After being invited and encouraged by their pastor, attendees of Grace and Peace Church, a Christian Reformed congregation in Chicago Ill., are waking up in the early hours of the morning to read their Bibles, pray, and encourage one another.
John Zayas, the associate pastor at Grace and Peace said that over a month before starting the ministry he “had a dream that the Lord was calling and inviting me specifically to meet him in prayer at 4 a.m.” Zayas said this was a stretch outside of his comfort zone because he typically enjoys a full eight hours of sleep every night. But he discerned “that this was an invitation from God, and it was bigger than myself.”
Zayas began the 4 a.m. call to prayer on his own. He said it was “a powerful time where God met with me very clearly.” After one week of praying every morning at 4 a.m. for an hour, Zayas invited members of Grace and Peace “to join me on this journey of praying and stepping outside of our comfort to meet God in prayer.”
After welcoming others to join in at the July 28 worship service, Grace and Peace hosted the first 4 a.m. prayer time July 29. People join a live chat on the church’s app where they share Scripture and encouraging words, along with prayers and prayer requests. By the end of the first week, Zayas said over 100 people were participating—about half of the average attendance each Sunday.
It was incredibly encouraging, and “people were seeing personal breakthroughs,” Zayas said of the church-wide prayer time, which was only intended to last a week. Instead, three weeks in, people are still praying online together at 4 a.m., and the church has expanded the time from midnight to 6 a.m. Prayer leaders have committed to be online for an hour during their allotted time, acting as a kind of accountability group for those in the church who want to deepen their prayer life. They’re encouraged by knowing they’re praying together.
Zayas said participants pray for their city, their church, and their families. “We’ve always been a church that heavily believes in prayer and the leading of the Spirit” and this time of prayer “feels like it’s becoming part of the fabric of our ministries life,” Zayas said.
Grace and Peace hosts two services—one bilingual service in English and Spanish, and a service in Spanish that is primarily attended by Venezuelan migrants who came to Chicago in the past two years. Many of the Spanish attendees have joined in the prayer ministry. Zayas remarked: “God has sent missionaries into the U.S. to pray for our city.”
He encourages other congregations to spur one another on in prayer and would welcome sharing about how to start a similar prayer ministry.
About the Author
Kristen Parker is a freelance writer. She has a passion for words and creativity. Kristen and her husband Chris, enjoy board games and thrift shopping. They attend Stratford CRC in Stratford, Ont.