praying ceaselessly

hal haller

“Never stop praying” I Thessalonians 5:17

Prayer is ongoing. Prayer never stops! As you breathe in and out, so your prayers to God should be uttered. Prayer is THE foundational element of what we do at Reproducing Churches. As a network, we understand that without prayer our work is in vain. Prayer must be at the centerpiece of all that we do – whether apart or together.

In the early morning, as I lay in bed, I typically ask God these two questions:

“God, do you have anything to say to me because I’m listening.”

“God, is there anything you need me to do because I’m ready to do it”

And for the rest of the day, I’m trying my best to listen and respond to God’s voice. My desire is to speak with Him all through the day. The reason I pray these two prayers is because God often changes my plans.

As a group of pastors at Church of the Highlands Lakeland, we took 21 days to fast and pray. Our goal was to continually pray throughout the day and ask God to show us what He wanted to do. Each morning we met, asking each other what God might be saying to us as a group. We had over 50 items on our specific prayer list that we were praying about. At the end of the fast, there was a clear message – and it wasn’t on our prayer list – we sensed God telling us to start churches (that’s right churches in the plural) along Interstate 4 in Central Florida.

That was an incredulous message to all of us since our church was 9 months old and about 40,000 dollars in credit card debt as we were financially floating the church. How could God give us that message? It seemed impossible but the message and the mandate were clear. As a result, we changed our plans and within a few years, a number of new churches were started out of Church of the Highlands, Lakeland.

Prayer allows me to listen and to respond to whatever God is asking me to do.

In Acts 16, Paul and Silas are preaching the gospel from city to city. They have made plans but the itinerary is not working out. One night, God speaks clearly to Paul: Go to Macedonia. The next day, Paul and Silas are on their way. They heard God clearly and were able to change plans and respond to His instructions.

God’s desire is to discover people who are finely tuned into Him. Most of the time our reception to God is fuzzy. My 60 inch television is the envy of most red-blooded men but there is one catch: I don’t have cable or satellite; I only have rabbit ears! Sometimes I have to twist and contort my body in such a way (like my arm raised up in the air) so I can get a better signal on my television.

Prayer gives me a clear signal.

We know what God is saying and we can then respond to Him. With certainty, we can engage into his mandate for our lives and for our church. Making plans without prayer is foolishness. It’s trying to think up what God wants you to do rather than reacting and responding to His mandate for your life.

Prayer is the foundation of revival and spiritual movement.

Can you name a movement of God that was not first preceded by prayer? You’ll have an impossible time identifying one. When people pray, God’s heart is moved. His Spirit is unleashed in the world and he causes people to respond to God. Read the book of Acts and you’ll discover that prayer was the foundational element of the move of God.

Prayer is the best recruitment of spiritual, reproducing leaders.

Jesus gave us clear instructions about how Kingdom work would be accomplished. It would be done in prayer, asking God to send many leaders for spiritual cultivation and harvest. There is a tendency to recruit spiritual leaders through organizational methods (and there is nothing wrong with that) but in the truest sense, God raises up the leaders.

Jesus said:

“So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.” Matthew 9:38 (NLT)

So as a part of His instructions, we are constantly seeking God for the provision of leaders. We know the work cannot be accomplished by a few, extraordinary leaders but by a multitude of spiritual harvesters who gather people to Jesus. The work must be delegated and decentralized so that the Gospel can spread to all people.

Prayer opens the door to mutually working together.

Often times, I have an agenda to fulfill but when I am in community with others who are living sent, my agenda broadens and expands. My attention focuses on others. My prayers include their hopes, dreams, and needs. I begin to understand that my calling finds completion when I am true fellowship and partnership with others in God’s work.

For me, there is nothing more satisfying than being on my knees in heartfelt prayer with others. There is a joy, a sense of team, a sense of unity that brings us all together.