In the year 2000, The Hunk and I were living in Tauranga, New Zealand and working for a mission agency that was reaching Asia with the Good News about Jesus.

I loved my country of birth with a passion. I had also fallen in love with our adopted city, and planned to live there—God willing—for the rest of my life.

One evening at a church service, the visiting speaker asked us to form groups to pray for nations that were on our heart. I moved to the group that was interceding for Asia. To my utter surprise, when I closed my eyes, I saw the map of Australia.

At that moment, the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, ‘You are going to receive a Macedonian call.’

Then I remembered that in Acts 16, the Apostle Paul had a dream in which a Macedonian man stood begging him, and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”

I shared the incident with my husband, and we tucked the word away in the back of our minds. ‘Perhaps’, we thought, ‘we will take short trips across to Australia for ministry at some stage.’

Some six months later, we had a social visit from the Australian Board Chairman of our mission organisation. We were sitting in a café in Tauranga when he said, ‘Would you come over and help us?’

The Hunk and I looked at each other—both thinking the same thing. Had we just received our Macedonian call?

Many other incidents served to confirm that God was indeed calling us to live and minister in Australia, and the call to ‘come across and help’ became stronger. In 2002 we moved our family across to Melbourne to live.

Divine Positioning 

In Acts 17:26-28, Paul said,

‘From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.’

Stop! Read that again…

Sometimes it is easier for us to believe that God is in charge of the big picture of our lives—like our move to Australia—than in our daily life.

However, I have come to realise that God has not only divinely placed me, but that He is also at work in the lives of people around me, positioning them to seek Him.

If God has placed someone around your life who does not know personally Jesus’ love and salvation, you can be assured that God has put them there.

This may be a family member, a workmate, neighbour, fellow-student or even someone you bump into at the supermarket or on the street.

Their proximity to you tells you that God is already at work in their lives, drawing them to Himself. There may not be any outwards signs of faith, but you do not need to be discouraged by their apparent lack of interest or hardness.

You can have confidence that God has positioned you alongside them. To be a messenger of His love and goodness, an influence to bring them further along on their journey of faith.

Prayer Aids Divine Positioning.

When you pray, the Holy Spirit will position you at the right place, at the right time, to be part of someone’s salvation miracle.

Prayer aids divine positioning. The story of Cornelius in Acts 10 is a great example of this.

In this story, we see prayer accomplishing two things. Firstly, the prayer of Cornelius moved the hand of the Lord to bring salvation to him and his household (Acts 10:4) and secondly, prayer put the Apostle Peter into a place where he could see, hear and respond to the purposes of God to evangelise the Gentiles, beginning with Cornelius. (Acts 10:9)

Sometimes we looks at people around us and all we see is impossibility—but nothing is impossible for God (Luke 1:37).

I have learned to pray and ask God to put the people that He wants to touch in my path every day—THEN, to look for what happens next.

You are a vital link in the chain of relationships and events that will lead someone to faith in Jesus.

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Related Posts:

A Beginners Guide to Prophetic Evangelsim Pt 1

© Helen Calder    Enliven Publishing

This is the third post in the Prophetic Evangelism series.

What is Prophetic Prayer?

Prophetic prayer occurs when we use revelation received from the Holy Spirit in the process of praying.

The New Testament Greek word translated ‘revelation’ means ‘unveiling.’ The Holy Spirit shares knowledge that we could not know by natural means. We then reflect that supernatural insight back to God in requests, intercession and proclamation.

A revelation from God may come in the form of a prophecy, picture (vision), dream, idea, or scripture. However, there are a myriad of creative ways that the Holy Spirit can speak to us if we are open to hearing His voice.

We can also pray prophetically without it being premeditated on our part. During or after the prayer we realise that the Holy Spirit has directed us how to pray.

