A Format for a House of Prayer

Written by Anthony Counts

Pastor Anthony Counts shares a prayer meeting format he learned through a conference sponsored by LifeWay's John Franklin, the compiler of A House of Prayer: Prayer Ministries in Your Church. Read the entire article which includes two worship service orders: A Call to Prayer (PDF).

A House of Prayer: Prayer Ministries in Your Church

Our House of Prayer format is designed for a 45-minute service and includes several elements.

Adoration and praise—These 10 minutes include

• A brief Scripture and reflection on some aspect of the nature of God
• Followed by congregational music and prayer, both of which relate to that attribute of God.

We enlist every person who prays aloud ahead of time and give him or her the theme or focus for the prayer. Those who pray have the freedom to include related Scripture or testimony. In this time, God is honored and has moved powerfully.

Intercession and supplication—The second part of House of Prayer also follows the weekly prayer theme; we insert secondary themes as needed.

• We encourage individuals to come to the altar for special prayer, and others often join them there to pray quietly concerning their needs.
• We encourage men to pray with men and women to pray with women.
• We have prayed for everything from physical healing to associational missions.

During this time we also divide the larger group into small groups of three or four and give each a segment of our prayer list to pray for specifically. No group gets more than four or five names or requests. Members in these small groups may pray aloud or silently. Small-group prayer time is limited to 8-10 minutes and closes with a pastoral benediction.

Though individual prayers cannot be understood throughout the room, everyone is blessed by hearing 12-15 voices lifted simultaneously to God. This is the greatest manifestation of corporate prayer that we experience at our church.

Thanksgiving and rejoicing—This final segment of House of Prayer has evolved into a time of brief testimony concerning answered prayer. Someone then offers a prayer specifically to reflect a spirit of thanksgiving and rejoicing. The informal time of fellowship following sometimes leads to additional prayer clusters for specific needs.

Free Download of Entire Let's Worship Article (PDF format): A Call to Prayer.

This article is complements of Let's Worship Magazine. Anthony Counts is pastor of Mountain View Baptist of Wetumpka, Alabama.