Continuing my What I’m Praying series…

Every Thursday The Prayer Room hosts a private prayer meeting for local senior pastors. We transition the normal prayer room worship upstairs into our alternate prayer room so that we don’t drop the “fire on the altar” (Leviticus 6:13), and we make the prayer meeting in our main prayer room private and exclusive for these senior pastors. That way, they have the freedom to step out of “ministry mode” and just connect and receive, and everyone else still can be in the prayer room upstairs.

(Also, the pastors’ prayer meeting downstairs isn’t expected to flow in a normal harp and bowl form. The prayer focus is for their churches and for revival in our city, and we do have a worship leader who is very gifted with prophetic worship, but we give the pastors freedom to break all the normal prayer room rules to pray and connect however blesses them. Since we have the fire on the altar upstairs, we can feel completely comfortable letting whatever happens happen!)

We’ve been doing this for a few months now; after years of having it in our hearts, God is finally giving the grace and favor to make it happen! Although it’s generally just a small handful who come every week, it’s been powerful to see God moving as these pastors pray for each other, and pray for God’s purposes in our city side by side.

While the pastors pray downstairs, I serve as the usher for the prayer meeting upstairs. During the short time of intercession for revival in the middle of the set (this is a thing we started doing early this year–check out my blog post on why and how that works), I always like to pray for unity in the church in our region, and specifically for the pastors in the building.

My favorite verse to pray for unity is Romans 15:5-6 (also my favorite verse to pray for couples, so if I’ve given you a wedding card in the past 7 years, I almost guarantee it had this verse on it!).

“May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
(Romans 15:5-6)

There may be many differences between churches… some to be celebrated, and some to be overcome by the grace of God. But no matter our differences, Paul’s prayer, which was inspired by the Holy Spirit, was that we would live in harmony and glorify God together with ONE VOICE.

What would it be like if the collective testimony coming out of the Church in a city was “Christ and Him crucified”? (1 Corinthians 2:2)

What if every unbeliever and every demon knew that the Christians in a city were a force to be reckoned with because of their unity?

There are aproximately 1,200 churches in the Dallas area (according to my 30 seconds of Googling). Let’s imagine all of those churches completely in the will of God, ministering to the people God has given them and focussing on what they’re supposed to be focussing on–each in different ways, for a different demographic, serving different needs in the city. In diversity, we can still come together in “one voice” unity to glority God together.

God emphasises different parts of His heart to different churches, too. This is part of why the Body needs each other. No one congregation has a full revelation of God. Some churches have more clarity on justice, or worship, or identity, or the end times, or family, or missions. In learning from each other, we become more of who we all are meant to be.

I love that Paul called for believers to live in “harmony” with each other. I don’t know what the word is in Greek, but in English “harmony” makes me think of music.

Imagine every church, in all of their glorious diversity, each playing their own little piece of the song. Imagine the rhythms and melodies and sounds from every different kind of instument. Imagine Chinese strings being played with African drums. Imagine someone rapping while someone else sings an operetic melody. Imagine it all flowing together seamlessly, an epic multicolored symphony, creating one resounding crescendo of glory to God.

What would that sound like from heaven’s perspective?

What would that look like? If worship is like incense rising before His throne, can you imagine the thick column of incense rising in unity from a city as a whole?

This is what we’re praying for– that Jesus’ Bride would be one as He and the Father are one, glorifying Him together, unity in diversity, every tribe and tongue.

“that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us…”
(John 17:21)

“…behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb… and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!'”
(Revelation 7:9-10)

God, unify Your Church in our city. Knit our hearts together in love, that we could glorify You with one voice in perfect harmony.