Starting a Tsunami of Prayer

God has rolled up his sleeves.
    All the nations can see his holy, muscled arm. Isaiah 52:10 (The Message)

One of my mentors shares this verse and then asks us to think about what God might still have up His sleeves. God is at work and we get to be involved in it. One of the things that God is doing in the world today is the prayer movement that is exploding. I was talking to Vice President of Training for the Billy Graham organization and he said that what God is raising up in prayer is like nothing ever seen in history. And we can get involved in it.

In that same conversation I was sharing with him how we have yet to see what a move of God will really look like with the advancement of technology. If you are reading this you are involved in that movement. Will you pray with me that the wave of God’s activity will go to a whole new level? May the Tsunami Warning Systems go off in the Enemy’s camp because God is calling His people to prayer and action!

There is another way that you can get involved. As a ministry, Christ Connection and Enjoying Prayer, we have a plan to make an impact that can change regions and nations. But we can’t do it alone. I am including a basic picture of how these waves of impact can expand. I am praying that God puts it upon your heart to get involved. If God asks you to help this movement you can make a difference here. Will you join us today?

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A Quick Thought

The irony of my title is not lost on me. But maybe “a quick thought” will challenge you to read these few words. I read this and wanted to pass it along. It was an “ouch” and “amen” moment.

“Hurry is the great enemy of spiritual life in our day. For most of us, the danger is not that we will renounce our faith. It is that we will become so distracted and rushed and preoccupied that we will settle for a mediocre version of it. Hurry will destroy your soul. It will keep you from life. Depth always comes slowly; this is simply a truth about human formation. You cannot microwave maturity.

… Following Jesus cannot be done at a sprint. If you want to follow someone, you can’t go faster than the one who is leading.”

-John Ortberg, Laurie Pederson, Judson Poling-Pursuing Spiritual Transformation -Growth training vs trying

A Manifesto on Engagement (Updated)

There is a recurring theme that I find as I travel to churches around the country. The church seems to be missing the life of engagement. I looked online and according to Merriam Webster here are a couple definitions of engagement:

  1. emotional involvement or commitment
  2. the state of being in gear

It seems like so many Christians are simply going through the motions. They are not “bad” people, but their journey has become a routine. Dare I say their faith has become boring? They come to church on Sunday; they give in the offering, and may even read their Bible every day. But something is missing. Sticking with the idea of engagement is seems like the church may be dating Jesus, but have refused his requests to get married.

There are two things that are connected that appear to have caused this. Imagine one of those hand cars that go down a railroad tracks. When you push on one side the other side goes up. One side of this car is prayer and the other side is mission. One leads to the other.

Being a prayer guy you would expect me to say that one side is prayer. But what you might not expect is that one of the reasons I challenge people to pray is because I know that it results in mission. As you see in the Bible, when people came into the presence of God they were draw into some mission that God had for them.

The flip side is true as well. As you engage in the mission that God has for you it become obvious that you cannot do this with your own power. It requires the power of God. This will drive you into the presence of God in prayer. And the cycle will continue. Now when I am talking about mission I mean this in two ways-the broader sense of God’s activity for us and more narrowly the cross cultural calling to new people.

I have found an interesting thing happens when I push the levers of prayer and mission in my own life. It begins me moving down the tracks. And very importantly is where it takes me. It takes me to the heart of God.

But my passion is not enough. What about your engagement? Are you moving down the track? Which side do you need to move down the field? God needs you!