The last few days have been great in the way of group intercessory prayer.

This weekend I had a chance to pray for an hour straight at a collegiate day of prayer, to pray in Bible study, to pray at Men's Prayer Breakfast, to pray at a special Congo mission sending dinner, and to pray this morning at church service.

I had an amazing experience at the collegiate prayer meeting...unlike anything I've ever experienced in prayer before.  We began praying shortly after 7pm and were scheduled to pray until 8pm.  After what I perceived was about 15 minutes of prayer, I thought to myself, wow, an hour straight of prayer might be difficult.  However, as I glanced at the time, I was amazed to see that it was 8:10pm!  In what I perceived was only 15 minutes was actually more than an hour!  I don't know for sure what all that means, but for sure God taught me that praying for an hour straight is not hard at all when you are in the presence of God. 

I also was greatly encouraged to pray at the special Congo mission sending dinner.  After more than a dozen years, the Evangelical Covenant Church of America is sending a team of 7 missionaries back to the Congo.  (The missionaries had to evacuate because of war in '97).  Six of the seven missionaries returning are veteran servants, with lifetimes of service already completed.  I was overwhelmed at the joy they had when talking about "going home."  I share that joy about going home to Alaska soon.  What a great parallel to how we should have joy about "going home" to eternal glory with our Father God some day.  At the end of the dinner we prayed for a while, and I was just overwhelmed at the thought of God's goodness and power and was extremely excited for these men and women of God.

Lastly, in church service this morning, the children's message was about prayer and we had about 5 minutes to practice the message.  In small groups, we prayed for our homes, our friends, our church, our world, our sin, and our faith.  It was a good intercessory time of prayer.

Until next time...keep praying!

When Shirleen and I were dating I read a book called "Too Busy Not to Pray" by Bill Hybels.  It was a really interesting book.  I also remember hearing stories about Martin Luther who would make sure that the more busy he was, the earlier he would rise to pray more than normal.  I wish I had that practice in intercessory prayer.  Alas, I do not.  This past week was a really busy one for me.  In the midst of being busy, my intercessory prayer life made a drastic change from being focused on praying for others to praying for myself.  Certainly praying for our own situations is important...but shouldn't we still pray for others at the same time?  A good reminder that we all have areas to grow in.

In any case, even though I did less intercessory prayer for others this past week, I did still have some good group prayer times.  We often pray in class, so I took part in that...also we prayed in church and in men's Bible Study.  Unfortunately Men's Prayer Breakfast was cancelled last Saturday, so I missed out on that.  I plan on posting again on Sunday...so until then...even if you're busy, don't forget to pray!

I owe a couple of prayer blogs...I'll get to them still...in the meantime, here are some sweet vids and pics.  Thomas has been taking steps for quite a while, but this is the first time we've been able to get him on camera.  Enjoy!

This is my first official entry into my journal about intentional intercessory prayer.  So far so good.  It is interesting that sometimes we think of going to church, reading our Bibles, or praying as work or even a burden...but those practices are given to us by God to bring life! 

This week I didn't spend any large chunks of time in intercessory prayer, but I hope to do that a few times throughout the semester.  Instead, throughout the day as I walk to and from classes, or have 5-10 minutes free I have been offering up short prayers for family and friends.  I've also been offering silent prayers up for people around that are physically around me that seem to be struggling.  There is a prayer board in the Seminary that I stop and pray in front of a couple of times a day and also try to pray for a person or two that has sent us a Christmas card (which is taped to our apartment door).  Lastly, I've taken note of and have enjoyed praying in groups this past week: this past week I prayed with others at prayer breakfast, class, and Bible Study.  Shirleen and I had nursery duty on Sunday, so we didn't get to pray with the church...but we look forward to doing so this week.

This week we are going down to Chinatown to go to church and then celebrate Chinese New Year with a parade downtown.  It will be fun to worship with the Chinese Believers and to notice how they pray.

Thanks for sharing prayer requests with me this semester.  Keep sending them my way...it's fun to be part of a Body in Christ that can intercede for one another. :-)

I took Tommy to his first men's prayer breakfast this morning.  I sure like those things.  It had been a while since I had been to one.  I plan on going every Saturday morning for the rest of the school year.  Also, for a class project, I am spending this semester intentionally spending time at least twice a week in intercessory prayer and I have to journal/blog about the experience as well.  I look forward to how God shapes me more into who he wants me to be as a man of prayer.  It is an interesting assignment since Jesus instructed His followers to not pray as the Pharisees did, out loud in public in a boastful way, but rather to pray in humility.  I will strive to have this attitude even as I share my journey publically, seeking to glorify my Father in Heaven.  So, does anyone have any prayer requests? 

I posted the 100 year history of the Evangelical Covenant Church of Alaska by Chip Swanson on Polar NewsFlash today.  It's a pretty quick read and has tons of great information about ministry in the early missionary days.  Thanks to Chip Swanson for giving me permission to post his book.  As Chip says, history is His Story and more people should know what He has done in the Church.  You can take a look at the book by downloading it below or visiting http://www.polarnewsflash.com/atimetoremember.html.

As an added bonus, here are 12 indicators that your church is a missional church:

1.        The missional church proclaims the Gospel.
a.       The story of God’s salvation is faithfully repeated in a multitude of different ways.

2.       The missional church is a community where all members are involved in learning to become disciples of Jesus.
a.       The disciple identity is held by all; growth in discipleship is expected of all.

3.       The Bible is normative in this church’s life.
a.       The church is reading the Bible together to learn what it can learn nowhere else – God’s good and gracious intent for all creation, the salvation mystery, and the identity and purpose of life together.

4.       The church understands itself as different from the world because of its participation in the life, death, and resurrection of its Lord.
a.       In its corporate life and public witness, the church is consciously seeking to conform to its Lord instead of the multitude of cultures in which it finds itself.

5.       The church seeks to discern God’s specific missional vocation for the entire community and for all of its members.
a.       The church has made its “mission” its priority, and in overt and communal ways is seeking to be and do “what God is calling us to know, be, and do.”

6.       A missional community is indicated by how Christians behave toward one another.
a.       Acts of self-sacrifice on behalf of one another both in the church and in the locale characterize the generosity of the community.

7.       It is a community that practices reconciliation.
a.       The church community is moving beyond homogeneity toward a more heterogeneous community in its racial, ethnic, age, gender, and socioeconomic makeup.

8.       People within the community hold themselves accountable to one another in love.
a.       Substantial time is spent with one another for the purpose of watching over one another in love.

9.       The church practices hospitality.
a.       Welcoming the stranger into the midst of the community plays a central role.

10.   Worship is the central act by which the community celebrates with joy and thanksgiving both God’s presence and God’s promised future.
a.       There is significant and meaningful engagement in communal worship of God, reflecting appropriately and addressing the culture of those who worship together.

11.   The community has a vital public witness.
a.       The church makes an observable impact that contributes to the transformation of life, society, and human relationships.

12.   There is recognition that the church itself is an incomplete expression of the reign of God.
a.       There is a widely held perception that this church is going somewhere – and that “somewhere” is a more faithfully lived life in the reign of God.

Indicators of a Missional Church

Written by Walter C. Hobbs in the book Treasure in Clay Jars, edited by Lois Y. Barrett