stockbridge boiler room

Risen: closing prayer

 

If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. (1 Cor 15:  19)

As we gathered with James and John for closing prayer, more stories of walking with the risen Christ came out in the tent.  The May sun shown. And students hurried by to prepare for finals. We began worshipping on the lawn outside the tent.  The echoes resounded off buildings. As the evening proceeded and temperatures dropped and breezes increased, we moved into the tent.

• Jeremy told about how the Lord led him to pray for a friend who had struggled with stuttering for all of his life.  The Lord told him to put water on his friend's lips and pray for them.  After praying, his friend was speaking without hindrance.
• Hye-Sung had the Father tell him through another person in the tent that He was pleased with him.
  
• Nancy, a professor, was struck by how friends of hers had been praying for the Holy Spirit to move on Calvin's campus for the past ten years and in the past two years (including this week of Risen), she had been seeing answers to these prayers.
• James talked about praying for professors to join us for 247 and He thanked god for Nancy.  
• A number of nightwatch prayer people told the story of Lee, the Calvin security guard, who stopped by the middle of the night to check in, hear stories from the week so far and to pray with them.  Clearly, the Lord had given us favor with this man of peace who watched over us and we thanked God for him.
• Helen, a mom of a Calvin student, came by and told how this week of prayer reminded her of how the Lord moved during informal chapel on the lawn that she experienced when she was a student at Calvin many years ago.  She was thankful for the enduring faithfulness of the Lord.
• James testified about the Lord's presence all over campus as he walked the grounds before his worship time. 
  
• Many students expressed a general wistfulness to the taking down of the tent.  They were reluctant to leave this tent because they had experienced the presence of the Lord. Spirits were raised when we were reminded that Paul said in Corinthians that we too were tents for the Holy Spirit in our homes, workplaces and neighborhoods.  We were to bring the Holy Spirit and the presence of the Father with us as we were sent into the world.
• Trudy called us all to affirm and honor the gifts that had been shared this week and we all ended in a 20 minute group hug prayer that made Max's shoulders hurt from holding his arms up for so long.    

There are photos from the week here at our Flickr account. 

We will be meeting in two weeks to have more conversation about what are the next steps for citywide 24-7 prayer.  Please email us if you're interested in being a part of the conversation.  stockbridgeboilerroom@gmail.com

If you're interested in learning more about prayer, consider joining us for our prayer intensive, a seven week class at the Stockbridge Boiler Room starting May 22.  More information can be found here  Download Prayer intensive

We are a people who walk with the risen Christ.  And His hope extends beyond tents and beyond group hugs to an everlasting party in His presence.

::tony::

like the spring rains

As the week of prayer began, this Scripture's promise, on the tent wall, of "spring rains" seemed like a little more like a challenge to surmount.  Soaked socks, curling paper and streaking drips of fluorescent pink marker filled the first couple days.  Yet this soaking seemed to be a part of what He's called us to do—soaking in His presence.  And by Wednesday afternoon, we got more of a sense of what He has brought forth through soaking as we testified during our citywide 24-7 prayer team meeting at the prayer tent.

The meeting started off rather wonderfully. 

We had thought we would quietly gather with the team during a prayer slot for some talk and prayer.  But when we got there the tent was bustling with six folks praying who had simply dropped by.  Nana, who has been helping to shepherd the worship and prayer movement on Calvin's campus, was at the keyboard.  His songs eventually gave way to "Build us a House" on the CD player while other students were face down in the grass floor of the tent worshipping.  Another student was interceding at the table with the prayer prompts for all of the different local fellowships partnering with the Calvin students. In the midst of all this Kingdom coincidence, I simply moved all of the camp chairs and folding stools outside the tent (grinning and fake grumbling about how inconvenient it was to have all these people just showing up for prayer) so the team could tell stories from what they've seen this week and give thanks to the Lord. 

And were there stories . . .

At the start of the week, Tim and David had setup the camping tent for our overnight team to sleep nearby and provide easy access to another person for the people praying on the nightwatch.  Knowing the weather forecast, Tim shared his anxieties with Mary about the rain fly.  Believing that the Lord takes care of the sparrow as well, Mary asked the Lord for resilience and dryness for the overnight tent.  And it has been solid and dry—all week.  And each of us who have slept in it thank God for His protection. 

