- Thank you for joining usduring our week of prayer.

This is our final installment,

but it, not final, we'llkeep praying for you,

and praying for the prayerrequests that come in to us.

If you'd like to join in,

and have your request be prayed over

by the staff of CBN,

we've made it easy for you,

all you have to do iscall us, 1-800-700-7000.

You can also post it on cbn.com.

You can mail to us as well

at CBN Center VirginiaBeach, Virginia, 23463.

There's also a place on our Facebook page

where you can post prayer requests

in the comment section.

We'd be glad to pray for you.

It's our honor, our privilege

to pray for you, to lift your requests

up to the Lord God.

And many people have written in.

We've gotten over 60,000prayer requests this week,

and it's our delight topray for every one of them.

I'm going to read some

of the ones that have come in.

"That the Lord would dissolvemy husband's pituitary tumor."

Here's healing of an undiagnosed pain.

Doctors don't know what's happening

in the upper right abdomen.

And then prayer for the,

after 34 years to be healed of MS.

Praying for a recent widow

who had to sell her home

to pay for her husband's medical bills.

Then miraculous healing

of end-stage COPD.

Salvation for our sixchildren and 11 grandchildren.

And then a prayer for strength and wisdom.

"I'm the only caregiverfor my paralyzed husband,

"I'm overwhelmed with responsibilities

"and feel physically andemotionally drained."

Let's lift these requests to the Lord.

Let's lift your requests to the Lord,

and realize that he ever lives to pray,

to give intercession for the saints.

That means you.

When you understand that Jesus

is joining in with your prayers,

that he's interceding for you,

so that God's will willbe done in your life.

It's a wonderful boost to prayer line.

Jesus is praying over you,

that God's will will be done on earth

as it is in heaven.

So that's his prayer.

That's the prayer he taught us to pray.

And start thinking about heaven.

In heaven, does anybody have COPD?

Are widows forced to sell their homes?

Does anyone have any problem at all?

And the answer is no.

Well that's God's will.

And it's our privilege to pray

that God's will would be done on Earth.

That God's will will be donefor these prayer requests.

And I just read that God's will

would be done in yourbody, in your family,

in your home, in your finances.

God's will.

Let's pray that his will will be done.

Pray with me.

Lord God almighty, we come to you,

and we just declare that in your name

we have a strong tower,

we have a refuge.

So we go into the strong tower

of your name,

and we shut the door behind us.

We don't have any other thoughts

or any other name,

for you are the namethat's above all names.

You are the great I am.

And you are our healer, our provider,

our deliverer, our restorer, our banner.

You are our everything.

So God come and be what you already are.

Be it now on earth as it is in heaven.

We see your name.

We see your will.

We see and we ask that it be real

in our homes, in our lives,

in our bodies.

Let your presence bemanifest in our lives.

Be a Emmanuel, God with us.

Now for everyone praying right now,

as they are letting theirrequests be made known to you,

we know and we see in your word

that you will answer from heaven.

That you will provide.

That you will be our all in all.

When two or more agree touching anything

it shall be done by my Father in heaven.

We come into agreementwith the word of God.

We come into agreementwith the words of Jesus.

And we believe them nowfor what we are requesting.

We have believe now thatwe have already received

the answer to our prayer.

We receive it now

and believe it now in Jesus' name.

Amen.

And amen. If you need prayer,again, we're here for you,

all you gotta do iscall us, 1-800-700-7000.

Well over this past week

we've read powerful messages

about keys to a vibrant prayer life.

We've discovered why prayerwas so important to Jesus,

how it's a weapon of warfare,

and it even improves our health.

Yet many believers don't exactly

approach prayer with enthusiasm.

Well, Pastor Dan Backens joins us now

to share how to find joy

in this vital part of the Christian life.

(upbeat music)

- Hello, I'm Pastor Dan Backens,

a senior pastor of New Life Church

in Virginia Beach.

And I am excited todayto be asked to share

a devotional on prayer.

And I wanna give a special welcome

to those that work at CBN,

and those that are influenced

around the world by the ministry

of the Christian Broadcasting Network.

