Wineskins Contributor・06/29/22

Prayer walking is one of the most eye-opening practices I have experienced as a Christian. I had never heard of this or considered it until a few years ago when we planted a church. All those years, I had driven past my neighbors and driven through the neighborhoods in order to "get to church." All of a sudden, it became clear that all of those homes included people who needed Jesus and we needed to find a way to be out and among the people who live near us.

So we started prayer walking on a regular basis. Here is what we discovered.

There is a big difference between praying and asking God for something and then going about my day vs praying that God would use us in the prayer walk and then walking out the door to see who God connects us with. When you prayer walk you get to watch God work in real time. You see the direct answer to your prayers (that were prayed before you started walking).

We ask God to lead us to people who need him and we meet those people, pray with them and get to know them. We ask God to work in powerful ways and connect us with new people who can advance the kingdom. We meet people who have the exact skills we have been lacking! There are times we run across people who are at the end of their rope and need some encouragement.

I am thinking of one time in particular when a friend and I we were prayer walking downtown Franklin, TN. We had a strong sense of urging to make a left hand turn only to find the path took us to a parking deck where no one was around. Thinking the Holy Spirit had led us to a dead end we were confused. Then we noticed a little alley to the left and began walking down it. As we went down the alley we saw a man by himself leaning against a wall. He was upset. He had strarted a business during COVID and was concerned the business might fail. We told him what we were doing and asked to pray for him...it encouraged him so much and it encouraged us as well!

I encourage you to go on a prayer walk. Don't go alone. Do as Jesus instructed in Luke 10 - go at least in pairs. Start with prayer, ask God to use the time for His glory! Then go and see who God connects you with. You won't regret it! Then come and let us know how it went!