“I urge you then, to pray for all people, to plead for God’s mercy upon them, and to give thanks. This is good and it pleases God our Savior… For he wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth that there is only one God and one Mediator over all, who can reconcile God and all people: he is the man, Jesus Christ. He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone. This is the message that God gave to the world.� 1 Timothy 2:1-6

How have they been received? Very well, both by those involved from the church and community!! What is happening in these Houses of Prayer, what are participants observing and experiencing? Much!

  • In all cases people are experiencing the joy of encountering God, obeying his command that we seek, ask, and knock, and, many times over already, we have seen positive answers to these prayers!
  • – In some cases a living room has become a safe place to invite our neighbors, and a bridge and open-door to invite others to the church.
  • – Oftentimes, participants end up reading scripture together worshiping A house-church model of outreach through worshipful prayer.
  • – A place of encouragement and spiritual nourishment.
  • – A neutral ground for developing relationships with people from other churches

  • The resurrection of More to Life and International Household:

    As people began praying together, and found neighbors joining them, there was a desire to resume our Saturday worship services. So, for the past months, on the 1st Saturday of the month, from 5-7pm, in the youth room or new fellowship space, we have gathered together to enjoy good fellowship, good food, contemporary worship, a focused time of prayer, and relevant scriptural teaching. The result is that people go away fed and fueled for another month of disciplined prayer.
    One new component we have incorporated into our outreach service/gatherings is that we are purposefully focusing on inviting the internationals of our community. This gives those who feel like a minority on Sunday mornings a time to be the host, the majority, and a time to get to know others of similar experience.
    Additionally, it appeals to the community we have in our immediate neighborhood, 1000s of whom are immigrants from other countries.
    Also, by encouraging this mosaic multicultural aspect, it is easier to invite people we know through the other Outreach ministries of our church: ESL, Refugees we are supporting, and others.