Mark 11:17 “And as he taught them, he said, "Is it not written: "'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.’”

Prayer is not Important; It is Essential

Mark 11:17 “And as he taught them, he said, "Is it not written: "'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.’”

• http://youtu.be/BZnDt2wEFjk

The Non-Praying Church• This church will focus on various types of ministries and

activities that will involve and occupy the time, talent and temperament of its people. This church will boast on accomplishing many things but relegate prayer to symbolic corporate prayer and individual practice and commitment. They recognize the importance of prayer but they do not practice it.

MUSIC

DISCIPLESHP

MUSIC

EVANGELISM

MISSIONS

COMMUNITY SUNDAY SCHOOL

WORSHIP

Inclusive Praying Church

• This church considers prayer important but it does not value it any more than other ministries for which they divide their time, talents and temperaments. The prayer ministry is just one of the ministries of the church.

MUSIC

DISCIPLESHP

MUSIC

EVANGELISM

MISSIONS

COMMUNITY SUNDAY

SCHOOL

WORSHIP

PRAYER

MINISTRY

The foundational (House of Prayer)

praying church• This church passionately practices and participates in prayer

as the foundational or cornerstone ministry of the church. This prayer ministry undergirds every aspect and life of the church. Each ministry finds its motivation and strength in the strategic prayer of the church. Not only does each ministry find its strength in prayer, but it in turn refocuses its attention back to strengthen the prayer life of the church.

MUSIC

DISCIPLESHP

MUSIC

EVANGELISM

MISSIONS

COMMUNITY SUNDAY SCHOOL

WORSHIP

PRAYER

6

PRAYER SURVEY

1. I believe the Bible teaches that prayer should be a daily part of every Christian’s life.

2. I pray regularly during the day.

3. I believe that prayer works.

4. I feel adequately trained in prayer.

5. I regularly have times of prayer.

6. I pray regularly for missionaries.

7. I pray regularly for lost people.

8. I train others for prayer.

PERSONAL PRAYER

ALWAYS - 5

OFTEN - 4

SOMETIMES - 3

RARELY - 2

NEVER - 1

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CORPORATE CHURCH PRAYER SURVEY

1. The leadership in our church regularly teaches and emphasizes the importance of prayer.

2. Before our church engages in any major effort we dedicate a set time to pray/fast.

3. Our church regularly prays for non-Christians by name.

4. Prayer is a major emphasis in our worship services.

5. We have special prayer emphases in our church.

6. Our church maintains a current prayer list that is available to the church.

7. A significant part of our Sunday School classes or small groups is prayer.

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CORPORATE CHURCH PRAYER SURVEY

8. Our church emphasizes prayer for national and international missionaries.

9. We have people set aside to pray during the worship services.

10. The people in our church regularly pray for the pastor/staff and their families.

11. Prayer meetings in our church go no deeper than stating health needs.

12. We see answers to prayer in our church all the time.

13. We have set aside a place in our church where people can come to pray each week.

14. Our church has time when answers to prayer can be communicated corporately.

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CORPORATE CHURCH PRAYER SURVEY

15. Our church is so busy “doing church” we have little time to pray.

16. Our church has participated in prayer walking.

17. Our church regularly prays for a church planter in this state.

18. Prayer is involved in every function of your church.

19. Our church has an intercessory prayer ministry.

20. We have identified prayer warriors from our church to be engaged in the ministry of prayer.

100 – 66 = Foundational Praying Church

34-65 = Symbolic Church

33- 0 = Non-Praying Church

Why Pray?• Prayer is not simply getting things from

God- that is the most elementary kind of prayer. Prayer is coming into perfect fellowship and oneness with God. Oswald Chambers

• To invite Him. Prayer is fellowship with God. Working with God. “We then, as workers together with Him…” (2 Corinthians 6:1). He wants us to grow, and we grow when we pray. Dr. Adrian Rogers

Prayer is not important but ESSENTIAL

• The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray.– Samuel Chadwick (1860-1932) Wesleyan Methodist minister.

• Prayer is the key to unlocking God’s consistent and prevailing power in your life. Bill Hybels

POWER OF CORPORATE PRAYER

• The greatest workings of God come by corporate prayer; and we will not see the power of God in sufficient measure to transform the world around us until we pray together. As a leader you must make praying together a priority equal to preaching and teaching. John Franklin

• Personal prayer in lives alone will not result in the working of God to the degree needed for spiritual transformation in our lives, our churches, our cities or our nation. John Franklin

Priority of Praying TogetherA Non-Negotiable Mandate

• The Apostles belief Acts 6:1-4 “Our responsibility is mobilizing prayer & teaching/preaching within the body” Examples – Acts 1:14, 24; 2:42; 3:1; 4:23-31• What Jesus modeled

37 times Jesus says “you pray” 33 are plural Matthew 18:19 “..if any two of you..” Mark 11:25 “..if you have anything against..”• The pattern of Scripture

When believers were gathered together you find corporate prayer.

Leading Corporate Prayer is ESSENTIAL?

1. The Heart Stays in A Loving Relationship Practice of missions and evangelism was the effect of their power with God. The by-product of hearing and obeying the Word of God and praying with others was being on mission.

2. The People of God stay on His Agenda Guiding the people of God to stay in the presence of God guarded their usefulness to God. Neither external threats nor internal conflicts derailed the church.

Leading Corporate Prayer is ESSENTIAL?

3. You Model What You want Others to Practice If you want to teach others to pray, you must model prayer. The apostles knew the best discipleship strategy was to model prayer and create opportunities to pray.

If your church would see the power of God in supernatural ways, if the power of God is to descend so that Christians are renewed and the lost come under conviction of sin, then you must lead your people to pray. John Franklin

Leading a Dynamic Prayer Mtg.