In hearing this, Trudy shared that last year, a student had prophesied about future 24-7 prayer events reading from Isaiah 4: 5-6. "Then the Lord will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over everything the glory will be a canopy. It will be a shelter and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain."  And so we thanked God for both an watertight overnight tent as well as a prayer refuge from the rain. 

The week in the public space of Calvin Commons' has allowed the Holy Spirit to arrange so many divine appointments.  We heard about a mother who had brought her high school junior to Fridays at Calvin for prospective college students, dropping by the tent during her daughter's orientation session.  She was able to receive prayer ministry and rejoined her daughter for lunch.

Nightly worship has been a powerful place to meet the Lord.  James wisely booked a prayer slot after his worship slot, anticipating that the Lord might call His children together for more than an hour.  As James led worship, the Holy Spirit fell upon the group and they were directed particularly to intercede on behalf of the men on campus praying for healing and maturing and realization of their identities as sons of the Father.  At one point a young man so moved, stepped out of the tent to scream to the campus, "Wake up O sleepers!" and soon after more folks joined the time of worship and prayer.  

We continue to for a spirit of sonship (for men and women, boys and girls) for the folks participating, for the campus and for the city.  We want all the fullness that comes with being a son;  the inheritance, the legacy, the commitment to our Father's business, the favored spot.  That is a promise for each of us;  and just like I have become comfortable with being the bride of Christ, so my sisters should become comfortable with being sons (thanks to Ben Pasley for that).

Brad, a 24-7 veteran, came to his prayer slot a little surprised to find 3 folks already in the tent.  Whereas an hour or two for Brad in the prayer garage has felt a little like a mini-monastic retreat, here he felt like he was jumping into something in motion as pairs of women came for twenty minutes and left for class and others seemed to take their places in succession.  He sat down next to a young man who started, in rapid fire cadence, speaking with the Father.  Normally, Brad said, he might touch someone on the arm and ask can I pray for you.  Here it felt like he needed to simply get running alongside his new and anonymous brother in Christ.

This Kingdom flow and intersection seemed to be a dominant theme.  We are in the movement of something much larger and much more fully orchestrated than we imagined.  The last story that Tim shared seemed to confirm this.  Two women from Calvin had met in the Commons for the first time on the opening night of Risen.  In the course of their conversation, they realized that they were both struggling with the same burden, that at the time seemed rather formidable.  Encouraged by their shared burden, they were still stumped as to what to do.  At just that point, the Holy Spirit nudged their memories that a 24-7 Prayer Tent had opened on the Commons lawn that night.  "We should go to the prayer tent."  

And they did.  And as they arrived, the person praying was reading a passage (our secular friends would say coincidentally) about this same burden.  The young women came into the tent and said we need prayer for this burden.  Rather surprised, the woman replied, "The Lord was just speaking to me about this burden in His word."

Tim came into the prayer tent before getting ready for his sleeping shift in the overnight tent and met the two women coming out with praise on their lips for a God—the ultimate cocktail party host—who has arranged meeting after meeting throughout this week.  And we too join with the cloud of many witnesses and say Hallelujah.

---  

We wrap up with a closing worship and prayer session from 7-9p tonight.  And we will now begin reflecting and dreaming some more about citywide 24-7 prayer.  We're struck that public spaces and drop-ins opportunity add exciting dimensions to 24-7.  We're also thinking that bringing together the different generations on a college campus is a powerful Kingdom intersection for blessing and for encouraging.  We will be praying into how this might unfold in the upcoming months.  

Out of a season on campuses, we imagine planting a tent with a particular mission focus in a place like Life International or some other key Kingdom outpost in the city. 

For now we're holding loosely and will be praying for God's leading.  If you have any words of knowledge or wisdom for us, we would certainly appreciate them in the comments below.  If you'd like to join us in praying for God's direction for the future of citywide 24-7 prayer, let us know below too.  We look forward to what He will reveal.  And as we learn more of His plan, we walk in an enduring assurance. 

He will come to us, like the spring rains that water the earth. 

::tony::

light

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.  (1 Peter 2:9-10)

Praying at night, I'm heartened by how the darkness is overcome by the light.  This week as I deal with the darkness in my life, I hold on to the truth that Christ is in me, the hope of glory.  I don't pretend to fully understand how this works, but it's as real as the light post in the ground on the Calvin College Commons.  It's this truth that enables me to step into the light rather than hide in my pride. 

