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Session 5:
"Prayer Evangelism: Moving Beyond Church Walls"
Introduction
A. Prayer is an evangelistic activity.
1. The focus of prayer is the advancement of God’s
kingdom. (Mt. 6:10)
a. When God’s kingdom advances, Satan’s kingdom
is plundered.
b. The plundering of Satan’s kingdom brings a
harvest of souls.
2. The effect of answered prayer is expressions of
thanksgiving to God. (2 Cor. 1:11)
a. Answered prayer brings glory to God.
b. When God is glorified, he draws people to
Himself.
B. Prayer evangelism moves beyond the church and into
the world.
1. This was modeled by Jesus and His disciples.
a. Jesus’ prayer life kept him on the move to
preach the gospel in new areas. (Lk. 4:42-43)
b. The disciples’ prayer lives resulted in
boldness to press through persecution and share the gospel
with increasing numbers of people. (Acts 4:31)
2. This should be our practice as well.
a. Prayer itself should extend beyond our circle of
acquaintances.
b. Praying in the Spirit leads to a life of divine
appointments.
C. God sovereignly provides prayer evangelism
opportunities.
1. He raised up the Lighthouses of Prayer Movement.
2. He orchestrated spontaneous prayerwalking
movements.
Body of Teaching
I. The Lighthouses of Prayer
Movement
A. Lighthouses of Prayer
provide a viable model of prayer evangelism.
1. What is a lighthouse of prayer?
a. Paul Cedar, chairman and CEO of Mission America
and the Lighthouse Movement, defines a Lighthouse as "a
gathering of two or more people in Jesus’ name for the
purpose of praying for, caring for, and sharing Christ with
their neighbors and others in their sphere of
influence."
-- Paul A. Cedar, "The Lighthouse
Movement," in Pray! Magazine (Issue 15:
November/December 1999), p. 18.
b. The biblical basis for the concept is found in
Jesus words, "You are the light of the world. A city
on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp
and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand,
and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same
way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your
good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." (Mt.
5:14-16)
2. How do lighthouses of prayer work?
a. They form wherever committed Christians can get
together for prayer.
(1) They can meet in homes, workplaces, schools,
dormitories, jails, etc.
(2) Existing small groups of praying Christians
can become lighthouses.
b. They focus on evangelistic prayer and outreach
to unsaved acquaintances.
(1) Each person is challenged to pray for five
unsaved people in his personal sphere of influence.
(2) For neighborhood lighthouses, the philosophy
is "talk to God about your neighbors before you talk
to your neighbors about God."
c. Lighthouses move from evangelistic praying to
evangelistic outreach.
(1) The first step is PRAYER.
(a) It is a prayer for blessing.
(b) It is a prayer for receptivity to Christ.
(2) The second step is CARE.
(a) Love your neighbor by responding to
practical needs.
(b) Love your neighbor by being receptive to
his interests.
(3) The third step is SHARE.
(a) Identify particular needs or interests.
(b) Be ready to share what the Lord has done in
your life as relevant and appropriate.
(c) Invite them to join you for a church
service or a community outreach.
(d) Give them a video, booklet, or book that
responds to their need.
B. Lighthouses of Prayer are a sovereign work of
God.
1. The movement is a like a river with many
tributaries.
a. The Navigators video curriculum: Your Home a
Lighthouse
b. Ed Silvoso and Harvest Evangelism: Lighthouses
of Prayer
c. Al Vander Griend: Houses of Prayer Everywhere
d. The A.D. 2000 Women’s Track: Love Your
Neighbor
e. Mission America: Lighthouses across America
2. The movement works best in connection with the
church.
a. Lighthouses often start spontaneously.
b. They have greater longevity when connected with
local churches.
c. They are benefited by the churches they partner
with through:
(1) The support of their leadership.
(2) The opportunities to share answers to prayer.
(3) The affirmation of their intercessory prayer
minisitry.
d. They benefit the churches they partner with
through:
(1) Encouraging the saints in their prayer lives.
(2) Helping churches impact their communities
through prayer partnerships.
(3) Stimulating the church to growth.
C. The Lighthouses of Prayer Movement offers
assistance to ordinary Christians wanting to impact their
spheres of influence for Christ.
1. You can register your group as a lighthouse of
prayer with Mission America.
2. You can receive "The Lighthouse," a
monthly newletter with testimonies of how God is using other
lighthouses.
3. You can access resources in video and printed form
to guide you in starting and sustaining your lighthouse.
D. Testimony: Scott, who pastors a church in Washington
D.C., learned the power of Lighthouses of Prayer for
evangelistic success.
-- Al Vander Griend, "A Marriage Made in
Heaven," in Pray! Magazine (Issue 15: November/December
1999), p. 22.
1. He and his wife started a lighthouse of prayer
with one other couple.
2. They made a list of neighbors for whom they would
pray for salvation.
3. A woman for whom they were praying became a
Christian and asked to be baptized at Scott’s church.
4. She took the initiate to invite other neighbors to
her baptism -- the very ones that Scott and his lighthouse
partners had been praying for.
II. The Prayerwalking Movement
A. Prayerwalking is another
viable model of prayer evangelism.
-- References are from Steve Hawthorne and Graham Kendrick, Prayerwalking:
Praying On Site With Insight, Lake Mary, Florida: Creation
House, 1993.
