Do you ever struggle with praying before an open-air outreach?
There are a thousand things we can pray for before an open-air.
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We can pray for practicalities — the weather and a good location for the outreach.
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We can pray for the workers — for wisdom in personal conversations, for grace for those who preach and deal with hecklers, and for good teamwork.
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We can pray for the people we will meet — that the Lord will do a work of grace in their hearts as they hear the words of life.
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We can pray for the local church — that it will be built up through the outreach.
But I confess that I sometimes struggle to find the right words to pray before an open-air. At times, I find preaching easier than prayer!
Help from Matthew Henry
One book that has been a help to the prayer lives of many believers is Matthew Henry’s A Way to Pray.
In this book, the famous Puritan Bible commentator arranges prayer into its different categories. In each category, he composes prayers based on passages of Scripture.
This book gives us the language we so often struggle to find in prayer. It also gives us the confidence that our prayers will be heard and answered because we are praying the words of God himself back to Him. You can pause after each line and make the words your own as you have communion with God.
Prayers for Gospel Outreach
Below are some extracts from this work that are particularly relevant to gospel outreach. Perhaps you could use these as a springboard for your own prayers the next time you bend your knees before an open-air.
Pray to the Lord of the Harvest for the Worldwide Spread of the Gospel
Intercede for the whole world of mankind in its lostness from God.
O God our Saviour, we pray for all men as we have been taught, believing that it is good and acceptable in your sight to pray in this way. You would have all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus. For he gave himself as a ransom for all kinds of people. 1 Tim. 2:3-6.
Gracious Lord, look with compassion on the world that lies under the control of the evil one. Cast out the prince of this world who has blinded the minds of people who do not believe. Make known your way of salvation throughout the earth, that all the nations may praise you. Let those that live without God and without hope in the world be transformed and enlisted in your service. Let all nations experience your power to save. Let them be glad and sing for joy, for you shall judge the peoples righteously as you govern the nations of the world. Clearly display your salvation and your righteousness before all nations. Let the ends of the earth witness the greatness of your salvation. 1 John 5:19; John 12:31; 2 Cor. 4:4; Psa. 67:2, 3; Eph. 2:12; Psa. 67:3, 4; 98:2, 3.
Give to your Son the nations as his inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth as his possession. You have said it is too easy a thing for him to raise up the fallen tribes of Jacob and restore the preserved in Israel. So you have given him the larger task of being a light to the Gentiles and bringing salvation to the ends of the earth. Let all the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ. Psa. 2:8; Isa. 49:6; Rev. 11:15.
Earnestly pray for the spread of the saving gospel of Christ among all nations and the expansion of his church by the constant conversion of many.
Let the gospel of Christ be preached among all nations to all peoples. For how shall anyone believe in him if they have not heard? How shall they hear without preachers? How shall they preach unless they are sent? We pray for your sovereign help in the spread of the gospel, for who else can thrust forth labourers except you, the Lord of the harvest? Let the people who walk in darkness see a great light. Let light dawn on those who live in the regions of death’s gloomy shadow. Matt. 24:14; Rom. 10:14, 15; Matt. 9:38; Isa. 9:2; Matt. 4:16.
As the Lord of the harvest, add to your church every single day the ones being saved. Give us faith to enlarge the place of our tent, and expand the curtains of our dwelling. Make us bold to lengthen our cords even as we strengthen our stakes. Bring your saved seed from the east and gather them from the west. Say to the north, ‘Give them up’, and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back!’ Bring your sons from far-off places, and your daughters from the ends of the earth. Let their flocks be accepted on your altar, and let them bring glory to your magnificent house. Let them fly as clouds across the sky, and as doves to their nests. Acts 2:47; Isa. 54:2; 43:5, 6; 60:7, 8.
May sweet-smelling incense be presented to you along with their pure offerings. From the rising of the sun to its going down, let your name be great among the nations. Let the offering of the peoples be acceptable to you, having been sanctified by the Spirit. Let the earth be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Mal. 1:11; Rom. 15:16; Isa. 11:9…
Pray for the conviction and conversion of atheists, hardened sinners, profane scoffers, and those that disgrace Christ by their immoral lives even while professing faith.
Show fools their folly when they say, ‘There is no God.’ For their atheism makes them corrupt and leads them to practise abominations. Teach transgressors your ways, and let sinners be converted to you. Graciously give them repentance that will enable them to acknowledge the truth as it is in Jesus. Lead them into the way of truth that produces godly living. Mercifully enable them to deliver themselves out of the snare of the devil. Psa. 14:1; 51:13; 2 Tim. 2:25; Eph. 4:21; Titus 1:1; 2 Tim. 2:26.
Lord, maintain the honour of the Scriptures, the law, and your own testimony to the truth. Enlighten those who speak contrary to the Word, for they have no light in themselves. Magnify your name and your word above all things. Magnify the law, magnify the gospel, and make both glorious and honourable in the sight of men. Let those that are like sheep going astray return to Jesus Christ, the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls. Isa. 8:20; Psa. 138:2; Isa. 42:21; 1 Pet. 2:25.
Let people who will not be convinced by the word be won over by the lifestyle of Christians. As they hear the truth of your word, let them be convicted of their sin. Disclose the secrets of their heart by the proclamation of your prophetic word. Bring them to the point of worshipping you as they are forced to admit that you are truly in the assembly of believers. 1 Pet. 3:1; 1 Cor. 14:24, 25.*
Join Us in Prayer
May the Lord help us to intercede for the people we meet in the open-air!
If you would like to join others in praying for the work of the gospel through OAM, why not book to join our next online prayer meeting?
📅 17th November, 7:00pm
👉 Click here for details and Zoom link
Get the Book
You can also get hold of your own copy of A Way to Pray from the Banner of Truth Trust:
👉 Order from The Banner of Truth
*Adapted from pp. 131–134, Palmer Robertson, O., and Henry, Matthew. A Way to Pray, Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2020. By kind permission of the Banner of Truth Trust.