A church in Florida was in the midst of building a larger church. Before the paint and carpet stage, the church leaders and staff went to the areas of the church where their primary responsibility was to be. They spent time praying over their spaces. Next, they took pencils and wrote scriptures on the floors, walls, etc. Afterwards, the entire group met and prayerwalked the entire building indoors, praying Scriptures, worshiping, and adding written Scriptures to places they sensed the Spirit was leading them to do so. They asked the Lord for His guidance, wisdom and blessing. Following this, they prayerwalked the outside of the building while asking God to draw lost people to the church, praying for the various community and world-wide outreaches of the church, and planting tent pegs with Scriptures written on them at the corners of the property. It was such a powerful experience that they invited the entire congregation to join them to prayerwalk inside and outside the building and property.

We would suggest doing this for any new church space or addition. Also, what might God do in response to small groups praying for members who move to a new home, or build one? What a great way to bless one another as the body of Christ!

By Dave Butts

“Lord, teach us to pray” was a request of the disciples to Jesus 2000 years ago. It still seems to be a popular request of His disciples today. In spite of years of sermons and lessons on prayer, Christians are still saying, “I don’t know how to pray.”

Often what is taught is more motivational and theoretical than practical teaching on how to pray. It is assumed that prayer is a spiritual discipline that all Christians will automatically do. I am finding, as I travel the country, that this is simply not the case.

When a church first asked me to teach a seminar on “How to Pray,” I started looking at all sorts of techniques and methods. But as I prayed about it, I kept going back to Jesus’ response to the question posed by the disciples in Luke 11:1, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” I’m convinced the key in knowing how to pray is in that model prayer that Jesus gave us in Matthew 6:9-13. It is commonly known as the Lord’s Prayer; however, I prefer to refer to it as the Model Prayer, or the Disciples Prayer, because it is for our instruction and benefit.

Many authors have written about it, and many of us have studied all the various parts of this wonderful prayer, carefully analyzing each section. There is real value in that; however, I would like to take a fresh look at this text, trying to shed some new light upon God’s intent for our prayer lives.

What can we learn about how to pray by studying this prayer outline of Jesus from God’s perspective? Perhaps it is time to discover what it is that God wants us to pray about. I suggest you keep your Bible open to Matthew 6:9-13 as we walk through the prayer.

The Model Prayer instructs us to:

1.   Address the Father (“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name”). Verse 9 shows us how to offer our praise and worship to the One who desires it. This allows us to enter into the presence of God by being focused on Him rather than upon ourselves. If we are in His presence, we are more likely to be in tune with what He desires. Praying through the Psalms is a good way to do this because they help us to better understand the heart of God through knowing more about the character of God. It is vital for the Father’s children to know that the purpose of prayer is to bring glory to God! Worship that is focused on God is prayer! Psalm 145 is one that reveals much about who God is and gives us a robust vocabulary to utilize in addressing our Father. Pay attention to the One who is on the other end of our prayers – the One who sits on the throne!

2.   Pray about Kingdom issues (“Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”). Verse 10 reveals the place where God’s heart is! Jesus’ message was about the Kingdom–His Kingdom. In Matthew 6:33, He instructed His disciples to seek first the Kingdom, and then the things needed for this life would be provided.

Growing Deeper in Kingdom Prayer

Praying about the kingdom is often the most neglected area of prayer, and yet the nearest to the heart of God. Kingdom prayer is birthed in the heart of God, and the Holy Spirit reveals the desires of God to us! It’s amazing that God has chosen to work through human flesh to accomplish His purposes. To illustrate, look at the way Jesus phrased this subject in Matthew 6:10: “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The Kingdom of God, the reign of God, happens when God’s will is done. This occurs in its perfect form in heaven where everything is done in exact accordance with the will of God.

Jesus instructs us to pray that God’s Kingdom would advance on planet earth–that God’s will would be done here as it is in heaven, with all creatures and institutions perfectly submitted to the will of God.

I’d like to suggest to you that this reign of God begins to take place on earth when two things happen:

• People submit their lives to the Lordship of Jesus Christ as a result of hearing the Gospel.
• The People of God (the Church) live out the life of Jesus on earth.