The light reveals things as well.  We can see better and more with the light. 

As I looked toward the library, I noticed a tree in it's fullness, standing with life.  Kingdom glow comes as we abide—through no effort of our own—but rather from the Holy Spirit.  People are seeing more this week, it seems.  Seeing darkness in their lives, seeing reasons to worship for two hours and more, seeing lies planted uprooted, seeing armies rising up, seeing soup pots full of Christ followers being stirred, seeing their true selves as sons and daughters, seeing the Father's heart full of affection and welcome.

It's true that the rains have come this week.  A soggier 24-7 I don't think we've had.  Yet the light is shining in the sogginess and the darkness.  And to that we testify and give glory to God.   

::tony:: 

stir

Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”  After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.  (Acts 4:29-31)

I just finished up reading your "what is clear" post on the blog. It reminded me of something that happened when Jess and I were setting up the tent after you had gone.

Just as had been happening most of the day, we had lots of people who seemed to be curious about the tent and who dropped in while we were still setting up. One girl came in (I think her name was Nicole?) and she was really curious about the tent. She asked a few questions about 24-7 and the boiler room. Then she told us that one of the leaders in one of the dorms on campus had been gathering people together for prayer. She said that as a group they had been learning a lot about prayer together and that she was really excited about it.

She said she wanted to encourage us in our efforts to encourage people in prayer and she wanted let us know that there is something "stirring" on campus in terms of prayer. When I read your blog, I was reminded of her comment about something "stirring" on campus. Maybe that is something worth praying into? Or even just praying that the "stirring" would continue to happen? For some reason it makes me think of Acts 4:29-31 and how even as the believers were bold in prayer, Holy Spirit "stirred" things up, honored their prayers, filled them and gave the ability to continue to speak the word of God with boldness. 

Plus, they prayed that the Lord would stretch out his hand and perform signs and wonders...which is just generally awesome. I wouldn't be opposed to seeing some signs and wonders this week, along with seeing people continue to be bold in prayer :)

Would you pray that God would stir us all?

::casey::

family reunion 2012 : a boiler room leadership gathering

i didn't realize it before i moved into the Stockbridge Boiler Room family, but we are not a stand-alone entity. there are others like us! boiler rooms are settled-in, long-term communities that spring up around the practice of 24-7 Prayer around the world. they are committed to two loves and six practices. the first boiler rooms were in England and other European nations. there are now a half dozen in the US, too. 

and the very sweetest thing about being part of this larger movement is that it's been like marrying into a really massive family. it's a core value of 24-7 Prayer communities to get together -- in person! -- at least once each year. over the years, these annual gatherings of brothers and sisters and aunts and uncles and grandparents have come to feel like family reunions. 
we just had one at the end of april. this one was a smaller one, and we got to host it. we welcomed leaders from each of many of the US boiler rooms for three days of conversation, prayer, worship, and meal-sharing. 
tim organized the event. charis designed beautiful michigan pride name tags for the attendees, as well as gift bags containing Mad Cap coffee beans. emily and casey beautified and cleaned up the boiler room. jordan did some small repairs around the place. danmike scoped out and planned evening outings. many of our neighbors opened their homes to host some of the pilgrims right here on the westside, so no one had to pay for a hotel. 

we spent several 2.5-hour sessions in the prayer garage together, all 40 us. we found that the Spirit led us deeply into the questions of spiritual family and especially fathers. our friends joe steinke and  ben pasley facilitated as we opened up the idea of an apostolic team and recognized and affirmed several good men with apostolic grace, receiving them as fathers who will have the right to speak into the lives of our communities and families. this has been such a breath of relief and an exclamation of joy: to accept fathers into our midst, rather than being a band of 20- and early-30-somethings floundering around on our own. 
in between sessions we caught up with one another, telling stories of what God has been doing in our respective places. we went deep fast. we hugged and laid hands on one another often. we prayed for one another and encouraged one another. we ate lots of good food, including authentic tacos from the taco cart two blocks from the boiler room. 

the weekend impacted each of us uniquely, but each was most decidedly touched by Jesus in important ways. through the gifts of prophecy and encouragement and healing, Jesus ministered to many of us deeply. many of us experience a lot of spiritual attack over the course of the weekend, finding ourselves neck deep in paralyzing lies and fear. but we see it for what it is, and we're free. in some ways, such attacks are encouraging, since they seem to indicate something Big is shifting in the spiritual realms. since Jesus already has won, there's no need to be afraid. 

we're grateful and refreshed. 

