Culture Transforming Prayer
By Phil Miglioratti • Pray.Network • Cityreaching.com
Every prayer leader knows how difficult it is to truly transform the prayer culture of a congregation. Seminars and sermons, even best-selling books and guides on prayer all help but often fail to provide the bridge from the old to the new. Moving tried and traditional pray-ers from seeing only the needs of those already in our holy huddle to focus outward on our communities is challenging but must be accomplished. Our Lord is clear, “I'm telling you to open your eyes and take a good look at what's right in front of you. These Samaritan fields are ripe. It's harvest time!” (John 4:35; The Message)
After we have given praise (always a good way to begin individual or corporate praying), when we've covered the names and needs of church members who are sick or suffering, rather than heading to the nearest door, we must persevere by pressing further in prayer. When I lead in prayer I’ve discovered an easy-to-use exercise that gets people thinking beyond the four walls of the church facility. I challenge intercessors to think and pray about the people, the places and the things that conform and control our culture.
Begin by exercising your own prayer life; pray for the people, places, things that are part of your daily/weekly life. Use the format to identify which people the Spirit lays on your heart, what places (locations vital to the life of a neighborhood or city) you recognize as significant to your community, and the things (issues, social problems, cultural values) that impact our society. Before asking others to experiment, train yourself to think and pray using this approach.
Introduce the concept first:
- The scripture instructs us to pray for each other: “Keep on praying for all the saints.” (Ephesians 6:18; NIV)
- The scripture also commands the Body of Christ to pray for our leaders (1 Timothy 2:2), our enemies (Matthew 5:43-44) … for everyone (1 Timothy 2:1) because God is unwilling that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9)
Distribute the form and instruct everyone to take 2-3 minutes praying with eyes open. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you as your write the names of people who come to your mind, places you identify as needing an infusion of the light of Christ, and things that threaten to keep us from living “peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity” (1 Timothy 2:2; NLT). Give an example from your prayers of the past few weeks (as you were learning to think prayerfully through this format).
If the gathering is large, break into smaller groups of 5-7 and ask everyone to share one item they wrote down. After a few minutes, ask the group to pray together:
- Do not pray around the circle but conversationally:
- listen to the focus of those praying so you join in without drastically changing direction
- you may pray several times but allow everyone an opportunity
- Begin with people:
- use first name only unless it is a public figure
- never expose confidential information
- bless, do not judge
- I will indicate (with a scripture or a song) when our focus shifts to places, then later to things …
- Some prayer leaders think of songs or scripture spontaneously but most of us need to research ahead of time
- Look for a verse or lyric that sets our minds on the next focus. For example, when moving to “Places” you could use:
- Scripture: Jeremiah 29:7: “…seek the peace and prosperity of the city…”
- Song: God of This City
When the group(s) has completed praying, let everyone know you want to spend a portion of time debriefing:
- When we try a new approach or style of praying, it is important that we stop and review …
- This helps us better understand the process, learn from one another, even our “miss-takes” (It is impossible to make a true mistake when praying with a sincere heart and an ear to the Spirit)
- Everyone feels at lest a little uncomfortable with a new idea; this helps us all get better acquainted with the purpose of what I am asking you to do.
- As feedback slows, ask: “So, what do you hear us saying about this type of praying? What are we learning…?”
- While debriefing is not necessary every session, it is beneficial to the pray-ers and the leader to hear the group’s comments and observations. They indicate ongoing questions and are signs of deepening integration of community transforming prayer into the everyday prayers of God’s everyday people.
Distribute the 2nd form that provides the days of the week:
- Before we leave, let’s write out a name, a location, an issue for each day of the week
- Next time we gather, bring this with you and we’ll discuss how the Lord is leading us into more focused praying for our community.
Culture Transforming Prayer
>> Ask the Holy Spirit to give you the names/faces he wants you to remember in prayer:
- Identify people who have power or authority that allows them to inspire our culture
- Identify places where culture unfolds or acts as a persuasive influence over culture
- Identify places where culture unfolds or acts as a persuasive influence over culture
- Consider your community, your city, your country, the world (Acts 1:8: "... in Jerusalem … all of Judea … Samaria … every part of the world.")
People
Who are the people who influence our local and national culture?
*Banker *Scientist *Small Business CEO *Gang Leader
*Entertainer/Sports *Educator/Teacher *Newspaper Editor/Columnist
*Elected Official *Religious Leader *News Anchor
Places
Where does culture find itself at home?
*Theater *Hospital *School/University
*Strategic “Corner” (banking center, drug sales, entrance to the city)
*Civic Center *Park *Historical Site
*Stadium *Court House *Fire/Police Station
Things
What issues in these spheres capture the heart and mind of our culture?
1. Spiritual/social
2. Government/politics
3. Business/economy
4. Education
5. Media
6. Culture/entertainment
7. Sports
Culture Transforming Prayer - Day-by-Day
>>> List a name, a location, an event or news headline for each day of the week as a reminder to pray for Christ and his Church to transform your community.
People
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Places
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Things
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
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Thank you for this, Phil! It is very practical and helpful for such prayer to become a way of life. Pray without ceasing...
If I may make a suggestion for a visual encouragement and inspiration for people to pray with unflinching hope (DVD):
The Sentinel Group made a video of such intercession for a seemingly hopeless place - a coal mining town in Kentucky. Title is "It's only cookie dough". Trailer can be seen at https://vimeo.com/140862293
It is life changing just to watch this video of how God changed a culture because of fervent and persevering intercession and simple practical outreach.
http://www.sentinelgroup.org/cookie-dough.html
After watching this video, all one can say is: "Praise God, nothing is impossible for Him!"