Last year Samson Dunn, Senior Pastor of Catalyst Church in Phoenix, realized that the strength needed to hold up and grow their church would come through commitment to the power of prayer.  

Strength and Growth Found On Our Knees

by Samson Dunn

Last year (2012) it became apparent that after two years with no noticeable growth in attendance at Catalyst Christian Church in Maryvale, something needed to change. After meeting with the leadership team, we decided to begin to fervently seek God for direction.

The result was the impression from God that we had reached capacity unless we began to teach our church to pray. The campus we have is designed to accommodate 500-700 people and we were already running an average of 850-900 weekly attendees. Not to mention the previous leadership had linked the property responsibilities together with a charter school that we had decided needed to go. The problem was that the income from the school covered over a third of our annual budget. So, needless to say, we were in a pickle with no extra finances, no growth in over two years, and no idea which way to go.

So we began to pray, nothing else, just pray.

During this time my good friend and longtime mentor, Paul Covert, shared with me that he was about to go on a study leave for several months. I immediately got the idea of having him come over to teach us how to implement a prayer ministry at Catalyst. Not that we were not a praying church already (largely as a result of the mentoring of a prayer pastor for years), but nothing organized, nothing that taught people to pray effectively.

Instead, Paul suggested that I should bring a team with me to Central for a week of teaching on prayer he would already be doing for several college students and their professor. We of course were all over it, and that is where it all began.....

Do YOU want to be part of an eggs-citing opportunity this Easter?

Every weekend, at every service on every campus, we are committed to having people pray in the prayer room for those attending and leading the services.  We know prayer makes a difference and are convinced this has a huge impact each weekend at Central. 

The intensity of this commitment ramps up lots when we think about all the extra services and guests who attend them at Easter!

That's the day that literally thousands of people will be exposed to Jesus and to Central for the first time.  Many will have never heard the Gospel  before, so the potential is huge!

That means prayer is needed -- lots of it -- for hearts and ears to be open and for the Holy Spirit to work powerfully in each service, in each guest.

This year, Central will have 19 Easter services at five locations! Obviously, to be able to pray for every service, on every campus, and in every prayer room, the Prayer Team will need some help. Better yet, we need YOUR PRAYERS! Our goal this year is to have no fewer than 130 people praying through the services.  A Prayer Team member will lead the prayer in each Prayer Room, so people new to this experience needn't  feel nervous about it.

Want to be a part of this powerful prayer coverage?  Here's how:

1)      Use this link to sign up for the service that works best for you. The system has improved from last year, so you don't have to register or create any log in.  Just select the service that works best for you and sign up.

SIGN UP HERE!

2)      Bring your spouse or a friend to pray too.  Some people are a little hesitant to try praying in the Prayer Room, but after they do it once, they realize how simple it is and how meaningful it can be.   So pick out someone you care about and invite them to join you.  (Please sign them up too.)

3)      Bring your Life Group. Many Life Groups are looking for ways to serve together. This is a perfect opportunity.  Those who want to pray out loud can, and those who want to pray silently in agreement are welcome to do so as well. We have had Life Groups join us on Easter in years past, and every one of them loved it. Some come back year after year.  Praying with others in the Prayer Room is just that inspiring and meaningful.  (If you are bringing your Life Group, don't forget to sign up each member so we can distribute the pray-ers evenly over the 19 services.)

Looking forward to praying together this Easter, 

Paul Covert

 40 Days of Prayer

God answers prayers! If you have any doubts, check with the staff of the 40 Days for Life international prayer movement. They can show you by statistics and testimony after testimony how prayers have been answered through 40 days of focused prayer. These prayers are sent up to appeal to our God in heaven to end abortion, to help those wounded by abortion, to affect all those attached to the abortion industry and to bring back a respect for human life. This movement consists of prayer, fasting, peaceful vigil outside abortion centers, and community outreach.

David Bereit, National Director for 40 Days for Life, and Shawn Carney, Campaign Director, both came to their important roles at 40 Days through a series of steps that only God could orchestrate. David, worked as a pharmaceutical representative, and Shawn had aspirations and plans to become a lawyer. Little did they know that their life plans would be totally derailed by a God who knew these two were the perfect men for the difficult task that lay ahead.