Last Friday this blog looked at the awesome way that God encouraged and called Jeremiah.  This  past week, our leadership group used four of the verses to guide our prayers.  In particular, we read the following:

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”   (verse 5)

 “Do not say, ‘I am a youth’; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak.  Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the LORD.”  (7-8)

Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth.  And the LORD said to me, “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth.  See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”  (9-10)

 “I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land.  They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you.” (18-19)

We had a brief discussion of the ways that these verses apply to us as witnesses and ambassadors for Christ.  The following were mentioned:

• The LORD is with us – being strong and courageous comes from His strength
• God knows our days and what we need
• God knows the opposition we will face, and He is more powerful
• Obeying the LORD gives us confidence
• God will give us the words we need to say when we are His witnesses.

 We moved into a time of prayer, particularly asking for strength, encouragement, and obedience in the issues we would discuss that evening.

 

Pastoral prayers or congregational prayers – both are usually one-person praying.  One uplifting, encouraging practice we have found very helpful is to have prayer teams.  Two person teams will station themselves around the worship area, and attenders at the service are invited to approach a team with their personal requests. 

The teams are usually current or former elders and their spouse; we want to have people with biblical knowledge and some counseling and prayer experience.  Having a man and a woman on the team seems to provide a welcomed comfort level.

Those remaining in their seats are encouraged to pray. Sometimes small clusters will organize themselves for group prayer.   

We often find there is not enough time; there is a dynamic where it takes a while for the first few prayer seekers to stand up, but then there is a rush; sometimes we wish we had more teams.  So, we encourage people to seek out prayer from friends who are not in the teams.

We used the verses from Isaiah 40 in a very powerful Tuesday morning prayer time.  As you read it below, you may recognize a wealth of familiar phrases – particularly look at verses 1, 8, 28-31. The instructions were simple – First, everyone read the chapter silently.  Then take turns reading aloud a few verses until you know what to pray, and pray what comes to mind.  We concluded by singing the first verse of Behold Our God, by Jonathan Baird, Meghan Baird, Ryan Baird, and Stephen Altroggge, artists from Sovereign Grace Worship.

The leader put spaces in reasonable spots, and often the praying individuals stayed with them.  One of the wonderful traits of a passage like this is it can be repeated.   For the same short section, the prayers of one person this week will not be the same as those of a different person next week.  The Bible is the living Word of God and our prayers are God-inspired

Isaiah 40

1 Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD’s hand double for all her sins. 3 A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. 5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

6 A voice says, “Cry!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. 7 The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it; surely the people are grass. 8 The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.

9 Go on up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!” 10 Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.

11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young. 12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand and marked off the with a span, enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance? 13 Who has measured the Spirit of the LORD, or what man shows him his counsel? 14 Whom did he consult, and who made him understand? Who taught him the path of justice, and taught him knowledge, and showed him the way of understanding?

15 Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as the dust on the scales; behold, he takes up the coastlands like fine dust. 16 Lebanon would not suffice for fuel, nor are its beasts enough for a burnt offering. 17 All the nations are as nothing before him, they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness.

18 To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him? 19 An idol! A craftsman casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and casts for it silver chains. 20 He who is too impoverished for an offering chooses wood that will not rot; he seeks out a skillful craftsman to set up an idol that will not move.

21 Do you not know? Do you not hear? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? 22 It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; 23 who brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness. 24 Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows on them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble.

25 To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One. 26 Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name, by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power not one is missing. 27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God”?

28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. 29 He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. 30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; 31 but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. “

Ben Patterson authored a great book on prayer, Deepening Your Conversation with God – Learning to Love to Pray.  The last chapter (pp157-171) describes the importance of corporate prayer in the life of a congregation.

Unity is one reason:

“…Jesus prays to the Father, ‘I in them and you in me.  May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me’ (John 17:23). Note that Jesus claims for Christian unity a power he gives only to the Holy Spirit, to nothing and no one else – the power to persuade the world that he is indeed the One sent from God, ‘to let the world know that you sent me.’  The greatest argument for the authority and identify of Jesus does not have to come from philosophers and theologians and apologists.  It can come from the simplest believers who will live together in the unity of the Holy Spirit!

