools in the northeast. Most leaders from around the world have been educated, or want to be educated in our New England Ivy League schools. Of course we know what is presently being taught, we also know about the secret societies like Skull & Bones, Illuminati, Freemasonry, Shriners, etc. and how these secret societies are used to raise up young men to high leadership roles.
So, what is the destiny of New England? Think of the power of influence our region has! The Lord has predestined our region to raise up & educate powerful world leaders, to influence every arena of our world! What if REVIVAL broke out at Harvard? Or Yale? Or Dartmouth? Or any of our other schools? What powerful seeds can planted in our world….through the powerful influence of our little New England region! Some of us have praying for our colleges & universites for years, let’s increase the intercession.
The Lord has a powerful destiny for our state and for our region!
Isn’t it awesome to know that our God is the only God Who reaches out to us? He is not some sort of unattainable God who is so far away and unreachable. He is a God who never ignores us, He dwells among us. It is His longing and His desire to be with us! He communed with Adam in the garden. He met with Abraham out in the desert, He instructed Moses to build a Tabernacle so He could live among His people. He led David to start a 24/7 prayer tent. He led Solomon to build a Temple so He could meet with His people. Then He sent His only Son to connect with us, even lay down His life for us, pay the penalty of our sins so we can have the joyous opportunity to meet with this Glorious God, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! What an amazing thing that was done for us! Not only that, He raised Jesus from the dead on the 3rd day! Because He is risen, we also have confidence that we will rise from the dead!
“But now Christ is risen from the dead and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep…..Death is swallowed up in victory. ‘Oh Death, where is your sting? Oh Hades, where is your victory?’ The sting of death is sin and strength sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!” I Corinthians 15:20, 54-55
I’ve walked with the Lord over half my life and I’m still so astounded and amazed at what was given me through my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. There is no other god, no other deity that can compare to my Lord Jesus and what He did for us on the cross!
Today, spend a few moments to meditate the price that was paid for you so you can have eternal life. So you can have access to God.
Calls Pastors and Christian Leaders to Pray for the Healing and Future of America. All Christian pastors, priests, leaders, and believers are invited to join national Christian leaders to lift a United Cry together at this historic, multi-ethnic, multi–generational, gathering on April 9th, 2016, from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.
WE’VE CHARTERED A BUS!
A charter bus is available for all who want to go to this significant prayer gathering. We are meeting at 10:00 PM Friday, April 8 at Stanley Memorial – Fountain of Life Church, New Britain. We will return late Saturday night, April 9. The cost will be $50 per person.
To register, you must send your check to:HOUSE OF GOOD HOPE, INC.P.O. Box 4042 Hartford CT 06147-4042. Your $50 check will guarantee your seat. At this time, 41 people have signed up, 31 have paid. The bus is filling up fast! Reserve your seat now.
*Payment must be received before April 1st.
SCHEDULE:
MONDAYS 7-9 PM School of Prayer Prayers that Heal the Heart –through this class you will learn prayers that will change lives forever:
• Break generational sins and curses
• Sever ungodly soul ties
• Replace negative expectations
• Renounce inner vows
• Receive divine pictures & visions
• Cast out demons
• Experience the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus
All are welcome to join us. No cost for the class, offerings are taken to cover cost.
FIRST SUNDAYS 4-6 PM Love Feast
Sunday, April 3 is our next Love Feast. Adam Wittenberg from the International House of Prayer-KC will be sharing his experiences as an intercessory missionary. All are welcome, bring a dish to pass!
“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of God that will stand”. Proverbs 19:21
This morning as I was spending time in prayer at the house of prayer, I suddenly had a vision of myself, as well as the whole body of Christ in our western culture. I suddenly saw how we all are individual vials, and when we come together, we still remain in our hard little vials. We don’t truly mingle together, we don’t become vulnerable with one another, we don’t truly even love each other. The Presence of God isn’t fully released because there is no mixing together, no crying out together. Our churches are individual vials and we don’t mix with other churches. We, in our individuality all come together, yet we don’t mix with the others.
I see how the Lord gives each of us vision in our journeys with Him and calls us to His assignments. Our eyes are opened to the importance of the vast call on our lives – something so incredible and much bigger than us! (this isn’t just about me, I believe everyone has an incredible call on their lives – some haven’t yet discovered it). But then His assignments become “our” assignments, “our” ministries, “our” callings. Pride sets in. We don’t see the reason for the assignments the Lord gives us is for the Greater Cause. All we can see is what we are called to do. We can’t see how what we do fits together with all the other things that are going on around us. There is no laying down our lives for each other. There is no preferring of one another. We come together, but we all take our places to do “our” ministries, yet there is little mingling.