It's such a delight for me

to talk about prayer in this devotional

because of all the life themes

that I have experienced over the years,

there's nothing that is dearerto my heart than prayer.

And what I wanna do is I wanna talk today

about reviving your prayer life.

And I want to try to remove the concept

of prayer and the biblical mandate

of praying from somethingthat you have to do,

as if it's almost likea work of righteousness,

or it's a just a duty.

And I wanna move it over to the column

that it can truly be a delight.

And I think that if we understood

what the Bible says about prayer,

and the benefits we have,

but more than the benefits even,

the resources that God gives us in prayer,

we may never look at prayer again.

I know that there'sdifferent times in my life

when prayer becomes difficult,

and it's primarily the seasons

where I have,

am emotionally fatigued,

or there's been a season

where I'm not seeing answers to prayer.

And it's at those times

I need to remember what theBible says about prayer.

It says in Zachariah chapter 12,

in the Old Testament,

that there was going to come a day

in Israel where peoplewere gonna be so taken up

with the anointing of prayer

they were gonna go from town to town,

and they would say to one another

"are you coming to the prayer meeting?"

And the prophet Zachariahsays it this way.

He says in the end time

there's going to be a grace

for supplication.

That is to save there'sgoing to be a supernatural

favor of God on prayer.

Or another way to say it, I believe,

is that there will come a time

when prayer will be made easy.

In the old covenant youalways had to be aware

if you were in rightstanding with Jehovah,

if you'd obeyed the law.

And there was a high sense

in the old covenant ofobedience to the law,

and the curse of the lawif you didn't obey the law.

And now in the new covenant

we have assets that in the old covenant

they didn't know anything about.

I wanna talk to you about

a few of those resources that hopefully

will change prayer frombeing duty to delight.

From changing prayer to be oh yeah

I gotta do my prayer devotions today.

Or if I don't pray God won't bless.

Or something that I would say borders on

works righteousness.

And I wanna share with you

some of the things the word

of God says that hopefullywill encourage you

to see prayer in a new way.

And I wanna look first of all

what the Bible says about the Holy Spirit

in the book of Romans chapter eight.

And you might know this verse.

But it says that we'vebeen given the Holy Spirit

to pray for us, with us,

when we don't know howto pray for ourselves.

Now if there's anythingthat should be encouraging

it's that.

The third person that God had is saying

I am going to be your prayer advocate.

And he goes on to say look,

if you will just groan with me,

if you will just say oh God help me,

the Bible indicates that the Holy Spirit

will come alongside that wordless prayer

and will fine tune it

so that God in heaven isattracted to that prayer,

and he hears that prayer.

Paul says you should be encouraged.

Even your groanings God hears.

When you don't have the words, God hears.

When you don't know howto solve the problem,

God hears.

When you don't have all

of the points of data of the issue,

God hears.

The Holy Spirit is like at the ready.

He basically says you startthe prayer, I'll finish it.

Hey, he's saying if you willjust give me some syllables,

I'll take it from there.

If you will just groan,I'll take it from there.

That's why the apostle Paul says

man, you have the Holy Spirit

that's praying for you like that,

everything is gonna work to your good

if you love God

and are called according to his purpose.

Why?

The Holy Spirit's praying for you.

Now if that's not enough,

the book of Hebrews emphasizes

over and over and over

that Jesus intercedes for you.

Think about that.

On the cross, while Jesus is getting ready

to die to pay for our sins,

he prayed and he ministered in prayer

to the sinner at his left side there.

And he prayed to the Father.

His ministry prayer took him

all the way to the cross.

And he says even in hisglorified role in heaven,

the book of Hebrew says that Jesus

ever lives to make intercession for us.

Think about that.

If we could understand thatthere's this revival of prayer.

The Holy Spirit is helping us to pray.

And then we're reminded that Jesus himself

makes intercession for us.

He's calling our name before the Father.

He's calling out ourneeds before the Father.

And everything that we pray on the Earth

in "Jesus' name,"

he's repeating to the Father.