::brooke:: 

what is clear

You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen!  (Mark 16:6)

 

So we begin again;  focused on the risen Christ;  joined with brothers and sisters across the city;  encouraging each other as we pass the baton unbroken prayer.

The day opened with an empty banquet tent and damp grass.  And then He began building through us.  The materials Rebecca pulled together.  Don's cabinet and door cross.  All the details from Campus events arranged by Chrissy and Trudy.  Nancy coming through with the twinkle lights.  The aesthetic touch by Jess, Charis and Casey.  The lifting by Coop.  Tim's tall reaching and taking the first night in the tent.  David setting up the sleeping tent.  Lori's and Bill's lovely station.  Step by step to 7:30p when the wonderful Calvin worship team launched us our right and proper heart posture. 

"May it be a sweet, sweet sound in your ear . . ."  We lingered and returned to that line.  It was the intention of all gathered in the recital hall to make a sweet sound in the ear of our Papa.  And He smiled.  That was clear. 

He's drawing people to the tent.  That is also clear.  Ten folks dropped by during the couple hours of setup.  Alan, Rick, Jeremy and Brian were hungry for some time on their faces in the tent.  Would you join me in praying for them to return?  If you're praying in the tent, be prepared for visitors (especially if you're inclined toward liturgical dancing).  Some easy first questions for visitors

• Do you know much about what's going on with this 24-7  week?
• How can I pray for you?
• Would you like to come in and spend some time with Jesus?
• Would you like to join me in this liturgical dance? -only if you're really sure : )

It's clear that He's preparing to do things among the generations.  May the hearts of the fathers be turned to the children.  May the hearts of the children be turned toward the fathers.  One of the brothers in the worship and prayer at the Recital Hall turned our focus toward the generations.  And it was clear from the folks gathered that this gained great traction.  My prayer is that the sons and daughters during this week might find a spiritual mom or dad to pray blessing over them.  My prayer is for the spiritual moms and dads to be honored by the sons and daughters.  May the Father build his Kingdom family here in Grand Rapids.  Join me this week in praying that God might do a great work in setting up this Kingdom family in Grand Rapids. 

Join us for community prayer and worship each night from 7-8p.  Drop in whenever you want to.  Signup for additional slots (we have about 22 left for the week) to keep the encouragement going.  Come to our prayer ministry time Friday night at 7p.  Come to healing prayer on Wednesday May 9 at 8p. 

Come join us and worship the Risen Christ.  He is worthy to be exalted.  And we can encourage each other this week to exalt Him with all of our hearts and all of our time. 

that much is clear. 

::tony::

Why pray?

 

Why pray?

 

 

::tony::

Risen: a week of citywide 24-7 Prayer

May 3 7p-May 10 7p
the Commons Lawn at Calvin College

Come and seek His face together with the Church of Grand Rapids, joining us in night and day prayer.  Worship the resurrected Son of God.  Pray for the city of Grand Rapids.  Link with generations of disciples.  Receive as others intercede for you.  You don’t need to be an expert at prayer;  you simply need to have a hunger for God.      

Sisters and brothers from Calvin College, the Stockbridge Boiler Room, Crossroads Bible Church, Bridge Street House of Prayer, Oakdale Park CRC, Life International, Ada Bible Church and Searchlight Ministries are inviting others to come together with us in a week of unbroken prayer. 

We need you and we’re asking you to prayerfully consider if you could join us on this crazy adventure of prayer.  We are looking for people to pray during 168 one hour slots. This week of 24-7 Prayer will be in a tent on the Commons Lawn at Calvin College.  Your time slot could be in the middle of the night, on the weekend, or just before the beginning of your workday.  Each evening of the prayer week will have an hour of worship and prayer from 7p-8p.  All are welcome.

