by Jon Konnerup
On one trip I made to East Asia, I had the opportunity to spend time with a group of young people. Their passion to reach the unreached was exciting and challenging. As they shared with me what God was doing in their lives, I wondered how they had become so sensitive to God’s direction and the need to reach people who had never had a chance to hear the gospel.
They said it all began with prayer. They understood the importance of prayer and the great weapon it is against the devil. They expressed how when they were praying, they were right where God wanted them to be so He could work in their lives. Asking God for His will and pleading for lost souls became their prayer, which allowed them to be more sensitive to God’s leading as they now serve in East Asia.
Through their testimonies, something was solidified in my mind. While praying for the unreached, two things will happen. First, God answers and sends someone else to reach them. Second, God answers and sends the one who is praying.
These young people’s testimonies revealed to me that they had been mobilized to pray. Someone taught them to pray, which, in turn, prompted them to pray for the unreached, for their missionaries, and for more laborers. All of this was happening in their church. These young people were excited and felt like they had an important role in the Great Commission. They joined in prayer with those around them and watched as exciting things happened. Sunday school classes prayed for and researched the profiles of specific unreached people groups. The vision of reaching the unreached was given and they understood the urgency of the task.
Where did this come from? Someone had to start all this and give the vision. Someone had to see and know the need and realize the battle. Someone was leading the charge, giving the plans and maps, setting the strategies, and giving the orders. Someone was praying for the unreached.
Who were they? According to these young people, the leaders of their church were the ones — their pastor, student pastor, and college pastor.
If people are going to become involved in following the Great Commission, they must first begin to pray. Second, they must be taught the vision. Third, they need to be mobilized to participate. For this to happen, church leaders must lead the way. The saying is, “As the pastor goes, so goes the church.”
As we prepare to begin the new year of 2014, would you commit to praying for more missionaries? Prayer is the key that unlocks the doors that have been shut for centuries with billions of lost souls in the balance. Jesus said in Matthew 9:38, “PRAY YE THEREFORE the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth laborers into the harvest.”