POWERFUL PRAYER FROM HUMBLE HEARTS 

 

Love comes first, and then prayer. But also, we must have humility to complete the foundation that will lead to a campus revival. A humble heart recognizes the need to be completely dependent on God for everything, no matter how big or small. 

            

Charles Spurgeon called humility “a right estimate of one’s self.”[1] That doesn’t mean being timid or seeing yourself as inferior—a humble person can be as bold as a lion. But it does mean you accept God’s assessment of you—helpless apart from Him while also being immeasurably loved, valued, and empowered. As A. W. Tozer said of someone who has this balanced perspective, “In himself, nothing; in God, everything.”[2]

            

Paul knew the value of humility. He learned to boast about his weaknesses because it was in those places of weakness that God worked most powerfully in him (2 Corinthians 12:9). God shows up powerfully in the lives of humble people. 

           

That’s exactly what God wants for all of us. He gives us the privilege of partnering with Him in His work, but He’s the one who does it. We can’t produce any fruit on our own. When we realize how much we need Him, we fall on our faces in His presence and pray with desperation—not with hopelessness but with the expectation that He hears and responds to the prayers of those who know how completely dependent they are.

           

We cannot change the lives of students if we depend on our own strengths, abilities, personality, relational skills, programs, and strategies. If we want to do God’s work on campus, we need to seek Him desperately and trust that when we humble ourselves, He will answer our prayers and step into our weaknesses with power.  

 

Aligned Hearts

In a posture of humility, we need to align our hearts with God. We ask Him to fill us with the Holy Spirit so we can have His character and nature. With the Spirit we can get in sync with His agenda, and then we line up our activities with what He is doing.

            

Even though God doesn’t need us to accomplish His work, He has joined us to Himself in partnership in astonishing ways. He has given us...

• His nature (2 Peter 1:3-4)

• His mind (1 Corinthians 2:16)

• His mission and ministry (Matthew 28:18-20)

• His works (John 14:12)

• His name (John 14:13; 15:16) 

• His ability to love (Philippians 1:8; 2 Corinthians 5:14; 1 John 4:7-11) 

 

The more we realize this amazing unity we have with Him, and the more we share in His nature, the more powerfully He is able to work through us. 

 

Along to Assist

This includes recognizing God’s desire and ability to reveal Himself to each student in ways that will connect their hearts uniquely with Him. Instead of praying for this or that student to behave a certain way, make a commitment according to our timetable, or fulfill our expectations in one way or another, it seems wise to focus our prayers on the person, presence, and power of Jesus to work in that student’s life—with Jesus leading the way and us along to assist Him.

           

That frees us from praying manipulative prayers, trying to arrange divine appointments ourselves, and riding all the ups and downs of students’ journeys toward a commitment to Christ. Sometimes—actually often—God wants to work in ways that are different from how we think He should work. We can trust Him.

 

Love, Prayer, and Humility

Love, prayer, and humility make a powerful combination. In fact, if we think of people whose lives have impacted us the most, we’ll probably see that combination in each of them. We were attracted to Jesus, grasped God’s unconditional love, and saw what it means to follow Him through the lives of people who have loved us, prayed for us, and humbly served us. 

            

That’s how students will see Him in us too. We don’t have to demonstrate the nature and character of Jesus perfectly—in fact, we can’t—but devoting our lives to following Him in love, prayer, and humility makes a powerful impression on students who are desperate to find acceptance and meaning in their lives. 

            

This is not a matter of punching the right buttons or pulling the right strings to get God to do what we want. He will not be manipulated, and He always chooses to give Himself to us through a relationship rather than through formulas for success. But if we relate to Him deeply, let His nature rub off on us and work within us, and live a lifestyle that reflects who He is, good things happen. As we reflect Him, He works powerfully through us.

            

G. Campbell Morgan once wrote that “we cannot organize revival, but we can set our sails to catch the wind from heaven when God chooses to blow upon His people once again.”[3] Living a life saturated with love, prayer, and humility does not guarantee we will reach every student on a campus for Christ, but it does come with promises that God will bear fruit through us.

            

We can live loving, prayerful, and humble lives with that expectation. Scripture and history assure us of that. God loves students even more than we do, and He has plans for this generation that will encourage and inspire us. We get to be a part of what He is doing. The more we align with His heart and seek His face, the greater our role becomes. 

 

Your Next Steps 

We encourage you to keep a notebook or journal of ideas, action steps, and resources that will help you advance your youth ministry. You can use the following questions and suggestions for brainstorming and developing your goals and plans. 

 

• Think of who you know and admire who exhibits these three traits of love, prayer, and humility, and then write down some insights about how their lives reflect these traits.

 

• Now consider—with humility—how your life reflects these traits too, along with a few thoughts on what “blind spots” you might have that hinder you from reflecting them. 

 

• What specific, practical steps do you need to take to more fully engage in loving, praying, and humbling yourself? 

 

Resources

• Download free:

–      An Awesome Way to Pray—Student’s Guide

–      An Awesome Way to Pray—Leader’s Guide

 

[1] Charles Haddon Spurgeon, “Pride and Humility,” sermon delivered Aug. 17, 1856, at New Park Street Chapel, Southwark.

[2] A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God (Old Tappan, NJ: Spire Books, 1982), 113.

[3] Stephen Olford, Lord, Open the Heavens! A Heart-Cry for Revival (Wheaton, IL: Harold Shaw, 1980), 92.