The case study below highlights the challenge of guiding a church’s prayer life. For help with planning prayer services for your congregation, see our newest download.
The Case
“This church hardly ever prays together,” complained Joan, a 40-something church leader. “The only times for congregational prayer are during the services and 30 seconds before our committee meetings.” An older man named Bill also chimed in, “Whatever happened to our midweek prayer service? The pastor dropped it five years ago, but that should be the lifeblood of our church.”
As the conversation continued, there was a clear consensus among church leaders that Grace Church desperately needed a church-wide prayer awakening. Unfortunately, the traditional model of the midweek prayer service wasn’t working anymore. So all the church leaders looked to Pastor Mark to either revitalize the midweek prayer time or jump-start corporate prayer another way. But Pastor Mark, who longed for a prayer awakening in the church, didn’t know where to start. Sadly, the deep longing for prayer left Pastor Mark feeling defensive and burdened with yet another program to organize. And the church leaders felt disappointed with Pastor Mark’s apparent lack of spiritual leadership.
What Would You Do?
- Who is responsible for the prayer life of the local church? What is the pastor’s role? The lay people’s?
- What would you recommend as a good starting action for this church board?
What Happened
Pastor Mark gathered the leaders who were passionate about corporate prayer. “Let’s be honest,” he confessed, “some of you are much more gifted than I am in the areas of intercessory prayer and in administration. We all desire an awakening of prayer in our church. But if it’s just up to me, it’s not going to happen. Some of you have the passion and the gifts to pull it off. We must release you to pursue the ministry that God has already placed in your heart.
“But there’s just one condition,” Pastor Mark continued. “We have to think outside the box. If the midweek prayer service doesn’t work, let’s find something that does. Be flexible and creative.”
Joan and her husband took up the challenge. They enlisted another couple and started dreaming about what a prayer awakening would look like at Grace Church. Along with Pastor Mark, they also carefully prayed about specific events. Then the two couples organized semi-annual prayer vigils, a weekly prayer focus for the church bulletin, a day-long workshop on personal prayer, and other events to ignite a spirit of prayer at Grace Church. As a result, prayer moved from the margins to the center of church life.
Taken from Prayer & Awakening
