The 24-7 Prayer Challenge

A couple of weeks ago, a missionary colleague lent me a book about the 24-7 prayer challenge that has been spreading across Europe. (Red Moon Rising: The Story of 24-7 Prayer by Pete Greig and Dave Roberts) The book written by two pastors of emerging missional churches in Britain have seen prayer houses spring up all over Europe.

The current prayer movement in Europe springs from the 18th century German Moravian church that kept a 24-hour prayer vigil for more than a century. The Moravian movement and its leader Count Zinzendorf eventually sent over 3000 missionaries around the world and greatly influenced the teaching of John Wesley who provided the Church of the Nazarene the reason for its existence—to spread scriptural holiness throughout the world.

It is no wonder that one of the authors testifies early in the book to an experience very much like what us holiness folk would call the “baptism of the Holy Spirit.”

The idea of 24-7 prayer is nothing new. Nall Ave Nazarene in KC where I used to work, held a week of prayer each November using the same concept. Other churches have done and are doing the same thing. I am wondering how this kind of movement would challenge and change the work we are doing in West Africa. What if we had someone in every time zone around the world covering the work in West Africa in concerted prayer? I’m thinking. I hope you are too. Let’s put our minds together and see if they are willing to follow our hearts on this subject.

While reading this book, I get the most recent update from the Africa Region. Eugenio Duarte, our regional director, gave a prayer challenge for the coming year. Coincidence? I doubt it. Here are some prayer priorities for Africa:

Every Nazarene Dependent upon God Only
Every Nazarene a Spirit-filled Disciple
Every Nazarene a Disciple Maker with a Real Burden for the Lost
Every Nazarene Giving Authority to God’s Word
Every Nazarene an Extraordinary Pray-er (not my will but Yours)
Every Nazarene Leader Faithful to God, Church, and Family
Every Nazarene Leader Building Leaders Who Build Leaders Who Change the World
Every Nazarene Pastor an Effective Minister of the Word
Every Nazarene Home a Nursery for Holiness Champions
Every Nazarene Local Church Experiencing a Real Movement of the Holy Spirit
(You could replace Nazarene with Christian believer (Matt 2:23; Mark 16:6; Acts 24:5))