Prayer, Cultivating God’s Kingdom

Yesterday I considered the place of Prayer from a Biblical perspective and where it should be in our “normal” 24/7 lives, or at least where is used to be in the lives of two or three generations ago.

Today I would like to address some practical aspects to the development of God’s Kingdom.  A recent blog was about the Good Soil of Jesus’ parables, in which I referred to the preparation that went into getting a patch of ground ready to plant. The analogy in the parable that I made was that just as a farmer has certain preparations to make to cultivate the soil ready for planting, so do we as warrior diplomats of the kingdom need to prepare the hearts, and environments, of those we minister, as well as our relationship to them.

Prayer is one means by which we can covertly change the conditions so that we meet the needs of those who we would introduce to Jesus. In fact there are verses such as Mark 9:29 where Jesus said that some lives can only be affected by prayer. Where we are aware of adverse situations our friends, both Jesus followers and others can all have their lives changed by the means of prayer.

Another area in which prayer is a valid strategy is to ask Father to give favour with the people we are planning to reach for God. The Book of Esther in the Old Testament is a classic example of this when Esther resolved to go to the king and plead the case for her fellow Jews who were to be slaughtered by evil Haman.

If we are to be involved in a “global outreach” to a certain part of where we live then Prayer Walking is something the has been known to work in a number of ways. Prayer Walking an area such as this means that, first, it is covert, or meant to be. Secondly, you are not usually in the position of being privy to the secrets and circumstances of the families you are covering in prayer,so you can only pray about the elements that we  are presented with, the sounds and sights that colour the environment into which we are praying the Spirits intervention.

I was out at a meeting last night when a multiple step program was being discussed. Prayer was at the head of the program step list in the two models shown. One of the participants felt it was of such fundamental importance that it was put that, between each step, prayer should be an intermediate element.

At the same meeting we were told about one person who would walk through shopping centres looking for a kingdom partner to share the task of expansion. As he walked, he would pray that Father would point him to specific people to talk to. When he received the impression of that person, he would double back to tell him the story of why this person was being approached by him.

One more prayer type that is essential for building God’s kingdom is the ubiquitous “arrow prayer”. Sometimes deemed too unspiritual for such high pursuits, the arrow prayer is the basic block upon which prayer is built. Here there is an impasse or uncertainty as to where to go next the very, simple “Oh God help me”, shoots straight to the heart of Father and acknowledges our utter dependence on Him. I remember a time when I, as pastoral assistant at the church, had a phone call from a member who wanted to talk to me rather than the minister. It turned out that there had been a bit of bother, of which the minister was aware, but that I was not, which no doubt made me a softer touch, but it was some time later before this came out. With the minister's blessing, I went out to see the member, praying all the way, out for God’s direction. Father blessed that prayer and although the request was made He kept me from making any suggestions that would have compromised the situation.

So then, this has dealt with three areas of prayer which will help us to engage with God in the building of His kingdom. Firstly the pastoral prayer where we invite Him to intervene in our neighbours lives to prepare the way for an introduction of Jesus into their lives; secondly Prayer walking where we invite His Spirit to brood over an area where we feel called to take the Good News of Christ; and finally the basic arrow prayer which we all have available to us in periods of high dependency.

I am certain that there are more types of prayers that fit the model of the Kingdom Builders around. If you have one why not send me a comment.