USA (MNN) — America's unemployment rate is at
9.4 percent, and the foreclosure rates rose again last month.
As more people succumb to the crumbling economy, they are
sharing their stories about God's provision more often. Their stories serve as encouragement to
others, and prayer becomes more fervent. This is the situation repeated all over the U.S.
As people struggle to make ends meet, churches are seeing something stirring. More than a trend, evangelist Sammy Tippit says
recessions are the spark for revival.
"The thing that we're trying to do is to encourage Christians to
begin to pray because the wind must blow across those sparks. And the wind only
blows as we pray and seek the face of God."
Tippit says they're trying to show the way. Preparation for this kind of movement comes
when there is a spiritual readiness among the church leaders. To help underscore this, they've launched a conference teaching series.
"'Pray Now, America' is the theme of these rallies," explains Tippit. "We are also going into the churches and
having conferences where we're challenging believers to really begin to pray
and to look hard at their own personal lives and their own personal
priorities."
This series dovetails with "Praying For Your Family" that Tippit released earlier. In that series, believers learn the importance of committing
to pray for family members and staying in the Word. The series also encourages community worship
with a small group, Bible study or Sunday school class before expanding to
entire churches.
Tippit wrote the curriculum to encourage a movement of prayer. Of it, he says, "We could see a mighty revival in
the land if we would begin to pray with a fresh fervency for our families." Revival in the land begins with
revival in the home.
And yet, there is another obstacle. A stagnant prayer life
could be an indicator of something else, a belief supported by more research from the
Barna Research Group. Many believers
struggle with understanding basic spiritual maturity.
However, "We've got to step back and re-evaluate what
our values are, what our purpose is, and we've got to make some real
re-arranging of our priorities. I think the first step with that is in our own
personal walk with God."
