Franklin, John Corporate Prayer Is a Prerequisite

Corporate Prayer Is a Prerequisite for the Greatest Outpouring of Gods Power Five realities strongly support this bold assertion. First, the majority of the mighty moves of God after the ross ome by orporate prayer. !e ond, over "#$ of the ommands regarding prayer, or onditions for a favorable ans%er to prayer in the gospels are given in the plural. &hird, the 'postles sa% this as one of their t%o non(negotiable ministries )' ts *+,-. Fourth, history reveals that God moved in .is greatest po%er %hen Christians %ere fervent in united prayer. Fifth, in the %orld today, the mighty moves of God are in regions %here believers pra ti e orporate prayer. &hese five fa ts indi ate that 'meri a %ill never have a spiritual turnaround unless Christians redis over the negle ted element of orporate prayer. &he /ighty /oves of God after the Cross Come by Corporate Prayer In both the 0ld and the 1e% &estament one finds e2amples of private and orporate prayer. God e2er ised .is po%er through both e2amples, but a marked shift o urs in the primary %ay God %orked from the 0ld to the 1e% &estament. In the former, God primarily hose an individual through %hi h .e e2er ised .is po%er. In the latter .e hose the hur h as the vehi le through %hi h .e e2er ised .is po%er. ' survey of prayers in the histori al books of the 0ld &estament reveal the vast majority of times, personal prayer is listed more often. For e2ample, God only spoke %ith 'braham about the promised son )Gen 34+,-. /oses %as by himself on /ount !inai inter eding for the people %hen God de ided that .e %ould forgive them )52od 67+3,-. Joshua ries out for the sun to stand still )Josh 3#+37-. 1o one other than !amson ried out to God,

and the temple ame tumbling do%n )Judg 3*+78-. .annah alone poured her heart out to God for a son )3 !am 3+33-. 0f ourse, orporate prayer does e2ist in the 0ld &estament su h as the ase of the temple dedi ation and revivals9 but even then it is e2er ised in a markedly different manner from the 1e% &estament. &ypi ally the pattern for the 0ld is that the people may ry out to God, but the ans%er does not ome to anyone but the prophet )t%i e the prophetess, perhaps dire tly to the kings on o asion-. :ings seem dependent on hearing from the prophet. &he people must trust the %ord of the prophet, for they do not hear themselves. In the 1e% &estament this radi ally hanges. In the ;ook of ' ts the 37# are gathered in an upper room praying in one a ord %hen Pente ost omes )' ts 3+36, 7+3-. &he group prayed for %isdom in kno%ing %ho Judas< repla ement should be )' ts 3+7,-. &he hur h ried out to God in one a ord for boldness %hen Peter and John reported the !anhedrin<s threats, and the pla e %as shaken )' ts ,+7,,63-. &hey prayed over the seven hosen to serve the %ido%s )' ts *+*-. Peter and John inter eded for those %ho had not re eived the .oly !pirit yet and .e ame )' ts 8+34(3=-. Peter %as in prison but the hur h %as fervently pleading %ith God for him )' ts 37+4-. >hile the prophets and tea hers %ere praying and fasting the .oly !pirit alled Paul and ;arnabas on their first missionary journey )' ts 36+3(7-. &hen the hur h prayed before sending them out )' ts 36+6-. Paul and ;arnabas ommended the ne% hur hes to God by prayer )' ts 3,+76-. Paul and his ompanions %ere going to prayer %hen Paul ast the demon out of the slave girl )' ts 3*+3*-. Paul and !ilas %ere praying %hen the earthquake happened that resulted in the jailer<s onversion and their release )' ts 3*+74-. Paul prayed %ith all the

