Prayer is the great complement to biblical knowledge, without which there can be little life or power in the missionary, his preaching, or his missionary endeavors. Every triumph of the church in the last two thousand years has been birthed, cultivated, and matured by God leading and empowering His people to pray. If there is one thing that all the great missionaries and preachers of church history have in common, it is their dependence upon God in prayer.

The importance of prayer in the missionary endeavor cannot be exaggerated. Global missions is an impossibility apart from the power of God. The Apostle John tells us that “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (I John 5:19). Therefore, it would be easier to lift Mount Everest and cast it into the sea than to take one inch of Satan’s domain in our own power. Satan laughs at our endless strategies and mocks our clever schemes. But when one man lashes himself to the Word and wears out his knees in prayer, all of hell shudders.

All the Christians, churches, missionary societies, and institutions combined cannot win one soul. All our conferences, campaigns, and desires to give our lives away cannot advance the kingdom. Even if there were no devil, the radical corruption of one sinner’s heart would bring to nothing all our efforts and make us a laughingstock of impotence. The lost world and the lost soul are like Jericho. They are tightly shut up; no one can go out and no one can come in (Joshua 6:1). We can march around the wall until we are utterly worn out. We can lift up our voices and blow our trumpets until we are blue in the face. We can throw ourselves at the wall until our bodies are broken and lying in heaps on the ground. But the wall is not going to fall by any human effort. It requires the power of God. He can make quick work of the wall and destroy in seconds what we could not bring down even if we were granted ten thousand eternities!

An Appeal for Prayer

James Fraser (1886-1938) was a missionary to the Lisu people of China and one of the most respected men in the history of modern missions. He stated the following concerning prayer:

“I used to think that prayer should have the first place and teaching the second. I now feel it would be truer to give prayer the first, second, and third places and teaching the fourth.”

James Fraser dedicated his life to teaching and translating the Scriptures until he died of cerebral malaria at the age of fifty-two in Baoshan, Yunnan, China. No one would ever doubt his dedication to preaching and teaching, yet he recognized the absolute essentiality of prayer in every missionary endeavor. His sentiments are reflected in the following quotes from other missionary dignitaries:

“The missionary church is a praying church. The history of missions is a history of prayer. Everything vital to the success of the world’s evangelization hinges on prayer.” — John R. Mott

“The evangelization of the world depends first upon a revival of prayer. Deeper than the need for workers; deeper far than the need for money; deep down at the bottom of our spiritual lives, is the need for the forgotten secret of prevailing, worldwide prayer.” — Robert Speer

“When we rely upon organization, we get what organization can do; when we rely upon education, we get what education can do; when we rely upon eloquence, we get what eloquence can do. And so on. But when we rely upon prayer, we get what God can do.” — Dr. A. C. Dixon

“Satan trembles when he sees the weakest Christian on his knees.” — William Cowper

“Prayer alone will overcome the gigantic difficulties which confront the workers in every field.” — John R. Mott

“Without prayer, even though there may be increased interest in missions, more work for them, better success in organization and greater finances, the real growth of the spiritual life and of the love of Christ in the people may be very small.” — Andrew Murray

“It is possible for the most obscure person in a church, with a heart right toward God, to exercise as much power for the evangelization of the world, as it is for those who stand in the most prominent positions.” — John R. Mott

“The man on his knees has a leverage underneath the mountain which can cast it into the sea and can force all earth and heaven to recognize the power that is in Christ’s Name.” — M.E. Andross

“The man who mobilizes the Christian church to pray will make the greatest contribution to world evangelization in history.” — Andrew Murray

“I would rather teach one man to pray than ten men to preach.” — Charles Spurgeon

Guidelines for Prayer

The following outline has been prepared to help you pray for the Great Commission. Since each petition is founded upon the teaching and promises of Scripture, you will be able to pray with greater confidence. John writes:

“This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.” — I John 5:14-15

Pray that the gospel might be proclaimed to all the nations:

For the gospel of the kingdom to be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations (Matthew 24:14).

For the gospel to spread rapidly and be glorified (II Thessalonians 3:1).

