Turning Prayer Meetings into Adventures

Have a "Mary Prayer Meeting"

A lot of our prayer meetings focus on peoUncommon Prayer Meetingsple seeking God for answers, for things that are on their hearts. Here is a formet that simply brings people together to--like Mary--sit at Jesus feet. Try it for a change of pace.

Offsite Learning

Many corporations and learning institutions have discovered the benefit of moving a work group or task force offsite to cast vision, renew commitment, or introduce new training modules. Taking even a short excursion to a different setting enables individuals to see with clearer eyes and listen with unfiltered ears. The location doesn't have to be exotic nor expensive to give everyone a fresh perspective on the ministry of prayer. Taking even a few hours will enable the team to go beyond the typical talk of details and activities into discussions about purpose and strategy.

Prayer Leader OnLine interviews, George Allen, a prayer leader at the Community Church of Greenwood, Greenwood, Indiana. George shares insights into how to incorporate several ancient traditions of the praying church.

Q. George, the evangelical segment of the Church often relies on list-praying and revival-praying. Both are essential to corporate prayer but leave out many historical, even ancient traditions of the Church. How were you introduced to some of these methods?
First a little background. I graduated from Eastern University (formerly Eastern Baptist College) in St. Davids, PA., in 1967, where I matriculated with intent to become a pastor in the American Baptist Convention. Upon graduting, however, I opted for military service, as a 2nd lieutenant in the U.S. Marines, rather than full time Christian work. I was married and a father by then, and within a year was in the Republic of Vietnam as a combat engineer officer. Though a Christian at the time, it was during a traumatic combat experience that I survived the first stage of my personal testimony.
 
Thirty-five years, a successful career as author and consultant, same wife (PTL!), two kids, six grandchildren and one great grandchild later--along with 25 years involvement (as occasional discipler and flock leader) at the Community Church of Greenwood--I was asked, during early 2004, to head that body's dormant Prayer Planning Task Force. This was not an easy decision or action for me; I knew I could not take on such a heady (at least it was to me) responsibility unless fully confessed-repented-restored. Not that I was engaging in anything all that sinful; rather, in word and thought life, I knew there was room for improvement. Once effected, I rallied approximately 20 folk with me to plan and pray CCG toward becoming more a House of Prayer! A year later, while we've seen a fair amount of progress to that end, we believe there's remains a lot of house-building to do. But that's another story.
 

You’ve heard of 40 Days of Purpose, but what about 40 Days of Prayer?

Forty in Scripture seems to have special emphasis: Jesus was in the dessert for 40 days; Noah and crew were 40 days in the ark, the Israelites spent 40 years in the wilderness, Jesus spent 40 days on earth between His resurrection and ascension.