Basically, then, we’re praying about two things:

• That every person on this planet will have the opportunity to hear about Jesus and respond to Him as Savior and Lord–the finishing of the task of world evangelization!
• That the Church of Jesus Christ will wake up and begin to take seriously what it means to follow Jesus–revival!

It is particularly interesting that God’s Spirit is prompting believers all over the world to pray for these very things.

Let’s look at some practical ways we can pray about these two topics:

Finishing the Task

• Become a Prayer Missionary. The Great Commission was given to all of us; and, although we are all called to the mission field, we aren’t all called to missions in other nations – except in prayer! In order to be obedient, we must answer the call to prayer wherever God calls us, whether locally or globally. And, just like a missionary, we can make a commitment of a year, two years, or long term service. It means saying, “I will pray for the nation or nations that God has called me to pray about.” It is hard work and it takes preparation, but the results are glorious. We can become prayer missionaries to one or more cities, countries, and/or people groups during our lifetimes.

How do you decide what country or people group to pray for? Let the Holy Spirit guide you, just as He guides missionaries to their particular place of ministry. Begin praying for the needs of the world . . . watch the news and read newspapers. Pray about the nations or people groups mentioned. Read a book like “Operation World” and begin praying for the nations. God will begin to attract you to one particular group or city or region which you can “adopt” for prayer. Spend time researching the nation, tribe or city that you have chosen. Make a file or scrapbook about your people group. Learn to pray intelligently for these people for whom you have committed to pray.

• Learn to pray effectively for the world. Bennie Mostert’s book, “Change Your World Through Prayer” is a wonderful help in learning to pray for the world. He suggests that there are four things which must be prayed for daily for your people group:

1.  For the workers already in the harvest field as well as for more workers in the harvest field (Matthew 9:38).

2.  For open doors so that the gospel may take its rapid course (Col. 4:2-3).

3.  For lasting fruit as a result of spiritual labor (2 Thess. 3:1).

4.  For the necessary funds to spread the gospel (Romans 10:14-15; Phil. 4:19).

• Take a prayer journey. You may even be able to gather several others with you to take a prayer journey to your nation. This involves going and praying physically in that nation. It will give you a far better understanding of how to pray. Harvest Prayer Ministries takes a prayer journey to Israel regularly!

Revival

How do we pray for revival? There are so many good ways. Mostert’s book suggests 10 ways we can pray every day for revival, both for ourselves and for our own congregation of believers. Would you commit to praying daily for revival in your life and in your church?

• Lord, change us (Ps. 85:7). Pray for renewal and change. Revival results in change and spiritual awakening.
• Lord, we humble ourselves before you (Is. 57:15). Humbling ourselves before God is essential to a right relationship and to revival. Humility is an act of obedience before God. Fasting is an example of such an act.
• Lord, cleanse me (1 John 1:9). Pray for deeper cleansing of sin that goes hand in hand with deeper confession of sin. Keep short accounts with God. Become spiritually sensitive to sin.
• Lord, heal us (James 5:13-16). This certainly includes prayer for physical healing, but also for the spiritual recovery from emotionally hurtful events from the past. This is true for a whole congregation as well as an individual. 2 Chron. 7 relates revival to a healing of the land.
• Lord, make us holy (1 Pet. 1:16). Pray for holy conduct in our lives that we might be different from the world around us. The way we speak, spend our time, and respond to people is what really makes us different.
• Lord, guide us (John 4:34). Pray for the Lord’s daily guidance. How we need that as a congregation! Jesus is head of the Body. He ought to be making the decisions as to where we go and what we do as a Church.
• Lord, fill us (Eph. 5:18). Pray for the daily filling of the Holy Spirit. Dwight L. Moody often preached on the need to be filled daily with the Holy Spirit. He was stopped one evening after a message by an irate woman who asked him why he needed to be filled with the Spirit more than once. Moody answered. “Because, Madam, I leak.”
• Lord, anoint us (Luke 4:18-19). Pray to be equipped to serve the Lord not by might, but by His Spirit.
• Lord, use us (1 Cor. 12:12-30). Pray for willingness to be involved in the congregation. It is time to lay the 80/20 rule to rest, where 20% of the members of a congregation do 80% of the work. Mentoring and discipleship is so needed in the church.
• Lord, send us (Matt. 28:18-20). Pray for involvement in the expansion of Christ’s Kingdom.

