Transformation Syracuse

TRANSFORMATION
SYRACUSE/CNY

Partnership

Nehemiah Prayer Teams

Background

Affiliation

Statement of Faith

Location/Intercessory Prayer Times
For Pastors/Leaders

Partnership/Donations

Executive Committee

Apostolic Council

Pastor's Prayer Alliance

Links

Keys to Success

God gives us our overall strategy to win the battle for Syracuse in 2 Chronicles 7:14:
"If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." (2CH 7:14)

In order to stem the tide of lawlessness and godlessness in our city and to usher in transformation and revival, our strategy must encompass the following elements:
1. Humility

"But on this one will I look: on him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word.", For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: "I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones (Isa 66:2, 57:15).

The above verse shows us that revival is tied to humility. Humility, according to Webster’s Dictionary, entails being submissive and adopting a stature that is neither proud, haughty, arrogant or assertive. According to the Apostle Paul, humility is the evidence of a life worthy of the calling received.
" As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." (Eph 4:1-3)

Humility is critical for success. It is the quality that will allow us as God’s people to corporately come together in unity to pray and seek His face -- regardless of denominational differences, personal status or position in life.

2. Unity
"For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another." (Romans 12:4-5)

Unity, again according to Webster’s Dictionary, is expressed as a condition of harmony with an ordering of parts to constitute a whole or to promote an undivided total effect.

We all believe in unity of the Spirit. Unity is a no-brainer. We need unity for the Body of Christ to be able to function properly. We are all parts of the same Body, serving in different capacities, but all working together in order that God’s will may be done on earth as it is in heaven.

However, attempting to "do" unity will fail. True unity is a byproduct of humility between Christians who are sold out to God and prefer others above themselves. We can't accomplish transformation on our own. We must commit ourselves to Him and to one another to serve the city. As Francis Frangipane states: "It takes a city-wide church to win a city-wide war."
"In Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the LORD." (2CH 30:12)

Unity is something supernatural that God does where we attain His mind and His heart on a particular matter and then function corporately as the Body of Christ (not as separate body parts). When we reach unity in the faith and attain to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. (Eph 4:11-13), we not only bring glory to God (Rom 15:5-6), but great power is released (Acts 4:32-33)

"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." (COL 3:12-14)

Unless the Body of Christ can achieve true unity, each member of the Body will function separately, doing some good, but will never attain the full measure of what the Body was meant to do. So let us put off the old nature and put on the Spirit of God as a wedding garment, and come together in peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, and watch what God will do in this region.
"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent Me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." (John 17:20-23)

Unity of the Body was not only God's plan from the beginning, but a byproduct of unity is anointing -- represented by the oil used to anoint Aaron as high priest. It is the anointing that causes the Lord to command a blessing.
"Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity! "It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments. It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the LORD commanded the blessing - Life forevermore." (PSA 133:1-3)

It is the anointing that will break the yoke of bondage over this area and usher in transformation and revival, but this kind of anointing requires unity in prayer.
"It shall come to pass in that day that his burden will be taken away from your shoulder, and his yoke from your neck, and the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil." (Isa 10:27)

3) Prayer

"God does nothing except in answer to prayer" (John Wesley)

In order to destroy the works of the enemy over this area, we need to build a wall of protection around it through prayer

"You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace." (Neh 2:17)

Nehemiah recognized the trouble Jerusalem was in. The walls around the city were down and the gates were burnt with fire. This is a prophetic picture of the city of Syracuse whose redemptive destiny was to be salt and light, but now lies in spiritual ruins as it has become to be known as the Wiccan capital of New York and a center for the "New Age."

"Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." (EPH 6:17-18)

"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword…" (HEB 4:12)

It is our vision to establish Nehemiah prayer groups in and around Syracuse. They are called Nehemiah prayer groups because we need all of the family of God, regardless of minor doctrinal differences, to assume their positions on the wall and work together in unity as they did in Nehemiah's day; family groups, working together on the wall, with a sword in their hand (Neh 4:17) to tear down forces that are preventing revival in our area.

Fervent, effectual prayer is a key to victory.
"There is nothing new under the sun." (Ecc 1:9)

In 1915 a huge tabernacle designed to seat 11,000 was constructed for Billy Sunday's evangelistic crusade on Taylor Street in the city of Syracuse. An incredible chorus-choir of 1,800 voices was organized. During the two months in the Tabernacle there were approximately 78 meetings for adult audiences conducted.

