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This group of Armenians and Americans prayer walked several places the first three days of our teaching and prayer days in Yerevan. I will say more about this photo in a bit.
Let me set the stage. I was invited to Armenia by Kathy, who is in charge of stirring up prayer in that part of the world for CRU. We have known each other for about 15 years. Two hours before her departure for Armenia she received word her mother-in-law had a stroke, in Florida. She could not come with us to Armenia because she needed to stay with her sons in Colorado. That is what I meant last week when I said our plans changed.
Curt was now in charge of the last two days of teaching on Transformational prayer, but Doug and I had to pick up some of Kathy’s lessons. We all added teaching preparation to our first three days of teaching and prayer. I was also somewhat in charge of those first three days with the staff because it landed close to my strengths.
Kathy asked me to speak on binding and loosing from Matthew 16:19 & 18-20. I was strongly impressed by the Holy Spirit to begin by laying the foundation of our authority and our identity in Christ.
In the Cultural Mandate found in Genesis 1:26-28, our Creator commands us humans to have supreme sovereignty over the earth. We are God’s delegated government on earth. Jesus taught us to pray for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. (Matt. 6:10) We discussed that a bit, then moved to who our Creator says we are, which is quite different from what the world, our flesh and the enemy tell us we are.
Neil Anderson in his book, The Bondage Breaker, has a great list of scriptures with statements of “Who I Am In Christ.“ With the list translated, the Armenians read it out loud in unison. The transformation was palpable. They began reading timidly with closed body language. As they moved through the list, their voices became stronger and by the end each was speaking boldly, sitting upright, with their shoulders back and chests out.
That list read as a declaration gave them a fresh taste of being true children of the King of Kings. “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” 1 Peter 2:9 Royalty rules and Priests intercede for God’s will to be accomplished. That is the over arching job description for all who follow Jesus.
During the first three days of meetings, we taught in the mornings and prayer walked in the afternoons. I explained that I can go prayer walk in Armenia, but it is their country. They are the ones with the most authority. I can coach, but they are the priests and kings in Armenia.
The afternoon of my talk we began at the National Assembly. On September 21, 2018 the government opened the gates to the public for the first time since 1951. None of the staff were alive when the gates closed. This was the first prayer walk anyone with us had done on the grounds of their National Assembly. Imagine the joy and delight in the heart of the Armenians to walk the grounds. Now Imagine knowing who they are in Christ and the mandate given to them by our Creator.
These physical gates are open. Let’s join Isaiah’s 26:2 declaration: “Open the gates, that the righteous nation that keeps faith may enter in.”
Where do you have influence: Home, work, gym, social clubs and associations, church…? Knowing who we are, what we are created to do and who gives us the authority to do it can make a big difference in how we approach life. Keep your head high. “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.“
Armenia adventure: to be continued…
