Practical Suggestions for Prayer Groups by K. P. Yohannan

In prayer times, please be careful to avoid the entertainment trap.

Man likes to keep things busy and mov­ing. By nature we are people who cannot sit still. It is hard to be quiet. We like pictures and slides. We like to have variety. We don’t want anybody falling asleep or getting bored. Therefore, we keep so many things happen­ing that we lose the quietness, the soberness, the intensity, the meditation and the devout­ness that should be present in prayer. The sacredness of being in the holy of holies, sitting before God and gazing upon Him as we share our burdens with Him can easily be lost in the busyness and show of conducting a prayer meeting.

It is far too easy to get lost in the enter­tainment trap and deceive ourselves, think­ing because since it felt like such an alive prayer meeting, it was productive. Unless we make sure we are listening to Him and fol­lowing His lead, the Lord may be saying, “I waited for you to be quiet and open your heart to Me, but you wouldn’t. You were so busy following the program that you missed Me. You talked to each other, but you didn’t talk to Me; you didn’t even listen to Me. There was no time when I could share My concerns with you.”

I pray that this will not be so of us. We need organization, plans and agen­das. Prayer meetings must not be dull. Involvement and participation are needed. But please, in the midst of all this, let us not miss the Lord. Let it be the Lord who stirs the prayer meeting and calls us to partici­pate.

This entry was written by K.P. Yohannan, the president and founder of Gospel for Asia, with the intention of encouraging and edifying the Body of Christ. To learn more about Gospel for Asia or to receive additional free resources, visit Gospel for Asia’s website.

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