5phesians in his fare%ell address )' ts 7#+6*-. Finally, they prayed %ith the dis iples from &yre )' ts 73+4-. 'gain the goal is not to deny the role of individual prayer. 'nanias %as praying alone %hen he %as told to go to !aul )' ts "+3#-. Peter %as on the rooftop %hen he had his famous vision leading him to Cornelius )' ts 3#+"-. .o%ever, the majority of God<s %orkings ome %hen .is people pray together. &his transition naturally raises the question of %hy the differen e from the 0ld to the 1e% &estament. &he ;ible does not e2pressly spell out the reason9 ho%ever, one may make logi al dedu tions based on the ovenant hange. ?nder the 0ld Covenant the people of God ondu ted their relationship %ith .im through the la%. >hen God %anted to speak to .is people, no one e2 ept the prophets or a fe% leaders ould dire tly intera t %ith God. &hat radi ally hanged under Jesus. .ebre%s 8+33 avers, @1one of them shall tea h his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, A:no% the B0CD,E for all shall kno% /e, from the least of them to the greatest of them.F 1o% every hild of God has equal a ess to the throne of God. 'ny Christian has the potential to hear .im just as %ell as any other Christian. !e ond, %e %ere made into a body. >e %ere baptiGed into the .oly !pirit. &he foundation of our ne% spiritual life requires interdependen e. 'lthough our roles and fun tions vary, %e annot ondu t our relationship in isolation. God has ordained that our obedien e requires team%ork. &his does not mean a believer<s personal prayer life is no% obsolete or has be ome of lesser importan e, but it does imply that being a body requires %e regularly en ounter .im together. Fo using on the personal prayer life only %ould be equivalent to trying to fly a plane on one %ing. ;oth %ings prove absolutely ne essary to the su ess of the air raft<s flight. Bike%ise, the ne%

ovenant %ith its body life demands that %e pra ti e both aspe ts of our relationship %ith God. &his interdependen e minimiGes arrogan e and strengthens love. Jesus< &ea hing 0n Prayer Jesus< all, HFollo% me and I %ill make you be ome fishers of menF )/ark 3+3=3indi ates that the dis iples %ould go through a training pro ess. &he gospels re ord ho% Jesus took them through that pro ess to train them. 0ne of the elements .e taught and modeled %as prayer. &he dire tor of the proje t identified 6= verses in %hi h Jesus gave a ommand on ho% to pray, or stated a ondition for God to ans%er favorably.7 'maGingly .e taught on prayer in the plural in 66 out of 6= verses. ?nfortunately, the %ord you an be either singular or plural in 5nglish. Given the individualisti nature of 'meri an so iety, most people tend to read it as singular %hen in reality the opposite usually holds true. For e2ample, /atthe% =+= reads, HIou all ask, and it %ill be given to you all9 you all seek and you all %ill find9 you all kno k, and it %ill be opened to you allF )author<s translation-. !imilarly /ark 33+74 reads, H'nd %henever you all stand praying, if you all have anything against anyone, you all forgive him, that you all<s Father in .eaven may forgive you all of you all<s trespassesF )author<s translation-. Jesus< tea hing indi ates that .e e2pe ted prayer to be a vital orporate fun tion of .is people. &he frequen y of Jesus< ommands alone make a ompelling ase, but moreover, Jesus framed the ondition for ans%ered prayer in su h a %ay that indi ated a heightened emphasis on the need to pray orporately. .e told .is dis iples in /atthe% 38+3", H'gain I say to you that if t%o of you agree on earth on erning anything that they ask, it
?nless other%ise indi ated, all ;ible referen es in this paper are taken from the New King James Version )1:JJ-, )1ashville, &1+ &homas 1elson Publishers, 3"86-.
7 3

!ee 'ppendi2 F for verses and riteria of evalution, 37"(363.

