Harp and Bowl Model
Kampala House of Prayer
The 24 elders fell down before the Lamb, each
having a HARP, and GOLDEN BOWLS full of incense, which are the prayers of the
saints.” (Rev. 5:8)
1.
The HARP speaks of worshipping God with
musical instruments.
2.
The BOWLS speak of the intercessory prayers
of the church.
1)
The Harp and Bowl model is one
model used for different prayer formats
2)
Prayer Formats
a)
Intercessory prayer format — this
prayer format is designed to pray for either a general breakthrough or
outpouring of the Holy Spirit (historical visitation of the Spirit) on the
church across a city (region) or specific needs in society (government) the
Holy Spirit highlights. The prayers of the NT apostles or prophetic decrees can
be used for either of these prayer directions.
b)
Prophetic worship prayer format — this
prayer format is designed to facilitate united corporate participation in
worship so as to reach the highest experience of worship, including ministry
times for healing and deliverance.
c)
Worship with the Word prayer
format — this prayer format is designed to function as a discipleship
program that provides training in the Word as we function as a “singing
seminary.” Our desire is to raise up singing theologians or “theologian worship
leaders.” This prayer format is an excellent way for worship teams to discover
new passages that they will enjoy singing many times in the future. Therefore,
we sing through an entire passage of scripture (for example Psalm 145). We
focus on singing through large portions of Scripture rather than trying to
discern specific Holy Spirit themes for ministry.
d)
Devotional worship prayer format — this
prayer format is designed to provide an anointed atmosphere for individuals to
meditate on the Scriptures as they linger in God’s presence. The songs and
music style are devotional in focus so that we may sit at the feet- of Jesus as
Mary of Bethany did. This is the place to release the “prophetic soloist” or
the “worship concert.”
3)
12 COMPONENTS INCLUDED IN THESE
MODELS:
a)
Scripture - the foundation of all expressions of
worship.
b)
Team Ministry - the model provides clear
communication lines that facilitates bold, confident, inclusive team flow.
c)
Antiphonal singing - responsive singing (praying)
of the word functioning in team ministry
and the Holy
Spirit.
d)
Prophetic oracles - are explosive individual
prophetic songs.
e)
Spontaneous singing - devotional singing from
scripture and in the Spirit that uses simple chord progressions and easy vocal
ranges to include all ungifted singers.
f)
Spontaneous choruses - are “mini worship songs” sung
by the whole room. (simple chord progressions and easy vocal ranges)
g)
Warring in the Spirit (optional) - a more militant praying in
tongues.
h) Spoken
prayers -
intercession
i)
Ministry time - a time for individuals to
receive prayer ministry.
j)
Choirs - provide diversity with a corporate
dynamic.
k)
Song selection - should primarily be God-ward
focused songs.
l)
Musical Selahs - brief creative jam sessions.
Notes:
•
Spontaneous singing is mandated by this
model, all our teams must learn to flow in this greatly neglected dimension in
the worship movement today worldwide.
•
Biblical language — we ask that much of the
spontaneous singing (especially the antiphonal singing) use scriptural
terminology instead of merely what flows from the heart.
The Primary Principle of the Harp and Bowl
Model
1) A Worship Cycle Has 4 Stages:
1) A Worship Cycle Has 4 Stages:
a)
Corporate worship songs — that all
may engage in God’s presence together in one accord. We value songs that direct
us to sing to God instead of only about God.
b)
Spontaneous singing -
devotional singing both from the Scripture and singing in the Spirit.
c)
Developing a passage (stanza) by
antiphonal praying (singing).
i)
Praying (singing) through a biblical passage
of 2-4 Bible verses.
ii)
Isolating a phrase - the prayer leader
designates one phrase (by speaking it out) from the “biblical passage” that the
singers develop by singing around.
iii)
Developing themes through antiphonal praying
(singing) - the singers “develop themes” from the isolated phrase by singing
short (5-10 seconds) songs to enhance the theme of the isolated phrase.
iv)
Spontaneous choruses - the chorus leader
and/or worship leader establishes “spontaneous choruses” for all to sing (8-10
times) at any time.
d) Warring in the Spirit (OPTIONAL)
by praying / singing in the Spirit. The
prayer leader speaks (not sings) in tongues on the mic to lead the room in
warring intercession.
