The Pilgrim Path (4--25--20)

The Role of Prayer in Spiritual Awakening

"Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise..." Psalm 100: 4

"I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made confession, and said,...we have sinned..." Daniel 9: 4, 5

"Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of Thy servant, and his supplications..." Daniel 9:17

"Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." Romans 12: 12

"You must also help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many." II Corinthians 1:11

"Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving." Colossians 4: 2

"...praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak." Ephesians 6: 18--20

"...for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples." Isaiah 56: 7

"Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved!" Psalm 80: 3

Some thoughts from J. Edwin Orr concerning the role of prayer in the history of spiritual awakening...

Many people are unaware of the moral mire that seemed to follow the American Revolution:

---Drunkenness was virtually epidemic & bank robberies were about a daily "thing"

---Women would not go "out" at night in most populated areas---for fear of assault

---The Methodists were losing more members than they were gaining. Lutherans were considering merging with Episcopalians (they were about to vanish). Chief Justice of the U. S. Supreme Court, John Marshall, wrote to Bishop Madison of Virginia and said, "The church is too far gone ever to be redeemed."

---A poll at Harvard at the time revealed there was not one believer in the entire student body. A mock Communion Service was held at Williams's College---an anti-Christian series of "plays" ---performed at Dartmouth...Sounds bad huh?

---Well, God was at work. The Lord moved upon a Scottish Presbyterian Minister in Edinburgh named John Erskine. He wrote a document pleading with people all over Scotland ---to unite in prayer---for the revival of religion. He sent a copy to Jonathan Edwards in New England. Edwards was so moved by what he read---he wrote a response---get this title: "A Humble Attempt to Promote Explicit Agreement and Visible Union of All God's People in Extraordinary Prayer for the Revival of Religion and the Advancement of Christ's Kingdom." A Baptist Pastor, Isaac Backus, really sought the Lord in prayer. In 1794, he sent out a plea for ministers of every Christian denomination to unite in prayer on the "first" Monday of each month. It wasn't long before the "flashes" of revival fruit could be seen...

This is neat from Orr: "There was a Scotch-Irish Presbyterian minister called James McGready, whose chief claim to fame was that he was so ugly, he attracted attention. McGready was so ugly that people stopped in the street and said, "What does he do?" They said, "He's a preacher." Then they reacted and said, "A man with a face like that must have something to say." McGready settled in Logan County to pastor three little churches. He said in his dairy that the winter of 1799, for the most part, was weeping and mourning with the people of God. It was like Sodom and Gomorrah. But McGready was such a man of prayer, not only did he have the Concert of Prayer the first Monday of each month, but he got his people to pray for him at sunset on Saturday evening and sunrise on Sunday morning.

---In the Summer of 1800---came the great Kentucky revival. Eleven thousand people came to a communion service. The Camp Meeting Services swept through Kentucky and Tennessee...

---"The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayer-less studies, prayer-less work, and prayer-less religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray." Samuel Chadwick, Revival Prayer

From Richard Owen Roberts: "There is a sense in which revival is like a prairie fire ignited by a bolt of lightning from the heavens. Without organization, advertising, or even sometimes human leadership, revivals have altered the hearts of men, the social attitudes of millions, and the destinies of nations. On these precious occasions God Himself has stepped into the stream of history and done a work so mighty and wonderful that thereafter the mere retelling of God's acts is sufficient to excite expectation and longing in the hearts of the faithful."

---We confess our own sins and ask God to heal our Land (Psalm 139: 23, 24; Neh. 1: 6, 7; Dan. 9: 5.6,10)

---We ask for Life (Psalm 85: 6)---especially in Churches

---Salvation of the Lost ( Psalm 67: 1, 2)

---Help for National Leaders --All Government officials (First Tim. 2: 1,2)

---Those in Spiritual leadership (Jer. 23:11)

---Educators & those who control media (Prov. 29: 2)

---Your own Life & Home (Isaiah 57:15)

Grace & Peace in Jesus Our Lord, Pastor Jason