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Prayer Leader OnLine interviews, John Franklin, author of And the Place Was Shaken: How to Lead a Powerful Prayer Meeting, and Southern Baptist prayer leader.
Q. John, you have just published a new book on the local church prayer meeting. What motivated you to write an entire book on that subject?
I asked three very revealing questions to approximately 6,000 pastors or prayer leaders over the last five years. They are: 1. When was the last time you remember the manifest presence and power of God on a regular basis in your church prayer meeting? Very few people could answer that question. 2. How many of you have been trained in how to lead a prayer meeting? Of all those people, only 53 have raised their hand. 3. Could you tell me the dynamic church you could go to in our denomination to learn? Nobody could really offer one. Once I heard a Korean and Chinese church named. The other church that surfaced several times was Brooklyn Tabernacle, although it was not in my denomination.
So you see the pictured that has been painted. We have not had the presence of God in a long time in our prayer meetings. We haven't been trained in how to do anything differently, and if you did want to go learn, where would you go? That's the motivation.
Q. Why do so few pastors and leaders have little or no training in corporate prayer?
There's
very little out there addressing leaders. There has been a blessed
resurgence on prayer for the individual, but leadership issues have
been scarce. The implications are that if we've never been trained to
do anything differently, we will do what we've seen modeled. And based
on the response of 6,000 leaders, the vast majority have not had a
viable model, so we either self-perpetuate the cycle, or we try to do
better, but are very frustrated.
Q. Theology shapes ministry. How has our theology of prayer shaped our corporate practice of prayer?
In
our case in America, I think we have acquired an accidental theology
instead of deliberate theology. I don't know of anyone who has ever
taught that the primary purpose of prayer is to have our needs met and
crises fixed, but practically speaking that's what we've modeled to our
people. The vast majority believe that because when you ask for
requests, that's what comes out of their mouth. Instead we should be
teaching and modeling that the primary purpose of prayer is to walk
with God--knowing Him, being conformed to His image, and fulfilling His
will on earth.
Q. What discovery surprised you most as your searched the Scripture and researched the history of local church prayer?
The
fact of how important it is to pray together. The reasons for that are
in fleshed out in chapter one of the book, but here's the condensed
version. 1. When Jesus gave a command to pray or a condition for God to
answer favorably, 33 out of 37 times He taught on prayer in the
corporate. 2. The apostles viewed mobilizing God's people to pray as
one of their two non-negotiable ministries 3. Prior to the
resurrection, the majority of God's mighty moves come through the
prayer lives of individuals. After the resurrection they could through
the prayers of two or more. 4. There's never been a time in history
that the church impacted the culture more than vice-versa that
Christians didn't pray together. 5. One common denominator around the
world today where God is moving mightily is that the people pray
together.
Q. How should a prayer leader or facilitator approach corporate prayer in order to develop a more powerful prayer meeting?
- The leader must have a dynamic relationship with God
- The people must have a right relationship with God and each other
- The leader must fulfill the three great desires of God in a prayer
meeting. First, that His people would know Him. Second, that His people
get on mission with Him. Third that He could minister to His people
especially through His people.
- There are four responsibilities a
leader has in leading a prayer meeting. These responsibilities
transcend format, style method, denomination, culture, and history.
They are in order of importance:
- To discern the activity of God. If you don't know God's will how can you guide people?
- To shepherd His people in their relationship with God and one another.
They need help in recognizing God and knowing how to respond to Him.
They need to know how to walk with their brother as well.
- To develop a God-centered format.
- To guide activities that help people respond.
Q. John, lead us in a prayer that seeks God's help for those of us who want "the place shaken . . ."
Father,
Your body in America desperately needs to return to the relationship
You intended us to have with You. Oh, that You would rend the heavens
and come down! Oh that You would turn us back to Yourself! Oh, that You
Yourself would revive Your people! May You turn back the judgment that
we so richly deserve, and leave behind a blessing. Would You do this
for Your holy name's sake? Would You cause breath to enter these
corpses? Come O breath from the four corners and blow on these slain,
that we may once again become a mighty army in this nation! We pray
this, as did Daniel, not for our sake, but for Yours. In the name of
Jesus. Amen.
Read John’s latest book:
And the Place Was Shaken: How to Lead a Powerful Prayer Meeting
John Franklin
Broadman & Holman
Publisher’s Description:
Prayer for the church
is not a casual practice but communion between Christ and His body that
is as intimate as communion between a husband and a wife. And for the
church, corporate prayer is not an optional ritual but a commanded
expectation. However, having an effective corporate experience of
prayer-whether in a large congregational setting or a small
group--depends on many factors. John Franklin highlights not only the
theology behind powerful corporate prayer times but also the effective
habits and practices of a praying church. Know why God especially
requires corporate prayer.
Know what motivates God to move in power. God wants to reveal
Himself to His people, to move them onto His agenda, and to minister to
His people particularly through His people. A God-centered prayer
format is central to having a “God experience” in the corporate church
setting.
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November 2005 