2)
Stage 1 - Corporate Worship
Songs:
a)
The worship leader’s role is to lead the
people into a God-ward focus so the whole room engages in God’s presence
together in one accord. Therefore, as a rule, we choose songs that direct us to
sing to God not only about God.
b)
Select worship songs that the majority of the
people present are familiar with. Do not
introduce more than one new song per worship set. Make sure that the words of
the new song are on the overhead so that all can engage easily.
c)
Principle of maintaining a dominate
melody. A common mistake is failing to
distinguish between a corporate worship set (in which the goal is helping all
to participate in singing with unity) and a worship concert (in which the goal
is inspiring those listening without necessarily helping them participate in
the singing). The worship leader and prophetic singers must maintaining a
dominate melody line for corporate worship sets because the goal is to lead a
room of mostly un-gifted singers into unified corporate worship before God.
3)
Stage 2 - Spontaneous Singing:
a)
This is done in a devotional manner and is
done in two ways. First, by singing with our
spirit in tongues and secondly, singing with
our understanding from Scripture.
b)
Singing spontaneously releases faith and
intensity to encounter the manifest presence of God. This opens the human
spirit to the Holy Spirit in an enhanced way.
c)
The purpose of the worship team is to lead so
that the whole room engages with God. Thus, it is important to have simple and
basic chord progressions (not complex) and in an easy vocal range (not high
notes outside their range) for non- gifted singers in the congregation.
d)
The prophetic singers should all engage
boldly in order to lead the room. They should sing long notes in flowing
melodies and harmonies instead of short syncopated notes going quickly up and
down the scale. The worship leader should start with extended lower notes to
give the congregation easy melody lines that help them find their own easy
melody lines in their range.
e)
The prayer leader is not to sing on the mic
(unless they are an approved prophetic singer) during spontaneous singing. Why?
The prayer leader is at a higher sound volume than the prophetic singers, thus,
dominating the voices of the prophetic singers in spontaneous singing.
f)
Spontaneous singing and/or spontaneous
choruses may occur before, after or during the process of developing a passage.
4)
Stage 3 - Developing A Passage By
Antiphonal Praying/Singing:
a)
The intercessor selects a prayer or prophetic
promise from the Scriptures (OT or NT). The NT apostolic prayers are
foundational prayers used in Harp & Bowl, (but are not the only prayers
used). OT prayers or prophetic promises are good to use in intercession.
b)
The intercessor has the option to use the
singers or not. If they want to involve the singers, they simply pause to make
room for the singers, then continue to offer short 3-5 second prayers that flow
in an antiphonal (responsive) way with the singers. If the intercession chooses
not to involve the singers, then they can pray the passage for up to 5 minutes.
c)
Pray through a “biblical sentence” - in an
intercessory prayer format, start by reading the biblical prayer/prophetic
decree. For example, Eph. 3:14-19.
I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord
Jesus... 15 from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
16 that He would grant you,
according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through
faith; that you, being rooted and grounded
in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what
is the width and length and depth and height - 19 to know the love
of Christ which passes knowledge...filled with all the fullness of
God. (Eph. 3:14-1 9)
i) After reading the biblical prayer/prophetic
decree then pray it for 1-3 minutes (to get the room into the flow of that
prayer). End this 1-3 minutes initial part of the prayer by focusing on the
part of the passage you have chosen as the key ‘sentence’ that you want to
develop with the prophetic singers. ii) Example of a ‘biblical sentence’ “...that
He would grant you, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the
inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts . . .that being rooted and
grounded in love...” (Eph. 3:16-17)
d)
Isolating a phrase - the intercessor
designates one phrase (by speaking it with 3-10 words) from the passage that
the singers are to sing “around.” Isolating a phrase clearly designates or
signifies to the singers which phrase is meant to be developed with short 3-5
second songs.
i)
Example A
“strengthen with might through Your Spirit in the inner man”
ii) Example B “rooted and grounded in love”
ii) Example B “rooted and grounded in love”
e)
When the prayer leader is finished praying
for 1-3 minutes and is ready to isolate a passage, he will often surround the
phrase with, “in the Name of Jesus” to make
the phrase clear to the singers and indicate that my 1-3 minute prayer is over.