%ill be done for them by /y Father in heaven.F .e ould have said Hif anyone asksKF Instead .e deliberately rafted .is %ords in the plural. .e evidently did not %ant .is follo%ers to pra ti e isolationism. &his indi ates that God requires %e pray together. &he 'postles< Philosophy /ost likely Jesus< emphasis on orporate prayer e2plains %hy the ' ts and the 5pistles say more about orporate prayer than personal prayer.6 &his observation alone %ould arry %eight but even more ompelling eviden e for the ne essity of orporate prayer e2ists from the 'postles< o%n mouths in ' ts *+3(=. From this passage one an learly see that they regarded the t%o most important ministries that hur h leadership should pra ti e are the ministry of orporate HprayerF and Hthe %ordF. Four reasons e2ist %hy this is true. First, verses one through four speak of a orporate prayer ministry, not their personal prayer life. &his may be understood by the onte2t of the passage. In verse one a problem arises %ith the ministry of feeding %ido%s. &he %hole ensuing dis ussion revolves around %hi h ministry the 'postles %ill oversee, versus %hi h ministry these seven men %ill oversee. &he fa t that they are addressing ministry on erns is even learer in the Greek. In verse one it says the %ido%s %ere being negle ted, en th diakonia th kaqhmerinh. &he %ord diakonia is the same %ord that is a tually translated as ministry in verse four. In verse one various versions translate diakonia using the %ords administration, service, or distri ution, but this does not onfli t %ith the on ept of ministry, rather they highlight the fun tion of the ministry. In verse t%o the

Donald >hitney, !piritua" #iscip"ines $ithin the %oca" Church& Participating 'u""y in the (ody of Christ )Chi ago, IB+ /oody Press, 3""*-, 3*,.

'postles assert it is not right for them to leave the %ord of God and diakonein tables. 'gain this %ord stemming from the same root as diakonia onfirms the fa t that they are referring to a ministry. Finally verse four reads, hmeij de th proseuch kai th diakonia tou logou proskarterhsomen 'gain the third appearan e in four verses of a %ord from the same Greek root indi ates that their dis ussion revolves around the sta kpole of ministries. 's %as previously mentioned, verse four highlights this truth by e2pli itly alling it the Hministry of the %ord.F !in e the onte2t indi ates the passage is addressing ministries, then it logi ally follo%s that the 'postles have in mind orporate prayer ministry. &he synta2 of verse four also suggests that prayer is orporate. &he definite arti le th pre edes the %ord prayer. !in e the use of the definite arti le the indi ates the definite, idealiGed, or the personified, one ought to immediately suspe t they have something spe ifi in mind. In the phrase th proseuch kai th diakonia tou logou, the double appearan e of th indi ates dual ministries. !ho kingly enough most ommentaries fail to address this fa t. &he (roadman (i "e Commentary) Co""egevi""e (i "e Commentary) *arpers (i "e Commentary) Internationa" (i "e Commentary) Internationa" Critica" Commentary) Interpreters (i "e) Interpreters One Vo"ume Commentary on the (i "e) +ercer Commentary on the (i "e) New ,merican Commentary) New (i "e Commentary) and New (i "e Commentary -evised) all %ere silent. Fortunately t%o ommentaries did re ogniGe this. &he ./positors Gree0 1estament says, Hthe arti le seems to imply not only private prayer and inter ession, but the publi prayer of the Chur h.F, &he ,nchor (i "e asserts that prayer Hundoubtedly
C. J. :no%ling, 1he ,cts of the ,post"es) &he 52positor<s Greek &estament, volume 7, edited by >. Cobertson 1i oll )Grand Capids, /I+ 5erdmans Publishing Company, 38"=-, 3=#.
,

