The Heartbeat of the Church
I have a good friend who was rushed by air ambulance to hospital because he had suffered a major heart attack. It was surprising to everyone because he looked like the picture of health. With medical intervention, he survived. Exhaustive testing discovered that his heart was beating so slowly that his blood was clotting in his arteries. The pooling blood created a life-threatening blockage that almost cost him his life. The specialists resolved the problem with a mechanical device that stimulated his heart to resume a normal beat whenever it dropped to a critical level. He is living a healthy, active lifestyle many years later.
Prayer is the heartbeat of the church. As prayer goes, so goes the life and health of a local church. Even though it may appear to be successful and doing well, if the activities of a church are not anchored in prayer or if the emphasis on prayer wanes, those activities will lose their impact, and the church will be lifeless. If prayer is de-emphasized, the heartbeat of the church slows to a critical level and eventually stops altogether. If a local church is to remain a vital, life-giving entity, it must have a healthy heart. The heart is kept healthy through prayer. We cannot, must not, dare not neglect or underestimate the necessity of prayer.
It is easy for a church to be swamped by good and well-intentioned initiatives to the point where prayer is relegated to the periphery or becomes an addendum. When that happens, the health, strength, vitality and effectiveness of the church will end. It cannot be sustained without prayer.
I look back at the most fruitful season of our ministry life. At that point, there was corporate prayer being offered in the church building every day of the week by some group. It was not difficult to make the connection. Prayer translated into fruitfulness. During that period, we saw people of all ages and occupations come to faith in Christ and become established as strong disciples. The fruit came and remained through prayer.
What is true for the corporate Body of Christ is equally true for our own life. If what we attempt for the Kingdom of God is done apart from consistent, regular prayer, we will find ourselves overwhelmed, exhausted and often operating in a ‘crisis’ mode.
This fall, 2024, as we reboot necessary church activities, let’s re-commit to dedicated, scheduled, consistent, regular (and if needed) mandatory prayer. Let’s teach its necessity, champion its value, practice it in our own life, and lead it as a regular, corporate exercise with every endeavour undertaken.
In any era, the health and effectiveness of the church in the world depended on its devotion to prayer or its weakness due to its lack of such devotion.
“More things are wrought through prayer than this world dreams of.”
– Alfred Lloyd Tennyson.
Al is an experienced pastor and counselor who works out of our ABNWT District Resource Centre in Edmonton as the Pastoral Care Coordinator. A pastor to the pastors, Al is a friend, mentor, and confidante to all.