Podcast Episode #518
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We constantly hear from pastors wanting to see prayer increase in their churches. The secret to becoming a praying church is to…pray.
Some highlights from today’s episode include:
- There is a great desire to pray more in churches, but a lack of consistent application in corporate worship settings.
- Anything you want to increase in your church will take intentionality.
- Prayer is visible and active in praying churches. People are encouraged by seeing others pray.
- Sometimes liturgy and routine can lead to rigidity and a lack of flexibility in a corporate worship service.
The seven ways churches make prayer a focus are:
- They stress the priority of prayer
- They have a designated time of corporate prayer with clear guidelines
- They share stories of answered prayers
- They provide prayer guides in the worship folder/bulletin
- They have visible manifestations of prayer
- They pray to send people out from the worship services
- They have people pray during and before the worship services
Resources mentioned in today’s podcast
Rainer on Leadership is a member of the LifeWay Leadership Podcast Network
Episode Sponsors
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Today’s episode is sponsored by Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Be sure to check out Midwestern’s Doctorate of Ministry Degree. The D.Min. is an advanced degree preparing students for leadership in local churches and denominational service. It is also fully attainable in hybrid format which means you don’t have to move to pursue the degree.
Find out more at mbts.edu/dmin.
Feedback
If you have a question you would like answered on the show, fill out the form on the podcast page here at ThomRainer.com. If we use your question, you’ll receive a free copy of Scrappy Church.
Let women pray out loud.
Make it easy to submit prayer requests. In most churches you have to know the person charge of that and try to see them before the service to get the prayer request in their hand. OR
Ask out loud for prayer requests.
I also occasionally pause in a sermon and we pray together as a church about that truth before I continue with the sermon. However, I really like your ideas of having people pray in different ways during a corporate time of prayer during the service. Some stay seated (you know they will), some to the altar, some in small groups, some over the me. Thanks for those ideas, and I will bring it in slowly.
If you want to see a beautiful example of very effective corporate prayer, at 10:00 AM Eastern time on any Saturday morning, follow this link: http://live.churchofthehighlands.com/
The Church of the Highlands in Birmingham AL is a prayer saturated church! Twice a year in January and August they have 21 days of corporate prayer and fasting and they meet for corporate prayer every Saturday morning.
Pray before song. Pray after singing. Pray before message. Incorporate prayer into the message. Pray for specific needs, personal & corporate. Be fully intentional. Lead by example. Make the Bride of Christ a house of prayer. The Bride must speak to the Groom before anything good can happen. Songs, preaching & teaching start with prayer. Living requires it. It must become automatic. Believers can’t get it wrong. The Holy Spirit will present it spotless to the Savior. People want to participate. Encourage them to
Pray. God will change them when they do. And they will do when they pray.