Scripture teaches there is power in prayer, and much power in corporate prayer. We urge you to be a leader by calling others to join you in prayer.

We have reviewed the prayer meetings lead by Jeremiah Lanphier in 1857. You might want to use the model he followed.

When

A weekly prayer meeting is a good starting point. Some like to meet early in the morning, others find a break during the noon hour is a good time. Whatever time you select set a schedule and stay with it. An established time is an important first step.  

Set aside at least 30 minutes for prayer. You may want to limit the meeting to no more than one hour.

Where

Prayer meetings can be held in homes or churches. We like the idea of meeting for prayer in places of business. We are very aware that Scripture tells us to pray secretly and that our prayers are not to be made for public display or to draw attention to how "spiritual" we appear.  However, in our secular society, a small group praying in a restaurant or similar public place can be a powerful witness for the gospel.

How to begin

Invite a small number of people to join you. Some may come, others may not, but remain faithful and continue the prayer meeting without being concerned about how many are there. Jeremiah Lanphier began his first meeting by himself. One other person joined about 30 minutes later and finally five men gathered with him. Only six attended the first meeting.

Set guidelines

Identify a leader. The leader will insure the meeting starts and ends on time and will set the guidelines for the meeting. Keep the focus of the meeting on prayer for our country and related topics.  The leader may want to provide guidance to limit the prayer of anyone to no more than five minutes.

Open the meeting by reading Scripture. Some passages that focus on God and the current condition of our country are:

• Nehemiah 1:4-11
• Isaiah 64:4-8
• Ezekiel 16:48-50
• Ezekiel 22:23-31
• 2 Chronicles 20:1-30

Simply allow the scripture passage to speak to the spirit of those who hear. The leader does not need to make comments on the scripture at this point. This is a prayer meeting; it is important that you pray.

The leader may identify prayer topics. Examples: pray for our families, pray for our church leaders, pray for our government, our military, and leaders in all aspects of our culture.  

You may tell your group that you will spend a set time in prayer for each of the topics; signal when it is time to move to another topic.

A good prayer guide that many find helpful follows this outline:

Be sure to allow those attending to voice any specific concerns they want the group to pray about. The leader may provide cards to allow written prayer request.

End the meeting at the appointed time.

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