Authority in Prayer: Praying with Power and Purpose [Hardcover]

Dutch Sheets (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2006

You absolutely can reign in life and be the overcomer God intends you to be, taking charge of your personal world and changing the world around you. You don't have to allow sin, Satan, or the circumstances of life to weigh you down. Beginning with your private world--your thoughts, body, actions, and ultimately your God-ordained destiny--you can take charge. Authority is yours for the taking. Then, because God established and so honors the principle of authority, He will back you as you walk in the government He has delegated to you concerning your extended world--your home, family, business, and possessions. Finally, God's plan is for you to partner with Him on the earth in broader realms of influence and authority--your universal world. Jesus, the sovereign King over the earth, wants to rule institutions, cultures, societies, and governments through you and your prayers. Authority in Prayer will show you how to take hold of God’s promises and pray with the authority He wants you to have. God needs you. Are you ready to use your God-given authority to further His kingdom?

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...an ideal resource. It's energizing, motivating, and couldn't come at a better time for our world today." -- Melissa Parcel, bookloons.com

"Don't just read this book, act on it, and pass it along to others." -- Bob Pike CSP, CPAE-Speakers Hall of Fame, Armchair Interviews.com

"Dutch Sheets’ Authority in Prayer should be recommended reading for all who follow Christ." -- Audrey Hebbert, christianactivities.com

"His excitement on the topic of prayer (an oft-well worn one) will bring rejuvenation to the most complacent Christian follower." -- Michele Howe, Faithfulreader.com

From the Back Cover

"In this book, Dutch Sheets brings to the surface something that most of us will readily admit, namely that a good bit of the time we pray, we pray like wimps! Long before I came to the end of the book, I decided that I’m not going to pray like a wimp anymore--I’m going to pray like a winner! I’m thankful for this huge upgrade to my prayer life, and I know that you will be just as thrilled when you read Authority in Prayer."--C. Peter Wagner, Chancellor, Wagner Leadership Institute

"We live in perilous times! The vigilant parent, pastor or politician is aware that God's purposes in their lives will be challenged over and over again. Praying with authority is a necessary part of your dominion toolkit. More than a manual for effective prayer, Dutch Sheets distills a lifetime of experience and scholarship into the essentials of high impact prayer. I began using the breakthrough concepts unveiled in this book the same day I read it. My results have been amazing--yours will be, too."--Harry R. Jackson, Jr., Senior Pastor Hope Christian Church, Chairman High Impact Leadership Coalition

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Bethany House; 2006 edition (April 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764201727
• ISBN-13: 978-0764201721
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #617,117 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

DUTCH SHEETS is an internationally known conference speaker, pastor and author. He has written many books, including Authority in Prayer and his bestseller Intercessory Prayer. Dutch travels extensively as a guest lecturer in various venues. He is fervent in empowering believers for passionate prayer and world-changing revival. Dutch is the senior pastor of Freedom Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He and his wife, Ceci, their two daughters and three dogs make their home at the base of the Rocky Mountains.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An inspirational book on getting the most out of prayer, June 1, 2006

By 

FaithfulReader.com (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Authority in Prayer: Praying with Power and Purpose (Hardcover)

Michele Howe Dutch Sheets --- prolific author, international speaker, and senior pastor of Springs Harvest Fellowship in Colorado Springs, CO --- speaks his heart's desire on matters of intercession, prayer, and hope for the United States. Sheets's text is heavy on the biblical how-tos of effective prayer in matters both personal and governmental. He details in each of his 14 chapters the step-by-step mental, emotional and spiritual stances Christians must take for their petitions to make a significant difference in today's world and in light of eternity.

With a gentle wit, Sheets shares in abundance his own experiences of victories won and lost on the prayer front. He also excitedly describes those moments when spiritual breakthrough arrived and he realized the power of personal prayer as God's designed link to overcoming evil, experiencing an abundant life, and embracing a God-ordained vision for the world at large.