4 Types of Prophetic Prayer

There are four main types of prophetic prayer. These are:

1. Receiving:

The Spirit shares prophetic revelation with us as we wait on God in prayer

2. Interceding:

We use the prophetic revelation we have received to remind God of His promises

3. Warfaring:

We use prophetic revelation to wage spiritual warfare and make powerful proclamations

4. Imparting:

God uses us to pray prophetically as we minister in prayer to others

How Prophetic Prayer can help in the Process of Evangelism

1. Receiving revelation in prayer

One time, I was praying for a family in our neighbourhood in New Zealand, when I had a vision. It was like a slide show. I saw the couple getting married; I saw my husband officiating at the wedding; I saw them becoming Christians.

Many months later, the man called us to share a secret—he had asked his partner to marry him and wanted The Hunk to perform the ceremony. We were thrilled, because we knew that God was at work, drawing them to Himself.

As you pray for God’s guidance in the process of evangelism, or for someone on your heart that is not a Christian, be open to have the Holy Spirit speak to you.

We do not need to be limited to set times of prayer. As we learn to walk with God in our daily life, we can be open to revelation that the Holy Spirit shares with us as we go along.

2. Using revelation to make requests in prayer

Once God has spoken to us about His plans for a friend or loved one who is unsaved, or for people that we come across, we can use that revelation to make specific, faith-filled requests to God. (Is 62:6-7)

The date of our friends wedding was getting closer. One morning I prayed and cried out to God, reminding Him of the vision and promises for this couple. That very day several events took place that showed us—and them—that God was at work in their lives.

Scriptures can be especially powerful in this regard. I have a Bible verse that the Lord has spoken to me regarding a family member that I frequently bring back to Him in prayer.

The power of this kind of prophetic prayer can be summed up by these words from the Bible:

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us-whatever we ask-we know that we have what we asked of him. 1 John 5:14-15

3. Using revelation to wage spiritual warfare

Similarly, prophetic revelation can be used to wage spiritual warfare in prayer for the lives of people who do not yet have a relationship with Jesus. (Eph 6:12-18)

We can use the prophecies, scriptures, and other revelations we have received to declare God’s purposes for their lives and to pray against demonic strongholds (2 Cor 10:4-6).

Prayer helps us lead a prophetic lifestyle

In the process of prophetic evangelism, prayer can also help us in other ways:

• Prayer is where we get to know the Father’s heart and values—this helps us to respond to people the way He would.
• Prayer is the place where we commune with God. As we live out of that fellowship, we grow in sensitivity to what He is doing moment-by-moment, in our daily lives.
• Prayer helps us to stay filled with the Holy Spirit and empowered to witness of His love and power to others.

Prophetic prayer is powerful because we are praying according to what is on God’s heart and in His purposes for a situation, ourselves or other people.

Just as with all prophecy, it is important that any revelation we receive in prayer be weighed up, to see if it really is from God.

In the next post, I will look at a third key to prophetic evangelism, which is ‘positioning’—being aware that God has strategically placed you alongside people who are on His heart. He is already at work in their lives, drawing them to Himself.

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Are you interested in finding out more about how to pray effectively for your unsaved family and friends?

For further information, check out the e-book,

Pray for the Lost: Impact the Eternal Destiny of Those You Love

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Related posts:

A Beginners Guide To Prophetic Evangelism Part 1

Pray for Those You Love and Unleash the Power of God

Need A Breakthrough? Uncover the Mysteries of Heaven

© Helen Calder    Enliven Publishing

Are you looking for resources to help you develop your gifts of prophecy or prayer?

I am thrilled to announce that all four of my books are now available in e-book format. Here is a synopsis of each of them, or you can review and purchase them on the e-book sales page:

HOW TO BE A SUPERNATURAL CHRISTIAN IN YOUR EVERYDAY WORLD

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A step-by-step guide to prophetic evangelism that you can apply every day.