means the ommon elebration of the Christian liturgy )re all 3+3,9 7+,7- or possibly parti ipation in Je%ish ulti prayers )see 6+3-. &o speak of Christian prayer as a Lmeritorious a t of piety< as does .aen haen ),cts 7*6-, is to introdu e a onsideration far from Buke<s mind.F4 For these reasons, therefore, the proje t oordinator an only on lude that Hthe prayerF refers to the 'postles a tivity among the people of God and not to anything regarding their private devotions. !e ond, the point of ' ts *+3(= is not %hy dea ons %ere hosen, but rather that the hur h ontinued to gro% be ause the 'postles su essfully handled the prioritiGing of ministries.* 1he ./positors Gree0 1estament rightly asserts, Hthere seems to be an intentional antithesis bet%een diakonein trapezaij and th diakonia tou logou..F7 In verse t%o they spe ifi ally ontrast the inappropriateness of ministering to tables at the e2pense of negle ting God<s %ord. In verse three and four they reiterate the same ontrast. 0n one hand !even should be hosen and appointed over that business, %hile on the other hand the &%elve %ill ontinue to do prayer and the %ord. &he Greek synta2 makes the ontrast even learer. ' %ooden translation %ould read, HChoose seven menK%hom %e %ill appoint over this business, but %e to the prayer and the ministry of the %ord %ill steadfastly ontinue.F &he emphasis does not fall on the fa t that they %ill ontinue, but rather %hat they %ill go to M Hbut %e to the prayer and the ministry of the %ord.F 0bviously, the %hole passage makes a point about %hi h ministries they must ontinue to do. &herefore, the ne essity of leaders doing these t%o
Joseph '. FitGmeyer, 1he ,cts of the ,post"es, &he 'n hor ;ible, vol. 63 )1e% Iork+ Doubleday, 3""8-, 6,". C. :. ;arrett, 1he ,cts of the ,post"es) &he International Criti al Commentary, vol. 3 )5dinburgh+ & N &, 3"",-, 6#6(6#,.
= * 4

:no%ling, Ibid. 3*=.

ministries is rystal lear. ;y ju2taposing the ministries and hoosing prayer and the %ord, they indi ate priority. Clearly they believed that it %as more important for them as leaders to do the latter t%o than the former one. &he priority they assign orporate prayer and the %ord may also be seen from the 'postles< refusal to oversee personally the ministry to %ido%s. &hey delegated one of the most important ministries of the hur h to others. 0n the surfa e its signifi an e might not be so readily apparent, but three reasons indi ate that the %ido% ministry arried great %eight. First, the aliber of men hosen indi ates the positions %ere e2tremely important. &he men %ere full of the .oly !pirit and %isdom. >hen they assumed responsibilities for the %ido%s that ne essarily e2 luded them from other ministries they ould have overseen. &o pla e men of su h aliber over this ministry indi ates the degree of its importan e. !e ond, this %as a volatile situation in %hi h the %hole hur h ould have been onsumed %ith internal onfli t. &he 'postles turned a potentially e2plosive situation over to others< trust, even given the onsequen es of mismanagement, just so they ould maintain prayer and the %ord. &hird, God .imself inspired James to %rite that pure and undefiled religion before .im is to visit %ido%s in their distress )Jas 3+7=-. 5ven so they deliberately hose not to assume the helm of leadership of %ido%s in order to pra ti e prayer and the %ord. &he 'postles< pra ti e reveals the third reason %hy they believed a orporate ministry of prayer %as absolutely vital. 5very appearan e of prayer prior to the %ido% risis pi tures the 'postles leading others in prayer. >hen they entered Jerusalem to tarry for the .oly !pirit, 3+36 makes a point of listing the 'postles and notes in verse 3, that Hthese all ontinued %ith one a ord in prayer and suppli ation, %ith the %omen and

