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Expanding the use of the term Prayer Journeys helps adapt prayerwalking in several ways. The creation of field teams and support teams allow for everyone to be involved in covering the community in prayer. Prayer Journeys are local church based and intentionally evangelistic. Many groups are already using every form of transportation to cover their communities in prayer so Prayer Journeys may be easier than prayer biking, driving or rollerblading!
A. Definition: A Prayer Journey is an intentional coordinated effort to pray for and share Jesus with every person in a chosen geographical area or cultural community. It includes prayerwalking, biking, driving, flying, rollerblading, and every other possible form of transportation. Prayer Journeys help believers to balance the importance of prayer in preparation for witnessing and during outreach events. The entire geographic or cultural area must be saturated in prayer. One Prayer Journey field team in Seattle reported "It was amazing how much we learned about our community by walking through it and praying for the people."
1. Adaptable. Prayer Journeys should be changed in any way that is needed to cover an urban or rural area in prayer. Prayer Journeys provide field teams and support teams so every believer can be involved. Most believers do not have to journey far to find groups that need intentional, specific prayer. Military chaplains have developed ways to pray for everyone on their base. Ethnic leaders pray for new immigrants arriving in their communities. Urban leaders pray for specific communities in the inner city. Postal workers pray for everyone on their route. Going house-to-house at Halloween takes on new meaning too. A woman in Georgia said, "I would get so frustrated with the students in my high school classes. I realized today that I had never prayed for them. I will start tomorrow to pray for every name on my roll."
2. Focused. Prayer Journeys remind believers to focus on the importance and benefit of prayer. Satan loves general unfocused prayer. Prayer Journeys prompt specific, intentional prayer because of what is seen and heard in the community. It’s what Steve Hawthorne calls "Praying on-sight with insight."
Look again at the words of the hymn "What a Friend we have in Jesus."
What a friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry, Everything to God in Prayer:
Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh, 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 know 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.
B. Prayer Pilgrimages. Prayer Pilgrimages take intentional prayer to support missionaries in international areas. Some of these areas do not have evangelical missionaries. Prayer Pilgrimages then become the primary means for the power of God to be released in that area. Contact the International Mission Board (I 888 I CAN GO1, or www. imb.org/pray) for more information about Prayer Pilgrimages. One aspect of Prayer Pilgrimages refers to Prayer Expeditions that cover multiple countries in reconciliation prayer. Prayer Expeditions have walked, driven and traveled along the route of the Crusaders to the Holy Land, along the WWII route from London to Berlin and along the Civil War route of General Sherman.
A teacher shared, "Our boys missions class began praying for missionaries in the former Soviet Block. Every boy wanted to see maps of the areas where the missionaries worked and wanted to see their pictures. Even at their young age they realized as one boy said, "I pray better when I know what I’m praying about."
II. Why Prayer Journeys are Needed
A. The needs of the lost. Prayer Journeys remind believers of the need for specific biblical prayer. The United States is now the fourth largest unsaved nation on earth. Canada only has 8,000 evangelical churches to reach a population of 2.9 million.
A college student said, "I was shocked to realize how far America has fallen from being a Christian nation. Now I understand why we are in so much trouble. I am going to start doing my part to bring us back to God."
1. 1 Timothy 2:1-4 is a wonderful call to evangelistic prayer. Paul urges Timothy and the generations of believers to come, "that entreaties and prayers, petitions, and thanksgiving, be made on behalf of all men. For kings and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (emphasis added. NASB). Each believer needs to pray for and share Jesus with everyone in our sphere of influence.
Entreaties, prayers and thanksgiving. Paul wants to be sure that Timothy gets the point. Pray!
On behalf of all people. A lot of the fleshly rivalries and gossip will cease when prayer replaces idle talk. A lot of the fleshly rivalries and gossip will cease when prayer replaces idle talk. Paul knew that believers sometimes need encouragement to look outward. Every believer ought to have confidence that his brothers and sisters in Christ are praying for him or her.
Those in authority. Believers need to make prayer lists of local, national and international people in authority. We need to pray for them by name. When was the last time you prayed for the Supreme Court justices by name? When have you prayed for your local school board or the King of some Muslim nation? If evangelicals are not praying for them, who is?
Quiet lives. This specific prayer results in a tranquil and quiet life. A church elder in Croatia began to weep when he heard these verses taught. He told the congregation, "My brothers and sisters we must pray for our leaders and Bosnian leaders if we are ever going to have tranquil and quiet lives again." There are significant consequences when we pray, and when we don’t.