1. What is prayerwalking?
a. It is simply walking as you pray.
(1) It takes you out of the fortress mentality of
prayer.
(2) It moves prayer out of the church and into
the world.
b. It is defined as "praying on-site with
insight." (p. 12)
(1) On-site: This takes one into the community to
pray in the very place where the answer to prayer is
expected to occur. (pp. 16-17)
(2) With insight: The insight that directs the
praying can come from three different sources:
(a) "Responsive insight": The things
you see on-site suggest clues as to what you need to
pray about. (p. 18)
(b) "Researched insight": Advance
research about the particular place where you will pray
can provide insight into prayer needs. (p.19)
(c) "Revealed insight": God can
reveal particular prayer needs and direct the mind to
specific scriptures to pray into the need. (p. 20)
2. What is the origin of the modern prayerwalking
movement?
a. There is little evidence of a trend for
prayerwalking prior to the mid- seventies.
b. From the mid-seventies till the mid-nineties,
hundreds of independent initiatives have sprung up around
the world.
c. Hawthorne and Kendrick’s research found no
"father of prayerwalking" per se but hundreds of
pioneers and a diversity of styles.
d. Conclusion: God has sovereignly orchestrated the
prayerwalking movement.
3. What is the biblical basis for prayerwalking?
a. Abraham was a prayerwalker.
(1) He was commanded by God to walk through the
entire land of Canaan which God was giving to him and his
descendants. (Gen. 13:14-17)
(2) He was to see and set his feet upon the land
that he would possess.
b. Joshua was a prayerwalker.
(1) He was among the twelve spies who surveyed
the land of Canaan. (Num. 13)
(2) God said to him, "Every place on which
the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just
as I spoke to Moses." (Josh. 1:3)
c. Jesus and his disciples were prayerwalkers.
(1) He sent out seventy disciples "into
every city and place where he himself was going to
come." (Lk. 10:1)
(2) This number corresponds to the "table of
nations" in Genesis 12.
(3) This act was symbolically laying claim to all
the nations city-by-city.
4. What are some tips for effective praywalking?
a. Practice praywalking in areas that you relate
to. (pp. 10-12, 15)
(1) Families should prayerwalk their
neighborhoods.
(2) Churches should prayerwalk their communities.
(3) Students should prayerwalk their school
campuses.
(4) Employees should prayerwalk their work
places.
(5) Intercessors might prayerwalk whole regions,
countries, or continents.
(6) Missionaries might prayerwalk their adopted
cities.
b. Plan your prayerwalk experience for optimum
benefit. (pp. 26-31)
(1) Prepare yourself through worship, Scripture
meditation, and seeking divine guidance.
(2) Walk with your eyes open for prayer clues and
pray out loud and conversationally.
(3) Report testimonies of answered prayer or of
new insights/discoveries to others who are prayerwalking
the area.
c. Focus your walk on three dynamics of
prayerwalking. (pp. 39-42)
(1) Worship: Offer praise to God in the place
where you prayerwalk and pray that God will be honored and
praised from this place in answer to your prayers.
(2) Warfare: Intercede for the uprooting of
entrenched evil whether it is obvious to see or present in
subtle form.
(3) Welcome: Pray that God will create in those
you pray for a hunger for righteousness and a yearning for
God’s kingdom.
B. Prayerwalking can produce tremendous spiritual
breakthroughs and evangelistic fruit.
1. Illustration: Pastor Robert Haris Jurjevic and the
Biblijska Vjerska Zajednica "RAFAEL" church of
Sarajevo discovered the power of prayerwalking for spiritual
breakthrough and evangelism. (pp. 20-21)
a. The Lord directed them to have a prayer time at
the gates of the city wall.
b. One of their group sensed that God wanted them
to write blessings on small pieces of paper and press them
into the cracks in the wall.
c. When they arrived, they were surprised to find
that the cracks were plugged with pieces of paper with
written curses from Islamic spiritists.
d. They replaced these curses with their blessings
and prayed for repentance for the city.
e. In the weeks to follow, people began coming into
the church, confessing witchcraft, and finding deliverance.
2. Illustration: Lou Engle used prayerwalking and a
prophetic act to see drought ended in Pasadena, California.
(pp. 115-116)
a. The original watersource for Pasadena and Los
Angeles was a dam called "Devil’s Gate" as the
rocks there resembled "His Satanic Majesty"
according to a 1947 article of the Pasadena - Star News.
b. For five years leading up to 1991, drought
have been constant in Southern California.
c. Lou Engle, director of Pasadena for Christ,
sensed that God wanted their intercessors to go to the dam
and to follow Elijah’s example of pouring salt into
the water source for the healing of the waters.
d. They prayed specifically that God would
"release rivers of life and fruitfulness" to the
parched areas of Southern California.
e. Eight days later, rains began to come so heavily
that the newspaper called that month "Miracle
March."
f. Shortly thereafter, without input from any of
the intercessors, the city of Pasadena restored the dam to
it’s original Indian name, Hahamongna, meaning
"Flowing Waters: Fruitful Valley."
Conclusion
A. Prayer is an evangelistic activity.
B. Prayer evangelism moves prayer out of the church and
into the world.
C. God is sovereignly raising up prayer evangelism
movements.
D. Lighthouses of Prayer and Prayerwalking model
effective prayer evangelism.
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