Before I begin sharing, I want to remind the reader that Methodism was once a great Christian movement because Methodism was a great discipleship movement. This was done through societies, classes, and bands; Depth fueled breadth. 

Because a group of Christian Methodists was intentional about discipling people, posturing men and women so that they could grow in their relationship with Christ, they bubbled over into a flourishing life with the reality of God in their hearts and lives. 

What is Discipleship? 

Before we go any further, we must lay out some basic definitions of discipleship. 

Disciple: An entirely devoted follower of Jesus.

Discipleship: The process of making disciples who make disciples.

Purpose as Christians: To love the Lord God with our heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Our Mission: Make disciples of all nations.

As a Christian, let me remind you of your purpose; these are Jesus' words, not mine. Our purpose is to love the Lord, our God, with our heart and mind and strengthen our neighbor as ourselves. Jesus said there's not a greater trajectory or commandment that we can obey. But from that purpose flows a mission: making disciples of all nations. 

Heading into our new semester of discipleship, I want to discuss the relationship between prayer and discipleship as it relates to God's renewing power. 

[READ MORE: Why Discipleship?]

The Relationship Between Prayer and Discipleship

With my wife, I have spent time in different parts of the world over the last few decades, sharing the Gospel and working alongside local Christ followers. When we arrived, they would often approach us to say that they had been fasting and praying for weeks in preparation. So we would break fast together and then go into the villages to share the Gospel. 

I couldn't understand their prayer meetings due to language barriers; however, there's been one vital characteristic in all those meetings: The manifest presence of God was undeniable. This may not sound very pastoral, but frankly, 20 years ago, it messed me up. So I would process how these people were praying and fasting, and I don't see this kind of prayer at home in the States. Or at least not in my experience. 

Where there is much prayer, there is much power. The Spirit can move in unfathomable ways. Let me illustrate. 

The Moravians began a round-the-clock prayer meeting in Herrnhut in Saxony in 1727. Although during the spring of that year, there was a season of internal turmoil within the community, some Moravians began praying for fresh revival. 

By the late summer, nearly 50 Moravians had committed to pray for one hour a day, one after the other, for 24 consecutive hours, seven days a week. As a result, spiritual awakening soon came to the Moravians, causing their little group to grow and drawing more refugees from all over Europe.

As is often the case in church history, the onset of revival only deepened the Moravians' commitment to the power of prayer. As incredible as it seems today, the Moravians kept their round-the-clock prayer ministry for over a century. It has since become known as the Hundred-Year Prayer Meeting. Within 30 years, the Moravians sent 100s of missionaries all over the earth.

Church historians look to the 18th century and marvel at the Great Awakening in England and America, which swept hundreds of thousands into God's Kingdom. John Wesley figured mainly in that mighty movement, and much attention has centered on him. 

Is it possible that we have overlooked the prominence of that round-the-clock prayer in reaching Wesley and, through him and his associates, in altering the course of history?

• His use of lay preachers and small "societies" spread the movement to 120,000 followers by his death.

• Many Methodist denominations today (Worldwide: Methodists number some 50 million people).

• The Wesleys' emphasis on the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer and the church has affected the holiness movement, the Pentecostal movement, and even the recent charismatic movement.

• An educated clergy and a knowledgeable laity were also concerns of the brothers Wesley, leading to the founding of many Wesleyan colleges and seminaries. 

• The balance between the life of the mind and the life of the Spirit is still critical to the Wesleyan tradition, which seeks to preach the Gospel to whosoever, convert the sinner, and raise the saint.

I lovingly submit that intentional discipleship should be wed with our prayers for spiritual revival power. What happened through the prayers of the Moravians and servant-leaders like John and Charles Wesley was what we often call Revival and Spiritual Awakening.

What is Revival?

"The awakening or quickening of God's people to their true nature and purpose." Robert Coleman. 

"The return of the Church from her backslidings, and the conversion of sinners." Charles Finney

Christianity Today defines reveal as such:

"During a spiritual revival, God supernaturally transforms believers and nonbelievers in a church, locale, region, nation, or the world through sudden, intense enthusiasm for Christianity. People sense the presence of God powerfully; conviction, despair, remorse, repentance, and prayer come easily; people thirst for God's word; many authentic conversions occur, and backsliders are renewed." 