Good and acceptable to God. Prayer softens hard hearts and brings responsiveness to the work of the Holy Spirit. Notice in verse 4 that Paul reminds Timothy of the importance of prayer in evangelism. Every believer should want to do something that is good and acceptable in God’s sight. A music leader said, "It hit me pretty hard that I need be more like God in desiring that all men be saved. I need to do more than expect someone else to be leading people to Christ."
And come to the knowledge of the truth. Paul also referred Timothy back to Christ’s Words in John 14:6, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through me." Jesus did not say I am some of the way, part of the truth, and a little bit of the life. Humans can only know God through His Son. There is confidence when believers present the truth of Christ. We do not have to be ashamed or embarrassed or apologetic. Jesus also said in John 8:32, "You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free."
Charles Finney challenged the believers of his day to specific prayer, "You had better send your Bibles to the heathen, where they will do some good, if you are not going to believe and use them. I have no evidence that there is much of this prayer now in this church, or in this city. And what will become of them? What will become of your children?—your neighbors?—the wicked?"
B. The needs of the believer. God awaits our prayers to release the spiritual power that enables us to follow through on His Plan. Prayer Journeys draw believers closer to God and give us a vision for the lost. This intentional prayer releases God’s power and love as we agree with His plans for an area. Prayer Journeys help each believer focus on my responsibility to reach my neighborhood.
Like any physical or spiritual discipline, prayer requires practice for believers to do it well. We need to practice prayer by ourselves and with others. We need to read about prayer from the great saints of history. We need to study the Scriptures on prayer. These things will help believers reclaim a passion for praying unceasingly. This passion draws us into protracted intentional prayer. When we see how much we need to pray for, even an hour of prayer is too short.
There is truth in the first verse of that great hymn, "Sweet Hour of Prayer."
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer, That calls me from a world of care,
And bids me at my Father’s throne, Make all my wants and wishes known!
In seasons of distress and grief, My soul has often found relief,
And oft escaped the tempter’s snare, By thy return sweet hour of prayer.
C. The need for specific prayer
Satan works hard to keep believers from praying. When we do pray, he works hard to keep our prayer shallow and general. A lot of our praying then is without purpose or aim. We hear prayers "to bless all the missionaries" and "to touch everyone in our community." They are sweet prayers and sincere prayers. But they usually are powerless prayers. It is rare for believers to expect or see the answers to these general prayers. We are often like that group of believers in Acts 12:13-16. They prayed fervently for Peter’s release from Prison. When he was miraculously released "they were amazed."
Satan trembles at specific, biblical prayer. Prayer Journeys help believers pray for specific people, homes and families. A woman was led by the Lord to sit in the balcony each Sunday so she could pray for every person in the main part of the sanctuary. Another person after studying Prayer Journeys said "On my way home from studying I began to see houses I had not noticed before. I realized for the first time that each house represented people with spiritual needs; needs that our church can meet." A prayer plan helps believers pray for believers and unbelievers by name. Read these verses to see how specific prayer includes at least these eight areas:
- Praying for workers to enter the harvest (Matt. 9:38),
- Praying for God to make a way for us to share the gospel (Col. 4:3),
- Praying for others, for the power of the Spirit, and for God’s people (Eph 6:18),
- Praying for fearlessness and bravery to witness no matter where you are (Eph. 6:19),
- Praying for everyone with thankfulness (I Tim. 2:1),
- Praying for kings and those in power to be saved (I Tim. 2:2-4),
- Praying in confession of sin, (I John 1:9),
- Praying for spiritual awakening (2 Chron. 7:14).
In his book, Effective Evangelistic Churches, Thom Rainer writes, "Prayer was mentioned as the second most important methodology for reaching people for Christ in these evangelistic churches. But even that statistic may be understated. In every methodology—preaching, Sunday School, ministries, etc.—prayer was the underlying strength to the methodology."
III. Response Time: Pause for a time of prayer. Perhaps sing a praise song. Divide into groups of three or four. Pause for an extended time of prayer for the church and the community around the church. Pray for the Holy Spirit to convict of sin and draw people into seeking the truth. Allow each person to pray for another country the Lord brings to mind. Pray for the missionaries and believers there. Pray for the lost to meet Jesus. Encourage every person to begin a Prayer Journey.
"If you can’t sleep, don’t count the sheep, but talk to the shepherd instead!"
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