A few years ago, I had the wonderful opportunity to spend a day with Shodankeh Johnson, who is an incredibly effective and passionate disciple maker for Jesus and is the leader of a disciple-making movement in West Africa that is seeing thousands of people giving their lives to Christ, including hundreds of Muslims.
One of the many things he taught me was how to pray specifically and systematically for disciple-making movements around the world. He gave me two disciple-making prayer lists that I have been using in my prayer list rotations ever since.
This week, on my blog, I will share one of those lists with you. It contains 12 prayer items, and I will share the first 6 today and the second 6 on Thursday. I hope that you will use this prayer list, as I do, to become a Christian who is intentionally and purposefully praying that the good news about King Jesus will be proclaimed to all the nations.
Pray…
1. For God to send laborers into the harvest field. For an increase in disciple-makers and intercessors.
He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” (Luke 10:2 NIV)
2. That God touches the hearts of people and draws them to Himself.
“Saul also went to his home at Gibeah, and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had touched.” (1 Samuel 10:26 NIV)
“Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God. Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me.’” (John 6:43-45 NIV)
“On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.” (Acts 16:13-14 NIV)
3. For open doors for the Gospel.
“And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.” (Colossians 4:3-4 NIV)
4. To find persons of peace.
“When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.” (Luke 10:5-7 NIV)
5. That every stronghold and lie of the enemy is broken.
“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NIV)
6. That He would grant boldness in sharing the gospel.
“And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word…” After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:29,31 NLT)
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