What is prayer walking?

[Malvaro]

Interesting Article someone emailed me recently....

WHAT IS PRAYER WALKING?
Adapted from PRAYERWALKING by Steve Hawthorne

PRAYING ON-SITE, TO PRAY WITH GREATER INSIGHT
RESPONSIVE INSIGHT: Our best insight may be our eyesight

REVEALED INSIGHT:
a) Praying according to the Word of God, via the Spirit of God
b) Seeking to “see” what God might see
c) Attentive to “hear” what God might say

RESEARCHED INSIGHT
FUEL: facts of the present-hour condition of people
FIRE: anticipating the soon-to-come glory of God

PRAYING NEARER TO PRAY “CLEARER”
Praying in the very places in which we expect God to bring about the answers to our prayers.

Allowing sights, sounds, and smells to open our minds and hearts to the spiritual condition and needs of those we are praying for.

PRAYING INTENTIONALLY RATHER THAN REACTIVELY
FOCUS: Taking NEW ground rather than defending OLD ground.
INTERCESSORY RATHER THAN DEVOTIONAL PRAYERS
Bringing OTHERS “close to God”
Praying about the needs of OTHERS rather than our needs.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE PRAYERWALK?
We conquer fear/apathy regarding people/the community
We become sensitized to the REALITIES of people/the community
Our heart gets connected TO people/the community
The “fragrance” of God is brought into the community
The “imprint” of God is left on the community
We gain insight regarding ways to serve the community
The kingdom of darkness is weakened throughout the community
The kingdom of god advances within the community

HOW TO PRAYERWALK

BEFORE:

Research the community
Take care of personal sin
Praise, worship, Scripture reading to clear mind and set tone
Pray for spiritual protection
Pray that God would reveal the things that are on His heart

DURING:

Form a team (for prayer agreement)

“Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.” --Matthew 18-19


WALK & PRAY:

With eyes “open” for insight
Following and building on a topic
With scripture
With relevance (what we see and hear)
With faith (beyond what we see!)

AFTER:

Debrief as a group (record significant points for future prayer)
Report significant prayers, observations, insights
Consider points of obedience/action
Set plans for further preparation & prayer

WHAT TO PRAY FOR:

For God’s “blessings” upon the community (our hopes for them)

That God would reveal Himself to these people and lift the darkness/deception to which they are subject

That God would reveal His goodness to these people

That God would destroy the works of Satan in their lives

That God would cause them to become dissatisfied with the ways they are seeking satisfaction in life

That God would reveal to them their true spiritual condition and needs

That God would draw them irresistibly to Himself

That God would convict them of their sin, His righteous standard, and the judgment to come

That God would reveal who He is and that only He can deliver from sin and its consequence

That God’s kingdom would come to this people/community as it is in Heaven, and that

His will would be done


SOME DON’TS OF PRAYERWALKING

Don’t draw attention to yourself (“be on the scene, without making one”)

Don’t pray “against” the people or community (us against them attitude)

Don’t “confront” the powers of evil (to do so is to invite retaliation)



Adapted from PRAYERWALKING by Steve Hawthorne

Any thoughts or observations?

[Sam]

We've done prayer walking different ways.

One way which would be "prayer driving" is to ride around the freeway or beltway or expressway with makes a circle around your city. Here our expressway that circles the city is I275. It is about 85 miles long and goes through the SW corner of Ohio, the SW corner of Indiana, and through an area of Northern Kentucky. A group of people just get in the car together and make the drive praying for the people within that circle.

Another way is when we are doing outreach in a community, some go door to door inviting and giving out something like light bulbs, groceries, batteries for smoke detectors, fans in the summer, etc. while another group walks the sidewalks of that community praying for the Holy Spirit to use those who are going door to door and to deal with those who live in that area.

Another way to do prayer walking is to just walk the streets of a community praying. As you pass a school you pray for the teachers and the students there. As you pass a playground you pray for the parents and children there. As you pass a church you pray for the pastor and member there. As you pass a business you pray for the owner, employees, and customers. As you pass houses you pray for the folks who live there. This can also be done driving a car.

Another way is to walk in a circle around a church or some other place and pray for those who may come there. There is a group who walk around the property line of a church and pray before the service begins.

Another way is to drive to each church in the community, pull into the parking lot and pray for the pastor, the officers of the church, the members, and folks who may be loosely associated with that church.

Another way is to have a regular time of walking (5 miles or so) and pray while you are walking. You can walk into church parking lots and stop, circle around churches, pause in front of different places like schools and playgrounds, etc and pray for the folks are there at the time and for those who will be there later.

Sounds like a neighborhood watch program.

[Malvaro]

Originally Posted by Sheltiedad

Sounds like a neighborhood watch program.

In the vaguest spiritual sense, it likely is....

[Sam]

Originally Posted by Sheltiedad

Sounds like a neighborhood watch program.

It can be something like that.
In a nearby community named Lincoln Heights there have been problems with drugs and crime. At one time a police station was actually attacked by explosives fired into the front door. Some of the churches got together and formed what they called the Nehemiah Project. Groups of people would walk the streets singing and praying. This was done to discourage open drug deals and prostitution. It was also done to show that there were people in the community who did not like criminals taking over their streets.