The Lightning Bolt of Heaven

John Piper writes in his book Brothers, We are not Professionals that prayer is

“the splicing of our limp wire to the lightning bolt of heaven. How astonishing it is that God wills to do His work through people. It is doubly astonishing that He ordains to fulfill His plans by being asked to do so by us.”

Twenty-Seven Michigan Baptist General Conference pastors, missionaries, and a few others gathered to splice our limp wires to the lightning bolt of heaven and ask God to work in power for His glory. We met from noon on Tuesday to noon on Wednesday and we all went home with a fresh charge.

Let me say up front that we didn’t pray the whole 24 hours. We stopped to eat a few times (thanks to the Ides and Cornells), and even slept (thanks Albrights, Dills, Wacyks, and Rademachers who hosted), but the majority of our time was spent in prayer. It was exhausting and refreshing all at the same time.

We asked God to work in many ways on behalf of many people. We prayed for open doors in Uzbekistan and an open heart for a young teen daughter. We prayed for Latino Church Planters and we prayed for pastors all across Michigan. We prayed great sweeping prayers for the world and we interceded on behalf of brothers in need. We prayed for Cuba, Turkey, Iraq, the USA, and many other countries. We prayed sitting, standing, in triads, large groups, and on our knees. We prayed with holy hands lifted and we laid hands on the shoulders of those in need. We prayed in song, with tears, and with the Word of God open before us. We prayed for the sick, the lost, the next generation, pastor’s wives, and pastor’s kids.

We prayed with God’s glory as our goal, with great faith in our hearts, and according to His perfect will. Our hearts were drawn close to the Father and to each other.

A few pastors commented that this was the most beneficial pastor’s meeting that they had been to in many years, and I wholeheartedly agree. If we truly expect to do anything for God and if we hope to see His power at work, we must pray.

We are already planning our next Prayer First gathering for the Fall to meet again at Grand Ledge Baptist Church. A special thanks goes to Dana Olsen who led us in our prayer and Bob Hamlet who led us in worship.