​ It began small...
A businessman wanted to share Jesus with his neighbors but no one seemed interested. A local church had asked him to be their city missionary. He prayed about what to do and decided that with everyone was so busy, he would invite them to a drop-in prayer meeting where business people could stop in for five minutes or their entire lunch hour. The church put a sign at the door inviting people to stop by. He passed out flyers inviting them but no one came.
He began to pray.... a half hour passed and he spoke with God. Then another man came in and began praying. Eventually five more people joined. The seven men concluded their prayer meeting. The next week there were fourteen, then twenty-three businessmen praying, a few meetings later there were over a hundred people. Then there was a financial crisis and soon people were desperately crying out to Jesus. Soon the church was overflowing and all over the city other churches were also hosting packed daily prayer meetings!  People who didn’t have a relationship with Jesus were having a deep personal relationship with him. People began sending in prayer requests.  Newspaper reporters came skeptical at first but totally blown away "I liked the prayer meeting," one article read.  It spread across New York and New England. A similar movement had started in Canada completely unrelated to the financial crisis. . In New York City ten thousand people per week were repenting and following Jesus. There were huge prayer meetings in Philadelphia, Boston, Louisville, Kentucky, St Louis and prayer meetings in San Francisco. The revival carried over to Virginia and North and South Carolina and throughout the United States, Europe, Jamaica, India and South Africa. It began small enough...one man praying alone when nobody came to the prayer meeting. Then a small group meeting together for a few minutes a week to pray. It became the Third Great Awakening. In two years, over a million people came to Jesus. Jeremiah Lanphier, a man who simply knelt down to pray for his community when no one else came was amazed by the things the Lord chose to do when his people called out together in prayer. What Jeremiah Lanphier did not know on September 23 1857 was that many churches from many different denominations had been gathering together to pray for revival.  Just as at Pentecost and as seen throughout history, once again, the LORD used a simple prayer meeting to change the world. Let’s gather together in prayer.
Lord, we love you. We confess that we often fill our time with everything but you, teach us to spend our lives in constant conversation with you. Jesus, please pour your mercy out on us and on our family. Thank you for sending the Comforter to be with us always. We desperately need your presence. Thank you for teaching us to pray sincerely and simply.

​Our Father in heaven,
Your name be honored as holy.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
For yours is the Kingdom
and the power and the glory forever.
 Amen

For more information on the Layman's prayer revival check out the sources I used:
Joseph Lanphier's book 
https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=V-4CAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&hl=en&pg=GBS.PA2

​Gibson's The Year of Grace
https://archive.org/details/yearofgracehisto0a0gibs

J Edwin Orr's History of Revival Series audio files
http://www.jedwinorr.com/resources/audio/COW_04.MP3
and
http://www.jedwinorr.com/resources/audio/COW_05.MP3http://qosoxug.ru/hety.pdf

Dr Katheryn Long's book
http://qosoxug.ru/hety.pdf



Please check out our multilayer map of the Layman's Prayer Revival using base maps provided by esri layering a historical map on top of a contemporary map.  click on pins for more info. Zoom in to the neighborhood level or out globally. ​
Please feel free to collaborate on finding and adding correct addresses for Prayer Meeting locations anywhere in the world. 

​

 This week, I've been immersed in an account of the most amazing event in all of history.  I've bee reading and meditating on the story of two men walking along a road in Luke 24 .  I love the irony. As the scene opens. Jesus is dead and his followers are at a loss: fearful, depressed, hopeless. The women head to the tomb to perform the appropriate burial rituals. "And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. "  The women are the first witnesses to the Resurrection! They are told by two messengers, "Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise." And the women remembered Jesus words. Mark tells us that they were so frightened that at first they didn't tell anyone. When some of the women go back and tell the apostles, the men don't believe them at first. Peter and John run to the tomb and find it empty.

Two of the disciples are walking approximately seven miles from Jerusalem to where they are staying in Emmaus and as they walk they are discussing everything. Jesus appears to them "but their eyes are kept from recognizing him" and he asks them what they are talking about! Oh, this is truly one of the best sections of all literature! Jesus asks them, what is going on? "And they stood still looking sad"  They are walking and talking with the risen Lord. Cleopus asks incredulously, "Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things  that have happened there in these days?" Now, you know God has a sense of humor. It is so delightfully funny when Jesus asks, "What things?" They tell Jesus ,who is alive walking beside them, about his own arrest and crucifixion and about the women's report of an empty tomb and angels saying that Jesus was alive! Yet, as the men relate this they are sad and communicate their dashed hopes, "But we had hoped he was the one to redeem Israel" 

Is there something troubling you? The risen Lord wants to know "What is going on? " "What things" He wants you to recount all of your troubles to him and your dashed hopes for what you thought God was doing when it takes a hopeless looking turn.  His reply is that the Christ's suffering is a necessary prelude to glory.

"'O foolish ones and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?' And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. " 

Yet, even though their hearts burn within them as  Jesus relates all of this. It is not until they have reached their destination and invited him to their table and he blesses and distributes the bread that "their eyes were opened and they recognized him."  It is when Jesus prays a blessing that they recognize him. 

They are so excited that they hurry all of the way back down the road they just came on to tell the other disciples. Yet when they arrive before they can even say a word they are greeted by the others saying "The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!"

​"Peace to you!" They are startled and frightened and Jesus proves to them that he isn't a ghost. It is indeed Jesus and his is a bodily resurrection. "Why re you troubled and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that is I myself. Touch me and see, For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." He shows then his hands and feet. I love this next verse. "And while they were still disbelieving for joy and were marveling..." They have gone from standing "looking sad" to "disbelieving for joy! " 

He asks then"do you have anything here to eat?" and eats some fish. Then he reminds them ,"'These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you that everything written about me in the Law of Moses ans the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.' Then he opens their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, 'Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.'" 

Jesus is asking us "What is going on? What things? Tell me about it. " He wants us to pour out our hearts concerning Him and what we hoped the Lord would do. Suffering precedes glory and a student is not greater than his teacher. He wants to teach us from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. The church is to pour out our hearts to the Lord in prayer and worship.  The Lord is risen, indeed!

Lord, you are risen, indeed! There is none like you! Your glory fills the heavens You have power  over life and death. Thank you for walking beside us and asking us to  talk to you about what is going on and pour our hearts out to you. Thank you that even when things look hopeless, as we are pouring out our troubles, we are walking and talking with the Risen Lord! Thank you for forgiving us help us to proclaim repentance and forgiveness of sins to all nations. Just as the disciples waited in prayer in the city of Jerusalem until you clothed them with power from on high. Help us to prayerfully wait on you. May the church in our cities be united together in prayer and be filled with power from on high. You are Lord, above the heavens. All authority is in you. Help us to faithfully obey you. Mentoring all nations, washing them in waters of repentance and teaching obedience to all you have commanded. Remind us that you are with us. Reign in glory over your people and over all creation. We are yours, Lord.