The prayer leader’s goal is to make the phrase obvious to the prophetic singers
as “the phrase to develop”. Often an untrained intercessor will neglect to
clearly isolate a phrase. (teams may stay on one isolated phrase for 60 seconds
or so).
f)
Developing themes through antiphonal or
responsive praying (singing).
i)
3 Steps the singers take to develop a theme
antiphonally.
(1)
Echo the phrase back with exact language.
(2)
Paraphrase the phrase with similar words from Scripture.
(3)
Develop the phrase with different words that enhance the meaning.
ii)
For Example:
(1)
“Strengthen with might through Your Spirit in
the inner man”
(2)
Echo Back: “Strengthen with might through
Your Spirit in the inner man”
(3)
Paraphrase it: “Release Your power to our inner man”
(4)
Develop the idea: “Impart grace and cause our heart to flow in
love and holiness” iii) Sing short
songs of 3-5 seconds that stay on the same theme of the isolated phrase so as to enhance its meaning
in order for clear themes to emerge. The
singers must not sing multiple themes in one short song.
iv)
Sing one at a time.
v)
Sing loudly or not at all when on the
microphone. If singers sing personal songs softly, then the other singers are
not sure if that soft song is meant to contribute to developing the passage.
vi)
Sequence of singing - if two singers are
singing at the same time, yield to the one above you. First is the worship leader, second is the
chorus leader, or prophetic singer #1 then, prophetic singer #2, then prophetic
singer #3, then singers on instruments and then the prayer leader is last.
vii)
Antiphonal singers continue to sing through
this process, one to another in the pre-determined order until a phrase is
found that the Holy Spirit has “breathed
upon” (given life) g) Spontaneous
Choruses
i) Once the phrase or chorus has
been settled upon the chorus leader or worship leader establishes this
“spontaneous choruses” for everyone to sing (8-10 times). These chorus can be
sung at any time. ii) All the
singers must help lead by singing the chorus together boldly to help establish
it so all in the room can quickly join in. All the prophetic singers on the
mics should help carry the melody line in these choruses and avoid all else
(ornamentation, private songs, harmonies etc.)
iii)
Sing easy choruses so the non-musically
gifted people in the congregation can join in quickly. In other words, seek
easy melodies, with phrases easy to remember, in an easy vocal range and
without forcing too many words so that it is easy for ungifted singers to
participate quickly.
iv)
When the worship leader senses it is time to
stop, he gives control back to the prayer leader by ending the chorus with the
phrase “Oh God”.
v)
Using the same chorus many times - if a
chorus is one that the room responds to in a strong way, then use it at other
times through the entire prayer meeting. The chorus leader (or worship leader)
may use the same chorus at several different times throughout the passage.
5) Stage 4 - Warring in the Spirit (OPTIONAL) by praying in the Spirit.
I) The prayer leader speaks (not sings) in
tongues on the mic to lead the room in warring intercession. Every few moments
the intercessor may proclaim the theme (3-5 words only) we are warring for to
help others focus.
1)
THE ROLE OF THE PRAYER LEADER (in
worship formats)
a)
The prayer leader helps to “develop the
theme” by continuing to speak phrases related to the theme that are usually
only 3-5 words. (This is different from the
role of the prayer leader in an intercessory prayer format.)
i)
If a prayer leader is used to the
intercessory prayer format, then it is easy for them to make the mistake of
leading the worship prayer format in the same way. In other words, by speaking
too long (more than 3-5 words).
ii)
The prayer leader’s role in the intercessory prayer format is to lead as the
worship leader supports. The prayer leader’s role in the worship prayer format is to be supportive to the worship leader. To
be overly verbal is to hinder the worship flow in the worship prayer formats.
iii)
The prayer leader aims at a 1:5-1:10 ratio
with the prophetic singers, as opposed to a 1:1-1:2 ratio in the intercessory
prayer format.
b)
The prayer leader’s main job is to keep the
isolated phrase obvious to the prophetic singers. In other words, to give the
singers a big target at which to aim.
c)
The prayer leader’s second job is to watch
the involvement of the room. The goal is to see the room in one accord. They
watch to see if the antiphonal singing is inspiring the room to engage with
God. If the antiphonal singing goes too long the room disengages.
d)
The prayer leaders are not to sing on the mic
during spontaneous singing. The prayer
leader’s mic is much louder than the prophetic singers so that they can be
heard above the singers. Thus, the prayer leader dominates the voices of the
prophetic singers in spontaneous singing, which hinders the flow in the room.
