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The word agape in Greek means "unconditional, sacrificial love," the type of love God has for His children. God exhibited this love by sending His Son Jesus to die for the sins of mankind.

AGAPE Prayer Ministry works to spread the agape love of Jesus. Its goal is for persons to experience a greater degree of freedom in their lives through a renewed relationship with Jesus Christ.

This ministry is dedicated to that essential work of the Holy Spirit—the One who knows, reveals, and transforms the heart of the believer.

INTRODUCTION TO

AGAPE PRAYER MINISTRY

All believers who have entered into a relationship with Jesus Christ have been "saved" from eternal wrath and damnation. God's desire, though, is that His Kingdom here on earth would be characterized by "righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" (Romans 14:17).

It is not enough for Christians just to be "saved." Each must also experience discipleship that produces freedom in Christ and maturity in all spiritual matters.

However, God sent His Son to purchase complete freedom for all believers!

He offers abundant life (John 10:10).

To help believers find this freedom and fullness in Christ, AGAPE Prayer Ministry provides a process for healing—based upon forgiveness.

Forgiveness for all of our sins, as well as all the sins of others against us, was purchased by Jesus at the cross. This forgiveness is freely available to us, but we are not always effective at receiving this gracious gift that has been offered us. We also continue to sin, even as believers. We must intentionally work at applying the principles of scripture so that we can live in the freedom that Jesus has purchased for us. (Psalm 32:1-5)

WHAT Is AGAPE PRAYER MINISTRY?

It is also a scriptural principle that when believers confess their sins "one to another, and pray for each other "(James 5:16), they are healed. Transparency with fellow believers brings healing

Brothers and sisters in Christ can also help to identify areas where a Christian has believed something less than the whole truth of what God says in Scripture.

Some of the structural concepts of the AGAPE Prayer Mintstry pattern were originally adapted from Victorious Mintstries Through Christ. Inc.,

Led by Anne White

AGAPE

Prayer Ministry Handbook

http://www.agapeprayerministry.com

http://www.thebetterplace.org

Revised 9/2009

Yet many Christians...

  • live defeated lives, not characterized by "abundance."

  • do not experience spiritual growth.

  • struggle to gain victory over specific sins and relational difficulties.

  • behave in ways that are contrary to what they claim they believe.

  • do not experience the freedom Christ has purchased for them.

If we are not healed from the impact of these sinful acts, our view of God becomes distorted. As these distortions increase, we become less able to correctly understand our fellow human beings and ourselves. We end up judging other people based on our incomplete understandings of God, further damaging our relationships.

THE NEED FOR SPIRITUAL AND EMOTIONAL HEALING

Most Christians carry around extra spiritual and emotional "baggage," unaware of the weight which we are carrying. (See the story in Luke 1 3:10-13). This baggage is usually the result of past hurts and negative experiences that have not yet been thoroughly addressed. We carry the effects of others' sins against us, as well as the effects of our own sinfulness.

The old adage "Time heals all wounds." is misleading. Time may lessen the intensity of the wounding for some people, but it never completely removes the wounds. Time can actually serve to worsen a person's condition. Time also further removes us from the original source of our pain and wounding and we lose track of what brought us to this condition. Given the right circumstances, these hidden wounds can even erupt into unexpected behaviors.

"We spend our lives crucified between two thieves:

regret for the past and fear of the future."

-Fulton Oursler

AGAPE Prayer Ministry is a healing ministry, empowered and directed by the Holy Spirit. It is an organized, thorough process in which groups of believers work together to discern spiritual components of their past experiences and to determine how those experiences may impact their present circumstances and behaviors.

Ministry groups meet together in an unhurried time of prayer and ministry, focusing on one individual. As the group talks and prays with that person, they listen for the Holy Spirit to reveal spiritual roots and issues in his/her life. They then help to apply the truths in God's Word to those areas, bringing cleansing and healing. As each person discards their "baggage," they are then able to respond more fully and more freely to God's calling, guidance, and empowerment in their life.

MINISTERING GOD's AGAPE LOVE

The word agape in Greek means "unconditional, sacrificial love." It is our desire to minister this holy, agape love to each other. AGAPE Prayer Ministry uses the following model to do so:

This is intended to be a framework or process within which Holy Spirit-directed ministry can take place.

  • The first door can be opened only with the key that is forgiveness. This key enables us to deal with our own sins and the sins of others against us. Once sin issues have been thoroughly dealt with.
  • Then we approach the next door (#2) and discern whether those sins have allowed any bondages toform in our lives. When bondages have been broken.
  • Then discernment focuses on whether sin and bondages have opened up any areas of our lives to demonic influence (door #3). If so, these influences are halted, releasing us from the enemy's hold on those areas of our lives.
  • Finally, at door #4, there is prayer for any wounding that has taken place in our spirits as a result of anything related to the previous doors.

Thousands of people have found new degrees of freedom in Christ through this model of ministry.

This is not because the model is somehow "special" but, instead, because it takes the scriptural principles which are readily available to any believer and applies them in a thorough, organized process.

When we minister to each other, under the guidance and discernment of the Holy Spirit, and apply Scripture to our lives and pray for each other, we are healed!

POINTS TO REMEMBER

1. This ministry is effective only for those who have

already committed their lives to Christ, and who have

entered into a personal relationship with Him. The

ministry assists the Holy Spirit already at work in the

believer's life. Therefore, it will not have meaning for

the non-believer.

2. Everything that is shared in the group context is to be

held in strict confidence. The group will be instructed

to covenant with each other to maintain this important

bond of trust.

3. Each group will pray at the end, asking God to help

those who have ministered to forget what others

shared, except for anything God wants to use for

future ministry.

4. Those who receive ministry will leave their ministry

session with new tools for walking more closely with

Christ and will be better equipped to help others in

their ongoing struggles.

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