I believe in the most powerful tool Christians have: prayer. Many
years ago, I was on the verge of either the greatest breakthrough I’d
ever had or the largest breakdown in my life. We had just planted our
church in Los Angeles during the Great Recession of 2007. L.A. was
hit by strikes, and many of them were in the labor fields of the
entertainment industry. The majority of our budding church was made
up of entertainers. We were believing for so much, but it wasn’t until
we began to practice many of the principles covered in this very book
that we had a true tipping point. While the majority of the city (and
even many other churches) was suffering, we began to build and
thrive in our community. It went totally against the grain, and we
completely owed it to the power of encountering the Holy Spirit
through a deliberate lifestyle of prayer .

Time and time again, I have pressed into prayer as if my life
depended on it, and you know what? It has! And your life depends on
it, too, as well as the well-being of your family, your industry, your
nation, and your world. The church is sitting on the power to shift
nations, atmospheres, people groups, and justice issues, and all we
have to do is pray. We can look into the heart of the Father and bring
agreement here on earth, in our spheres of influence.

Ephesians 1:17 is so key to fullness. In it, Paul prayed over the
Ephesians to have the spirit of wisdom and revelation so they could
really know Jesus the way He wants to be known. The heart of Jesus
is the most beautiful of any you will ever know. Many people enter
into the saving grace of Jesus without ever knowing the full benefit of
what can happen if they go deeper into His fullness—because it takes
a very intentional walk through prayer. Prayer is either a relational
device or a chore, depending on how you approach it and what your
personal motivation is within the pursuit.