THE PRAYER LIFE OF AN APOSTLE
By David Cannistraci
Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the Hellenists, because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution. Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business; but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” (Acts 6:1-4)
As I look toward God’s purposes in the New Year, the word RELEASE has become very real in my spirit. I believe 2005 is going to be a year of tremendous release for the people of God. Churches will be released from mediocrity into the move of God’s Spirit. People will be released by the five-fold ministry into their destinies. Leaders will be released into the apostolic dimension. Money will be released and the payment of debt will bring release. And the anointing is going to be further released upon the church to move into the next level of the apostolic mandate: from raising up strong churches to transforming entire cities.
In my hunger to understand the RELEASE God wants to bring to the lives of leaders, I have been seeking answers. What does God wants to release to His people? What is our part in that release? And what shortcomings in us as leaders might threaten the release God desires to bring to our people?
As a part of the answer, the Lord keeps bringing me back to the issue of prayer. In God’s economy, nothing is more important than prayer, especially the prayer life of a leader. It was the prayers of Israel during their Egyptian bondage that moved God to raise Moses up as a “releaser” (Exodus 3:7-8). Great releases have always had their origins in the fires of passionate prayer. Daniel’s prayers based on God’s prophetic promises released Israel from Babylonian captivity. God has literally hardwired the blessings of the Kingdom to depend upon the prayers of His people, and He will not bring release apart from them.
“WE WILL GIVE OURSELVES TO PRAYER”
The situation in Jerusalem was becoming difficult. A mushrooming church created stresses on the human infrastructure, and soon people were being neglected. When murmuring arose, it was a signal to the apostles that something was amiss. Rather than targeting the murmurers and branding them as rebels, the apostles understood the need for restructuring.
As a solution, deacons were ordained to carry on the work of feeding the needy. The apostles did not surrender their personal time to the demands of the needy, as valid as they were. Rather, the apostles fought for their time with God, and stayed focused on intimacy with Jesus as a priority of their lives. They made sure they were not too busy to pray.
How strong is the prayer-passion of apostolic leaders today? I recently attended a gathering of apostles where three entire sessions passed before the first prayer was offered. There were great discussions about revival, ministry and transformation, but prayer was never mentioned. Have we who were birthed in the move of God forgotten where we came from? Have we become so presumptuous in our authority that we forget where that authority is purchased?
A nationally known megachurch recently sponsored a church growth conference to equip pastors to impact their cities. Leaders were told about the wonders of self-help sermons, websites, direct mail, interactive worship services and the use of multimedia. On the closing day, a friend of mine asked the conference host, “Are we going to talk about the place of prayer in church growth?” “You can pray all you want,” he was told, “but it won’t grow your church.” My friend left before the conference ended.
The measure of any apostle or apostolic movement of consequence is a passionate commitment to pervasive and prevailing prayer, because prayer is the channel that God has chosen to initiate lasting change in the world. Please hear me: I intend no smug super-spirituality, and offer no condescending condemnation of today’s wonderful Christian leaders. But what does it mean when we can relegate prayer to a trivial place in our schedules? In this season of supernatural outpouring, God is not looking for CEO’s or master-marketers to build his Kingdom. He is looking for Spirit-saturated servants of the King—men and women who have paid the price because they have prayed the price.
APOSTOLIC PRAYER PATTERNS
The essential pattern for prayer in apostolic leadership is found in Jesus, the faithful Apostle (Hebrews 3:1). Despite the pressing demands that His remarkable ministry generated, He still spent a major portion of His time in prayer. What an example! If He made His time in prayer such a priority, how much more should today’s leaders?
It is important to point out that, without question, the astonishing power of Jesus came from His prayer life. He prayed before He was baptized, and the Holy Spirit descended on Him like a dove. In that moment, His miracle ministry was born (Luke 3:21,22). But His prayer life didn’t end there. During the many exhausting days of laboring with the needs of ministry, Jesus made time to be alone in prayer. Often, He prayed early in the morning, while it was still dark (Matthew 14:23, Mark 1:35, 6:46, Luke 5:16). He spent a whole night in prayer before He chose the twelve (Luke 6:12). Later, He discerned Satan’s desire to sift Peter, but prayed for him that his faith would not fail (Luke 22:32). The writer of Hebrews reveals the passion of His prayer life: “During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears” (Hebrews 5:7).
Paul also prayed throughout his ministry. After an encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, Ananias was directed to minister healing and the baptism of the Holy Spirit to Paul with these illuminating words: "Go…inquire at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying," (Acts 9:11). This pattern of prayer continued throughout his life. He was sent out by the prophets while attending a prayer meeting (Acts 13:1-4), and he prayed with the elders he installed in the churches he planted (Acts 14:23). He prayed and sang praise to God after being beaten and thrown into jail at Philippi (Acts 16:25) and near the end of his life, we read that he prayed "night and day" (2 Timothy 1:3).
Paul relied on intercession as an important part of his apostolic function. He taught on prayer in his epistles. He prayed unceasingly for the churches at Ephesus (Ephesians 1:16), Philippi (Philippians 1:3,4) and Corinth (1 Corinthians 1:4). He was "praying always" for the church at Colossae (Colossians 1:3) and that he "unceasingly made mention" to God of the needs of the church at Rome (Romans 1:9,10). No wonder he was able not only to radically impact the world of his day, but the history of millions in nations all over the world from then until now – all without the benefit of web pages, airplanes, satellites or multimillion dollar ministry complexes!
WHY PRAYERLESSNESS IS UNFITTING FOR APOSTLES
Apostles, perhaps more than any other ascension gift, are task oriented. While shepherds necessarily focus on the day-to-day needs of their people, apostles look to the broader tasks of pioneering, planting and building. They are less excited by the logistical and tactical; they are passionate about the strategic aspects of ministry. Those strategies must be birthed in the place of prayer and study.
Acts 6:2 records the aversion of the apostles for tasks that take them away from their time with God with these gripping words: “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables…” Other translations render it “not fitting,” “not pleasing” and “not right.”
As far as the apostles were concerned, allowing tasks to eclipse prayer and the word was not an option. I believe there are a few obvious reasons for this that we need to consider as we ask God for release in our ministries:
1. Because intimacy with Jesus is vital for a fruitful ministry. Jesus said, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful apart from me.Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing…But if you stay joined to me and my words remain in you, you may ask any request you like, and it will be granted!” (John 15:4-5, 7 NLT) Prayer is the essential thing in ministry. It is the foundation of all we do.
2. Because the stakes are enormous.As I think about what God has called leaders to do, I realize how much prayer we need. People are counting on us. And if we try to run our ministry on mere intellectual or psychological power, we will never build anything that God respects. But if we focus on prayer as the essential thing, we’ll make a difference.
3. Because leaders are under attack. Leaders are targets of spiritual attack, and if they become prayerless, they will find themselves vulnerable to Satan’s destructive devices.
God has given us an awesome calling to lead and care for people. It is not insignificant. It is mind-blowing. And we have such a destiny. But need to stay in prayer to see it achieved.
I marvel at the majesty of the phrase, “we will give ourselves to prayer and the Word.” A man gives himself to his wife in marriage. A soldier gives himself to a career in combat, and may die for that commitment. And an apostle gives himself or herself to a life of prayer and the Word. As we approach this new season of release, may we commit ourselves to the same priority. That is the apostolic pattern, and anything less is unfitting.
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David Cannistraci is the Senior Pastor of GateWay City Church in San Jose, California. He travels internationally as a speaker and has written Apostles and the Emerging Apostolic Movement (Regal, 1996) and God’s Vision for Your Church (Regal, 2000). For more information, go to davidcannistraci.org
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