Tag Archives: Prayer Service

4 Prayer Services Most People Won’t Go To

Please excuse the length of this while I go on a little rant. One of my most popular posts is 10 reasons that people don’t want to go to your prayer meeting. Part of the reason is that leaders realize that although the prayer service is important it is “the least attended service in the church.” Pastors will come up to me and say something like, “People would rather go to a potluck than a prayer service.”

However one of the reasons that people won’t come to the prayer service of the church is that they may fall into one of these categories:

The National Flag Prayer Service

I am not sure if this is a common type of prayer service in other places in the world but some form of these shows up in various places in the United States. These are the prayer services where the main emphasis is praying for the country. From there it moves into some type of prayer for leadership in the government and from there it becomes a political “prayer” discussion. Now I am all for praying for the country but these types of prayer services can easily turn into a political gripe session that is not attractive to new people.

The End Times Chart Makers Prayer Service

The end times charts may not be as popular as they used to be but the heart of those charts live on in prayer services in churches around the world. They start in a very admirable place of calling for urgency in prayer because the time is short. Any teaching or discussion time in the prayer service becomes a place for people to think about the significance of the latest blue moon. This prayer service is a kissing cousin of the National Flag prayer service and may become one service in the right occasion.

The “Grandma’s Got A Hang Nail So Add It To The List” Prayer Service

This is actually one of the most common types of prayer services. The leader starts the service by quoting the verse, “Where 2 or 3 are gathered in my name there am I with them.” From there they go around the room and each person will share a need for prayer. Some of these will be “smaller” needs that may simply speak to the persons comfort in sharing. Sometimes someone is assigned to take down notes and will assign them later. One person will push through and share a deeper need like the fight she had with her husband shortly before the prayer service. This produces empathy from some of the group who counsel and advice the lady. Of course this takes a while. This mean at a point in the service someone says, “Oh we should pray, look at the time.” Prayers are assigned and prayed as people hurry to the close.

The Gift of Intercession Expert Roundup Prayer Service

I have written elsewhere about my ideas on the expression the “gift of intercession”, but at this point I will at least say I am not a fan. This prayer service may be specially designated for “the intercessors” or the format only lends itself to “the super Christians”. Their mantra will be something like, “We are not here to talk, we are here to pray (or storm the gates of heaven or insert your favorite militant prayer phrase).” This prayer meeting may not have a lot of structure. The “open microphone” allow people to get up and pray some impressive prayers. Not any prayer that a new Christian would feel comfortable praying but lengthy and powerful. There is no encouragement to remember Charles Finney’s warning that those who are leading in prayer should pray short prayers.

Now let me be clear, I am not against praying for your country. I believe that we are living in the end times and that does create urgency to our prayer. One of the great benefits of a prayer service is that we can pray for people’s needs. I personally love a prayer service that has a lot of open time.

That said my title for this is, “most people don’t want to go to.” Since most prayer services average 5-10% of the Sunday AM population and the average church in the USA runs about 75 that means the average prayer service has 4-10 people in it. The main 4 people may love the service because they like that format or are drawn to that cause. They are the ones that say, “Why don’t more people come to the prayer service.”

Maybe it is time to think a little harder about how we format or structure our prayer service.
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Maybe it is time to think a little harder about how we format or structure our prayer service. This will be stretching for those who are used to a certain format. This will also require some passion and teaching so that new people become comfortable with it as they grow in prayer. But the effort can be worth it. I have seen a church go from 5%-10% of the Sunday morning attendance in the prayer service to 10%-20%. That simple change transforms the whole spiritual climate of the church!

10 Reasons Why People Don’t Come To Your Prayer Meeting

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Most pastors will tell me that the most important meeting of the church is the prayer meeting. They will also tell me that it is the least attended meeting in their church. I am told that people will come easy to a pot luck but not to a prayer meeting. But the power of a well attended prayer meeting is vital to a church.

I have been amazed at the connection between the size of the Sunday morning service and the size of the prayer meeting. It is consistently 10 percent of the Sunday morning attendance that is at the prayer meeting. An increase in attendance at the prayer meeting seems to increase attend on Sunday morning to get it back to that 10%.

But people don’t seem to like to come to pray meetings. Now I understand that part of that has to do with spiritual warfare. The enemy would love nothing better than to have people come to the prayer meeting.

That however is only part of the story. There are things as leaders that you can do to help the meeting be better attended. Here are 10 ideas why people don’t come to get you started.

1. The prayer meeting is boring.

People are struggling already that prayer is boring. The last thing they need is to come to a prayer meeting and find that also to be true. Creativity is a key to that.

2. The prayer meeting is a gossip session.

It is too easy for prayer requests from the floor to simply become a means to gossip. This behavior needs to be dealt with and taught how to be avoided.

3. No leadership in the meeting.

Some leaders are intimidated because they are not the best prayer person in the room. What the meeting needs is leadership not for the strongest prayer person to be in charge.

4. People are scared they will be called on to pray.

I try to never call on people to pray who I haven’t asked beforehand. It breeds an atmosphere of fear for new people.

5. They fear no end time.

Every prayer meeting should have an end time that is very clear. You can allow people to stay longer if they want, but people fear getting stuck in a meeting that they can’t get out.

6. It doesn’t seem to be a priority of the leadership.

If you are the leader of the group and this is a priority for the church or ministry you must make it a priority yourself. If the time doesn’t work for you don’t make it the main prayer time.

7. Not engaging their whole being.

Sitting or standing for the whole time will cause people to check out. Engaging the head and not the heart is not good, and so is touching the heart but not the head.

8. They fear a meeting with no variety.

If the prayer meeting is exactly the same forever and ever with no life people will not come back.

9. The prayer meeting takes place in the dungeon of the church.

Too often the prayer meeting is held in the most sad or distracting room of the church. Think through where you meet come up with some ideas to switch it up.

10. Long winded prayers without power.

Charles Finney encouraged people in the meeting to pray short prayers with passion. He would only have people pray who he knew would lead people in prayer. Key decisions about a meeting can be who ends up praying.

If you would like to dig deeper on a strategy of building a church that prays I recommend the Prayer Saturated Church by Cheryl Sacks.