You would think aboutthe son of man in glory,

the son of God in glory,

the scripture says he livesto make intercession for us.

Now that concept is beyond just praying,

it's the concept of he's the mediator

between us and the Father.

He's the go betweenbetween us and the Father.

But part of that is justplain old intercession.

Today, the Holy Spirit's helping me pray,

and the Father's hearing Jesus the son say

Father, I lift up Dan to you today.

I know, Father, he'sbeen going through a lot,

and maybe hasn't been praying as much,

or as accurately as he should,

but Father, I'm makingintercession for him.

May his strength stay strong.

May he resist temptation.

May his mind be clear

on what Jesus, what I havedone for him Jesus would say.

Man, that's awesome.

But even beyond that,

Jesus gives promises about prayer

that should make prayer easy.

You know who gives themost audacious promises

in the word of God about prayer?

It's not the apostles.

It's not Paul.

It's not John.

Who makes, who makes the craziest promises

about prayer in the Bible?

It's Jesus Christ himselfin the book of John.

Over and over and over Jesus says this

"if you will pray anything in faith

"according to my name,

"in my name, I will do it."

He says you could have whatever you ask.

He says "nothing is impossibleto him who believes."

Jesus is the one who says

if two or three of youare gathered in my name,

you pray anything you want,

I'm gonna do it.

And here's the deal thatjust always gets me.

People that pray, they'll writecommentaries about prayer.

They get this.

E. M. Bounds and guys like that,

they get, they don't evenhave to be Pentecostals,

they get Jesus' promises of prayer.

Then you read commentarieson John by other scholars,

and they just gloss over these.

I read commentaries on John 15, 16, 17,

they don't even mention prayer.

I'm going good grief,

it's the primary principleof those chapters

is that God is empowering hischurch through Jesus Christ

to co-partner with him,to regent with him.

To take dominion in the earth with him.

So Jesus over and over and over and over

says pray, pray, pray.

If you pray in my namenothing's impossible.

If you pray in my name the mountains

go into the sea.

If you pray nothing returns void.

Pray, pray.

That's why Jesus says menought to pray at all times,

not as a duty,

but because of the tremendouspotential that awaits them

if they'll pray.

Man, I tell you, I'm thinking about,

you know, all these promisesthat God gives me in prayer.

And I'm thinking today like,

you know, Jesus, I didn't say this,

Jesus said this.

He said if you pray anythingin my name I'll do it.

Oh we could all

he doesn't mean that,he doesn't mean that.

He surely doesn't mean that.

You don't know his will, you never know.

So you just gotta kind ofthrow up something in the air,

saying whatever you want up there.

No, he's saying get to know me,

get to know my word,

get to know my promises.

There's thousands of promises.

Get to know my promises, theconditions of my promises.

Get to know my heart son and daughter,

get to know me,

get to know what the kingdom's like.

And once you start to grow up,

he says once you start to grow up,

he says ask whatever you want.

Why is that?

He trusts us.

He's not saying you'regonna be asking for boats

and cars, diamonds,

and black credit cardsthat have a $50,000 limit.

Or better yet debit card.

He's saying no, you're gonna pray

about the things of the kingdom.

You're gonna pray for miracles

for those that need a miracle.

And healing for those that need healing.

And you're gonna pray for breakthroughs

and salvation and you're gonna pray

for governments to find peace.

And you're gonna findyour place on the wall

of intercession.

And that's what Zacharias's saying.

He's saying there's gonna come a day

when this prayer thing isn't

just gonna be just for the priests.

This prayer thing isn'tjust gonna be for the kings

or the prophets.

This prayer thing is gonna be for anybody

who calls on the name of the Lord.

And then Jesus says

"I'm gonna give you aboat load of promise."

And he says "in these promises

"nothing can stand against my promises."

And he says "just pray."

John, the apostle James says

man, half the time you don't get

because you don't ask.

Step up and ask.

And keep asking.

Are all my prayers answered?No, but can I tell you this?

A lot more miracles happen

to people that pray and believe

than people that don't pray and believe.

The fear of having your prayer unanswered

should not keep you from praying.

