Our church, Harvest Community, embarked on its maiden voyage of a new ministry today.  It is a ministry brilliantly designed to put us in an intimate setting with many people in our community that are ready to discuss things of a spiritual nature.  We are calling it “The Prayer Station.”

Harvest Prayer Station at Norm's in Eminence

Harvest Prayer Station at Norm's in Eminence

The idea is that this station would be set up in a public area with a great deal of foot traffic.  It is equipped with a large banner that reads “Prayer Station.” As people pass by we explain that we are taking prayer requests and would love to pray for them should they have any concerns.  We were very intentional about explaining that this was not a “rub the lamp and get your request” kind of ministry.  In large part, it was listening to real people with real concerns and making sure we presented those concerns before God and presented Christ to the people. 

We launched at 10:00 AM outside of the grocery store in Eminence (Norm’s with Norm’s permission and support) and ran it through 8:00 PM Saturday evening.  We took turns in groups of 3-4 to “man” the station in two hour shifts.  I can certainly say that it was the best two hours I’ve invested into anything in a very long time.

 

The benefit of this ministry closely parallels that of adoption.  The hope in adoption is to rescue a child from a hopeless situation.  At the Prayer Station, concerns are brought before Christ Jesus by His children on behalf of hopeless people.  In both situations, the subjects are in need of some sort of hope. 

Another aspect that parallels adoption is what it does for those who are interceding on behalf of the hopeless.  Adoption will change you and your family forever – for the good.  It will shape you into the image of Christ through its seemingly endless pictures of our relationship with our adoptive Father.  It will also give you a proper perspective for your pursuit of all that is important in light of eternity. 

Similarly, when we stand before Christ on behalf of someone else, we have a picture of Jesus pleading before the Throne of Grace on our behalf.  Our advocate before the Father interceding so that we might have hope! (1 John 2:1; Romans 8:34)  Also, to be confronted with the reality of what everyday people in our community face will certainly help me maintain a proper perspective in my pursuit of all that is important in light of eternity. 

 

I was working the station with Michelle (my wife) and Julie Brice as a father and his two children walked by.  The little girl, who looked to be around six, asked Michelle, as she pointed to the banner, “What’s a prayer station?”  Michelle explained what we were doing and her father said it was okay for Michelle to pray with her.  Michelle asked her what she’d like to pray for and after giving it some thought she said she’d just returned from a picnic where someone hurt their leg.  So Michelle prayed with her and they left to go into Norm’s. 

Later, as the family came back out, the father explained that his daughter wanted to pray again.  When Michelle asked her, the girl began to tell of another friend but her father prompted her, “Ask her to pray for your sickenss.”  It was then we learned she has a tube in her chest for weekly treatments to keep her alive.  The fact that she could only think of requests for other people when asked hit me like a ton of bricks.  As Michelle was praying with her, I asked the father if I could pray for him.  He is a single father trying to raise two children one of which has to make a trip to Louisville every week to maintain any physical hope.  I was able to pray and explain our only Hope for eternity with him and put some solid resources in his hands.  I also gave him our contact information and all but begged him to call on us if he had any need at all. 

Soon after that Julie asked me to join her with a lady.  She had experienced a stroke just a few months earlier.  The stroke had affected her speech and abilities to the point that she could not drive, she lost her job and her house.  She told me she was moving away to Hardin County to live with her son and that she was very concerned as to how all that was going to work out.  We prayed the Truth of the Gospel and explained true and lasting healing only comes through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.  She wept.  We put some solid material in her hands and sent her off. 

I watched her climb into the passenger’s side of a pickup across the parking lot and was hit with another dose of reality.  The pickup was loaded with all of her furniture.  This was her last trip into Norm’s.  The pain she was experiencing was fresh and her hunger for hope was unmistakable.

 

The experience is still only hours old but I can tell I am different.  We must have prayed for a least 30, maybe 40 people in our two hour block.  I can’t remember all the faces but images of Kevin’s family and Vivian scroll though my mind like a screen saver.  My prayer for each person that our Church interacted with is that we were the “fragrance of Christ to God… and an aroma from life to life” for those who were hopeless. (2 Corinthians 2:15-16) 

I know this is long for a blog post but I needed to unpack the afternoon with someone.  Thank you for listening…