For many
years, January has been a prayer focus for my family and the churches I have
been part of. Basically this means we have intentionally created more space in
our lives to spend with God and listen to His voice. This year, Centerpointe
Church, and I specifically focused on praying for people in our lives who do
not have a relationship with Jesus. We wrote down the names of people who
are in our lives and prayed for them every day. On average, people wrote ten
names down, some many more. My list started with around ten and has expanded as
I met new people and as I felt directed by God.
This challenge
came from a lunch conversation with a friend of mine, Steve Pike. He made the
statement, "If someone is in your life, they deserved to be prayed
for" and then told stories about how God is beginning to open doors of
"coincidence" conversations with people on his prayer list. There was
a seed planted in my heart that day and I could not shake that lunch
appointment from my mind.
I didn't notice it at first, but that seed took root
and began to grow. Steve was already scheduled to lead a board retreat for us
in early January, so I rearranged the Friday meeting to make it an all-church
prayer meeting, asking Steve to share the same stories and lead us in prayer.
He then spoke on Sunday morning to our congregation - same thought but adding
more stories.
Something has
changed, and I have learned some valuable lessons. Before I share them, I first
have to make a confession, which might seem odd coming from someone who has
served in occupational ministry for over thirty years. My confession - I am not
an evangelist by gifting. My primary gifts are leadership, pastoring, and
teaching. Evangelism doesn't even rate in the secondary gifting scale. Yes, I
desire for people to come to Christ, and I invite people to know Jesus in
messages, but on a non-public level, I struggle; however, I'm starting to see
things from a new perspective, and it all begins with prayer.
The first
lesson is this: my passion grows in the area of my prayer focus.
What I have
noticed is that as I pray repeatedly for specific people, the Holy Spirit
begins to reveal things about their lives and gives a deeper sense of
understanding and insight. Furthermore, prayer makes me more interested. One
person I am praying for had an article written about them two years earlier. In
the past, I would not have thought about reading it, but prayer has given me a
holy curiosity, so I read the article and I learned something about the person
and their family, which I used to start a conversation.
I have also
noticed that in prayer, the Holy Spirit has the opportunity to nudge me toward
simple action, such as sending a text message, an email, making a phone call,
or walking across the lawn. Since I am partnering with the Holy Spirit, He goes
before me to prepare the way, and my obedience always seems to be "at just
the right time" in the other person’s life. It’s amazing how that works.
One lesson
that has particularly made a difference is the understanding of my
responsibility in the area of evangelism. Studies show that there are almost
six hundred thousand people in Fairfax County who are considered “unclaimed;”
in other words, they have no religious affiliation. For a pastor of about three
hundred people, that number seems overwhelming and the mission too unreachable.
Praying for my community is great, but it has little effect on how I live.
However, Fairfax County is smaller than I think. If our three hundred people
have ten to fifteen people we each know, our collective prayers can make a real
impact. Just think - our church is now praying for three thousand to forty-five
hundred people, by name, every day. Just think of the miracles that can happen
and the spiritual conversations we will have.
The most
moving part of January was during a Friday evening prayer meeting when we
gathered in a circle at the front of our auditorium and mentioned out loud the
names we had written. As I listened to each person present names to God, I
thought of other people who have prayed for these same people for years –
grandparents, parents, and friends. But, I also realized that some people who
we prayed for might not have any connection to other believers and it is quite
possible that their names were brought before God for the first time. I could
see God listening and smiling every time he heard a new person being mentioned
in Heaven.
I believe God
is going to do amazing things at Centerpointe Church in 2017, and I believe it
is because we are intentionally praying for, and reaching out to, people who
have yet to experience God’s forgiveness and grace.
There is one
more thing the Lord reminded me of in a more profound way – I am not alone. I
want you to hear this. Say it out loud. I want you to understand it in such a
way that it echoes throughout your heart and soul, because many times in our
lives we have times of thinking we are out there by ourselves. We often feel
like we are alone, especially when it comes to our faith. We go to work
thinking that we are the only ones who are Jesus followers. Students go to
school thinking everyone hates them because of their faith. They sit in class
as teachers openly mock their faith and call people of faith intolerant.
Furthermore, when it comes to sharing our faith, the sense of inadequacy can be
overwhelming. However, in our mission to invite people to follow Jesus, we are
not alone.
Matthew
28:19–20 says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them
in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching
them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always,
to the very end of the age” (NIV).
Jesus promised
us he would send the Holy Spirit to empower us, teach us, and go before us to
prepare people’s hearts. It is the Holy Spirit’s role to convict people of sin
and show them their need for a savior. It is He who awakens a person’s soul. I
am simply an obedient partner in soul winning.
John 16:7–9
“But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I
go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to
you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and
righteousness and judgment” (NIV).
This is the
great secret of witnessing – knowing that The Holy Spirit has gone before me. When I am
praying for lost people, I am not left to my own resources or prayer skills.
Even when I don’t know the right words to pray, the Holy Spirit prays through
me. When this happens, I am assured that I am praying in harmony with God’s own
will, because He absolutely loves the same people I love.
Although January 2017 is in
the rear view mirror, my prayer is that we do not lose passion concerning lost
people. If we are passionately following Jesus, we will not be able to stop
inviting others to join us.
