Why should a Church Have a Prayer Ministry?

"The enemy does not fear prayerless Bible study, prayerless preaching, prayerless service, or prayerless Christianity." - Wesley Duewel

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Introduction

A prayerless church is an irrelevant church. This is a severe statement, of course. But the severity of it is intended to jostle us out of complacency by placing prayer in its rightful place, using direct language. The intent of this document, therefore, is to impress upon the reader the critical nature of prayer in these last days. There are few things Christians do that are more important than prayer. Prayer is that critical. 

 A church is defined by what it values. A church is defined by what it talks about. A church is defined by what it does. A church that values prayer must be a church that prays. 

The purpose of this document is to do two things:

1. Articulate some principles for a prayer ministry
2. Fan into flame a passion for effectual prayer in our church

I believe prayer is the next thing Holy Spirit wants to add to our repertoire. 

General Principles

• It is a sign of Christian maturity to be more and more burdened to pray. 
• It is the duty of the mature Christian to pray effectually. Ja. 5:16 ...The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
• It is the fruit of Christian maturity to pray the Father's heart. Ep. 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. 
• It is the glory of the mature Christian to receive answers to prayer. 

Vision

Several important promises have been spoken over our church. God does not intend it to be a typical church where typical things happen. This church is to be a cutting-edge church. This church is to be a spiritual center in this region. This church is to be a worshiping church. This church is to facilitate the ministry of the Holy Spirit. This church is to be an agent of Spirit-led unity between churches. 

The prayer ministry lays the groundwork for these promises to become reality. Most of God's promises are conditional and can only be accessed by diligent, Spirit-led prayer. The prayer ministry is the nexus for this, and thus must attain prominence and be valued in the church. 

The gathering together for prayer is a critical operation in the church, one that is often neglected in churches. A healthy prayer ministry involves the regular gathering together of like minds to pursue the heart of the Father. This should be a growing passion in the church, to gather together to pray. It is a mark of a healthy prayer ministry and a healthy church.

Yes, people are already praying in our church. We pray in our church services. We pray in our prayer closets. Various ministries in the church pray together. The elders pray together. This is all good and necessary. But until gathering together for prayer becomes a passion led by the Spirit, we will not see the extent of what God intends for us.

Features of a Healthy Church Prayer Life

Connection with spiritual power

This would include manifestations of Holy Spirit in the areas of healing, restoration, salvation, repentance, prophecy and other spiritual gifts, and the Fruit of the Spirit.

Connection with the lost

An effectual prayer ministry is empowering. That should spill over into the community as the Kingdom expands into every realm, resulting in revival and harvest.

Connection with the community

Praying together builds community and relationship as diverse people find Spirit-led unity, hearing from the Spirit, conforming to the Spirit, and obeying the Spirit.

Connection with leadership

The leadership informs the prayer ministry about their discernment of the spiritual condition of the church, what the Holy Spirit is saying to them about direction, worship, and teaching. Likewise, the prayer ministry informs the leadership about these same things. Thus the leadership and the prayer ministry act hand-in-hand, with neither being inclined to act apart from the other.  

Further, there is a prophetic aspect, where the Holy Spirit reveals the spiritual conditions, direction for the church and for individuals, and even correction. There is a substantial discernment component to prayer, and as such the prayer ministry must connect closely with the leadership.

And there are practical considerations. How should prayer manifest in the church service, and who should lead it? If a prophetic word comes forth, how is it weighed? What if the Holy Spirit wants to change focus or direction during the service? The prayer ministry ought to have substantial input into these things.

Lastly, there needs to be continuous teaching about prayer. Topics related to prayer ought to be woven into sermons, the announcements, and even the fellowship. Discussion of prayer from the pulpit should exceed discussion about the offering or the announcements.

Requirements

The prayer ministry requires the following:

• A prayer ministry leadership consisting of mature, praying Christians
• A statement of purpose
• A statement of goals
• Regular prayer meetings 
• A statement by the church leadership to the ministry on how the ministry is to be integrated into the church
• Official recognition by the leadership to the congregation, and repeated reminders

Developing a Culture of Prayer

A church committed to prayer must develop a culture of prayer. It must be evident to even a casual observer: "Prayer is who we are and what we do." There are several things that facilitate this.

First, there is no greater motivator to prayer than Holy Spirit as He moves in the hearts of His people. People cannot be convinced to be dedicated to prayer. The ministry of Holy Spirit is crucial to becoming a praying church. 

Second is the commitment of leadership to prayer. Do they pray? Do they participate in prayer meetings? Do they model what they expect the church to do? 

Third, answered prayer is a motivator to pray. People get healed and saved. Marriages get restored. Relationships are revived. Victories are won. Ground is gained. Therefore, there needs to be regular celebration of these testimonies (from the mouths of those people, if possible) in the church service, because testimonies build faith in the people.

The word for 2022 is "consistency." This is appropriate, for a mature church

• walks out its mission with steadfastness and confidence
• is not knocked off course by circumstances (Gal. 5:7, Heb. 12:1)
• doesn't follow rabbit trails
• isn't surprised by spiritual opposition.

And most importantly,

• is a praying church

Consistency is a product of maturity. Mature Christians have discovered the power of prayer.

Principles of Prayer

To receive answers to prayer, there are conditions:

• Pray according to His will: 1Jn. 5:14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
• Pray with faith: Mt. 21:22 If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.
• Pray in reverent submission: He. 5:7 During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.
• Pray with thanksgiving: Ph. 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
• Pray in Christ: Jn. 15:7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.
• Pray in the name of Jesus: Jn. 16:23 In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.
Pray in the Spirit: Ep. 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.

Practical Prayer

In the Church Service

1. Teach/model prayer. Most people are not natural pray-ers, they have to learn how to pray and develop a passion for prayer.
2. Take time to actually pray. Worship, sermons, announcements, and fellowship are all good things, but they're not prayer.
3. A variety of people should pray, not just leaders or pastors. 
4. Pray with purpose. Avoid random disconnected statements.
5. Pray, don't instruct or exhort. We sometimes forget that we are praying and the prayer morphs into a lecture to those assembled.
6. Silence is good. We listen as well as speak.

Specific Considerations Regarding Prayer Meetings

1. Don’t dominate the time with long prayers. There are others who want to pray. Don’t be afraid to pray just one or two sentences.
2. If you have the gift of tongues, don’t babble incessantly while someone else is praying. Instead, participate in agreement with short affirmations, thus respecting them when they are praying.
3. If you have a prophecy or word of knowledge, be sensitive to the timing and appropriateness of speaking it out.
4. Leave room for inexperienced pray-ers to formulate their prayer. Affirm their prayers and encourage them to continue praying.
5. Be attentive to individual needs of those present, and pray for them.
6. Be ready take notes. 

Conclusion

A prayer ministry cannot be "yeah, we do that too" type thing. It is not a bullet point on the church's resume. It is not an add-on to what our church is already doing. Prayer ought to be an all-consuming passion, placed at the center of everything the church does. 

If our church rises to the occasion of being a House of Prayer (Mk. 11:17), it could change the very atmosphere of our church and our community.

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"Prayer is not a strategy. Prayer is where we get strategies." - Matt Weaver - The River Church