/ary the mother of Jesus, and %ith .is brothers.F During that eleven days of se lusion, Peter interprets the requirement of Psalms that they hose a repla ement for Judas. &hen they led the people in prayer )v. 7,-. ' ts 7+,3 re ords that 6,### ne% onverts %ere added to the hur h. >hat did they immediately do in order to dis iple themO &he ne2t verse states, H'nd they ontinued steadfastly in the apostles< do trine and fello%ship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.F 1e2t, Peter and John %ent to the temple at the ninth hour of prayer. &hey ould have gone there for t%o reasons. First, that hour ould have been a formal time of prayer in Je%ish national life, and they %ere simply parti ipating. ;ut the more likely s enario %as they %ere meeting other believers. ' ts 7+,* re ords that they met daily in the temple9 ' ts 4+37 asserts that they %ere in one a ord in !olomon<s por h. &his makes sense be ause it %ould have been one of the fe% pla es large enough to a ommodate a large number of people. ' ts 6+3 %ould naturally refle t %hat it %ould look like for those believers to ontinue in the apostles< tea hing, fello%ship, and prayers )7+,7-. Finally in ' ts ,+76 they report the threats of the !anhedrin. &he instin tive rea tion of the people of God %as to ry out to .im in prayer. In every instan e %e see the 'postles involved in leading prayer. &herefore these stories onfirm that ' ts *+, speaks of a orporate ministry of prayer. God<s Greatest >orks .ave Come >hen Christians >ere Fervent in ?nited Prayer. /easuring degrees of God<s %ork ould open a door to endless debate. .o%ever, Jesus .imself hinted that degrees e2ist %hen .e said that the one %ho had faith in .im %ould do greater %orks than .e did. !in e no one has ever e2 elled .is mira les, .e an only be referring to the %ork of transforming a soul or ulture. If this understanding

is applied to history, then this truth is readily apparent. &o date the proje t dire tor kno%s of no e2ample sin e the resurre tion of Jesus in %hi h the hur h transformed the ulture more than the ulture transformed the hur h, %hen the Christians did not spend signifi ant time praying together. From the author<s study, a ommon denominator in ea h instan e %hen God granted so ietal hange, %as that Christians %ere united in orporate prayer. &his %as ertainly true of spiritual a%akenings. In fa t every a%akening %as born by a remnant ommitted to prayer.8 For e2ample, in 384= 'meri a %as in the middle of a strong e onomy. 's is so often the ase in prosperity, morals began slipping and a de reased interest in the things of God prevailed. 'larmed by the spiritual state of affairs, a Dut h Ceformed layman named Jeremiah Bamphier ta ked up noti es in 1e% Iork City alling for a %eekly prayer meeting on >ednesdays from noon till one. &he first %eek, only si2 sho%ed up and none of them before 37+6#." &he ne2t %eek, though, the attendan e jumped to t%enty.3# &hen they nearly doubled again. 'bout that time >all !treet rashed. &he ensuing finan ial pani arrested the ountry<s attention and turned hearts to%ard more heavenly things. !o great and so immediate %ere the hanges that in less than si2 months time, more than 3#,### business men %ere meeting daily in 1e% Iork to pray during the noon hour. &hat movement leapt to every single major ity in 'meri a. &he response of God to .is people %as that 3,###,### 'meri ans out of a population of 6#,###,### %ere onverted in t%o years. 't the height of revival, perhaps
8

&. >. .unt, omp., Church Prayer +inistry +anua" )1ashville, &1+ Convention Press, 3""7-,

,". !amuel Prime, 1he Power of Prayer& 1he New 2or0 -eviva" of 3454 )reprinted Carlisle, P'+ &he ;anner of &ruth &rust, 3""3, first printed in 384"-, 8.
3# "

Ibid.

4#,### a %eek %ere being onverted.33 &hese e2amples indi ate that the %orking of God in history is onsistent %ith the bibli al pattern. Fervent prayer pre ipitated the !hantung Cevival in northern China, 3"7=(6=. God<s !pirit suddenly des ended and the on e anemi hur h ens on ed in a spiritually