While I think Christianity Today's definition is excellent, I've pared down my own definition: "A sustained, touching down of God, through the manifestation of His presence in Holy Spirit power resulting in conversions, restoration of the wayward, and sanctification of believers accompanied by supernatural joy and a quickened desire to worship God with renewed passion."  

I want to be forthright and admit that I've never been a part of a revival, but I've tasted it. I've experienced the Holy Spirit move hearts in corporate worship settings. Once you've tasted it, even the smallest bite, you wonder, "God, if you can speak to people's hearts, and move people into your beauty and holiness where they immediately know a content, peaceful, joyful, and love-filled heart, then Lord, let us pray.”

What Is Spiritual Awakening

The issue, especially for this moment in history, is: Are people desperate enough to pray? 

Cultures go through cycles, and we see this back to the Old Testament, where the people of God depart from Him, and depravity follows. Then, finally, darkness reigns, and the symptoms pull people into despair. That's when they ask, "There has to be more than this, right?" 

We lose sight of what Jesus said, "Come to me and drink those who thirst." There's no water like it in the world. There's nothing that can satisfy the desperate. 

What happens is small groups begin to pray and intercede fervently. It's exactly like when the woman touched the hem of Jesus' garment. It was a statement of desperation. I'm sharing this to affirm what is at stake and what is possible when we pray. The Wesleyan revivals were birthed and sustained by prayer.

Remember John Wesley's reflections on an early Methodist love feast and its accompanying time of prayer:

Mr. Hall, Hinching, Ingham, Whitefield, Hutching, and my brother Charles were present at our love feast in Fetter Lane with about 60 of our brethren. About three in the morning, as we were continuing instant in prayer, the power of God came mightily upon us insomuch that many cried out for exceeding joy, and many fell to the ground. As soon as we recovered a little from that awe and amazement at the presence of His majesty, we broke out with one voice,

 'We praise Thee, O God, we acknowledge Thee to be the Lord.'

The evangelist George Whitefield, who was also present at the love feast, recorded the following concerning the days that followed;

It was a Pentecostal season, indeed. Sometimes whole nights were spent in prayer. We have often been filled with new wine, and often I have seen them overwhelmed with the Divine Presence and cry out, "Will God, indeed, dwell with men on earth? How dreadful is this place! This is none other than the house of God and the gate of heaven!"

If Christ Church prayer meetings were like that, would you come? Would you participate?

I'll share an observation with you (and this isn't about Christ Church, but the North American church). Most Christians don't go to the prayer meeting because they've been to the prayer meeting at their church. So I want to extend an invitation to pray, but in a different paradigm. Not coming together and taking down a prayer request. Prayer Summit.

What is Prayer Summit

• An extended season of seeking God.

• A Scripture-fed, Spirit-led, worship-based prayer encounter with God.

• A group of people sitting in a circle with open Bibles and open hearts singing songs of praise, confessing silently or audibly, reading scriptures, praying for each other, and doing anything else as God leads.

• An exercise in touching heaven, changing earth.

• A spiritual boot camp experience of equipping us in prayer.

• A time of refreshing in the presence of the Lord.

We will host four Prayer Summits during February. These prayer gatherings will occur from 9:00 AM–2:30 PM in a Prayer Summit format:

• Last names starting with letters A-F: Saturday, February 11 

• Last names starting with letters G-L: Saturday, February 18  

• Last names starting with letters M-Q: Saturday, February 25 

• Last names starting with letters R-Z: Saturday, March 4  

Where There Is Much Prayer, There Is Much Power

I am convinced of this: More happens in 5 minutes of God's manifest presence than 100 Sundays without His manifest presence.  

We don't have an earthly solution to the challenges in our culture, city, nation, and beyond. We need God, and we need Him to move in a way that only the universe's Creator can. 

We seek to rekindle the flames of intentional discipleship, but that discipleship movement was wed with prayer and God's Holy Spirit, surging revival power among people. 

Because of that, we will journey together through Francis Chan's Forgotten God. This is why we are in a series right now on prayer. This is why the next teaching series will be on the person of the Holy Spirit, and in light of these realities, may God help us. 

Let us pray. 

Let us be a praying church. 

Let us be a people by His grace that manifest His presence.