We hope you will consider signing up as house churches, as families, as youth groups, as elder boards, as accountability groups and as individuals desperate to know and love our Father more deeply.  If you are so moved by the Spirit, consider taking multiple hours of a day to share among multiple members of your group. Online signup will be open beginning 11:30a on Sunday, April 22. 

Signup here.

adopt-a-block (please pray for 5th St)

on wednesday mornings, morning prayer happens in the front yard of danmike (not his real name) and coopers' house, a bit further down 5th St from the boiler room. sometimes we even move across the street to pray, in front of a recently boarded-up home. this mobile prayer practice was inspired by a persistent pattern of chaos we've been hearing and watching unfold on that block of 5th St over the last many months. many months. arrests (7 within 5 days recently), horrifically violent fights, mobs of people screaming at one another in the streets, drugs, dog bites, and loud parties. 

all of this irritates and angers us, interrupts our sleep, keeps us curiously watching out windows, sometimes has us stepping in to intervene. it breaks our hearts. 

we can't pin it all on any one neighbor, the riff raff whom, if forced to move away, would create a quieter and more peaceful block. there's a chaos that seems not to be connected with any particular person; rather, it's in the soil. we've come to see it as a spiritual stronghold, and one rather resistant to being broken. 

but about a week after we began this practice of praying on site, the house from which much of the chaos emanated had all its inhabitants evicted and the city came and boarded it up. did we just pray them out of the neighborhood, we wondered aloud this morning as we stood praying in front of it? we don't know. we didn't really mean to, if so. it's not that we want to get rid of the bad guys, it's that we want the lost ones held in bondage to these spirits of chaos and violence and addiction to be set free, to be transferred into a new Kingdom. 

on these mornings the Lord has been teaching us some ways to pray, and i want to share them here and ask you to join us in praying. 

• that the knowledge of the Lord would cover 5th St (Habakuk 2:14)
• that just and fair people would purchase the 4 (!) vacant houses on the block and redeem them (and that, if they rent them out they might have a heart to take chances on those who have a lot going against them)
• that Jesus' reign and authority would be established over this territory
• that those who have been evicted would find homes where this is shalom; that they might be restless in their sin until they are brought Home to the Father
• that those who move into these homes next would encounter Jesus 

if you stop to pray, and if the Holy Spirit puts other things on your heart about how to pray, will you leave a comment here and let us know? that would encourage us. 

::brooke::

 

to value the kingdom

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.” -Matthew 13:45-46

As I enter into life here at the Boiler Room, I am entering into a rhythm of prayer. One way that the crew here at the Boiler Room embraces a rhythm of prayer is by coming together four mornings out of the week to pray together. Recently, we have been discussing what it would look like for us to reach out to our neighborhood and see the Kingdom of God manifest in the lives of the people around us, particularly those who live on our street. Naturally, this came up in prayer this morning.

As I was thinking about the Kingdom of God and our neighbors, the above scripture from Matthew 13 popped into my head. Of course, at the time, I didn’t know the reference to locate it in my Bible. It felt like a weird verse to pray and I didn’t really feel comfortable praying it until I looked at the big picture of the verse in context. But I still prayed a (somewhat awkward) prayer about seeing our neighbors learn to value the Kingdom.

With the magic of Google, I was finally able to locate the above verses in Matthew 13 this afternoon. Now that I have had a chance to look at the verses, they make sense.

I want to see our neighbors learn to value the Kingdom, to see worth in it like that merchant sees worth in that pearl of great price. I think, right now, that some of our neighbors don’t even have eyes to see the worth of the Kingdom or the worth of welcoming Jesus into their lives. Unlike the merchant, even if they saw the pearl before them, they may ignore it or cast it aside and totally miss its worth. They may be distracted by the appearance of other things (other pearls) that may appear worthwhile, but really are not worth anything.

Oh, but if they could really see the worth of this Kingdom! They would throw off and away those distractions and give everything they have to seek the Kingdom. Even if (and when) it costs.

They would see that as they welcome the Kingdom of God, they welcome Jesus. Jesus always brings good things.

Would you pray that with me? Pray that the people in the neighborhood would have eyes to see the Kingdom…and learn to treasure it.

Also pray that as we seek to show Jesus to our neighbors, we too would have an expanded understanding of the Kingdom. Because, really, I think it is always better than what we expect or understand…

::Casey::