When I first thought about a prayer of consecration, I checked out my dictionary to see if I was on the right track in my understanding of the word consecration. Consecrate: make or declare sacred; dedicated formally to a religious or divine purpose. Digging deeper, the Greek word, Hagiasmos is translated “sanctification” “holiness” and “consecration”. So, I looked up the definition of sanctification.
Sanctify: set apart as or declare holy; consecrate.
Bingo! I have a definition I can relate to – a prayer of consecration is a prayer of setting myself apart to God to be used for His purposes. On contemplating this, I realized that my sincerity in wanting to be consecrated/set apart to God is in relationship to my knowing God. It is not just knowing about God, because James tells us in James 2:19, “You believe that God is one, you do well, Even the demons believe and shudder!”. But in knowing God in a deeper relationship as stated in Psalm 34:8.
“Oh taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!” (Psalm 34:8).
On October 1st 2016 Women’s Ministry will be hosting a prayer conference just for you. The purpose of the conference is to help women deepen their prayer life and intimacy with God as well as build community with other women. It is a free event at Cuyahoga Valley Church. “Speak”, the theme of the conference, is to emphasize that prayer is two way intimate communication between God and his beloved children. Large group sessions will include topics such as why we pray, who we are praying to, the power of the Holy Spirit in prayer, how to hear from God, and praying for our needs with thanksgiving. Register at www.cvconline.org/speak.
In our breakout session on Prayers of Consecration we will first look at our Holy, Holy, Holy, God. “For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy.” Leviticus 11:44a. While keeping our eyes on God, we will look briefly at some Old Testament people and New Testament people who give us a pattern for a consecrated life.
Then we will look more in depth to what it means for us to be consecrated to God, knowing that salvation is the beginning of a person’s spiritual life, not the conclusion. “After a beginning, there should be a continuation. This continuation is to present oneself to the Lord. So consecrating oneself to the Lord is the continuation of salvation.” (“Lessons For New Believers”, by Witness Lee)