2)
THE ROLE OF THE PRAYER LEADER (in
intercessory formats)
a)
In the intercessory prayer formats, the
prayer leader initiates by speaking the “biblical passages” and also
“Isolating
phrases.”
b)
The prayer leader adds one additional
dimension not used in the worship prayer formats. They pray the apostolic
prayer or prophetic promise for 1-2 minutes to get the room into the flow of
the biblical prayer. For example, they read Eph. 3:16-17, pray it for 1-2
minutes, and then they isolate a phrase.
c)
Rapid Fire prayer - The prayer leader will
choose a prayer focus and then invites intercessors to come up and pray for
10-15 seconds each. It allows for participation of intercessors in a
non-threatening manner.
d)
In intercessory formats, the intercessor has
the option to use the singers or not. If the prayer leader wants to involve the
singers, then they simply pauses to make room for the singers, and then continues
to offer short 5-10 second prayers that flow in an antiphonal way with the
singers. If the prayer leader chooses not to involve the singers, then they can
pray the passage for up to five minutes.
Outline for Intercessory Prayer
Format
In this
prayer format we use the prayers of the apostles and of prophetic promises to
engage in intercession. We use the
apostolic prayers to intercede for revival (general outpouring) on the whole
church across the city. We use the prophetic
promises to pray for specific needs that the Holy Spirit highlights. We focus on specific targets locally,
nationally, or internationally according to the following themes: cultural
strongholds, crisis events, political issues, church issues, salvation of
Israel, economic issues, family issues, etc.
Typical
Worship Cycle
1)
15-20 minutes of worship (2-3 worship songs)
2)
5 minutes of spontaneous singing (for all, in
Spirit or understanding)
3)
10-15 minutes of intercession, this can
include:
a)
Prayer leader prays through text, and
isolates a phrase.
b)
Antiphonal singers develop phrase into
spontaneous songs/choruses/prayers
The
intercession can also include:
a)
Rapid fire prayer, warring in the Spirit, and
open prayer ministry.
4) Repeat Step
3 - This can be handed back to the Prayer leader to pray another text and begin
again until a new worship cycle is started.
Subsequent
worship cycles may have less worship time and spontaneous singing if the room
is fully engaged. If the room is not
engaged worship time may be longer.
When the
prayer leader senses it is time to go back to worship he will signal to the
worship leader and they will start a new cycle.
During times
of intercession, if the Prayer leader senses the room is not engaged, or if he
just feels it is called for he can have the room break up into small groups to
pray for a specific topic or he can begin “rapid fire prayer”. During rapid fire prayer the prayer leader is
responsible for holding the mic and cueing the intercessors.
Notes:
1)
Worship prepares our hearts for engaging with
the Lord
2)
Spontaneous singing (particularly in the
Spirit), adds the extra spiritual “boost” to hear from the Lord for hearts that
have been engaged. This time can
really stir hearts that have been
engaged in worship and it can help further sir hearts that are still “waking
up”
3)
Intercession focuses on what the Lord is
wanting us to partner with Him
4)
Antiphonal singing is prophetically singing
prayer phrases to God. This engages the
whole room to sing together. The entire
room is singing this prayer. It is
certainly one application of Matthew 18:19 - prayer of agreement.
5)
Prayer leaders - pray with your eyes
open. You need to be able to watch the
room and sense engagement. You also need
to watch the worship leader to communicate with him.
6)
Worship leaders try to keep your eyes open
most of the time. You need to be able to
communicate with the prayer leader and singers, musicians.
7)
The model gives great flexibility as it is
used repeatedly. Rather than being a
rigid legalistic form, its structure provides the capacity for much spontaneity
as the team is led by the Holy Spirit and flows together as one.
Do not hesitate to contact me for any questions and additions.
trust@vccntinda.org
256 791 881 042