3.   Pray about personal needs (“Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”). Notice that the rest of the model prayer (Matthew 6:11-13) deals with one’s own life. God wants us to pray about our needs. He just doesn’t want them to be the only thing we pray about.

Most Christians have little difficulty praying about personal needs. There’s nothing wrong with that, but how often do we wonder whether or not our priorities in prayer are God’s priorities? Often, our default mode of prayer is to go immediately to ourselves, or to those close to us. Here are some suggestions to help you with the three issues listed in verses 11-13:

• Daily bread/necessities of life. Perhaps the most important thing here is the expression of gratitude; recognizing what God has done and always being grateful. I remember a number of years ago going to a church camp where there was no hot water. After several days of cold showers, I returned home to my nice hot shower. The prayer came almost involuntarily, “Lord, thank you for hot, clean water.” How often we take the blessings of God in our lives for granted. We need to thank Him for taking care of our daily necessities. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Phil. 4:6).
• Forgiveness. In 1 John 1:9, the Word of God says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” One of the biggest hurdles in this area seems to be trusting God to do what He says He will do. We ask for forgiveness over and over again because we don’t feel forgiven. Trust God and His Word, not your feelings.
• Temptation and deliverance: As Christians, we often forget that we are in a daily spiritual battle. We have an enemy who would like nothing better than to cause us to fall and to fail. “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). Fortunately, we have the power of God’s Word to stand upon and strengthen ourselves. For example, 1 Peter 5:9 says, “Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” Another example is found in James 4:7: “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”

Closing Thoughts

Knowing “how to pray” will happen when we operate as Jesus taught us. First, we remember to “hallow His name” when we recognize that prayer is designed by God for the glory of God.  Next, we quit focusing first and only on our own needs and wants, and begin to pray about the things God wants to have happen “on earth as it is in heaven.” When we pray for the advance of the Kingdom, and the reign of God coming upon this earth, we demonstrate to Him that we are seeking His Kingdom first. And finally, these other things, the necessities of life, may properly be brought before our Father who delights in providing for us.

(c) Harvest Prayer Ministries

If you have a weekly/regular prayer meeting and it has dwindled down to the “faithful few,” it’s time to take stock. If you are the organizer(s) of the prayer meetings, it can get discouraging if people are not participating in arguably the most important spiritual act designed by God and so prolifically practiced in the Book of Acts and the rest of Scripture.

First, let’s look at the main reasons why people have either stopped coming or have never come to your prayer meeting:

1. They are afraid. Most people feel very inadequate about their prayer lives. The last thing they want to do is to be in a situation where they might be asked to pray out loud, or in a group with others. Many of these people would rather focus only on their own prayer closet and devotions rather than step into corporate prayer experiences.

2. They are intimidated. When people come to the prayer meeting and feel that there are some people who pray with an authority or eloquence they don’t have, they are less likely to feel comfortable praying in such an environment. Because prayer is so natural to the seasoned intercessors who (often or usually) plan the meetings, they expect the rest of the church to be like them. Clearly this isn’t the case, as many believers haven’t been trained to pray in the home or by the church.

3. They are bored. Many people feel that prayer meetings are always predictable and have a mind-numbing sameness to them. Unfortunately, the default mode of prayer for most churches is to pray the “sick” list. Many of the people on “the list” aren’t even known to most of the people who are praying for them – they are friends, relatives or acquaintances of people in the church. It is important to pray for those with health issues; however, when that is all we ever pray about, people rapidly disengage. If people don’t have a sense of God’s presence, and that Heaven is engaged with their prayers, they aren’t motivated or excited about coming to a meeting where “nothing happens” and with a belief that their prayers don’t matter.

4. They are frustrated. These people know they want something different…something more than the litany of illnesses and personal prayer requests. They feel that prayer should be more than what they have experienced but have no idea what to do to make it better. There are also those who DO know what could be done but don’t have a voice in the planning or preparation.