dead ulture began %itnessing %ith dramati results. 0ne Chinese pastor ommented, H>hen this revival began, %e had about 4# members in our little hur h. 1o% %e have at least one Christian in ea h of the 3,### homes in this to%n.F37 'nother pastor repeated a similar e2perien e. .is little hur h had only 6# members, but %hen the revival ame he baptiGed 8" on one o asion, 7#6 on another o asion and 7#(6# every month after that.36 1o one kno%s %ith ertainty the number of onversions, but given the testimony of Dr. C. B. Culpepper, one may logi ally dedu e that hundreds of thousands %ere s%ept into the kingdom. &he a tivity of God an also be seen in ans%er to fervent prayer on smaller s ales. Cees .o%ells journeyed to !outh 'fri a as a missionary. !i2 %eeks after arriving he joined in a prayer meeting. 0ut of that ame an outpouring of the .oly !pirit in %hi h they had t%o revival meetings a day for 34 months, and all day on Friday. &housands %ere onverted as a result.3, J. 0. Fraser, a missionary to the Bisu people in !outh%est

China, sa% tens of thousands of onversions during his ministry. .e en ouraged small M group prayer in 5ngland for his ministry. &his pra ti e is attributed by many to be the
.enry &. ;la kaby and Claude J. :ing, 'resh .ncounter& Gods Pattern for -eviva" and !piritua" ,wa0ening) +em er (oo0 3 )1ashville, &1+ Bife>ay Press, 3""6-, =#.
37 33

C. B. Culpepper, 1he !hantung -eviva" )'tlanta, G'+ .ome /ission ;oard, 3"87-, 6,. Ibid., ,8

36

1orman Grubb, -ees *owe""s Intercessor )Fort >ashington, P'+ Christian Biterature Crusade, 3"8", originally printed 3"47-, 34=.

3,

ause of his su ess.34 John .yde, a missionary to India, joined %ith friends in the Punjab Prayer ?nion and paved the %ay for a dramati movement of God in India.3* .udson &aylor, the great missionary to China, alled a prayer meeting to ask for 3## ne% missionaries. .e then returned to 5ngland and spoke to a large group. 0ne hundred men and %omen volunteered and P44,### in ash %as donated, even though he had not asked for an offering.3= 'll these e2amples refle t this prin iple. &he /ighty /oves of God &oday 0 ur >here ;elievers Pra ti e Corporate Prayer ;y the phrase Hmoves of God todayF the proje t dire tor referen es events that have o urred in the last 34 years. In 3"8= 'llian e, 1ebraska had the highest per apita in iden e of drug use in 'meri a, but a group of on erned pastors banded together and prayed 34 months. During an evangelisti series of ".4 %eeks nearly 3# per ent of the population of 'llian e %as onverted.38 /a2 Bu ado re ounts ho% he formed four prayer teams of 6# members ea h to pray for the hur h. In si2 months the hur h broke attendan e re ords t%i e, finished over budget, and sa% signifi ant healings.3" &he !kyline >esleyan Chur h made an offer on a pie e of property to relo ate hur h fa ilities. 5verything looked good, but for no apparent reason all sensed it %as not the %ill of God. &hey turned it do%n. &hrough a series of unbelievable ir umstan es, the
34

&homas 5liff, Praying for Others )1ashville, &1+ ;roadman Press, 3"="-, "=.

;asil /iller, Praying *yde& , +an of Prayer );elfast+ 'mbassadors Publi ations, reprint Greenville, !C+ 5merald .ouse, 7###-, ,8(4#.
3=

3*

>illiam .orner, %et us Pray )/ontgomery, 'B+ &he Paragon Press, 3",4-, *=.

38 0liver Pri e, 1he Power of Praying 1ogether& ./periencing Christ ,ctive"y in Charge )Grand Capids, /I+ :regel Publi ations, 3"""-, 76.

John /a2%ell, Partners in Prayer )1ashville, &1+ &homas 1elson for /a2%ell /otivation, In ., 3""*-, iii M iv.

