PRAYING INTO THE 6TH WEEK OF THE YEAR (FEBRUARY 5 – 11)

Jesus taught His disciples to pray and say, “Your Kingdom come; your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. This would mean seizing every time for the execution of God’s purpose. Our goal in praying into the sixth week of the year is that God’s will be done this week in the nations as is revealed in the Bible. It is God’s will for time to align with God’s Word as it was in the beginning – at creation.

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE SIXTH WEEK

God made man and land animals on the sixth day of creation. He made man in His image and after His likeness and gave man dominion over the animals. The animals were not made in the image and likeness of God. So, in creation, man represents godliness and the animals represent ungodliness – not necessarily in a negative sense. They just fall below the standard of God’s image and likeness.

What can we learn from patterns in the Bible concerning the sixth season (6th day, 6th week, 6th month, sixth year, 6th seven years or sixth 49 years)? This is a week to remember what God did on the sixth day of creation.

1. IT IS A SEASON OF WAR AGAINST UNGODLINESS AND REBELLION

God perfected the creation of flesh and blood on the sixth day and somehow, the works and manifestations of flesh reach a climax in the sixth seasons. The beastly nature rises in man in this season and multiplies wickedness in the land. This makes the sixth season a time of reaction and judgment against evil and ungodliness.

God decided to destroy evil and wicked humanity from the earth in Genesis 6. God gave Israel the lands of the Canaanites in the 6th book of the Bible and commanded Israel to destroy them because iniquity. The sixth 7 years of the 20th century was a time of atrocities culminating in WW2. Nigeria was in her sixth year of nationhood in 1966 when two bloody coups occurred within seven months. The worst human rights violations in Nigeria history happened within the sixth seven years of Nigeria under the Sani Abacha regime.

The sixth season is a time of conflict between the godliness and ungodliness. The sixth season is a season of reaction against people that do not bear His semblance. It is a season of war against rebellion. The sixth book and chapters of the Bible bear witness to this.

In Judges 6, God prepared Gideon to fight against the oppressive Midianites. In Esther 6, Mordecai began to rise and Haman began to fall. In Ephesians 6, we are to wrestle spiritual forces of darkness and defeat them. In Revelation 6, the Lord began to open the scroll of judgment.

PRAYER: Pray against the spirit of wickedness rising in the nations through crime, violence and other vices. Pray that wickedness will not prosper this week in the nations.

2. IT IS A SEASON FOR THE GODLY TO RISE AND EXERCISE DOMINION ON EARTH.

The sixth book and chapters of the Bible indicate that the sixth season is for exercising Kingdom power and dominion on earth. It is a time to conquer or be conquered. In Joshua 6, God gave Israel miraculous victories as the battled the Amorites and took over their land . In Judges 6, God awakened His image in Gideon to war against the Midianites. In
Second Kings 6, Elisha overpowered the Syrian troops that went to arrest him by prayer and the spoken word. In Daniel 6, Daniel was in the den with hungry lions because of his faith but they couldn’t harm him. In Ephesians 6, we are called to stand against spiritual forces of darkness with the whole armour of God. In the sixth season, God ordains conflict between those expressing godliness and those expressing ungodliness. The United States and the United Kingdom were at war (the war of 1812) in the sixth seven years of the United States. America has also began the journey into her sixth 49 years on July 4, 2021 with Joe Biden leading. Sani Abacha (Nigeria’s 10th Leader) died within the sixth seven years of Nigeria following a season of relentless spiritual warfare. Saddam Husseini died in the sixth year of the 21st century.

PRAYER: Pray that God’s people in the nations will rise to their place of dominion in the land. Pray also for the vindication of those who trust in the Lord in the different parts of the world.

3. IT IS A SEASON OF INHERITANCE AND TAKING (OR DEMANDING) WHAT BELONGS TO YOU

On the sixth day of creation, God said to man, “See, I have given you…” In the sixth book of the Bible, Israel fought for, and possessed, the Promised Land. In Joshua 6:2, “…the LORD said to Joshua: “See! I have given Jericho into your hand, its king, and the mighty men of valor. You shall march around the city, all you men of war….” Matthew 6:11 says,
“GIVE US this day OUR daily bread”.

PRAYER: Pray that the Lord will give us the nations as He promised in Psalm 2. Pray, especially, for those nations where the gospel is not preached freely.

4. IT IS A SEASON TO FOCUS ON THE KINGDOM RATHER THAN SURVIVAL

In Matthew 6, Jesus said we should seek the king instead of “all these things”. In Joshua 6, Achan got into trouble for seeking material things above the kingdom. In Judges 6, God called Gideon out of survival to pursue the dominion of the kingdom. In Second Kings 6, two women who could not endure famine agreed to kill their children. In Mark 6, Jesus fed the multitudes after they had listened to His teaching. In John 6:27 Jesus said, “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”Acts 6:2-4 says, “Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. [3] Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business; [4] but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

PRAYER: Pray against distractions that come this week from the cares and needs of this life.

5. IT IS A SEASON TO PROSPER THROUGH INSTRUCTIONS AND OBEDIENCE

The sixth book and chapters of the Bible are instruction passages. In Genesis 6, Noah received instructions concerning the Ark. In Joshua 6, Joshua received instructions concerning Jericho. Everything Joshua did in the sixth book of the Bible was the result of following divine instruction. The only exceptions were in the matter of fighting Ai (Joshua 7) and striking a deal with Gibeonites (Joshua 9). In First Samuel 6, the Philistines received instructions concerning returning the Ark to Israel. In Second Samuel 6, Uzzah died because Israel did not follow instructions concerning conveying the Ark. In the sixth chapter of Matthew, Jesus gave instructions concerning almsgiving, fasting, prayer and material needs.

PRAYER: Pray for wisdom and counsel to deal with the challenges of the week.

DECLARATION FOR THE WEEK

This 6th week of the year, the Lord will give you the kind of testimony Israel had in Joshua 6 when the intimidating wall of Jericho fell down flat; the kind of testimony Israel had in the 6th book of the Bible where they subdued the Canaanites and took possession of the Promised Land; the kind of testimonies Gideon had in Judges 6 as he prepared to save Israel from the Midianites; the kind of testimony Elisha had in Second Kings 6 when he blinded and arrested Syrian troops that went to arrest him; the kind of testimony the Jewish returnees had in Ezra 6 when the king of Persia issued a decree against their enemies; the kind of testimony Nehemiah had in Nehemiah 6 with the completion of the wall in 52 days; the kind of testimony Mordecai had in Esther 6 when the king of Persia gave him the highest honour in the land and Haman, his adversary, was humiliated; the kind of testimony Daniel had in Daniel 6 when he survived the den of lions; the kind of testimonies recorded in the 6th chapters of Mark and John where Jesus fed multitudes with very little provision.

Matthew 6:31-33 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ [32] For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. [33] But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

Happy 6th week of the year!