Tuesday Night Prayer Meetings
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by Renee DeLoriea
Tuesday night is the most important night of the week at the Brownsville Revival. It is the night in which at least a thousand prayer warriors gather to pray for the coming week's revival services. Brother Dick Reuben, a Messianic Jew who regularly ministers at Brownsville and often leads the prayer service, often makes the statement, "As the Tuesday night prayer meeting goes, so goes the revival for the week."
Visitors who come for a full week of revival services often say that the prayer meeting is the most powerful night of the week. It is then that darkness is broken up in the heavenlies and any spiritual oppression that may have been left behind during the many deliverances is driven out. It is also a time in which all who are gathered in His name in one spirit and in one accord contend in prayer for God to send forth His Spirit to the far corners of the earth and bring in the harvest of souls. It is a time in which by the Name and Blood of Jesus Christ the powers of darkness are commanded to release their hold on souls that are called into God's Kingdom. It is a time in which faces and hearts humbly ask Almighty God to open the heavens so that His gifts may flow freely, all for His glory and honor.
Those who come to a Tuesday night prayer meeting for the first time often do not know what to expect. However, the sanctuary is charged with surety that something mighty is about to happen and this is war. Daily and personal concerns generally quickly fall to the wayside because it quickly becomes apparent that there is a job to do, and it is one of utmost significance and gravity.
The first fifteen minutes or so is generally a time of personal meditation and prayer, and of moving to a place of complete focus on God. Worship music plays softly in the background as thoughts and meditations are turned inward and upward. Hundreds of guests from all over the world have come for the first time. The prayer coordinator has welcomed them and told them a little bit about the general format and purpose of the meeting. The true leader of the meeting, however, is the Holy Ghost.
The spirit of repentance falls powerfully during those first few minutes of personal meditation. The awesome presence of God is unmistakable. The magnificence of His presence seems to set everyone's priorities in order very quickly. God has business to do and those who have chosen to be a part of this night's battle are there to do what it takes to get that business done. The call to repentance from sin and selfishness is one of imperativeness because God wants to move and He does not want any hindrances. On their knees at the altar or kneeling between the pews, those who came in as individuals become unified in corporate purpose, the purpose of putting on the Mind of Christ in glorifying God and doing His work.
The battle work begins with teams of two to five individuals locking arms for the purpose of driving out demons that may have been left behind the week before. With arms locked, hundreds of teams march through each room of the campus, the balcony, the restrooms, the baptismal area, and choir loft. In the power of the Holy Ghost and in the Blood and Name of Jesus Christ, spiritual darkness is driven out through rebuke and commandment that it go, through the speaking in tongues, and through petitioning God for the release of His anointing. The spiritual environment is brought into order through corporate spiritual warfare. Faith is built and strengthened with each marched step. This is war, and God's people will settle for no less than victory. Darkness will be defeated and cast out, and God's people will settle for nothing short of total victory. The days of being harassed, discouraged, or hindered by satan and his imps are over. God's people are taking charge through the power of the Holy Ghost.
Anything that would exalt itself against the knowledge of God is cast down and cast out to the outer dry places of the earth. Anything which would try to cause distraction from the hearing of the Words of Life and Truth are commanded to leave. Anything which would exalt itself against the leadership of the church and cause division or accusation is driven out by the Name and Blood of Jesus Christ. Pride, wrath, division, jealousy, doubt, affliction, confusion, perversion, distortion, rebellion, and sorcery are rebuked and brought down. In the nursery area families and workers are prayed for, and spirits of accidents and infirmity are bound. Hands are laid on the doors of church leaders' offices and spiritual hindrances are commanded to keep their hands off of them, and God is petitioned to place mighty angels of protection round and about them. As teams pass one another in the hall, no one personally acknowledges one another because each is at war and distractions from the singleness of purpose will not be allowed.
After the spiritual environment has been "swept and cleaned" it is time to ask God to move in lives, in families, in ministries, and in lands. Ten to twelve tapestries called prayer banners are posted at various stations around the sanctuary. The banners are placed as category guides of things one might pray for. These beautifully stitched tapestries suggest the categories of healing, families, pastors, ministries, spiritual warfare, Jerusalem, revival, souls, catastrophes, children, schools, our country, and "the Bridegroom Cometh." Those who are praying are clearly instructed that the banners are only for suggestions of ideas for categories of things to pray for and not for any other purpose. These are to help those who are praying to stay focused in prayer and avoid distraction. Those who are praying at the various category areas for the most part petition God individually. Someone at the family banner may be praying for their own family, while another may be praying that families who come to revival that week might be blessed, and others may be praying for families in their church or community. Oftentimes, tears are streaming at one banner while spiritual warfare is being waged at another. Thousands of prayers are lifted up into the heavenies with each passing minute. The presence and glory of the Lord ministers and brings confident faith and hope in He whose ears are open to each petition. Some may only move to two or three banners during the next half-hour, fixing on the categories that are their deepest concern at that time. Others will move quickly, spending only a few minutes in a particular category, confident that it is important that they take on the burden to petition in each area. While this is a time of individual prayer, the corporate element is strong because faith is being built up together. While praying for one's own burdens, oftentimes those around a banner will begin agreeing in prayer with one another on a particular subject for a few minutes. Then, after a breakthrough in prayer is felt, each will move onto his or her own individual prayer burdens.
Many tears are shed at the "souls" category banner. Salvation and deliverance of loved ones are petitioned for and spiritually fought for. The souls of a lost and dying world are cried over and contended for. Bits of pieces of paper bearing the scrolled names of loved ones are piled up at the bottom of the banner to be gathered up and taken to the leaders of other prayer teams who will be praying throughout the week. Names and pictures of loved ones have also been left on a table for anointed prayer. Many testimonies of salvations, healings, deliverances, and prayer request answers have been born out of pictures and items being placed on that table and the church leadership and others laying hands on and praying over pictures, personal belongings, and prayer request cards that are laid there in faith.
The thousands are then asked to gather at the altar area to call for souls to be brought out of darkness and into the marvelous Light of Jesus Christ from the far corners of the earth, from the East, the West, the North, and the South. The spiritual warfare and souls banners are posted at the South end of the building. With prayer warriors standing unified in spiritual battle array, with their hands powerfully stretched forth, souls are called out from cities, countries, and continents to the South. Powers of spiritual wickedness in high places are commanded to release their holds on individuals and communities by the Blood and Name of Jesus Christ. God is called upon to send forth His mighty anointing and bring in the harvest of souls. With a prayer captain on the platform steadfastly leading the charge of contending prayer with microphone in hand, the mighty roar of God's army is sent forth in each direction, first to the south, then the west, east and north. The first time this charge went out from Brownsville Assembly of God a year and a half ago, several individuals were sitting on the steps of the church the next morning when an usher came to open the doors of the church. When the usher asked the young people if there was something he could do to help them, they said, "We're here to get saved." Now, more than 91,000 have gone to the altar to receive Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.
Faces and attention are then focused upward as humble hearts ask God for an open heaven for the coming week of revival. 'It is only by Your blessed mercy and grace that there is even one more moment of the glory of Your awesome presence being manifested whereby lives and hearts are transformed. We, and so many others, are desperate for a touch from You, God. Thank you for all you have done, even this very night. We are not worthy, Lord, but for some reason you have chosen to visit your people one more time. Continue to have on the lost and hurting, on our land, on the nations of the world, and on us. All the glory and honor be to You.'
We, at ANTIOCH would like to thank Brownsville Assembly of God for allowing us to post this article here.
