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“What you'll get is the Holy Spirit. And
when the Holy Spirit comes on you, you will be able to be my witnesses
in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the
world . . . They agreed they were in this for good, completely together
in prayer . . . When the Feast of Pentecost came, they were all together
in one place. Without warning there was a sound like a strong wind,
gale force--no one could tell where it came from. It filled the whole
building. Then, like a wildfire, the Holy Spirit spread through their
ranks, and they started speaking in a number of different languages
as the Spirit prompted them.”
Acts 1:8, 14, 2:1-4
The Message
…and the Gospel spread.
A Whole Night for the Whole World
Pentecost Eve, Saturday Night, 27 May, 2007
On
this night around the world, thousands or perhaps millions of young
people will be praying for global revival in our generation. We will
join together on our knees to ignite and accelerate God’s plan
for this fallen world. In 2005, at least 253 groups and 152 individuals,
in 56 countries, on six continents prayed together.Last year was awesome...will
you join us in 2007?
It was the prayers of a few, gathered together in the Upper Room,
who experienced firsthand the power of the Holy Spirit, who began
to testify, who saw multitudes added to their numbers, who turned
the world upside down.
The world is waiting . . .
Why should we pray?
Why did we choose the Saturday night before Pentecost Sunday?
I’ve never prayed all night. How do I do it?
How do I get started?
Why should we pray?
The challenges and opportunities of our world demand it! As Christian
young people, we cannot continue with business as usual. Jesus modeled
it. Jesus commanded it. It was not unusual for him to pray all night,
and expect His followers to do the same. Prayer is life-changing for
us…and the world too.
Why did we choose the Saturday night before Pentecost Sunday?
As global youth leaders sought God’s wisdom and leading about
when would be a compelling night to pray, it was sensed that the Saturday
night before Pentecost was a great night. Praying on Pentecost weekend
has great symbolism. Jesus asked his followers to assemble and pray
after his departure. It was during this time of prayer that the Holy
Spirit was given to those disciples and the Church was birthed. Pentecost
is also one of the important days in the Church calendar, which transcends
cultures and traditions.
I’ve never prayed all night. How do I do it?
Stepping out in faith to pray all night will ignite your heart for
the world and take prayer to a new level. Ask God to lead you and
your group in how to pray during this time. There are some ideas and
a list of resources included in this website.
As your think about praying all night, your time should be:
Inspirational – focus on God and His glory
as well as what He desires to do in your life and the lives of others.
Interesting – Prayer was never meant to be
boring. Ask God to show you how to make your time something to look
forward to.
Instructive – This night of prayer should be
a time to learn more about God, prayer, and how we can pray for God’s
work around the world. What new things do we need to learn about God
and missions? What new things does God want to teach me and my friends
about the Great Commission?
How do I get started?
First, share the vision and idea with others. Who can join you for
this night of prayer? Who else needs to know about this? Email everyone
who you think would be interested in praying. Send them to this website.
Since time is short, don’t procrastinate on letting others know
about this important night of prayer.
Note: if you will be going on a mission trip or another ministry
opportunity soon, ask your friends, family, your church, your supporters,
and your prayer partners to join you for “A Whole Night for
the Whole World.”
Second, think who can help you organize this night of prayer? Who
can you can partner with? What ideas do you have and what resources
do need?
Third, register
now if you plan to join in prayer.
Finally, pray that this night God would ignite and accelerate His
work in your life as well as millions of young people around the world.
Stories on the Power of Prayer
Rodrigo's Story
Five years ago I belonged to a gang. We would go into stadiums with
drums to rally the fans, but outside is where the gangs faced each
other. I was responsible for getting the guns and weapons inside the
drums and get them to the stadium and the police never knew about
this. This went on from 16 until 21. My life was full of violence,
drinking, and sex.
One day I went to church, and happened to meet Lenira,
Brazil Youth for Christ's National Prayer Coordinator, and she said
to me, "We are praying for you." That is all she said, which
made me happy because they often talk a long time. It touched something
inside of me. I continued to live my life but gradually the parties,
fighting, girls did not satisfy me anymore.
One Saturday evening while partying, I felt I needed
to leave and I got up and left. On Sunday I felt the urge to go to
church and one of the Deborah's (praying mothers) said that they had
been praying for me.
Some time later I was attacked by a group of guys
and ended up in the hospital and the Deborah women were praying for
my life to be spared. My family was not from church and I didn't know
anyone from church really and I didn't know why they cared so much
about me. I finally understood how God's love works. I understood
that I did not have to be someone to be important for God to care
for me. There was no evangelism impact, there was no church service,
it was a group of ladies who got on their knees and prayed for my
life, and I finally understood God's love.
"Everything that you do in life echoes in eternity."
If you have to choose between doing and praying, always pray because
it is God that will do it and He will rescue those that you cannot
reach.
A Story of How Prayer Has Impacted an Entire People
Group
A few years back, a Junior High youth group in Philadelphia took a
mission trip to a town in Mexico. The kids were so struck by the spiritual
and physical needs of the Tarahumara people, that they began to pray
that God would use them to reach the Tarahumara's. As they prayed,
they were moved to share this vision with the leadership of the church.
The leadership got excited about the possibility of planting a church
among the Tarahumara people and began to investigate how this could
be done. It turns out, evangelism and discipleship was going to be
difficult in this group since there was no Scriptures in their language.
But, they didn't give up because by now, the whole church was on board
with the vision of reaching the Tarahumara people. God had moved them
onto His agenda through prayer. They contacted Wycliffe to help them
figure out the Bible translation "piece" of reaching this
group. To make a long story short, this church is now using the resources
God has put in their midst as well as tapping into the resources of
other agencies to reach the Tarahumara people. There will be Tarahumara
young people coming to Christ in this generation as a result of the
prayers and vision of a Junior High youth group!
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