A house of prayer for all nations
Our overriding goal at Stop End-time Confusion is to see each person that listens to our podcasts or reads our articles be better prepared for the return of Jesus. This begins with a heart of ‘pure devotion to Jesus.’ This article by our good friend and ministry partner Gregory Gallimore is an important part of that process.
--Tom Grossman Sr.
There is a myth regarding prayer in the church that often goes something like this: Those who go to prayer meetings are the mystics, the prayer warriors. This language, tho, serves to confound us. If they’re the warriors, then they must have some power that the regular churchgoers don’t. But this notion is false. The people who participate in prayer meetings are not those who possess spiritual superpowers. In fact, it’s just the opposite. They are the weak who have learned to lean on God for refreshing and empowerment.
A house of prayer
In Matthew 21:13 Jesus is in the final one hundred hours of His earthly ministry. Having just made a triumphal entry into Jerusalem riding on a donkey, He proceeds to the temple, where He cites Isaiah 56, making the magisterial declaration regarding the destiny of the Church: “It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer.”
A people of prayer
God’s consummate desire is that His people be known as a people of prayer. And since Christ now lives in us by the Holy Spirit, we could paraphrase this verse to say, “My people shall be called a people of prayer.” And to make this verse even more personal and to take responsibility to see this word fulfilled, we could say, “It is written, I shall be called a person of prayer.”
You see, God is inviting His people to communion. Significantly, this invitation is not for the strong, holy, or prepared but rather for the thirsty, hungry, and poor.
How we become a people of prayer
We should realize that we’ve already begun since it happens every Sunday in worship. As we engage our hearts in singing to the Lord, we begin to minister to Him. Subsequently, He begins to minister to our hearts. Burdens begin to lift, and we become more focused on God and heavenly minded.
Often in church meetings, we stop at this point and the preaching begins. However, in prayer meetings this is where we can transition to a horizontal plane and intercede for one another’s needs and engage with intercessory prayer requests. Finally, it is good to return to a vertical worship focus out of thanks to conclude the prayer time when possible.
So, to summarize, being a people of prayer means coming to the Lord hungering and thirsting for His Presence. We minister to and encounter Him in worship. We engage in intercessory prayer requests. We then return to ministering to Him in grateful thanksgiving and worship.
How we become a person of prayer
What about personal prayer times? Allow the Scriptures to provide you a pathway to God’s heart. Let’s try a simple prayer exercise using this verse from Isaiah. Find a quiet place, open your Bible, have a journal of some sort handy, and expect God to speak to you.
Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Isaiah 55:1
Read and reread the portion of Scripture that stands out to you (it may be only a word or two).
Pause and reflect on it.
Reread it again slowly.
Ask God why it is standing out.
Write it down in large letters.
Pray the verse.
Speak out the verse audibly. Sing it out if you’re comfortable.
Write out a brief prayer or reflections upon the verse.
Perhaps revisit the verse during the next few days or week as the Lord leads.
Prayer will usher in the end of the age
Corporate prayer and personal devotions are both vital components of our prayer life. Even now, Jesus is stirring His bride to pray. The Church was born in a prayer meeting in Acts 2 and the age will end in similar fashion. Revelation 22:17 exhorts us to join the chorus throughout the ages until Jesus’ return: “The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.”
We urge you to find a prayer meeting where people really pray, and a friend or two that you can pray with. Also dial into the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, KS, where you can plug into a prayer meeting that has not stopped in over 23 years. Blessings to you today and every day!
—Gregory Gallimore
