Rev. Hannah Lafferty

“They raised their voices together…” (Acts 4:23-24)

In a culture where Truth has stumbled in the streets and is steadily being manipulated by society(Isa 59), prayer is our ultimate lifeline, our mandate, our greatest weapon, and guide. Prayer is our open door and our God-given assignment. Peter and John knew that prayer is not meant to be our last resort or ditch effort, rather it is the engine, identity and driving force in which the Church must operate despite our present reality. Since the beginning of creation, prayer was established in the garden in order that we may commune with God. We later discover in the New Testament that Jesus taught his disciples how to pray according to His word, but after the upper room encounter in the book of Acts, prayer was made more evident as a common practice among the body of believers.   

In this passage of scripture, we see that Peter and John’s report essentially led everyone into a prayer meeting. Verse 24 states that, “they raised their voice to God in one accord and acknowledged him as ‘Sovereign Lord’.” The Bible is accountable to many stories that reveal the power of praying aloud. Pastor David Guzik wrote in his study that, “It is certainly possible to pray silently in our minds, but we focus our thoughts more effectively when we speak out in prayer…praying with one voice.” 

There is something about a group of believers crying out to the Lord together, in one heart and one mind, seeking the purposes, protection, and presence of God. The worthy promise here is that He always shows up! “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matt. 18:20). The truth is, the Lord not only delights in unity, but He requires it–for He does not accept discord.

The end of verse 24 says that they “acknowledged him as Sovereign Lord.” The word Lord here is the Greek word for, despotes. It was a word used of a slave owner or ruler who has power that cannot be questioned. They recognized Him as the one in control, and their acknowledgment of who He is revealed their level of confidence in Him, so much so, that after they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken! They were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word with boldness. 

In our prayer meetings today, It is easy for us to get caught up in our prayer requests to God without actually acknowledging who He is. May we be challenged today to consciously pray and believe that He REALLY IS able to do “exceedingly abundantly more than we ask or imagine…” (Eph. 3:20) when His people call on His name. May we be a people who go before Him as sheep in need of a Shepherd–lifting our voices in one accord–desperate for Him to shake everything that can be shaken. 

When we do our part in the natural, God will begin His supernatural work!