There is so much pride in all of us! We can’t see beyond ourselves. We are the centers of our universe and as far as we’re concerned, nothing much else happens apart from us. As I saw this in myself as well as in others, my heart broke. I cried as I saw this was so evident in me, and it is in everyone who I know and love; every ministry, every individual! Much of it, if not all comes from our American culture. It is so painful to see how little our American Christianity is truly Biblical! It is also so painful to see how little effect we have on the world because of our American individuality. There is so very little mingling of our vials.
I am painfully aware this is one of the main reasons we don’t see revival come to our land. Many of us have been crying out for revival for years, even decades, but we see little results. Why? Could it be because we are so caught up in what we’re doing we neglect to do the greatest thing: die to self? Even lay down our lives for one another? We all know the Scriptures and we quote them to each other as well as preach them from our pulpits:
“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it”. Luke 9:23-24
“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends”. John 15:13
It is a rare thing when I meet someone who is full of humility. I’ve met very few people who actually practice these Scriptures! We all say we do, including myself. But do we actually? When leaders get together, what is the topic of our conversation? Is it, “how can I help you?”, or “how can I serve you?” or “how can I see your ministry grow?” Or are other subjects discussed? Do we really know how to serve one another in love? Or is what we do still is all about us with very little left over for anything else outside our sphere of influence? I saw this my heart, and had to spend considerable time in repentance this morning. I saw my pride, my worship of my individuality, even my worship of “my” vision in building this house of prayer. I saw how my attitude is so wrong! Do I truly serve others? Do any of us ever truly serve others? Or do we just care for those who are part of “our” ministry, “our” thing?
Do any of us truly want revival? Or do we just want to see our individual assignments and callings prosper? That is the question I’m asking right now. What is the Greater Cause? Let’s get beyond that. The assignments we’re called to is not ours. It was never ours and it will never be ours. The Lord created us to be together, to work together. Yes, we all are unique individuals with different callings. But the reason why the Lord created us to be unique is so our unique flavors can be released as we blend together to make that awesomely incredible fragrance in our worship to God! Just as we desperately need the Lord, we also desperately need each other. We need to pray together, we need to worship together, we need to work together, we need to play together. It doesn’t matter which denominational tribe we belong to. Our theologies don’t matter. When we reach the Throne Room of God’s Glory, we will suddenly realize how little our theologies matter. What matters is the fact that if we are brothers and sisters in Christ, we need to learn how to love one another. We need to learn how lay down our lives for one another through our love for one another.
I admit that I’m not even close to where I see I need to be in this, but I want to be! I plan to make this my goal for 2016. I invite you to join me in this. Let’s all do a heart check? What is most important to you: see transformation and revival come to our land, or see ourselves and our assignments prosper? Are we truly willing to lay down our individuality, even our assignments for the Greater Cause?
Break us open Lord? Break our vials, Lord!
HOUSE OF GOOD HOPE SCHEDULE:
Monday nights 7-9 pm School of Prayer
Studies in the Bride of Christ, from Genesis through Revelation.
This is a study of our covenant relationship with Jesus as His beloved Bride.
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet The words repeat Of peace on earth, Good will to men.
And in despair I bowed my head;
There is no peace on earth,”
I said
“For hate is strong and mocks the song Of peace on earth, Good will to men”.
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, With peace on earth, Good will to men.
This year our house of prayer had the high honor of singing Christmas carols today, on Christmas Eve at the State Capitol Christmas party. It was such a privilege to sing about the blessed hope of Jesus in our state seat of government! As we sang, I started to think through the words of these beloved old carols. Each of these carols was like a sermon, preaching about the incarnation of our Savior and the hope we have through Him. What an awesome way to offer this reminder to those who work in our State Capitol!
One song began to especially speak to me, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”. The words of that Christmas carol seem so relevant today! This carol was written in 1863, in the midst of one of the bloodiest times in the history of our country, the Great Civil War. Henry Wadworth Longfellow just lost his beloved wife and his son was severely wounded in the Battle of New Hope Church. As he listened to the peal of the bells followed by Civil War cannon fire in the distance, Longfellow contemplated the messages of both sounds – one of war and one of peace. Even with cannons firing off in the background, the church bells began to rekindle hope in his heart. Through the saving power of that newborn baby, there could be peace with God and goodwill toward his fellow man.
How these words seem to fit today! Again our world is going through increasingly violent times. Again many of us are asking, “Is there no peace?” But, as the words of this song reminds us there is “peace on earth, goodwill to men”. It’s not about the absence of war or conflict. What this Christmas carol reminds us of, is the type of peace that only Jesus can give you:
“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you.
Let not your hearts be troubled,
neither let them be afraid”. John 14:27
It is so astounding to realize we serve and worship a God Who is with us in the midst of the storms. The storms may not be taken away, but there is a God Who comes to us and holds us as the storms pass through our lives!
May you feel the Lord holding you in His arms with His peace as you go through the storms that surround you.