For the earth to be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14).

Pray for the conversion of the nations:

• For the Name of God to be hallowed, His kingdom to come, and His will to be done in every nation, people group, and individual (Matthew 6:9-10).
• For all the ends of the earth to remember and turn to the Lord, and for all the families of the nations to worship before Him (Psalm 22:27).
• For God to call out a people from all nations for His own Name’s sake and glory (Ezekiel 36:22-24), purify them from all their impurities and idolatries (Ezekiel 36:25), remove their heart of stone and give them a heart that is responsive to Him (Ezekiel 36:26), and put His Spirit within them and cause them to walk in His statutes and be careful to observe His commands (Ezekiel 36:27).
• For God to increase the number of His people throughout the world as a shepherd might increase his flock (Ezekiel 36:37-38).
• For God’s name to be great among the nations from the rising to the setting of the sun (Malachi 1:11) and for the Lord to be King over all the earth (Zechariah 14:9).
• For God to establish His church and make it a praise in all the earth (Isaiah 62:6-7).
• For a great multitude which no one can count to be gathered from every nation, tribe, people, and tongue to worship God and the Lamb (Revelation 7:9-10).

Pray for a larger missionary force:

• For the eyes of the church to be opened to the lost multitudes and moved with compassion by the Spirit of God to fulfill the Great Commission (Matthew 9:37-38).
• For God to send out a multitude of laborers into the harvest (Matthew 9:37-38).
• For the church to be faithful to support missionaries in a manner worthy of God (III John 1:5-7).

Pray for missionaries:

• For grace to cultivate their relationship with God and grow in conformity to Christ through the Word of God and prayer (Psalm 1:1-3; Psalm 27:8; II Corinthians 3:18).
• To be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), bear His fruit in life (Galatians 5:22-23), and manifest His power in ministry (Acts 1:8).
• For grace to rejoice in hope (Romans 12:12), always trusting and resting in the sovereignty and faithfulness of God (Isaiah 30:15).
• To be strengthened by grace (Hebrews 13:9), to know the surpassing greatness of God’s power toward all who believe (Ephesians 1:18-19), and to run and not grow weary (Isaiah 40:31).
• For grace to abide in the Vine (John 15:4-5), labor according to the power of God that mightily works within them (Colossians 1:29), and bear fruit that remains (John 15:7-8, 16).
• For grace to love their spouses and care for their families with love, joy, instruction, encouragement, order, and discipline. For the salvation of their children (I Timothy 3:4-5; Ephesians 5:22-6:4).
• For grace to live in a manner that adorns the gospel (Titus 2:10), to prove themselves to be blameless and innocent children of God without reproach in a crooked and perverse generation, and to appear as lights in the world (Philippians 2:15) and as a city set on a hill (Matthew 5:14).
• For grace to overcome the desires of their flesh (Galatians 5:16) and the temptations of the evil one (Ephesians 6:12; II Thessalonians 3:3; I Peter 5:8-9).
• For protection from perverse and evil men (II Thessalonians 3:1-3).
• For grace to be diligent to present themselves approved to God as laborers who do not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth (II Timothy 2:15).
• For open doors to preach the gospel with great clarity and boldness (Colossians 4:3-4; Ephesians 6:19).
• For grace to preach the Word, being ready in seasonand out of season, and to reprove, rebuke, and exhort with great patience and instruction (II Timothy 4:2).

Email and Text Updates

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HeartCry Calendar

At the beginning of each year, HeartCry publishes an annual prayer calendar in order to aid our partners in praying for each HeartCry missionary and staff member. The calendar can be hung on the wall in a visible place in the home or office. It can also be used in family devotions or homeschooling. The calendar is sent to all our donors and prayer partners.

HeartCry Website

The HeartCry website is not only designed to inform, but also to mobilize God’s people in prayer. You may pray systematically through the regions, countries, and missionaries; or you may pray for a certain region of the world for which you are especially burdened. In any case, by all means, pray for the mission field and the missionaries who labor there. There is no need for delay—the fields are white unto harvest!