The doctor's report thatgives you a month to live,

the divorce lawyer that says

your spouse absolutelywill never reconcile.

That opportunity in ministry

that looks like it can never happen.

You say well it looks like the 11th hour,

but nothing's impossible.

And then you get that promise of God,

and you go into prayer,

and you pray something like this.

I decree, and I declare in Jesus' name

that God's will is for me

to be in health and prosper.

So Lord I decree and declare today

over my body health,

and your promises oflong life and vitality.

I bring to you remembrance today.

And it's not in my power,Jesus, it's in your power.

It's in the finished work of the cross.

So now I can just rejoice.

You've heard my prayer,

and you are at work.

Now isn't that easy?

CBN community, pray.

This ministry was founded in prayer,

and it will continue to develop in prayer,

but pray for your families,

pray for yourself.

Pray for the calling of God on your life.

We all know we need topray for our nation.

But let's go into our prayerclosets now, shall we.

With new confidence.

There's a grace to pray.

The Holy Spirit's praying with you,

Jesus is interceding for you.

Jesus has given us his name

and all of his promises.

And say Lord, I'm gonnatake up this role of prayer,

and I'm going to take these promises,

and I'm gonna pray them likethey're already answered.

Hey, as I close this out today,

be reminded of some things.

The Bible says that Jesus knows,

excuse me, the Father knows what you need

even before you ask him.

That gives me a lot of confidence.

He knows my issues,

and he's ready to answer inthe informative to help me.

But he's saying to me "Dan,would you partner with me?"

This is how the world is set up

in Genesis chapter two,

the dominion mandate, Genesis 1:28.

The dominion mandate is thatwe are gonna partner together

and rule the earth andthe affairs of the earth,

and the affairs of this life.

And he says there son, I need you to pray.

Oh son, but I'm gonna give you grace,

I'm gonna give you my word,

I'm gonna give you my name.

I'm gonna give you myson to intercede for you.

I'm gonna give you theHoly Ghost to help you

when all you can getout is a few syllables.

But son, would you just pray?

There's a grace on you to pray.

And you know what, inthis time of revival,

there's such a grace to pray.

We're gonna see such answers to prayer

that we're gonna go to our neighbor

and say hey, are you praying?

Come over to the church and pray.

Come to our house and pray.

Go to your prayer closet and pray.

These are unusual daysof unanswered prayer.

There'll always be a cynic that says well,

it really doesn't make any difference,

God and his sovereigntyhas already decreed

the beginning from the end.

I say well, that's above my pay grade.

I'm just gonna, I'm gonnatake the other promises

of God's word that says this

"you can have whatever you ask.

"You can have whatever you say.

"You can have whatever you believe.

"Just ask, believe and confessin my name Jesus says."

And the Father would say

according to his will

and his kingdom.

According to the things that bless God

and honor God and are holy,

and those kind of things.

So I'm gonna close this devotional out,

and I just want toencourage you today to pray.

You don't have to start with a big prayer.

Let's rekindle just adaily devotional prayer

in the morning or inthe evening, whenever.

Just go to God with agreat sense of grace.

Hey, do it this way.

Start your next prayer this way.

Lord, I delight to do this.

Thank you that you hear me.

Thank you that you hear me.

Lord, this is what's on my heart.

This is the promises that you've given me.

I decree, declare, ask, proclaim, knock

and seek according to these promises.

And I leave the way and the when

in your hands.

And I believer you for it in Jesus' name.

So Father, thank you for every man

and woman that's been listeningto this devotional today,

I pray that down deepin their spirit today

would rise a new confidence

and a new expectation,

and a new delight in prayer.

They're not alone.

It's not a work of righteousness.

It's a grace.

It's a favor given to them by God.

And Lord, in this new day,

as the world is in trouble,

may you raise up tens of thousands

of intercessors who delightto come before your presence,

and ask you, Lord, foryour favor on this land.

And I pray this in the powerful name

of Jesus our Lord, amen.

Well thank you for joiningme for this devotional.

God bless you.

(upbeat music)