Sheets's writing is nothing if not contagious. His excitement on the topic of prayer (an oft-well worn one) will bring rejuvenation to even the most complacent Christian follower. In his opening chapter, Sheets defines the believer's motivation (a God-ordained one) to rule and govern. Citing Webster's Dictionary, men and women were created to direct and control; to maintain the superiority, and NOT "be lorded over by other people, evil forces, or even unfortunate circumstances." Sheets continues to explain that even though much of this "God-given propensity" lost the majority of its purity at the Fall, the innate longing to govern remains a God-ordained desire.

Sheets highlights the fact that most Christians live lives of quiet despair and defeat. Frequently, they are undercut and undermined by circumstances, complacency and fear. So what exactly does Sheets suggest? A three-point system for consistent victory --- developing a strategy to take control of one's "private" world that includes thoughts, body, and actions as the starting position; reaching toward one's "extended" world by way of governing over home, family, business and possessions; and finally, Christians must catch the vision of governing the "universal" world that includes institutions, cultures, societies and governments.

While this plan may appear simplistic, Sheets's method requires careful and wise forethought, continued exercise of faith, and an attitude of persistent fortitude. He proposes his personal tactics for achieving a life of consistent victory in all matters pertaining to prayer and the spirit realm (which in truth, overflows into every area of existence).

* Principle one: Becoming a Christian and living a life characterized by purity. These are no-brainer essentials for the man or woman who seeks to impact the world via prayer.
* Principle two: Adhering to "the principle of concentric expansion," meaning no one can claim more authority over one's own life than that person; as circles widen, authority decreases.
* Principle three: Developing a sound understanding and knowledge of God and the Bible.
* Principle four: Understanding God's heart and desiring to see that which He values most come to pass.
* Principle five: Learning to develop a listening and discerning heart that, in turn, accurately represents God's will.
* Principle six: Realizing that others' actions may in part determine a specific outcome or breakthrough.
* Principle seven: Accepting the assignment God has given and utilizing the authority needed to accomplish the task.

Avid readers of prayer books will discover realistic and pointed direction in Sheets's text. His call for prayer involvement in governmental issues has never been timelier.


--- Reviewed by Michele Howe

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read!, April 29, 2006

By 

Armchair Interviews (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Authority in Prayer: Praying with Power and Purpose (Hardcover)

If there is one area in life Christians need clear thinking in--it is the area of prayer. Dutch Sheets is on the forefront of understanding and appropriating the power of prayer to accomplish God's purposes. Interestingly though, prayer is not about you. It is about understanding that God is in charge, that you can choose to live in obedience to Him or not. And that if you are going to live in obedience, then you need to pray with His authority to be in charge of your personal life--rather than letting Satan control and manipulate you life.

There's the "what" of the book. Now you need to read the book to get the "how and why." Dutch Sheets does a wonderful job of weaving personal experience, the experience of others, and the teaching of scripture to make a compelling case for praying with authority.

Sheets wants believers to experience "being more than conquerors," "being a royal priesthood," and to "rule and reign" with Christ--not have it be words that are heard, but never experienced. His position is that too many people say the words, or hear them, but seldom have the experience that tells them that the words are true--true for each believer, not just anointed Christian leaders.

This book is about:
-- praying with authority and taking back the streets, schools, cities, and governments that for too long have operated without acknowledging the sovereignty of God.
--learning to pray with authority and experiencing what it is to walk in truth and peace instead of stress and dissatisfaction.
-- ending the secret thoughts that we experience shame over and knowing at a core level God's peace, love, and forgiveness so that we forgive ourselves.
-- every believer and the buildings in which they gather becoming the highest and best that God intended them to be as they submit to His authority and then exercise His authority in prayer.
-- brokenness, surrender, healing and victory.

Armchair Interviews says: Don't just read this book, act on it, and pass it along to others.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Book on Prayer, November 9, 2006

By 

Scott M. Kendall (Elk Grove, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Authority in Prayer: Praying with Power and Purpose (Hardcover)

This is the best book on prayer I have ever read.