What makes this significant is that for some four months prior to Billy Sunday's arrival, prayer meetings were conducted in homes throughout the city to the approximate number of 300 each week.

What did God do in response to the dedicated prayer of these faithful 300 prayer teams?

During this evangelistic, revival campaign, a grand total of 898,000 attended the Tabernacle.

Decisions to accept Christ as personal Savior and re-consecrations to his service totaled 21,162

During the following year more than 10,000 persons joined churches in the area.

As the prayer army arises in Syracuse, spiritual strongholds will come down and revival will be ushered in. But, we must humble ourselves and unite before the Spirit will give us victory. Unity and humility are essential for success. The Apostle James counsels us that "where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing will be there." (James 3:16).

When we humble ourselves and come together for the cause of Christ to seek His plans and purposes, unity of mind is something supernatural that God does.
"Also in Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the LORD." (2CH 30:12)

4. His Presence

2 Chronicles 7:14 tells us we must "seek His face." We must invite Him into our community to bring transformation. Without Him, we can do nothing.

However, our motivation is important. We must let Him check our hearts and motives and make sure there are no hidden agendas or selfish ambition, then can pray and seek Him for what He wants -- not our own agenda.

5. Perseverance

We must be determined to not let go until we hear from God and breakthrough comes. First, we must pray for God to give us His passion for our area, then we can pray for God's heart for our community and for its destiny to come forth.

This is a long-term commitment. It starts with a core of dedicated people who continue to pray and cry out to God week after week and month after month. Fervent prayer in fits-and-starts will not get the job done. Nothing happens without travailing prayer as we grieve and lament over our area.
"Then the LORD called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side and said to him, "Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it." (Eze 9:3b-4)

We must perservere until we make our city a praise in the earth. (Isa 62:6-7)

6. Guard our hearts and choose not to be offended.

During this season of extended spiritual warfare, it is easy to become discouraged and accept the view of some leaders that this area is a spiritual dead zone and not focus on past failures.

We must resist feeling that we are laboring alone. Elijah took this attitude, but God showed him that he was not alone and that there was a faithful remnant of 7000.
Then Ezekiel had to be taken to the valley of dry (dead) bones to correct his vision. As the dry bones came together, [then] God breathed His Spirit on them and they were transformed into an exceedingly great army (Eze 37:10).

As the faithful remnant embraces the vision to come together in unity and pray, God will breathe His Spirit on us and we will arise as a great army capable of pulling down spiritual strongholds. However, as Ezekiel was shown, we must first unite and connect before God will breathe life on this effort and grant us victory.

7. Personal and Corporate Repentance

"But on this one will I look: on him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word.", For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: "I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones (Isa 66:2, 57:15).

We must remember that corporate revival and transformation begins with individual obedience and humility. To be obedient, we must abide in His presence and seek out His perspective on what He feels should be done. It's not what we do in our own strength that will bring victory. God is not impressed with activity, but with obedience. We must seek His counsel on what He wants us to do to bring about change?

God will reveal secrets of breakthrough only to those who are intimate with Him and long for His presence. He will only respond to a pure heart. Therefore, we must seek individual holiness. When we do, our prayers can be fervent and effective and we will dwell with Him in the high and holy place where the enemy is under our feet.
"Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." (James 5:16)

8. Knowledge (Spiritual Mapping)
"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge." (Hos 4:6)

In order to be effective in demolishing the strongholds of the enemy, we will need revelation, wisdom and guidance from the Holy Spirit. We must not only identify the enemy, but we must seek the Lord, as Captain of the Host, for His strategies and battle plans.

Much spiritual mapping has already been accomplished and it will allow us to be more effective in prayer. However, success will require targeted prayer.

As an example, Ethiopia suffered draught and famine for 30 years, and the prayers offered up by the people seemed to be of no avail. But, when specific sin issues were identified and corporately repented of, it started raining, and the rains continued for two years. Ethiopia has gone from curse to blessing and is being transformed by the power of God. Spiritually, churches are exploding; physically, Ethiopia has turned green and is now producing more food then they can consume. There has been an infusion of foreign capital, many factories are being built and Ethiopia's infrastructure is being reborn.

