God Blesses a Praying Church

For your church to remain vibrant and fruitful, you need the blessing of God. When God blesses a church, miracles happen. Marriages are saved, lives are changed, and people are put back together. When God blesses a church, he dramatically changes people’s lives. 

That has always been the kind of church I wanted to lead. I’m guessing that’s the same for you.

So, how do you maintain God’s blessing on your church? You do what God has told the church to do. To know what that is, you need to go back to the very beginning of the church.

When you were born, you had all the DNA you needed for your life at the point of conception. You didn’t get any more DNA as you grew older. In the same way, the church in Acts 2 had all the necessary ingredients for God’s blessing. They were using everyone’s talents. They were devoted to God’s Word. They loved one another deeply. 

But above everything else, they prayed. That’s the starting point for a church that God blesses. The presence of God’s power makes the church different from every other organization. No business or government has the Holy Spirit. He gives us the power to do what we can’t do ourselves. 

Think about the responsibility God has given to churches. We are to populate heaven with unbelievers. But God doesn’t expect us to do this on our own. He gives us his power. And how do we get God’s power?

It’s not rocket science. We get it one way: through prayer. Prayer and power have a direct correlation. Much prayer equals much power. Little prayer equals little power. No prayer equals no power. 

The early church understood this. Think about the story we’re picking up on in Acts chapters 1 and 2. Jesus had died on the cross, God had raised him from the dead, and he had walked on the earth for 40 days. Then he told his followers that they would be his witnesses in “Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8 NLT). But for now, they were to wait until Jesus sent his Spirit. 

So, the Bible says, “They all met together and were constantly united in prayer” (Acts 1:14 NLT). Jesus’ followers met for one reason and one reason only: to pray.

Then on the tenth day, God sent his Spirit, and miracle after miracle came. Peter preaches the Good News to Jews who had gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate Pentecost. Then, Luke writes, “A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders” (Acts 2:43 NLT).

You know the story. God birthed the church that day. The Bible says 3,000 came to faith in Jesus. The world has never been the same.

Your church has a God-sized mission in front of it. Your church can’t do what God has called you to do without his power. And you’ll never have the power of the early church without the prayer of the early church. 

Pray like the early church did. Pray as if your church’s impact depends upon it—because it does.