prayer room

7/30/2019 Prayer Room

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Devote yourselves to prayer,

being watchful and thankful.

Colossians 4:2, NIV


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Most Christians agree that prayer is fundamental to the

health and growth of a church. Yet, sadly, many churches

dont have a place set aside in their facility specifically

dedicated to prayer.

This presentation is designed to give some ideas fordeveloping and establishing a prayer room in your church.

For illustrative purposes, we draw from the prayer room

and prayer ministries at Central Assembly of God in

Springfield, Missouri. Obviously, every church is unique.Size of facility and congregation, ministries of the church,

and makeup of the church body all enter into the equation of

creating such a room. Yet, it is our hope that this example

will provide you with ideas and encouragement as you build

the prayer ministry in your own church.


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This presentation is directed at the leader of prayer

ministries in your church. As such, it is important that you

seek God for a unique and clear vision of what this prayer

room can and ought to become within your congregation.

However, for general reference, we want to share Central

Assemblys stated purpose for their prayer room:

The purpose of The Prayer Room @ Central is ultimately to

carry out Centrals vision and to create a culture of prayer.

More than a room, The Prayer Room is a place where people

can learn about prayer, experience Gods presence, and pray

together; a place of strategic signi f icance, where you can pray

for the world, our country, and our ci ty; a place of connection

where you can pray for our staff , our church, and other

people; a place of deep, sincere connection with God.


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A prominent sign directing people to the prayer room can

accomplish at least two goals: First, it reminds churchgoers that

prayer is a central part of how they worship God, grow as

believers, and reach the community. Giving visibility to the prayer

room helps to highlight the importance your church places on

prayer.

Second, such visibility reminds churchgoers that theres a room

devoted to prayer waiting just for them. Their prayers are needed.

After all, the best of intentions often gets lost in the busy-ness of

life. A reminder to pray is a good thing.

At Central Assembly, the prayer sign is clearly visible at the main

entrance. There are many ways you might accomplish this: a

signpost, a framed sign, a painted arrow worked into the dcor of

the wall. See what works best for your church.


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Try to provide clear, visible signage for the prayer

room. Its important that people in the congregation are

able to find it easily. This is especially true in larger

facilities, or when the prayer room also functions as aclassroom or serves another purpose during Sunday or

Midweek activities.

A special note on this subject: If possible, it is good tolocate the room on the main floor of the church. Some

people will have difficulty accessing the prayer room if

they have to climb stairs.


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While it is desirable that the church have a room

exclusively devoted to prayer, this is not always

practical, or even possible. As a result, the prayer room

often doubles as a class room, nursery, or even storage

room.

In the case of Central Assembly, as the photo depicts,

the room is used every week for a Sunday School class.

In such cases, it is still possible to give the room a clear,powerful prayer focus. The following pictures will

demonstrate how even a shared room can be uniquely

focused on prayer ministry.


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Before moving on, its also important to note that the

prayer room need not be particularly large, or evenhighly decorated. A small, simple room devoted to

prayer ministry will bring about the kind of spiritual

fruit in a church that only eternity will fully reveal.


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A great way to decorate the prayer room is by

highlighting specific prayer needs and emphases withinthe church. The Central Assembly prayer room has a

bulletin board featuring every member of the pastoral

staff and their families. We do well to remember our

church leadership in our prayers regularly.


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Similarly, the board members and their families are

highlighted for prayer in the prayer room. You might

want to expand on this in your prayer room by listingor picturing youth leaders, childrens ministry leaders,

Sunday School teachers, or other leaders in your

church. Again, we encourage you to tailor your room to

fit the unique ministries and personality of yourcongregation.


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A computer monitor highlights specific needs in thearea of missions around the world. AG World Missions

provides valuable software and equipment to makes

this possible. More information is contained below.

The World Missions Touchscreen software enablesprayer partners to have the world at their fingertips. A

computer touchscreen allows us to meet our missionar ies

through videos, biographies and prayer requests, which

are regularly updated, and learn what God is doing in themore that 200 countr ies and terr i tories where our

missionar ies live and work. Visit

worldtouchscreen.ag.org to learn more.


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A bulletin board is available that allows members of thecongregation to present their own prayer needs, as well

as praise reports for answered prayer.


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A map of the world serves as a reminder to pray for

needs around the planet. You might enhance this

feature by highlighting specific world missionaries and

ministries supported by your church. Some prayer

rooms will post pictures of the missionaries around the

map, then draw lines or string thread to their specific

locations. This can help put a face to the support your

church gives to ministries throughout the world.


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In a similar way, a map of our nation is featured. As

with the world map, you might highlight ministries and

missionaries your church supports around the country.

In addition, you could invite members of the

congregation to share needs regarding cities or regions

of the country they call home. This is especially

valuable if you have a large college population in your

church. And, in our increasingly mobile society, more

and more of us have relocated to our current homes

from far-off corners of the country.


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The city map allows you to highlight specific ministries

and outreaches engaged in by your congregation

throughout the community. You might also feature a

specific school, neighborhood, or pertinent need from

the community on a regular basis. This serves the dual

purpose of encouraging prayer for your city and

helping to develop a heart and passion for the

community among your congregation.


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Note that if your prayer room also serves as a classroom,

you can still arrange it specifically for prayer during muchof the week. If it must be used as a classroom, seek to ensure

that it is open for prayer during the morning service. One of

the most powerful displays of prayer ministry occurs when

prayer partners seek God on behalf of the pastor and

congregation during that hour.

Also consider configuring the room in a way that promotes

intimate prayer whenever possible. In the picture just

viewed, the room is set up for Sunday School. However, the

chairs can be placed in a circle or even lined up as an altar

in front during most of the week. In the same way, installing

lighting that can be dimmed can be more cost effective than

one might imagine, especially if there is someone in the

church qualified to install it on a volunteer basis.


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We again encourage you to tailor your prayer roomaccording to your unique congregation, facility, and

budget. The fundamental goal is to provide a dedicated

place for prayer in your church. Only eternity will

reveal the fruits of committed prayer within yourchurch, be they focused on your congregation, your

community, and throughout our world.

Be sure to check out our Web

site for additional resources

on establishing a prayer room

and equipping a prayer

ministry, at

www.prayer.ag.org

prayer room

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