Jesus Youth Prayer Meeting (BJMM048)

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Jesus Youth Prayer Meeting

(Input by Dr. Edward Edezhath - JYIFT, Lamluka, Bangkok, Thailand, on 25 July 2010)

A Prayer meeting is a gathering of men and women whose lives are centered on the Lord Jesus and whose relationships are built around a prayer meeting and other shared activities. Prayer meetings are the means by which Jesus Youth grows and spreads. They frequently have a powerful impact on individuals. For many people, the initial contact with a prayer group involves a new encounter with the Lord. Subsequently, weekly gatherings for praise, teaching, and cells provide persons with continuing support for personal growth.

What is a prayer meeting?

Important Elements 

Although there ought not to be a fixed formula for a prayer meeting, most prayer groups over the years seem to have adopted the following basic format in general:

Frequency and Duration 

Once a week for at least 1 ½ hrs (A variety of other forms are also possible)

4 CORNERS OF A PRAYER MEETING

i. Praise & Worship (community of joyful faith celebration, Sacraments)

ii. Faith formation (Use of charisms; teachings and other content input; Word of God and group study)

iii. Group building (knowing one another, sharing and supporting, doing sth. together)

iv. Sense of Mission (evangelization, outreach together & parish involvement)

 3 Stages of a Prayer Meeting  

A prayer meeting is an informal fellowship gathering with three stages:

        1. Praise

        2. Word, and

        3. Fellowship

I. Raising Hearts to the Lord (Praise)

The Prayer Meeting begins in an atmosphere of cordiality and warm welcome. 

1. Joyful beginning - Greeting, fun songs, or activities, depending on the group

2. Building up Praise - use songs, free praise, and singing in the Spirit

3. Celebration of Praise

4. Preparation for Worship

5. Worship and Silence

6. Listening to and sharing of messages/ inspirations

7. Announcements, discussion

8.     Joyful Conclusion

II. Receiving His Guidance (Word)

Listening to the Lord, teachings, sharing testimonies, sharing in groups, and Bible reflection by two or three should all help the group grow in faith rooted in the knowledge of the Lord.

III. Turning to One Another (Fellowship)

This is the time of intercession and fellowship. Knowing the concerns of others and praying for them; introducing the newcomers; taking time for celebrations and announcements; working out details of outreaches and other activities - are some of the ways in which Christian fellowship is built up.
The conclusion of a prayer meeting should be an act of sending forth for mission. Each one should go away, full of the Spirit of the Lord, to be the visible presence of the risen Jesus in the situations to which they are sent by Him.

THE GENERAL FORMAT 

        • Welcoming and greeting 

        • Introduction 

        • Praise and Worship

        • Silent waiting on the Lord

        • Prophecy

        • Teaching

        • Announcements

        • Final hymn

Occasionally, you may introduce  

o JY Prayer format

o Testimonies, sharing of experiences

o Prayer for healing, praying with people

o Eucharist once a month is recommended 

o wherever possible, use of audio-visual aids, skits 

3 FOCUS GROUPS 

  • Committed members are those who have been initiated into the group through the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. They are members who make it their priority to attend a weekly prayer meeting, become part of a cell group where there is one, and join in serving the group through some ministry or the other.
  • New members can be categorized as those who are in the process of being evangelized and have been introduced into the prayer group. 
  • Core Leaders are either members of the core group that meet frequently to evaluate, pray and guide the group or those who lead various ministries in a prayer group.

TO ENLIVEN YOUR PRAYER GROUP

 ↠ Have an active core team. It is the group’s rudder

 ↠ Joyful greeters make people feel welcome

 ↠ Music is the heart of Jesus Youth group

 ↠ The Regional Zonal JY Council/team supports its growth

↠ Zealous intercessors keep the fire burning

 ↠ Charisms bring the Lord closer to people

↠ Good teachings are the fuel of the Spirit

 ↠ Social outreach keeps life flowing

 ↠ A system of fellowship/ small groups for follow-up

VISION OF JESUS YOUTH PRAYER GROUPS

“Where there is no vision, the people perish…” 
                                                                                        Prov 29:18

Jesus Youth is Charismatic in its spirituality, and the goals and objectives of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal (CCR) are indicative of the vision of Jesus Youth and its groups and activities. 

Goals and Objectives of the CCR      (from ICCRS Statutes, 1993)

The ICCRS (International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services) Council lists five central goals common to various expressions of the renewal worldwide. It would therefore be fruitful to study what these are:

1. To foster mature and continuous personal conversion to Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.

2. To foster a decisive personal receptivity to the person, presence and the power of the Holy Spirit.

        These two spiritual graces are often experienced together in what is called in different parts of the             world as the Baptism in the Holy Spirit (BHS). They are most often understood as the personal                 acceptance of the graces of Christian initiation and as an empowering for personal Christian                     Service in the Church and the world.

3. To foster the reception and use of the spiritual gifts (Charisms) not only in the Charismatic renewal but also in the broader church

4. To foster the work of evangelization in the power of the Holy Spirit, including the evangelization of the un-churched, the re-evangelization of nominal Christians, evangelization of culture and social structure.

5. To foster the ongoing growth in holiness through the proper integration of these charismatic emphasis with the full life of the church.

Some Helpful Bible Quotations

Heb. 10: 23-25 : Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful;  and let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

I Cor. 14: 26 : What then, brethren? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.

I Cor. 14: 24 : (If you use gifts and) an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you.

Mt. 18: 19, 20 : Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

The gifts are the manifestations of the presence and power of the Holy Spirit within us so that our lives may be directed according to God’s plan and put at the service of the people of God.


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