Another Week in the Prayer Shed: A Report from Isla Vista, USA - 1 Dec 2006
"After walking through the crowds for a bit, we stopped by the two houses on Del Playa that are used by a local Christian group as both a residence and prayer center in Isla Vista. The Del Playa houses are also home to the famous Jesus Burger. As we hung out for a bit there, I overheard a sufficiently inebriated and presumably hungry partier say to her friend as they walked to get in line, "They'll talk to you about Jesus, but you'll get a free burger!" While we were there, we hung out for a while in the Isla Vista prayer shed where students would stop in to spend time in prayer for the town. The prayer shed has been styled after the 24-7 prayer movement that Pete Grieg talks about in Red Moon Rising. With people continually coming and going, there were always at least a half dozen people praying. It was a little surreal to be a part of this passionate prayer movement surrounded by the most epic partying on the West Coast."
[This excerpt is from the blog of Billy Calderwood, the pastor of Aqueous, a church in the Santa Barbara area:]
Mark Yeh, a University of California at Santa Barbara student who helped spearhead the week of 24-7 prayer during Halloween depicted in the above blog excerpt, wrote to the 24-7 USA resource center this past week. His thoughts below give good perspective to the hidden, often unseen effects of our prayers.
"Honestly, I've been pretty frustrated since our week of prayer ended. The reason is because I put a lot of expectation to see something supernatural happen during that week of prayer. It is amazing to see different campus fellowships and churches united together to pray in one place, but I was expecting more than that, like signs and wonders, miraculous salvation or something like that. But, those things didn't happen. So, the last two weeks I've been kind of lost; I lost direction and passion for my life.
"You know what, while I was in Isla Vista during the Halloween weekend, my heart broke for those people. There are so many!!! I kept asking, "God, teach me how to touch and reach out to this young generation." I wasn't sure if what we did really did bring an impact to this community. Praise the Lord, this week I had a breakthrough. I realized that 24-7 shouldn't be just an event. It shouldn't be limited to a single place for people to pray for a week. 24-7 should be a lifestyle, a way of living, and it should be deeply rooted in our DNA. I limited God in my little box, and I was trying to use a formula to figure out His work. But, it doesn't work that way.
"Also, I finished Red Moon Rising this week and it really encouraged me. I read about the forerunners and how they pray until something happens, even if it takes their whole lives. God really showed me that I need to learn perseverance, to press into Him until the end. So, I am still praying and waiting right now for His direction. If he says so, then I will definitely go for it next quarter."