•Question Asked to 5,000 Leaders•When was the last time you remember the manifest presence and power of God on a regular basis in your mid-week prayer meeting?•Answer:•Most remain silent or refer to distant time in the history of the church

What Makes a Dynamic Prayer Meeting?

1. God – Centered Relationship

If you lead prayer, you must grasp this truth above all others: your primary job is to help the people of God be God centered, to teach them that the primary purpose of prayer is a lifestyle of walking with God.

Prayer meetings are ineffective because leaders allow and encourage people to be self-centered instead of training them to be God centered.

What Makes a Dynamic Prayer Meeting?

2. Meaningful Relationships We must indeed seek first the Kingdom of God when we pray, but if we haven’t paid the price to build deep relationships with those whom we pray, then prayer will always lack depth Acts 2:42-47; 4:32-35; 5:12-16, 41-42 Meaningful prayer follows meaningful relationships

What Makes a Dynamic Prayer Meeting?

3. The Leaders Walk with God Can anyone give what He does not have? God limits a discerning heart to those who first have a seeking heart. 4. Hearts Right with God Faith and desire set the stage to meet God, and in the average prayer meeting today they are desperately lacking

What Makes a Dynamic Prayer Meeting?

5. Believers in One Accord Acts 1:14 (first 5 chapters “one accord” 5 times)

6. Leaders Who Lead Leadership is not accidental

God’s Desires in Dynamic Prayer Mtgs.

God’s Three Desires

1. Reveal Himself to His People When His people know Him, they glorify Him, learn to live

in relationship with Him and become like Him.

2. Move His People onto His Agenda Embrace His agenda – Go on mission with Him – Change the world

3. Minister to his people through his people The result is koinonia, a deepening of the love believers have for one another

The Leaders Four Responsibilities

1. Discerning the Activity of God -Where is God at work?

2. Shepherding the Heart of the People of God We “Undershepherd” by guiding people into the three desires of God. 2 Chronicles 6 --- Solomon

3. Designing a God-Centered Format (Template): Focus on God Respond from the heart Seek first the Kingdom Present your requests Close in celebration

The Leaders Four Responsibilities

4. Employ activities that involve participation (Template:)

Focusing Activities - singing, testimonies, etc. Participating Activities – groups, holding hands, kneeling

Ministering Activities – new members, new mothers, laying hands on for special needs

Biblical Example: Solomon’s Temple Dedication

Designing A God-Centered Format• Focus on God (10-15 minutes)

Acts 4:23-24 “Lord you are God who made..” Peter & John have been threatened with death but begin prayer focusing on God. The result in v.31 was great boldness.

How to focus:1. Scripture reading focusing on Gods activities2. Personal & Historic testimonies3. Worship through song or praise

Designing A God-Centered Format• Respond from the heart (10-15 minutes)

May be uncomfortable initially. Resist the temptation to rush ahead. Responses may take on different forms such as praise, confession, adoration or praise. The key is to allow Gods people time to respond to his presence.

• Seek first the Kingdom (15-20 minutes)The heart priorities of the people must be transformed into the heart priorities of God.

Designing A God Centered Format• Present your requests (20-25 minutes)

Help members to see their request from Gods perspective & allow people to minister to one another.

• Close in celebration (5 minutes)Allow people to affirm the blessing of having been in Gods presence.

Guiding Activities That Involve People• Read a passage & expound on it.• Have different people read assigned

verses on a particular theme.• Have people read from different

translations.• Let people read favorite verses on a

subject.• Let people read verses that have

spoken to them that week.

Guiding Activities That Involve People• Ask for personal testimonies.• Worship through music using songs with a

thematic message.• Use video: Flash a PP collage of scripture

on the screen or a testimonial.• Use Drama: Dramatize the scripture used

in the service or act out a related skit.• Use visual objects: Props, banners, posters,

etc.• Physical location: Create an atmosphere

for prayer. (spotlight on an empty chair, circle that building, prayer walk around the community)

• Use printed material: use ASK as an acrostic. Matt 7:7 ask, seek and knock.

Shepherding the People of God• Do my people have a passionate, growing

love for God?• Do my people act and think more like Jesus

than they once did?• When they go to pray in their prayer

closet, are they praying differently based on what they learned in prayer meeting?

• Is there greater evidence of God’s activity in our prayer meetings because my people are changing to focus more on His desires?

• Is there love for one another growing? Do they have an increasing heart to ministering to one another? Do I see their koinonia deepening? Does their love drive them to persevere in prayer for one another?

Discerning the Activity of God

• Pay attention to how people’s spiritual understanding is being affected.• Listen to what they are learning in the

Bible.• Look for areas of growth in people’s lives.• Look for areas of growth needed in

people’s lives.• Watch the testimonies that arise. Look for

how God has worked and answered.• What has come to your heart that bears

sharing?

Transitioning from Stale to Vibrant

• Prepare Hearts• Model and Teach• Change the Mentality• Pray for Reference Points for Dynamic Prayer• Challenge Traditionalism• Involve Others• Begin with Leadership• Consider Small Groups for Informal

Mentoring• Get Feedback The ultimate goal is to not transform a prayer meeting but to transform a people

Focus on God Respond from the heart Seek first the Kingdom Present your requests Close in celebration

Prayer Resources• http://

www.sbcv.org/articles/category/prayer_resources

• http://pray4everyhome.com/ • www.onecry.org • www.flbaptist.org • http://www.ncbaptist.org/index.php?id=87 • www.christlifemin.org • Coming:• www.prayva.com

Prayer is not Important; It is Essential

Mark 11:17 “And as he taught them, he said, "Is it not written: "'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.’”