Revival and Transformation will come to Syracuse.

Are you willing to join the Army of God?

In Association with

Partnership Nehemiah Prayer Teams Background *Affiliation* Statement of Faith *Location/Intercessory Prayer Times* *For Pastors/Leaders* *Partnership/Donations* *Executive Committee* *Apostolic Council* *Pastor's Prayer Alliance* *Links*	Keys to Success God gives us our overall strategy to win the battle for Syracuse in 2 Chronicles 7:14: "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." (2CH 7:14) In order to stem the tide of lawlessness and godlessness in our city and to usher in transformation and revival, our strategy must encompass the following elements: 1. Humility "But on this one will I look: on him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word.", For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: "I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones (Isa 66:2, 57:15). The above verse shows us that revival is tied to humility. Humility, according to Webster’s Dictionary, entails being submissive and adopting a stature that is neither proud, haughty, arrogant or assertive. According to the Apostle Paul, humility is the evidence of a life worthy of the calling received. " As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." (Eph 4:1-3) Humility is critical for success. It is the quality that will allow us as God’s people to corporately come together in unity to pray and seek His face -- regardless of denominational differences, personal status or position in life. 2. Unity *"For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another." (Romans 12:4-5)* Unity, again according to Webster’s Dictionary, is expressed as a condition of harmony with an ordering of parts to constitute a whole or to promote an undivided total effect. We all believe in unity of the Spirit. Unity is a no-brainer. We need unity for the Body of Christ to be able to function properly. We are all parts of the same Body, serving in different capacities, but all working together in order that God’s will may be done on earth as it is in heaven. However, attempting to "do" unity will fail. True unity is a byproduct of humility between Christians who are sold out to God and prefer others above themselves. We can't accomplish transformation on our own. We must commit ourselves to Him and to one another to serve the city. As Francis Frangipane states: *"It takes a city-wide church to win a city-wide war."* *"In Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the LORD." (2CH 30:12)* Unity is something supernatural that God does where we attain His mind and His heart on a particular matter and then function corporately as the Body of Christ (not as separate body parts). When we reach unity in the faith and attain to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. (Eph 4:11-13), we not only bring glory to God (Rom 15:5-6), but great power is released (Acts 4:32-33) "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." (COL 3:12-14) Unless the Body of Christ can achieve true unity, each member of the Body will function separately, doing some good, but will never attain the full measure of what the Body was meant to do. So let us put off the old nature and put on the Spirit of God as a wedding garment, and come together in peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, and watch what God will do in this region. "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent Me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." (John 17:20-23) Unity of the Body was not only God's plan from the beginning, but a byproduct of unity is anointing -- represented by the oil used to anoint Aaron as high priest. It is the anointing that causes the Lord to command a blessing. "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity! "It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments. It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the LORD commanded the blessing - Life forevermore." (PSA 133:1-3) It is the anointing that will break the yoke of bondage over this area and usher in transformation and revival, but this kind of anointing requires unity in prayer. *"It shall come to pass in that day that his burden will be taken away from your shoulder, and his yoke from your neck, and the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil." (Isa 10:27)* 3) Prayer "God does nothing except in answer to prayer" (John Wesley) In order to destroy the works of the enemy over this area, we need to build a wall of protection around it through prayer "You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace." (Neh 2:17) Nehemiah recognized the trouble Jerusalem was in. The walls around the city were down and the gates were burnt with fire. This is a prophetic picture of the city of Syracuse whose redemptive destiny was to be salt and light, but now lies in spiritual ruins as it has become to be known as the Wiccan capital of New York and a center for the "New Age." "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." (EPH 6:17-18) "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword…" (HEB 4:12) It is our vision to establish Nehemiah prayer groups in and around Syracuse. They are called Nehemiah prayer groups because we need all of the family of God, regardless of minor doctrinal differences, to assume their positions on the wall and work together in unity as they did in Nehemiah's day; family groups, working together on the wall, with a sword in their hand (Neh 4:17) to tear down forces that are preventing revival in our area. Fervent, effectual prayer is a key to victory. "There is nothing new under the sun." (Ecc 1:9) In 1915 a huge tabernacle designed to seat 11,000 was constructed for Billy Sunday's evangelistic crusade on Taylor