Preparing for prayer meeting
1) Schedule times: We need to schedule the times to make sure it gets priority.
2) Pray for your prayer times. (Pray the night before for your Morning Prayer time. Know that Satan wants to attack it).
3) Prepare for your prayer times. E.g. Select a passage for meditation, songs or hymns for worship, go to bed early the night before, make sure you have good lighting to read, a good chair to sit).
4) Choose a place – Choose a quiet place that will not have much disturbance or interruption.
5) Gather tools – a bible, a hymn book, a notebook for journaling, and a pen.
“When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.” 1 Cor. 14:26 NASB
What I have learned in my experience is that God can use even the youngest of his children to bless the most mature ones. So, as much as possible we follow the command that Paul gives to the Corinthian church above. We encourage everyone (who is willing and able) to come to the prayer meeting with one or more of the following:
– A Bible Passage (teaching)
– A Psalm (great to lead us to pray)
– A revelation, something pertinent that God has taught them.
– A song (CD or hymn) that we can sing and worship.
These things are not picked casually or arbitrary. Each prayer meeting should have a purpose. The prayer topics come from the purpose. The songs or hymns, psalms, bible passages, or revelations have to be relevant to the purpose. The goal is for them to inform prayer and inspire faith to believe God for the things that will be prayed. Check my post – prayer checklist to see some of the things that are important in prayers that God answers.
Below is a rough sample of a prayer plan for a prayer meeting we had. I’m putting this up here for future reference. Use it if it helps you. If you want a better-looking prayer plan, please visit this page: http://thecripplegate.com/a-sample-prayer-plan/
Prayer Plan – Friday Oct 19
Prayer: Matt 18:18-20
Luke 22:31; 2 Cor. 10:4; Eph. 6:10-21
Verses to meditate on.
Note: Not all these verses need to be used.
Jesus is praying for us right now. (Rom. 8:34 NIV). We are joining our master in prayer.
God tells us to pray, He will answer: Jer. 33:3
Nothing is hard for God, for those who believe: Mark 9:23; Mark 10
Great Commission: Matt 28:18 to end; Luke 10:2(Matt 9:37)
Serving Orphans: James 1:27; Psalm 9:18
What we need to do: If my people… 2 Chr. 7:14; 1 Tim 2:1-8; 2 Peter 3:9
God wants us to bear fruit: John 15:8
God is hiring: John 4:34
Format to pray
When we actually start praying individually, we can use the ACTS acrostic. ACTS [Adoration (worship & Praise), Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication (intercession, petition)]
The format will be to enter into God’s throne room and bow down. We let God speak to us first. How? By Meditating on a passage of scripture to hear God’s voice through that passage.
After God has spoken, then we respond. How? By Praising him, worshiping him, or by praying.
PRECEPTS Mnemonic is useful here.
Agenda
Opening Prayer (a short prayer)
Meditation (God speaks to us)
Prayer or praise/worship (we speak back to God)
Meditation (God speaks to us)
Worship or Prayer (God speaks to us)
We simply alternate until the end of the prayer time.
We can stop in order to give testimonies of answered prayer. That is important because it builds faith and leads to thanksgiving to God for what he has already done.
Closing prayer of thanksgiving
We sometimes end with The Lord’s Prayer (But this is not some magic closing. It can be skipped).
Prayer Topics
– Pray for qualified missionaries for the Shaping Destiny movement.
– Pray for God to keep us humble, completely broken and free from rebellion (i.e. our staff & kids)
– Pray that we are happy and joyful and completely content in God alone. That work becomes a fruit, an outflow of this relationship and satisfaction.
– God will shepherd all the orphans in our care and the millions of others around the world.
– God will fulfill his vision for our organization.
– Provide prayer warriors to join our team / pray for the work.
– TV Ministry: God will give us a wider audience to share the work he is doing through us.