 5. They are ambivalent. Because many people are not being trained in prayer in their homes or at church, most don’t see the point and view prayer as a religious exercise for the super-spiritual. Prayer has never been an important part of their Christian experience, or they perceive that it really has never “worked” for them. They have not yet learned to pay attention to the One who is on the other end of every prayer – the Sovereign One who sits on the throne!

6. They don’t see church leadership actively involved. The engagement of church leadership is also a critical component of the prayer meetings. If your pastor(s) and church leaders are not proponents and participants at some level in your process of planning and engaging others in the practice of a regular corporate prayer rhythm, it will be difficult to get more of the congregation to come to prayer meetings. If leadership is not very involved, begin praying at once for them! Don’t whine, gripe or grumble – pray! Ask God to make your leaders people of prayer who will teach and encourage prayer so that the congregation will follow their lead.

Drawing People to the Prayer Meeting

God created prayer for the purpose of accomplishing His will on this planet through the prayers of His people. It’s a divine mystery, but a compelling truth. Let’s look at some ways to help people grow their passion for the Father and His plans and purposes for prayer that will translate to more people having greater participation in corporate prayer experiences:

1. Help people to encounter God. Incorporate worship into your prayer meetings, helping people focus on the One Who sits on the throne in Heaven as the object of your love and devotion. It is important for God’s people to realize that prayer is intimacy with Him and for His glory! Jesus taught the disciples to pray, “Our Father in Heaven, Holy is Your Name!” People’s attention should always be directed towards God before coming to Him with a prayer list or agenda. Help people to move to a “Not my will but Yours be done” mindset. This will help them to remember that ultimately, His will is more important than our own wants, needs and desires. God still wants to hear us express these, because He loves us…but His purposes are so much bigger! Praying in agreement with God through the power of the Holy Spirit and in the Name of our Lord, Jesus Christ, is ultimately to step into the throneroom of Heaven whenever we pray.

2. Be welcoming and give people permission to pray at their own level of comfort – whether out loud or quietly. Don’t put anyone on the spot and don’t have the unrealistic expectation that people are comfortable praying in groups, etc. It’s important that people don’t feel intimidated, but invited!

3. Plan well! There should be clear leadership and each person walking in should have a good experience with God in community with others. Consider inviting people to a Prayer “Experience” rather than a Prayer “Meeting.” If no one takes the time to develop a focused prayer time but instead just asks what prayer requests people may have, the prayer meeting is doomed to stay small.

• Start and end on time! If those attending are never sure when the meeting will end, and feel uncomfortable leaving when the stated ending time comes, they won’t put this commitment on their calendar. If you feel the Spirit is keeping you longer than the hour or two you have stated, give those who need to leave permission to do so without guilt! For example, say, “Tonight we are sensing that God may want us to spend more time praying about…. Those who need to leave, please feel free to do so. If anyone wants to stay longer, you are invited to.”
• When people leave a prayer meeting or experience, they should feel confident that God is already on the move responding to the prayers of His people. Knowing that our prayers are heard and that Heaven is stirred with activity by our kingdom-focused praying is important.

4. Be intentional about training people in prayer. People will not give themselves to something they feel inadequate or uncertain about. Consider offering some training in prayer that will enhance your congregation’s growth in communicating and communing with God so that those who feel deficient or poorly equipped to be a part of a corporate experience in prayer can begin to grow in their confidence. Sometimes training can be incorporated into your prayer meetings. A concept of prayer can be taught and then the group can practice the concept in real time.

5. Talk to God, not one another. Talking about prayer isn’t prayer. Sometimes our prayer meetings involve a lot of offering of requests and very little actual prayer time. Unless some teaching/training is part of your prayer meetings or experiences, keep talking to one another at a minimum.

6. Be sure to give brief, clear instructions when necessary. It’s very important that people always understand what they are supposed to do. For example, if you are breaking people into groups of 3 or 4 at some point during the prayer meeting, make sure they are clear about when and how that will take place. If you are using prayer stations, the instructions can be written down and placed at each station. If people come in late, make sure someone is there to welcome them and quickly fill them in so they don’t feel left out when everyone else is moving around or getting into groups. Feeling uncomfortable is a recipe for not returning.

