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In every Prayer Journey the Lord
causes encounters with believers that need encouragement and unbelievers that want to
accept Christ or are willing to listen to the gospel. Help the evangelists to pray and the
pray-ers to evangelize! 
In San Diego, the Prayer Journey field
team paused briefly at a small apartment complex. A man came running out and asked
"Can I help you find someone?" We answered "no thank you, we are from this
church and are out praying for our community. Is there anything we can pray for you
about?" He looked surprised and answered "Yes, I was just asking God to send
someone to me to show me that He is real." He gladly accepted Christ and is being
discipled through that congregation. Within fifteen minutes a Hispanic young woman had
listened to the gospel and accepted a gospel booklet from one of Spanish speaking team
members.
Listen for the Spirit to instruct you to
greet someone you encounter during the Prayer Journey. If they respond say, "We are
from (name of) church and are out praying for our community. Is there anything we can pray
for you about?" Most people will say yes. Take a moment to write it on the follow-up
card. If the Spirit leads, ask them, "May we have your name so we can pray for you
specifically?" Many people will say yes. Write it down and then ask if they would
mind if someone came by from the church to pray for them or lead a Bible Study. You may be
able to say "I see that you believe in prayer, are you a follower of Jesus or are you
still in the process?" By this point many field teams are able to share a gospel
booklet or testimony. Also leave the person a copy of the information brochure about the
church.
A. Field team witnessing
booklets. Take whatever witnessing booklet you like to use. NAMB’s
Eternal
Life booklet is available in 17 languages. Take a few minutes to look through the
booklet. The booklet provides an outline on how to become a Christian. Read through it
enough that you are comfortable sharing it with someone. You can read through it with the
other person. Since it is available in so many languages you can read a copy in your
language while the other person is reading it in their language.
Be sensitive for the divine encounters
that God puts in their path while on the Prayer Journey. Take a moment to introduce
yourself and the church and explain that you are praying for the community that day. Ask
the person if they have a prayer request. If they will let you, pray with them there and
follow through with a gospel presentation.
B. "On Mission to Share Jesus
(OMTSJ)" OMTSJ is an excellent way to present the gospel during a Prayer Journey.
OMTSJ uses five colored beads on a bracelet to describe the gospel. The bracelet
represents a person’s life. The first knot stands for the physical birth and
God’s plan (John 10:10). The first bead is dark grey to represent our sin and our
need (Romans 3:23). The red bead represents the blood of Jesus, the cross and God’s
provision (John 3:16). The blue bead is for believing in Christ and receiving Jesus as
Lord (Romans 10:9-10,13). The white bead then represents forgiveness of sin, (Isaiah
1:18). The green bead represents growing in Christ, being baptized and sharing Jesus with
others (Romans 1:16). The last knot represents eternal security (John 14:3). The field
teams may want to wear the OMTSJ bracelets, caps and t-shirts as discussion starters with
people they encounter. For more information contact the NAMB or visit
namb.net/direct.
There is a list of OMTSJ products and ordering information in Appendix D.
C. Take follow-up cards to record
encounters. Appendix F and the Prayer Journeys Resource Kit CD have a sample follow-up
card that you can adapt for your church. Use this model or any thing that works best in
your congregation. Just be sure to get enough information for follow-up with those who
share prayer requests, accept Christ or receive information.
A pastor volunteered to join the field
team with the seminar teacher so he "could see how it’s done." The team
began walking and praying on the street leading into the church parking lot. After praying
for several houses they came upon a man washing his car. The teacher said "Hi, we are
from First Baptist and we are out praying for our community today. Is there anything we
can pray for you about." The man looked puzzled but began a long string of prayer
requests. As the team was writing furiously on the follow-up card, the pastor said,
"sounds like you believe in the power of prayer. Are you a follower of Jesus or are
you still in the process?" The man answered that he was still in the process but he
sure would like to know for sure that he was saved! Fifteen minutes later he was! Be sure
to record the decisions on the follow-up cards.
"Do not pray for easy lives, pray to
be stronger men and women."
II. Reporting What God Has Done
Conclude the Prayer Journey with a brief
reporting session.
A. Lead in sharing.
Each person
should share what the Lord did through the Prayer Journey. Note the new spiritual
sensitivity and burden for the area and people. How was God’s power released through
the on-sight prayer? What impressions did they receive about the neighborhoods? Name the
contact’s prayer requests. How many persons were led to become Christians? What is
the possible impact on the community and the church?
B. Important benefits.
This can
become a very important time in the life of the church. These reporting sessions are often
positively electric in their observations, reports and sharing. Most of the time, there
are specific suggestions and requests for ways to reach into the community and respond to
things they have seen. Ministries that have begun after Prayer Journeys include Jesus
video distribution, English as a Second Language, homeless ministries, job-training, day
care programs for senior adults, after school programs and "mother’s morning
out."
"Pretense in prayer is talking to
humans, rather than God."
III. Follow-through on contacts and
converts
The follow-through for Prayer Journeys
concludes with the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus. Do not stop with one or two Prayer
Journeys! Every target area for a Prayer Journey will result in conversions,
rededications, and new congregations. Each church needs to be sure that every contact and
every conversion from the Prayer Journey is nurtured into a relationship with a Sunday
School class/Bible study and prayer group.
A. Great Commission Prayer Plan.
The
follow through should include reclaiming the entire church as a house of prayer with a
passion for the lost. The next sessions show how to create a Great Commission Prayer Plan
for the church.
B. Visitation.
Plan follow-through
visits with every new convert and everyone that gave the field team a prayer request.
Follow-through includes sending evangelism teams to go door-to-door to harvest the ground
covered in a season of prayer.
C. Jesus Video distribution.
An excellent follow-up plan is to give a Jesus video to everyone in the community. This
video has been used all over the world to help many people meet Jesus. For more
information contact the Jesus video Project, 1-888-Jesus36 or visit www.jesusvideo.org.
D. Discipleship materials.
Disciple
the new converts with any of the excellent discipleship materials available. Two excellent
follow-through materials for new believers are Beginning Steps: A Seven-day Growth
Guide for New Believers from NAMB and Survival Kit for New Christians from
Lifeway Christian Resources.
IV. Plan more Prayer Journeys
Most congregations that study the
Guidebook will plan many more Prayer Journeys. These Journeys often happen with very
little planning. A singles group in New Orleans had planned a rollerblading afternoon. One
of the singles came to the seminar and prayer rollerblading was born!
A field team in New Orleans spoke to a
woman as they began their Prayer Journey. The team briefly explained what they were doing
and received a prayer request from her. At the end of the Prayer Journey the woman was
sitting on her steps. She asked the team if they had prayed for every home on that street.
When they answered yes she said "that is the sweetest thing I have ever seen."
She talked with the team in depth as they answered her questions about faith in Christ and
made an appointment for follow-up visits. One of the team members said "The Prayer
Journey made a wonderful impression on that woman about the love of Jesus at work through
our church." One of the field team came forward the following Sunday and accepted
Christ!
"What God initiates, God
completes."
V. Response Time: Pause briefly to discuss
the evangelistic ministry that became evident. Many Prayer Journeyers are deeply affected
by the homelessness, poverty, and violence that they see. Read Ephesians 3:20, "Now
unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or
think…." Close in prayer for the communities that were covered. Pray for the new
converts, the contacts made and the follow-through time.
"Strength in prayer is grounded in
humility."
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