by National House of Prayer
Well, the time has come God has really sold the building of NHOP! We are packing up and distributing items to local ministries who are in need of beds, bedding, towels etc. There are tangible mixed emotions in our hearts as we leave the building where so much has taken place over these past fifteen years. At the same time, we sense an excitement to be stepping out into a new season which God is truly opening for NHOP. We have no doubt that we are following the Lord and we are so thankful for the many leaders who have strongly affirmed this next step and are walking with us.
God has reminded me (Rob) again and again that he is in charge of changing times and seasons, (Dan. 2). I believe that we at NHOP have entered into a new season which is not centred around a building but rather centred around people across our nation in raising the call of prayer for our nation and our leaders.
See, the former things have taken place and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you.” Isaiah 42:9
The Parish of St Clements will take possession of 17 Myrand Avenue at end of September. The NHOP office will relocate to Airdrie, Alberta with the goal of increasing prayer not only for Alberta, but for our nation. Try and imagine with us, a prayer canopy over Canada; a National House of Prayer, from Sea to Sea.
What About Ottawa? In view of this change, many are asking what will happen to any ground that has been influenced in our nation’s capital? It’s a very good question, and we have been seeking God and strategizing. To date, we have five firm main points that will continue to influence prayer in Ottawa:
16 individuals who are committed every second week to join one other person to pray in the House of Commons during Question Period. (If you’re in the Ottawa / Gatineau region, give us a call and we can add you to the existing list).
Visiting Prayer Teams coming to Ottawa at least four times per year. Fran and I will continue to host teams for these particular weeks. We are also excited about a new development by a Christian motel owner who wants to work with us on this.
Our Tuesday night prayer gathering, (Field Team), is uniting with the Burning Hearts House of Prayer to continue to blow the trumpet of prayer for those across the Ottawa region. It’s exciting to see this demonstration of unity within the prayer movement of Ottawa. A special thanks to Nahia and their leadership team.
Fran and I will continue to personally connect with other Christian ministries based in Ottawa who also have a calling to promote good government in our nation. These ministries have specific prayer needs which will be sent to the Field Teams.
A monthly Field Team, is planning to meet in a room on Parliament Hill. Amidst all the swirling of partisan competition and world views; this prayer meeting helps to establish a prayerful presence right on the Hill.
In addition to the above, we have not closed the door to establish a new physical presence in Ottawa. How this would possibly look must be re-defined and reflect the freshness of God’s leading as well as the support and covering of local churches. This would be something which would be ‘birthed’ by local intercessors and would also carry the national ‘amen’ of God’s leading.
Our goal: To see increased Holy Spirit led strategic prayer for government and our nation. We would like to see 100 Field Teams meeting in this next year and we are encouraged that many people have already joined us in this vision. As you know, we are only getting started with this re-direction and you could help us immensely by sharing this call to prayer with your church family as well as other like minded believers in your region.
If you are not part of a Field Team and would like to be, please let us know and we’ll do our best to connect you. It may be that you could begin a team for your church, or your area, and others would join in with you. Just a reminder, a Field Team commits to host a prayer meeting a minimum of once per month meeting at a convenient time to pray for our government. We will e-mail monthly prayer points and a video highlighting various issues to pray for. Nhop’s primary call is to pray for the federal government, and we are aware that there will be times to target provincial situations.
There is a secure FaceBook page for Field Teams to connect with each other in Canada.It serve as a platform to relay how God has led people to pray. From this sharing we can begin to corporately discern at a greater level what the Holy Spirit is saying about various issues we are focused on. This is needed in our nation.
After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives andyour homes….” The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, join us there. Our God will fight for us. Nehemiah 4: 14, 19(b), 20 (NIV)
2019 Federal Elections
Who will define Canada over the next four years?
There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that advises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community. Prov.6:16-19
Fatigued and Discouraged Voters
With the recent report by the Ethics Commissioner, SNC Lavalin has been brought into the forefront again and many people ask ‘why they should even bother voting; Government cannot be trusted!’ Let’s remember that in our voting, we are not only to be concerned about our own interests, but also for the well being of future generations.
Pray for a renewed interest to vote for righteous individuals who will be men and women of conviction and integrity. Lets be thankful for the men and women who are deeply committed in their desire to serve Canada as a Member of Parliament. There are still some ridings without candidates chosen in each party.
Pray
Many Christians are volunteering for candidates or are training to work with Elections Canada. Pray that they will preform their duties with excellence.This can be time for people to consider too lend a hand. Salt and light is needed there as much as anywhere.
Media
Pray for the media to steward their role in communicating any misconduct they witness truthfully and with accuracy. Canadians appreciate reporters who exhibit excellence in journalism. Voter Turnout
Typically, there has not been a great difference between the percentage of voting Christians and non-Christians. We are praying for effective national communication that will help pastors and other leaders to clearly see the crisis we are in. Pray for our Church leaders to teach the biblical precedence in respect to praying for our political candidates and in regard to our civic responsibility to participate in voting.
A Proper Perspective Regarding Government
Pray that Canadian Christians would not put all their focus on government as the only way we can positively change our nation. When we make all our problems political, we are saying therefore, that all our answers can only be solved politically. This raises government to a place it was never intended to be.
Remember that Jesus always has been, and forever will be, the right solution. He chooses to work through us as we walk with Him, changing culture to eventually change government. Yes, prayer and righteous action are needed for our government, but let’s not make government something it was never intended to be. . Pray that Canadian Christians will develop a God-given compassion for those who are lost in our nation and are doing what they believe to be right in their own eyes.
Lord, help us to understand that as citizens we must engage in our society to effect change. What an amazing privilege we have to partner with God on behalf of Canada; we choose, He appoints and we must honour those in authority over us. 1 Peter: 13-17
Prepare for the Elections
Zoom Call September 1st 8-9 pm EST
We are presenting a free teaching via Zoom this September 1st, 8-9 pm EST to prepare ourselves for the upcoming federal elections in October.
There is a strong biblical foundation why it’s important for Christians to:
1. Engage in society, and in particular, register your voice by voting.
2. Navigate through the political landscape and media while still voting wisely for good government.
3. Recognize some common mistakes to avoid in how we vote.
4. Learn effective prayer models to guide us in praying for and leading prayer for the elections. 5. Receive some power-point slides to present during your announcements in your local church.
We encourage you to join us for this free equipping session. If you are part of a Field Team, plan to get together with your team to participate in our equipping webinar launch.
Register by emailing info@nhop.ca and title your email Zoom Call. We will then email you the particulars to join this call.