Why does unity have this kind of power?  One reason is that when we live together in love and harmony, it can mean but one thing: that each of us has ceased being his own lord and has submitted himself or herself to the Lord.

So what does this have to do with corporate prayer?

There can’t be one without the other – no genuine corporate prayer without unity, no real unity without corporate prayer.  If prayer is the deepest communion we can have with our Father God this side of heaven, how can we have this intimacy if we are at loggerheads with  other brothers and sisters in his family?  It can’t be done.  When we are less than one with each other, our oneness with Jesus is broken and incomplete.  So then are our prayers.  That’s why Paul says to Timothy, ‘I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer,’ and then adds, ‘without anger or disputing’ (1 Tim.2:8)”

 

There is power in presenting unity to the world, and corporate prayer goes with the unity.  Patterson presents an example of the power of prayer:

“After the first Great Awakening, three churches in Ipswich, Massachusetts covenanted to pray.  In each congregation, cell groups would meet weekly to agree in prayer.  Monthly, the separate congregations would then gather the cells and conduct all-church prayer meetings of agreement.  Then quarterly, all three would come together  for the same kind of paying.  This pattern was followed faithfully, without interruption, for a century. Two remarkable things happened during this time.  All three churches reported periodic harvest or “ingatherings” of souls, in which there would be a number of new believers brought into the congregations, about every eight to ten years.  Also, during this time, all of New England was being swept by Unitarianism.  But not these three churches.  They remained firmly true the faith while apostasy swirled around them, but not over them.  Around the time of the Civil War, the prayer meetings ceased.  Within five years these churches all capitulated to Unitarianism!”

We used a well-known hymn to suggest prayer topics at our committee meeting the other night.  The Trinity Hymnal provides an appropriate Bible verse at the top of each hymn, so we added that to our mix.

“What a Friend We Have in Jesus”

By Joseph Scriven

What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!  What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!

O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations?  Is there trouble anywhere?  We should never be discouraged: take it to the Lord in prayer!

Can we find a friend so faithful, who will all our sorrows share?  Jesus knows our every weakness – take it to the Lord in prayer!

Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care?  Precious Savior, still our refuge – take it to the Lord in prayer!

Do thy friends despise, forsake, thee?  Take it to the Lord in prayer!  In his arms he’ll take and shield thee; thou wilt find a solace there.

The active phrase in this hymn is “Take It to the Lord in Prayer,” so that is what we will do.

 Hear the echoes of Philippians 4.6-7:  “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

 The instructions were simple: Reflect for a few minutes on

• Reasons in the hymn for Thanking or Praising God  (our friend, comforter, encourager, defender, and more)
• Confession to make if we have avoided or neglected God (distracted by depression, troubles, pride, etc)
• Requests to bring before the Lord  (families, church matters, meeting issues. others)

Then, let’s pray.  The leader guided into the three areas: Thanksgiving, Confession, and Requests.

 

We held a Men’s Day of Prayer on a recent Saturday. The plan is easy: Gather briefly to pray and sing together; disperse for private devotions and prayer time; come back together for a sack lunch; then disperse again until the end of the time. 

We have learned several logistical helps over the several occasions we have done this:

• Sort out ahead of time “key” questions like who will open and lock up the building.  Also, where will the group assemble, what rooms are available (and heated), is the refrigerator available for lunches, will there be tables set up for lunch, etc.
• Have the participants come to a central site, like the church. Some men may need to do their praying at home, but the advantage of the church is that the distractions of home are avoided.  The time feels more “set aside” for drawing close to God.
• Set a specific start and end time, but allow flexibility for arrival and departure. We made the “day” be 9AM until 3PM, with lunch at noon. Have a designated meeting spot for initial prayer and lunch.  Assign one person to stay in the meeting spot and brief late arrivals on the plan for the day.
• Encourage bringing and sharing sack lunches with each other.  It adds complexity to provide a lunch and takes time to procure takeout from a restaurant or fast food place.
• Some preparation is good, either prior to or at the beginning of the day.  We make available a small NavPress booklet by Lorne Sanny called (appropriately) “How to Spend a Day in Prayer.”
• We make a variety of resources available to all.  Some may bring their own, but it is good to have Bibles and hymnals readily accessible.  We also draw up a list of recent “Prayer Chain” requests and topics from Tuesday morning, Sunday evening and other congregational prayer times.  Some participants enjoy praying through a church directory or staff list.
• The focus of the day is on individual prayer, but having brothers close by provides the opportunity to ask for specific prayer and minister to one another.

