God still heals. God still delivers. God still protects. God still saves.
I write these statements because I feel like the Body of Christ (and everyone else for that matter) has been pummeled by perpetual trauma over the last year and a half. Covid, shut downs, protests, riots, youtube videos of deadly racism, political upheaval, school shootings, natural disasters, domestic terrorism, gang violence, the deaths of friends and family members, inflation, etc. has wreaked havoc on our society. It’s wreaked havoc on our souls!
I want to encourage my fellow believers that although we have experienced significant loss over the last year and half, our God is still faithful and He still answers prayers. You are not helpless in this fight. God has given us keys to overcoming the darkness around us. Please don’t give up! Our God is the God of ALL hope.
Here are five keys to praying for your local school, college,
or university:
1. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what is happening in the unseen realm. Ask Him what and how to pray. Is there a spirit of murder or hate that is influencing students? Is it violent video games? Is there a spirit of racism? My prayers can’t make someone choose a particular path, but they can diminish or even remove the demonic influence that holds sway over an individual or group of people. Jesus teaches us in Matthew 16 and 18 about binding and loosing within the context of prayer (and forgiveness). He says in Matthew 16:19, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind (tie, fasten, declare to be prohibited and unlawful) on earth will be bound in heaven. Whatever you loose (untie, release, annul, contravene) on earth will be loosed in heaven.” What we do in prayer has real impact in the unseen realm, which in turn has tangible impact upon those for whom we pray.
Here’s an example prayer: In the name of Jesus, I bind the spirits of self-hate and suicide over the student body of McCluer North High School. We cancel all demonic assignments of suicide in Jesus’ name. We release the love and compassion of Christ over the students. Father, we ask that Your Spirit would apprehend every student who is struggling with self-loathing tonight. May they experience Your magnificent love and acceptance. Father, release your angels to minister to those that need angelic intervention tonight. We apply the blood of the Lamb over McCluer North. According to Hebrews, we thank You that the blood of Jesus cleanses our conscience from acts that lead to death. We declare that over McCluer North. May this school be known as a place of peace. Let Your shalom rest there.
2. Pray for the schools by name. Pray for superintendents, principals, support staff, and teachers by name when possible. Pray for students by name when possible. Be specific in your prayers. Specificity and focus helps us hit the bullseye when we intercede.
Example prayer: Father, we thank you for Superintendent Dr. Joseph Davis. We thank you for his leadership in the district. We ask that you grant him wisdom and discernment as he leads. We pray that he would govern and serve according to Biblical principles, that righteousness and justice would be the foundation of his leadership, and that your love would be a banner over him and his family. In the name of Jesus, we bind any demonic spirits from having influence over his life or through his leadership. If he does not know you as Lord and Savior, we pray that he would be saved. We bless him and his family in the name of Jesus.
3. Gather some people together to pray in agreement about the things that need to change. There is tremendous power and authority in agreement. As I encouraged in a recent blog https://www.tamijoyflick.com/post/confessions-encouragement-from-a-tired-prayer-leader-five-practical-ways-to-pray-more-with-others, make the time every week to pray with someone else. I could go on and on about the answers to prayer I’ve personally witnessed over the years when my friends and I have prayed together. We have rejoiced over many healings, babies, children, spouses, financial breakthrough, ministry breakthrough, restored relationships, etc. The more we pray together, the more we see consistent answers to our prayers.
According to Jesus’ own words, “Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my father in heaven. For where two or three together in my name, there am I with them.” Matthew 18:19 - 20
4. When possible, pray on the property. Start regular prayer walks around the school. (Remember to invite others to pray with you!)
According to Ephesians 6:15, our feet are shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. In Joshua 1:3, anywhere we tread, that ground has been given to us. How do these scriptures apply to prayer walking? Everywhere we walk and pray, we release the peace (shalom) of heaven (a manifestation of the government of God, according to Isaiah 9:7 & Romans 14:17) over that ground. We are staking that ground for the Kingdom. Our prayers dispel darkness and release light.
The Hebrew definition of shalom is wholeness. I think of it this way: restoring broken pieces back into their God-ordained design; bringing wholeness into a broken relationship or situation. The pictorial definition of the word “shalom” in Hebrew (this means defining a word based on the word picture that the Hebrew letters depict) is “The divine presence of God destroys the leader of chaos.” Think about the power of that statement. God’s presence destroys chaos…..and He chooses to do that through us as we pray, “tread,” and speak.
5. Partake of communion on the property where innocent blood was shed.
I was taught some years ago that we apply the blood of Jesus to any place where innocent blood has been shed. In 2016, Kalamazoo was hit with two mass casualty events: #1 - An Uber driver shot and killed six and wounded one and #2 - A drunk pick-up driver purposely plowed into a group of bicyclists (killed five and wounded four). Besides the larger community prayer gatherings that happened in response to the brutality of both incidents, there were small groups of intercessors who went to the scenes of those crimes and partook of communion at the exact locations where blood had been shed. I was in a group that partook of the communion elements at two of the five sites. One of the reasons my friends and I felt led to do this is because a friend of mine and I had both received dreams that another act of mass violence was planned for Kzoo. We felt like the Lord was warning us so that we could pray and avert the danger.*
I asked a couple of my seasoned prophetic colleagues to join me in partaking of the broken body and blood of the Lord at two of the sites. We didn’t know what it would “feel” like to go and do that. I remember being at the site where the bicyclists were killed and as soon as we began to partake of the communion elements, the juice and the bread, we felt a strong angelic presence. The three of us all experienced a powerful manifestation of the presence of God. It was almost as if the host of heaven were waiting for us to come. Surreal encounter. In prayer together, we closed whatever portal of violence was open over our city because of that incident. Our goal was to remove any foothold of the enemy that could allow another act of mass violence.
Communion is the ultimate prophetic act. Partaking of Jesus’ broken body and blood through the reverential consumption of grape juice and bread is so powerful. It’s a powerful moment of union between us and our Savior, and communion with each other. It’s also an act of violence against the kingdom of darkness. In Exodus, it was the blood of a spotless lamb applied to the doorpost of a home that stopped the death angel from slaying the firstborn children of Israel. And it’s the blood of The Sinless Lamb of God who was slain whose blood provides redemption, cleansing, salvation, deliverance, protection, healing, and the ability to overcome when combined with the word of our testimonies. Praise God!
Only Jesus’ blood can close a demonic portal of destruction that was opened through the shedding of innocent blood. This is why, in prayer, we “apply” the blood of the Lamb to the doorposts of our home or “plead” the blood over our lives. This is also why coming into agreement with the power of His broken body and blood through communion is so powerful.
My hope is that you feel empowered and equipped to pray for your school. May His kingdom come, may His will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12
*Sometimes the Lord alerts us to impending “storms” because we are supposed to pray and act in order to avert or mitigate the danger. Sometimes He reveals what is to come so that we can be prepared and respond well when the “storm” hits, whether that’s a physical storm, political, societal, etc. For examples of prophecies and corresponding wisdom/action, check out Jesus’ prophecy about the destruction of Jerusalem in Matthew 13 (which was fulfilled in 70 AD) and Agabus’ prophecy about a severe famine in Acts 11:28.