John wrote an excellent comment to my blog post from the other day: “Who is your one? (bis)” in which he stressed the importance of the role of community in spiritual formation. I just hadn’t applied that idea to prayer.
In most of the articles on prayer and CPM, the emphasis seems to be placed on the church planter’s (singular) life of prayer, and rightly so. However, because prayer is foundational to church planting movements (CPM), it is vital that we also pray in community, that we hold ‘concerts of prayer’ together.
Years ago, David Bryant wrote the book, Concerts of Prayer, in which he argued for prayer communities and offered a ‘format’ for hosting a concert of prayer. What I pulled from the book could be simply stated: we need to pray together, in community.
Yes, it takes effort to pray with others. It takes time to find the time; it takes time to walk, drive or take the scooter to someone else’s place; it takes time just to pray in a group. It’s always ‘easier’ to pray by oneself, but because this is God’s mission, given to God’s people, it calls for God’s people together to pray.
The World Team Day of Prayer is coming up in just a few weeks. I challenge each of us to be thinking of ways to ensure that we will be ‘in community’ that day to pray. God will certainly enjoy the concert!
Thoughts Along The Journey 
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