There are certain countries you can visit that have a regular “Call to Prayer.” For many of them, it is five times a day. More than once while visiting these countries, I have been awakened in the night as the call to prayer is made. Every time I hear this call to prayer, I am challenged in my spirit. Am I this committed to my faith? Am I willing to get up in the night to pray? Do I make my daily schedule according to the times when there is a call to prayer?
I must say that the coronavirus pandemic has ushered in a greater time of being called to prayer. I find myself centring my schedule around six weekly times of corporate prayer plus other specially called times. I believe the church of the living God has been jolted into a time like no other that is opening new doors of prayer ministry. It is truly amazing to be a part of God’s church at this time.
The cry of my heart is to see people pray beyond themselves. It is easy to pray for our own needs and our own church and, perhaps, even our own city. My question, however, is how much do you pray for the world? For nations? For people groups? For natural disasters in other countries? For the children around the world?
Like me, I suspect most people would have to shyly answer, “Not very often.” For the last several years, the Lord has been daily challenging me to pray beyond myself. Yes, the needs of my family, my church, and my city are very important. However, my prayers can reach much farther.
I must know and believe my prayers can truly change nations. This is not egotistical, but rather, it is my God-confidence. We all need to know and believe that He truly can use us as individuals to impact nations. How much more can He use a whole prayer group that will focus their prayers beyond their own borders?
The pandemic has opened wonderful doors of opportunity for people to become prayer missionaries. In the United Kingdom, ladies meet every Thursday at 7.00 a.m. via Zoom to pray for the nations and territories of the world. Each lady has picked at least ten countries to pray for. Each week a different lady presents her countries and the whole group focuses on those nations.
Just as beautiful is the Saturday morning children’s prayer meeting via Zoom. How wonderful to see young children holding up the flags of countries and praying for them. It is so much easier to train a child than to repair an adult. The younger we can teach our children to pray BIG prayers, the better.
We need to regularly pray for those who have no one to pray for them, including many children in the world. It is also important that we repent for those who don’t realise their need to do so. Reaching out in this manner is truly agape love and what intercession is all about. Can I pray for those who will never know me or never be able to thank me? Or, do I just pray for those I know and those who will acknowledge my prayers?
I don’t want to be one of the guilty ones spoken of in Ezekiel 22:30 when no one was found to “stand in the gap.” I’ve got to know and believe that my prayers can truly make a difference – for those near and for those far away that I may never meet this side of heaven.
The CALL TO PRAYER is going forth in a greater way than ever before! Will you see beyond yourself and become a prayer missionary? Are you willing to train the next generation to do the same?
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