Street in the city of Syracuse. An incredible chorus-choir of 1,800 voices was organized. During the two months in the Tabernacle there were approximately 78 meetings for adult audiences conducted. What makes this significant is that for some four months prior to Billy Sunday's arrival, prayer meetings were conducted in homes throughout the city to the approximate number of 300 each week. What did God do in response to the dedicated prayer of these faithful 300 prayer teams? During this evangelistic, revival campaign, a grand total of 898,000 attended the Tabernacle. Decisions to accept Christ as personal Savior and re-consecrations to his service totaled 21,162 During the following year more than 10,000 persons joined churches in the area. As the prayer army arises in Syracuse, spiritual strongholds will come down and revival will be ushered in. But, we must humble ourselves and unite before the Spirit will give us victory. Unity and humility are essential for success. The Apostle James counsels us that "where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing will be there." (James 3:16). When we humble ourselves and come together for the cause of Christ to seek His plans and purposes, unity of mind is something supernatural that God does. "Also in Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the LORD." (2CH 30:12) 4. His Presence 2 Chronicles 7:14 tells us we must "seek His face." We must invite Him into our community to bring transformation. Without Him, we can do nothing. However, our motivation is important. We must let Him check our hearts and motives and make sure there are no hidden agendas or selfish ambition, then can pray and seek Him for what He wants -- not our own agenda. 5. Perseverance We must be determined to not let go until we hear from God and breakthrough comes. First, we must pray for God to give us His passion for our area, then we can pray for God's heart for our community and for its destiny to come forth. This is a long-term commitment. It starts with a core of dedicated people who continue to pray and cry out to God week after week and month after month. Fervent prayer in fits-and-starts will not get the job done. Nothing happens without travailing prayer as we grieve and lament over our area. "Then the LORD called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side and said to him, "Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it." (Eze 9:3b-4) We must perservere until we make our city a praise in the earth. (Isa 62:6-7) 6. Guard our hearts and choose not to be offended. During this season of extended spiritual warfare, it is easy to become discouraged and accept the view of some leaders that this area is a spiritual dead zone and not focus on past failures. We must resist feeling that we are laboring alone. Elijah took this attitude, but God showed him that he was not alone and that there was a faithful remnant of 7000. Then Ezekiel had to be taken to the valley of dry (dead) bones to correct his vision. As the dry bones came together, [then] God breathed His Spirit on them and they were transformed into an exceedingly great army (Eze 37:10). As the faithful remnant embraces the vision to come together in unity and pray, God will breathe His Spirit on us and we will arise as a great army capable of pulling down spiritual strongholds. However, as Ezekiel was shown, we must first unite and connect before God will breathe life on this effort and grant us victory. 7. Personal and Corporate Repentance "But on this one will I look: on him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word.", For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: "I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones (Isa 66:2, 57:15). We must remember that corporate revival and transformation begins with individual obedience and humility. To be obedient, we must abide in His presence and seek out His perspective on what He feels should be done. It's not what we do in our own strength that will bring victory. God is not impressed with activity, but with obedience. We must seek His counsel on what He wants us to do to bring about change? God will reveal secrets of breakthrough only to those who are intimate with Him and long for His presence. He will only respond to a pure heart. Therefore, we must seek individual holiness. When we do, our prayers can be fervent and effective and we will dwell with Him in the high and holy place where the enemy is under our feet. "Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." (James 5:16) 8. Knowledge (Spiritual Mapping) "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge." (Hos 4:6) In order to be effective in demolishing the strongholds of the enemy, we will need revelation, wisdom and guidance from the Holy Spirit. We must not only identify the enemy, but we must seek the Lord, as Captain of the Host, for His strategies and battle plans. Much spiritual mapping has already been accomplished and it will allow us to be more effective in prayer. However, success will require targeted prayer. As an example, Ethiopia suffered draught and famine for 30 years, and the prayers offered up by the people seemed to be of no avail. But, when specific sin issues were identified and corporately repented of, it started raining, and the rains continued for two years. Ethiopia has gone from curse to blessing and is being transformed by the power of God. Spiritually, churches are exploding; physically, Ethiopia has turned green and is now producing more food then they can consume. There has been an infusion of foreign capital, many factories are being built and Ethiopia's infrastructure is being reborn. Revival and Transformation will come to Syracuse. Are you willing to join the Army of God?

In Association with