7. Pray kingdom-focused prayers: Try to move away from the “sick/hospital” list default model as your only focus and embrace what God is doing!

• Take stock of what is happening around you…in the culture.
• Pray what Scripture shows you is on the heart of God…things like unity in the Body of Christ, that we would love one another, praying for workers to be raised up to spread the Gospel, for our leaders and nation, etc.
• NOTE: It is still very important to pray for those who are sick! We need to get better at it than we are. However, prayer meetings are a good way to start training people to pray for those who are sick…and add a kingdom component to their praye

8. Mix it up! Don’t do the same thing continually! If what you are doing isn’t working, try something new!

• Change your theme/topic each meeting because people are passionate about different things.
• Variety and creativity engages everyone as God has wired us all differently to meet with Him. Use different postures, different modalities (visual, auditory, tactile, etc.).
• Prayer stations are a very good way to engage people in prayer and is a great way to incorporate the variety and creativity mentioned above.
• Pray Scripture! People need to learn to pray what is on the heart of God. When we pray God’s word we are always in His will!
• Get out of the church building! Prayerwalk or prayer-drive around schools, businesses, other churches, neighborhoods, etc. Set up a Drive-Through prayer booth in your church parking lot or another place in town where people can drive through and be prayed for!
• Embrace Youth and Children! From time to time it is important to bring the younger generations into your times of prayer to learn from and grow with one another in prayer. Make space for the kids and you will be blessed. Plan some prayer meetings that are welcoming for all ages. Prayer stations and prayerwalking are good ways to do this.

9. Listening and obeying – spend time allowing God to speak to your hearts and DO what He is leading you to do. People need to learn that prayer isn’t all one-sided. We often rush in with our requests and never spend time hearing from God through His Spirit. Perhaps a good way to spend time listening would be to ask at least one question of the Lord. Here are two examples:

• Lord, thank You for hearing our prayers. Is there anything You want to say to me/us? Perhaps you will hear God telling you how much He loves you and is pleased with the time you have spent in His throneroom. Maybe He will give you a word of encouragement for the whole group, or a picture of what He might be already doing in response to the prayers you have prayed as a community. Of course, you may not sense God saying anything at all…and that is perfectly okay. Taking time to listen ensures that you will not miss something He does want to tell you.
• Father, would You help us to be the answer to the prayers we just prayed? Then spend a few minutes listening together as a group. Before closing, the leader may ask, “Has anyone heard the Lord expressing anything to your heart?” Perhaps God will direct you to meet a need for those you have specifically been praying for. This could be directed to you individually or as a community. If you have a sense this is from the Lord, obey!

One last suggestion – don’t be concerned about the number of people at the prayer meeting. If you worry about who isn’t there, you won’t be focused on those who are. The prayer movement will grow one person at a time until more start hearing what God is doing. When answers come and as people have good experiences with the Father in prayer and tell others, you will see growth.

As you pray through and incorporate some of these ideas, we fervently pray that your congregation will begin to be more receptive to giving the prayer meeting/prayer experience another try, and that others will be drawn to be a part of what God is up to through the prayers of His people.

Suggested Resource: Here is a powerful resource handbook by David and Kim Butts to take you step by step into the nuts and bolts of becoming a house of prayer for all nations! It is for leaders and lay people alike!

PRAYER MINISTRY VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK  

Before launching into intercession for others, corporate prayer, or even personal prayer, here are some powerful questions to utilize as a way to examine the condition of your heart so that God will hear and respond! Spend some time meditating on these scriptures as you answer the questions.

Have I confessed all known sin? Isaiah 59:1-2 says, “Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God: your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” “If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives” (1 John 1:10).

Are all my relationships with others made right? “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:14-15).

Are you seeking His will in all things? “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that is we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us – whatever we ask – we know that we have what we asked of him” (1 John 5:14-15).

Are you seeking to glorify God above all things? “And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it” (John 14:13-14).

Are you depending on the Holy Spirit’s guidance? “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will” (Romans 8:26-27).

Are you trusting God in spite of what seems to be? “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Will you praise God no matter what? “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

(c) Harvest Prayer Ministries