What would happen if the church, the people of God, began to pray daily for the spiritual needs of the world?
Richard Lovelace helps us imagine what might happen:
“If all regenerate church members in Western Christendom were to intercede daily simply for the most obvious spiritual concerns visible in their homes, their workplaces, their local churches and denominations, their nations, and the world and the total mission of the body of Christ within it, the transformation which would result would be incalculable. Not only would God certainly change those situations in response to prayer – we have Christ’s word that if we ask in his name, he will do more than we ask or think – but the church’s comprehension of its task would attain an unprecedented sharpness of focus. Perhaps much of our prayer now should simply be for God to pour out such a spirit of prayer and supplication in the hearts of his people.”1
What would happen? Lovelace says…
1. God would certainly change the world.
We do not know what exactly the outcome would be in each situation, but we know God would hear our prayers, answer our prayers, and do what is best. Things would change. God has ordained that some things will only come to pass through prayer, and he as ordained that some things will not come to pass where there is no prayer (HT: Frame). And, as Lovelace reminds, the promise is that God will do more than we could have even imagined when we pray. So, if we prayed, the world would change!
2. The church would be more focused on its mission.
The act of prayer and the result of prayer would sharpen our focus on our mission to the world. We have been called to make disciples, to exalt the name of the Lord, and to bring his Kingdom near in love. Just praying in this direction would begin to change our own hearts, no doubt leading to more action and more prayer and more change.
Prayer for Prayer
What if we cannot muster such missional prayer?
Short of this kind of missional prayer, Lovelace suggests we could at least pray for a spirit of prayer.
We could be praying for praying. We could say a prayer for prayer. Maybe something like, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24).
It seems the journey, the adventure, the mission begins and ends with prayer.
Prayer and evangelism, they seem like fraternal twins.
What do you think?
- Lovelace, R. (1979). Dynamics of Spiritual Life: An Evangelical Theology of Renewal. Downers Grove, p. 160. As quoted in Chandler (2024). Overcomers. Thomas Nelson, p. 97 ↩︎
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