This may seem like a long list of planning activities, but a smooth operation allows all to calmly proceed to praying.  Related to the second item above, we don’t want to trade the distractions of home for new distractions at the meeting place.

For several years, the Consistory (Elders and Deacons) at our church have led a half-hour 7 AM Tuesday morning prayer service at the church.   We will cancel when Holidays are on a Tuesday, and last week for the first time we invoked our long-standing policy that the prayer time is cancelled if the East Lansing schools have a Snow Day.

Leaders volunteer for a month at a time.  The leader generally selects a Bible passage and prepares a prayer “agenda” of topics based on the passage and on current events.  He arrives a little early to arrange the chairs in a circle, set out Bibles and be the time keeper for starting and stopping the service.  The size varies from 3-15, with some summer seasonal attendees. 

The Bible passage is often from Psalms, a major prophet or one of Paul’s prayers.  Different agenda orders come from the passage itself or are suggested by a “style” like ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication).

One of the best things about Tuesday morning prayer has been its consistency – week in and week out, giving the Lord the glory He is due, and lifting up issues and concerns of the week.

Several small groups have been in the habit of praying for the worship services each Sunday. 

• Each WORSHIP team in charge for that service prays regularly for all the people involved, for the Lord’s good hand, that they would perform with undistracting excellence, that the sound, light and video systems would all work well, and that God would be glorified.
• A small group gathers with the preacher for the day to pray that the Word would be spoken clearly and convictingly; Sunday School teachers would explain well; listeners would have soft hearts;  newcomers would be welcomed warmly; attenders would arrive on time and ready to meet the King; ushers, sound techs, and other workers would do their tasks as unto the Lord, and that God would be glorified.

 WHAT to pray is pretty routine; in fact, a prayer is often offered that says, “We have prayed this same prayer many times, LORD, but you have told us to be persistent; so we are.”   The time involved is short so we can’t pray for all the events or worries of the week ahead.  But the key thing is that someone is there praying for the services every week, and we DO desire that God be glorified.

 

We used this passage and prayer last night at the beginning on a committee meeting.   

Ephesians 1.15-21 is one of Paul’s wonderful prayers that he lifts up to the LORD concerning his friends:

For this reason (to the praise of his glory, sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, given as the guarantee of our inheritance), because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

1. Read the passage.
2. Take a few minutes to meditate on the greatness of our God, how he brings to us faith, love, wisdom, revelation, knowledge, enlightenment, hope, riches, sainthood, power, might….
3. Use the passage to pray for

• The specific meeting you are holding
• For the leaders of you congregation
• For the congregation of your church

To the praise of His glory.

 

Last May when this blog was started, I wanted to hold this one until Thanksgiving, but it is the best group prayer “activity” I have been involved in, so I put it in the first week.  It is worth  repeating:

A Thanksgiving Circle is simple and has always lifted the spirits of the group.  Try it with your family or other gathering tomorrow.

Stand in a circle.  The leader starts and briefly states something they are thankful for.  Examples: “Thank you, Lord, for the great weather today,”  “Thanks for getting me a job,” “Thank you for being able to pray together freely.”  Then the next person states a thanks.  Go around the circle ten times.  The leader keeps track and closes when done.

Listen to others’ prayers, and you will get more ideas of things you are thankful for.

You don’t have to hold hands, but if you do, it gives a person a chance to “pass” without saying anything – a hand squeeze means “please skip me this time.”

Don’t worry about repeats.

I have done this with groups of 5-10.  Not sure it would work as well with too big a group.

The current world record for the number of complete cycles through the group is 10.