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PROPHETIC PEOPLE IN A CHANGING CHURCH

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PRAY FOR THE LOST: Impact The Eternal Destiny Of Those You Love Through Prayer

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Do you have loved ones whose salvation you are concerned about? Discover how your prayers have power.

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In ‘Pray For The Lost: Impact the Eternal Destiny Of Those You Love Through Prayer’, you will learn… (More details …)

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© Helen Calder    Enliven Publishing

In the early years of our marriage, my husband Malcolm and I wandered far from God. During those years, my mother-in-law would often say to us with a twinkle in her eye, ‘God has got His net over you.’ Sure enough, the day came when, weary of our backsliding, we recommitted our lives to Jesus, going on to passionately serve Him in Christian ministry.

How did my mother-in-law know God had His ‘net’ over us? She knew because she was praying. Her prayer for our recommitment and salvation made the net of God’s grace inescapable.

Some Things Only God Can Do

Before we can exercise life-changing prayer, it is vital we acknowledge that between where circumstances are now and where we believe God wants them to be, is a gulf that we cannot cross. This gap means that no matter how hard we try, or no matter what we say, we are powerless in ourselves to make the desired changes happen.

• There are things that you believe to be on God’s agenda for your life, family and others you care about, that you are helpless, apart from God, to make happen
• There are people you care about who are far from God right now, whose hearts will only be changed by the power of God’s Holy Spirit
• There is no way by natural means that person who is dear to you will have that addiction or bondage broken over their life.

Let’s take a moment right now to stand together at that chasm and let the realisation sink in. Take a good look at the distance that you cannot leap across without help.

Now imagine there is a bridge, suspended between this natural reality and the seeming impossible fulfilment of God’s Will. Stepping up to that bridge you see a sign that reads, ‘Ask in My Name—Jesus.’

In John 15:16-17, Jesus said,
‘You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit-fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.’

God’s Plan for Prayer

Jesus taught us to pray, ‘Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.’ He revealed that the will of God must be ‘asked’ into being. And He didn’t just teach that, He demonstrated it. In the book of Luke especially, we see that Jesus lived a life of prayer.

It was God’s plan from the beginning that His people rule in the earth, under His authority.[1] God has designed prayer to be the means by which we exercise that authority and partner with God to fulfil His purposes. This is also true of His plan to bring salvation to people.

Watchman Nee once said that prayer is to the will of God as railway tracks are to a train. A train engine can have tremendous power; it can go a thousand miles a day, it can pull a heavy load. It can have all the potential in the world, but unless there are tracks for it to go on, it’s not going anywhere. The train and tracks are designed to work together”[2]

I heard the testimony of a woman who was very dry and religious in her faith. She was admitted to hospital with a ruptured, infected appendix; her condition was so severe that she died. As her spirit was leaving her body she saw her father rushing into the hospital. He uttered one word of prayer—‘Jesus.’ She saw that prayer beam up to God’s throne like a shaft of light. That single word of prayer was answered; she lived and her faith was transformed.

Like that beam of light, your prayers and cries to God are significant and powerful. You can be a Supernatural Christian and make a difference in the life of those you care about. Your prayer can help bring them to God.

The above is a brief excerpt from my new e-book: Pray for the Lost: Impact the Eternal Destiny of Your Loved Ones Through Prayer.

In this book, I explore a number of things relating to this subject.

There are some tough issues as we examine the spiritual condition of a person who is lost and far from God, or a Christian who is backsliding. But there are also some exciting discoveries about how your prayer can release the resources of heaven, including angels, signs and miracles and the Spirit of God. There is a whole section on some practical ways to pray for unsaved loved ones and some discussion and keys to wage spiritual warfare. You will also learn a bit more about my own story and how I was saved through the ministry of prayer and deliverance.

See also Portal Moments: Supernatural Encounters and Answers to Prayer

© Helen Calder    Enliven Publishing

[1] Gen 1:28,  Dan 7:27

[2] Watchman Nee, Let Us Pray, 1977