CONFERENCE EVENTS

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PRAYER FOR YOUR CHURCH

Spirit-Led 

 

Lord, I lift up the issue of our willingness to be led by Your Spirit. Holy Spirit, show us any way we are grieving, quenching or resisting You. Convict us and lead us to level ground. Help us keep in step with You as we live by You. Reign in us so that we experience Your freedom. Lead us into grace, life and peace. (Eph. 4:30; 1 Thes. 5:19; Acts 7:51; Jn. 16:8; Ps. 143:10; Gal. 5:25; 2 Cor. 3:17; Gal. 5:18; Ro. 8:6)

 
Home arrow March 2006 arrow Cultivating Your Prayer Team
Cultivating Your Prayer Team PDF Print E-mail
By Paul Covert

Several years ago, our church took a missions trip to Mexico City to help plant a new church. We took intercessors to prayerwalk the area, a sports team to create relationships and draw people to the final community outreach where our musicians gave a major concert.


Instead of setting up chairs or testing microphone levels, the prayer team spent time in prayer. At first, the sports team and musicians felt that the prayer team was loafing. Afterward, however, everyone could see that the event would not have been successful without prayer. The band was composed of English and Hispanic musicians who had never met or performed together. One member commented, “At first I was resentful of you prayer guys. It didn’t seem to me that you were working as hard as the rest of us. But when we got up to play, I could see the fruit. My musical style doesn’t always work well with Americans in our own home church. To come all this way and play with strangers who speak a different language, and have it sound so good had to be a result of prayer.” It was amazing to watch the value of the prayer team increase on that trip.

Misperceptions about the importance of prayer and the function and value of intercessors are common. General disinterest and misunderstandings can filter down to the prayer team itself and result in under-utilized, uninspired intercessors.

As the pastor of prayer at Central Christian Church of the East Valley in Mesa, Arizona, I have learned to value and care for our pray-ers. As a church, we have reaped the benefits of an encouraged, focused prayer team. Whether your church has a well-developed team or just a handful of pray-ers, it pays to spend time and effort in maintaining their well being.

Growing Numbers

Intercession is not seriously valued in many churches, so few leaders are mining for, or developing, prayer warriors. As a result, believers with prayer potential or the wiring for intercession ministry become youth coaches and small group leaders. These are sorely needed in the church—don’t get me wrong—but it is sad when believers don’t develop a heart for prayer because of the lack of encouragement and modeling.

In the past 27 years I can’t remember meeting more than one or two natural intercessors. Most of the people we have uncovered had no idea they had a heart for intercession. My approach is not “are you an intercessor?” but rather, “can you come and pray with me next hour in the prayer room?” Many people agree, and we are off and running. Some stay with it for six months or so and learn solid, basic prayer skills in the process. Eventually they move on to other kingdom ventures, but they incorporate these sound prayer principles into their new ministries. Others are moved by God to pursue intercession as their primary ministry focus, expressing immense joy at having found their life’s purpose.

Planting Confidence

As you find people who enjoy prayer, keep casting a vision for them. Hebrews 10:24 says, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” Help your team continue to think about prayer and the value it plays in the church and the world. Keep them before God, letting Him build them into intercessors.

Among the many ways we attempt to accomplish this at CCC (see Points of Interest), the most successful is our school of prayer. Each quarter we challenge and train with a four-hour evening event that includes dinner and 45-minute instructional sessions on different mechanics of prayer. Each session is followed by 15-minutes of hands-on practice. We also make powerful books and resources on prayer available at these events to inspire and encourage.

These training times serve a dual purpose. Not only do they create biblically sound pray-ers, they build confidence as well. I recall one man who struggled with shyness and connecting with people, yet he stepped out in faith after attending a school of prayer. He volunteered as a prayer team member during worship services. He also encouraged his men’s small group to be more prayerful. As others watched his transformation process, they too were inspired to join the intercessory prayer group.

One such observer, Terry McLaws, recalls his own apprehension about sharing his faith and praying with others before attending the school of prayer. Now, he engages others in conversations about God, and doesn’t hesitate to pray with others—even total strangers. When his daughter, Meghan, was involved in a serious car accident, Terry spent the days that followed in confident prayer with surgeons and families of patients in ICU.

Harvesting the Results

Cared-for intercessors equal a stronger prayer ministry overall. A church that puts effort into developing its pray-ers will see results that are off the chart. Missionaries and church workers feel supported, services become stronger, and there is more unity. As your prayer team thrives, you’ll find that a singleness of purpose emerges along with a dramatic increase in faith, peace and fruit.

--Paul Covert is the prayer and missions pastor at Central Christian Church of the East Valley in Mesa, AZ. He and his wife Annie have three boys. Paul enjoys puttering around Mesa in his 54 GMC pick up truck and collecting antique tools. 
 
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