I was awakened from a sound sleep when I heard the voice of the Lord speaking to me. He said, “Many have been looking for the harvest, harvest begins with prayer.” I was left to ponder the word, I felt the body of Christ was already praying for harvest. Without increased prayer we won’t see the harvest that we have been expecting. The Lord is calling us to pray more.

 
Whether we see ourselves as prayer intercessors or not, we must know how our prayers affect us on a personal and regional level. When we became born again we entered a war whether we wanted to or not.  All of us are called to pray and what we choose to do, or not do, affects not only our personal lives but the lives of those in the geographical area where we live.

 
It is important to understand it is through prayer and intercession that the pathway between the earth and heaven is cleared, and we will hear what the Lord is speaking to us.

 
In this season the apostolic leaders and prophets will hear clearly and give prophetic instruction to the body.  The Bible says the Lord will give His prophets instructions about the times and seasons we are in.  Without knowledge we perish and we must receive what the Lord is revealing.

 
I want to remind you that spiritually speaking you are seated in heavenly places with Christ.  You are not down here on earth, praying and waiting for the answer to come from heaven. You are in the heavens with Christ and the second heaven is under your feet. Ephesians 2:5 says, “Even when we were dead in trespasses, God made us alive together with Christ and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” We are far above principalities, power, might and dominion of the ruling spirits in heavenly places.

 
In the book of Matthew 16:18, the scripture says, “…upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.“ Darkness cannot overcome the light if we are aggressive in prayer. The praying church is to move aggressively against the entrance of hell into our circumstances.

 
Our responsibility is to spend time with the Lord and hear what He wants to say to us. We have been hearing a lot about entering into the secret place with the Lord in recent years. Many of us have prayed and asked the Lord how to enter into that place.

 
One evening, while I was in worship, the Lord showed me a white room with a door in the wall. I felt in my spirit the door had always been there, I had never seen it before. I opened the door, there was a stairway which led to the upper chamber of the Lord, it was filled with light. I was impressed by the Holy Spirit that this room represented my spirit. The door opened the way into the secret place where intimate communion with our Lord is possible.

 
Many Christians have been walking past this door, even though they discern the Lord calling them, they fail to press into an intimate place with Him. They get busy and feel they’ll take some time later. As our days get busier and busier that time never comes for some. The Holy Spirit is grieved, and soon, those who won’t take time to be with the Lord will not hear Him calling anymore!

 
Just as the Shulamite, in the Song of Solomon, failed to open the door for her beloved, we are guilty of doing the same. Just as she needed to open the door to let her beloved into the room, we too, must open this door for our Lord. The door opens from the inside and the Lord will not open it Himself.

 
We open the door by becoming worshippers and by preparing our vessel to be a place where the manifest presence of our Lord dwells. When David brought the ark of God into Gibeon he prepared a place for it to dwell. The Lord had him gather the priests and Levites: In 1 Chronicles 15:12 David says, “You are heads of the fathers houses of Levites; sanctify yourselves you and your brethren, that may bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel to the place I have prepared for it.”

 
1 Chronicles 15:13 tells us the first time David had attempted to bring the ark back the anger of the Lord broke out against him because he had not consulted the Lord about the proper order. 1 Chronicles 15:14 says, “So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel.” And so it is with us. There is a preparation required if we will be those who will carry the glory of the Lord. The Lord is calling us to holiness for this is the only true preparation.

 
When we were born again the abiding presence of the Lord came, and now dwells within us. I long for the Lord’s manifest presence. I want Him to make His presence known by communicating with me moment by moment.

 
We must be molded into the character of Christ. It’s very easy for us to get caught up in what we are doing for the Lord instead of focusing on what we are becoming.

 
We’re going through the process of becoming who we are called to be. I pray the Lord will mold us into His likeness. We must make ourselves a dwelling place for the manifest presence of the Holy Spirit.

 
One day, the Lord showed me a vision of myself with the Ark of the Covenant inside my belly. Fire and smoke were pouring out of the ark. Through this vision, He showed me we are capable of becoming carriers of His glory. I was led to pray through Psalm 51.

 
Please pray Psalm 51:1-17 with me:

 
“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.

 
For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.

 
Cleanse me with hyssop and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.

 
Create in me a pure heart, O God and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

 
Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you. Save me from bloodguilt, O God, the God who saves me, and my tongue will sing of your righteousness. O Lord open my mouth and my mouth will declare your praise.

 
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”

 
As I prayed through this psalm the Lord impressed me, “This is the place you need to stay.” We can be carriers of the Lord’s glory, however, He is not going to place his manifest glory on an unclean vessel. He wants us to walk away from habitual sins and habits which continue to hold us back. Flirting with sin will keep you from walking in the anointing and authority of Christ.

 
We must be vessels full of the oil of the Lord’s presence. We value His presence when we allow Him to change our character and sinful nature. Romans 8:29-30 says, “For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among brothers. And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified." We are predestined to be conformed into the image of His son, Jesus.

 
The Lord is concerned with our personal character, and how we reflect the character of Christ. When we walk in the character of Christ, we will then use the anointing properly, and touch the world for His glory not our own. We will be vessels who will bring deliverance to all people and nations.

 
Do we truly appreciate what it means to have the presence of God inhabiting our homes, churches, or ministries for an extended visit? The Lord is looking for people who will persevere through difficult times. Enduring the ridicule of men while continuing to love and seek his face. Don’t let anything stop you from pursuing the Lord’s presence.

 
The Lord will bring His wisdom, strategies and miracles into our every circumstance. He does this as we come into intimacy with Him. We wait quietly in His presence until He speaks to us. We enter into a relationship with Him where we become involved in what He is doing. We wait until we sense we are excused from His presence.

 
When we come into this place we will receive the strategies needed to bring in the harvest. The Lord will give us wisdom and prophetic instruction. When we release His word it is a living seed which will produce after its kind. The gates of hell will not be able to stand against the word of the Lord.

 
Many of us have received a personal word of knowledge and prophecy. We also have the written word of God, which is full of our covenant promises. We must war with the words of God and Scripture. Prophetic declaration establishes God’s covenant plan in the earth. We release the prophetic word of the Lord through declaration when we decree and prophesy the word of the Lord into the earth. Our consistent prayer will over throw the thrones of iniquity in our region.

 
It is time for souls to come into the kingdom. The harvest is ready and we must pray in such a way that the Spirit of God will invade the nations.

 
When we pray in agreement with the Lord we are entering into Strategic Spiritual Warfare with Him. We are releasing upon the earth what He has spoken to us in the secret place.

 
We’ve ascended in worship and opened the door into the intimate chamber of the Lord, where we have heard what’s on His heart not our own, and we get caught up in what He is doing.