Last week my church ran a prayer room where we prayed for our community in Raynes Park, south west London. At one point we had a group prayer meeting, and we prayed together for revival to come to Raynes Park… and by revival I mean seeing huge numbers of people coming into relationship with Jesus.
To help focus our prayers, we prayed for five things that are see present in the revival of the first five chapters of Acts, and which I believe have been features of all the subsequent revivals that God has brought. Will you join me in praying these things over London?
Personal Holiness: So often things start when we make a decision. Choosing holiness is a decision not only to believe in Jesus, but also to choose his ways and turn our backs on sinful behaviour in every situation we might encounter. When the first chapter of Acts opens, 120 people had chosen to follow Jesus and turn their backs on sin. Will you pray for people across London to choose to turn away from sin, and to live in holiness?
Prayer: All the great moves of God in history have been preceded by a group of people praying for an extended period of time. Ten years seems to be a common time frame; the revivals of Wales in 1904 and Lewis in 1949 both came after ten years of committed praying. Will you pray for London? And will you pray that others would be inspired to pray?
They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. (Acts 1:14)
The Holy Spirit: It should be no surprise that after 10 days of constant praying by the early church, the Holy Spirit was poured out in a powerful way on the day of Pentecost. Throughout the history of missions it is always the Holy Spirit who has done the work; He is the one who inspires and anoints men and women to do great things, and He is the one who draws people to God. Will you pray for a mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit across London?
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (Acts 2:4)
Unity: When it’s a genuine work of God, it transcends all of our man-made boundaries. It’s the Holy Spirit who brings a genuine unity in the hearts of believers. Will you pray for a greater unity amongst churches, between church and para-church, between church and workplace, and in countless other ways across this city?
All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. (Acts 4:32)
Talking about Jesus: It never fails to amaze me how bold the early church was in talking about Jesus. They seized every opportunity to point people to him. When the day of Pentecost happened, they said it was about Jesus. When someone got healed, they said it was about Jesus. Even when they were on trial for talking about Jesus, they preached to the Sanhedrin about Jesus! Will you pray for Londoners to have a boldness in talking about Jesus, and in pointing others towards him?
Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ. (Acts 5:42)
Let’s pray for holiness, prayer, the Holy Spirit, unity and boldness in proclaiming Jesus. Let’s commit to praying for ten years, or for as long as it takes. And then let’s see what God does!
Related Posts
Mark Williamson also blogs regularly at One Rock International, a training organisation resourcing missionary leaders across the globe. He’s passionate about good films, good food, getting into deep conversations, and going for long walks with his wife Joanna.