3"

hur h a quired over 8# a res of free land.7# Jay Dennis, pastor of First ;aptist Chur h at the /all in Bakeland, Florida, had a similar en ounter %ith God. .e led his hur h on a Prayer 52periment to pray the prayer of JabeG. 't first everything %ent %rong, but suddenly they %ere onta ted and asked if their hur h %anted to buy a va ant mall. &he final result %as that >al(/art paid them P6,###,### to take over the lease.73 &homas :innan, pastor of Fairla%n .eights >esleyan Chur h in &opeka, :ansas, sa% average attendan e in rease by 46 people in five %eeks after instituting prayer programs.77 George ;arna identified a number of hur hes that stood out from others be ause of impa t. .e e2amined features ommon in them and dis overed that prayer %as a foundation stone for all of them.76 &he ;erlin >all fell after believers in BeipGig and other ities began meeting on /ondays to pray for their ountry. 's the prayer movement gre%, the people eventually %ent to the streets to demand freedom. &he %all fell and the rest is history.7, Perhaps statisti s from 'very >illis, Ji e(President of the International /ission ;oard, provide the most staggering s ope of God<s a tivity. .e reported in the fall of 3""" that =# per ent of all people %ho have ever been saved, have ome to Christ in the 7#th entury9 =# per ent of them sin e 3",49 =# per ent of them sin e 3""#. &hat means

7#

Peter >agner, Prayer !hie"d )Jentura, C'+ Cegal ;ooks, 3""7-, 73(76. Jay Dennis, 1he Prayer ./periment )Grand Capids, /I+ Qondervan Publishing .ouse, 7##3-,

73

7*(7=. &erry /u k, %i erating the %eaders Prayer %ife, &he Beadership Bibrary, vol. 7 )>a o, &R+ >ord ;ooks, 3"84-, 36".
76 Peter >agner, Churches that Pray& *ow Prayer Can *e"p -evita"i6e 2our Church and (rea0 #own the $a""s (etween 2ou and 2our Community) &he Prayer >arrior !eries )Jentura, C'+ Cegal ;ooks, 3""6-, 8#. 77

/inette Drum%right, 1he %ife 1hat Prays& -ef"ections on Prayer as !trategy );irmingham, 'B+ 1e% .ope Publishers, 7##3-, 373.

7,

as of the year 7###, one third of all Christians %ho have ever lived have been onverted in the de ade of 3""#. In 1epal just 7,### Christians %ere kno%n in 3""#9 but there %ere 4##,### by the end of the year 7,###. Cambodia laimed a s ar e *## Christians in 3""#, but boasted *#,### by the 73st entury. 1o kno%n Christians o upied /oGambique in 3"88, no% 6## hur hes e2ist in just one area. Just a fe% years ago in 'sia, there %ere about 34 million Christians9 today there are more than 3## million.74 .o% ould so mu h have been a omplished in so little timeO &he ommon denominator in every pla e around the %orld %here the gospel advan es rapidly is that the Christians spend signifi ant time praying together. In India one denomination ould tra k about 6,###,### onverts in eight years. &hey dis overed the hur hes attributed their su ess to %eekly )often t%i e %eekly- prayer meetings.7* :orea has long been famous for their prayer meetings. ' %idespread pra ti e among the hur hes is to open their doors early in the morning so that the people ome to pray at least an hour before going to %ork. &hey hold all night prayer meetings on Fridays. >here the gospel is spreading rapidly in 'fri a, the people are fervent in prayer. &hese e2amples indi ate that the %orking of God today is onsistent %ith the bibli al pattern. 'meri an hur hes have abandoned fervent, orporate prayer. &hese five realities stand as %itnesses that until %e return to this pra ti e, %e should only e2pe t to see a %orsening de lension in so ietal morals and love of God.

74 'very >illis, quoted in an email re eived from /ark :elly of the International /ission ;oard of the !outhern ;aptist Convention, Ci hmond, J', !eptember 76, 3""". 7*

'lvin J. Jander Griend, *ouses of Prayer& 1hirty71hree 8uestions and ,nswers a out .vange"ism Prayer Ce""s, )Grand Capids, /I+ /ission 73 .0P5, 3""=-, =.