Prayer is the most powerful weapon that our Lord has given to us as believers and as His church. Coupled with the Word of God and faith we are equipped for battle, made ready for service and are made to lean wholly on Jesus name. What an awesome tool.
Yet, in recent years the prayer meeting has been cast aside, ignored and forgotten. Replaced in some places by good things, just not the best things. We talk about prayer, but don't pray. We study about prayer, but don't pray. We keep prayer lists, but don't pray.
Crises come and we pray. But just as soon as the crisis is over we stop praying. Many churches still list it on their weekly activity page. Just as many still conduct a "prayer meeting," but do we pray.
The lack of prominence of prayer meetings in the present day church subsequently and directly is related to the demise of spiritual power and spiritual blessing experienced today in the church.
The following came across my desk recently:
"Mrs. Prayer Meeting died recently at the First Neglected Church on Worldly Avenue. Born many years ago in the midst of great revivals, she was a strong, healthy child, fed largely on testimony and spiritual holiness, soon growing into world-wide prominence. She was one of the most influential members of the famous Church family.
But for the past several years, Sister Prayer Meeting has been failing in health, gradually wasting away until rendered helpless by stiffness of knees, until her death was caused through lukewarmness and coldness of heart. Lack of spiritual food, coupled with the lack of faith, shameless desertion of her friends and non-support, were contributing causes of her death.
At the last she was but a shadow of her former happy self. Her whispered words were inquiries concerning the strange absence of her loved ones, now busy in the marts of trade and places of worldly amusement.
Experts including Dr. Works, Dr. Reform, and Dr. Joiner, disagreed as to the cause of her fatal illness, administering large doses of organization, socials, contests, and drives, but to no avail. A postmortem showed that a deficiency of spiritual food, coupled with lack of faith, heartfelt religion, and general support were contributing causes.
Only a few were present at her funeral, sobbing over memories of her past beauty and power. Carefully selected pallbearers were asked to bear the remains tenderly away, but failed to appear. Her body rests in a beautiful cemetery of bygone memories and glories, awaiting the summer from above'."If we are ever going to have revival in our churches and in our country God's people are going to have to hit their knees and pray. God just may have to send a crisis. It's not that Aunt Sara's arthritis isn't a need, it just isn't going to bring revival. That is unless God sent the arthritis to lead Aunt Sara to repent of whatever it is that she needs to repent of.
How you do it is not as important as that you do it. We need to acknowledge His Majesty, recognize His Holiness, confess our sinfulness, repent and return to Him.
God send revival and let it begin in me.
