Prayer & Revival
“There has never been a spiritual awakening in any country or locality that did not begin in united prayer,” said renowned pastor A.T.Pierson. Scripture and history certainly seem to indicate that this is true. In 46 AD, a small prayer meeting at the church in Antioch sparked a major missionary movement. Acts 13:2-3 records how, after a gathering for fasting and prayer, Paul and Barnabas were sent off to preach the gospel throughout the Roman empire leading to the direct formation of many new churches as well as the salvation of many souls. As a result, the Roman empire would be forever altered, all because some men gathered to seek God’s face in worship and his guidance through prayer.
The story of the third great awakening in America is also an inspiring example of how united prayer sparked a far-reaching spiritual revival. The epicenter for it was New York City in 1857. A 48 year old businessman, named Jeremiah Lanphier, felt a burden to pray, and so he decided to begin a weekly noon-hour prayer meeting. At the first meeting on September 23, he was the only one present for the first 30 minutes, but by the end, another 5 had joined him. Within a couple of weeks, 40 or so were gathering with him. Then, on October 7, the financial markets crashed, and with it, people’s false sense of security dashed. This led to a surge of renewed interest in prayer with many more joining the weekly gatherin. Soon, Pastors who were coming, said, “We need to start prayer meetings like this in our churches,” and they did. Within 6 months there were 10,000 people gathering daily in hundreds of prayer meetings across the city. At this this time there were 10,000 weekly additions to church membership throughout the city.[1] The revival then spread to other cities all throughout America where similar revivals transpired. An estimated one million people in the USA came to know Christ as Savior as a result of that revival. [2] The impact also spread to Great Britain and its colonies and other places around the world. And it all started with prayer.
It was E.M. Bounds who once said, “No prayer, no power. Little prayer, little power. Much prayer, much power.” May we experience the power that comes from humble dependence on God, purposefully seeking his guidance, and deliberately petitioning the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)
[1] Greg Laurie, “Will the US have another Great Awakening?” WND. July 4, 2014. Accessed online on October 5, 2020 at https://www.wnd.com/2014/07/will-the-u-s-have-another-great-awakening/
[2] Dan Brownell, “A Call to Revival,” Today’s Christian Living. September 2020. P.19.
