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First of All, Prayer: The Power of Home Prayer Meetings
By Joy Williams
December 6, 2004

“…in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7)

The home prayer meetings at my house began out of desperation. Our extended family had many stressors that were zapping our spiritual strength. My niece was going through a deep depression, and her cry to me that, “I just can’t take it anymore” was the catalyst for beginning what was to become the greatest source of strength—not only for our family, but also for many other hurting people.

I also was burdened to the point of physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion. My mom had moved in with my family two years previous, after my dad’s death when she was no longer able to live alone because of mental dementia and physical problems. In addition to this, my already stressful job as an accountant for a hospital system became even more stressful as we dealt with a new software system and a merger with another hospital. My husband’s business was suffering financial difficulties.

Prayer: The Only Answer

My emotional depletion was bad enough, but I realized Rachael’s was even worse when she and her two girls moved in with us (and Mom!) while their house was being remodeled. The only thing I knew to do was to call a prayer meeting. Thus, our home prayer meetings began in January of that year with Rachael, her mom, and aunt (who was having marital problems), and me. The mother-in-law of Rachael’s mom, whom we called MawMaw, joined us at our second prayer meeting. MawMaw was not a member of our church and had not received the gift of the Holy Ghost.

We could feel God’s power at these first prayer meetings, but we felt more travail than victory. We knew, however, that God was hearing our cries when MawMaw received the Holy Ghost at one of our prayer meetings. We continued to feel a great victory in the midst of our struggles, even though things did not get better on any of the fronts. In fact, they only seemed to get worse.

With four generations living in one house and all members stressed to the max, there were moments when the tensions ran high. Even the two young girls (ages 9 and 11) felt it, with one of the girls crying for 30 minutes over something minor and sobbing that she “hadn’t had a good cry in six months.”

Even though we saw no relief from the stresses, we did feel the comfort of God in the midst of the storms. The prayer meetings sustained us, and God continued to strengthen us as we met week by week.

When Warriors Pray

A major breakthrough came in September of that first year. We began this prayer meeting by listening to a tape of Sis. Vesta Mangun’s entitled, “When Warriors Pray.” We began to sing along with the tape, “Draw me deeper, deeper, into Your Word of Truth.” God’s presence fell in a powerful, yet calming manner. It seemed as though we should just sit and bask in His Holy presence to receive what He had for us. As we did this, there was a holy hush that fell over the room. After a while, our babe in Christ, MawMaw, began to tell us that she had seen an angel in the center of the room with a staff-like object in his hand. (Our pastor, Rev. Jonathan Suber, told us later that he felt this was a scepter.) After that prayer meeting, the victories began to come. Although they are too numerous to discuss in this article, here are a few of them.

Rachael’s depression began to lift, she found direction, and got a job that she had wanted.
Exactly one year after the prayer meetings began, in a victorious service, both my husband and Rachael’s husband received a breakthrough in their spiritual lives and a spiritual depth that they had never experienced before. The visiting minister prophesied that my husband’s business would soon begin to prosper.
Even though it is still difficult for us to deal with Mom and her problems, Mom also experienced a happiness and peace that we had never thought possible. Because of her mental difficulties, it is hard for her to enjoy church services, but she participates in the home prayer meetings—even keeping up with the absentees. One night when she didn’t feel well enough to go to church, I came home to find her glowing with happiness and telling me that she had been singing of Paul and Silas.
At this same time my nephew and his wife and three children were raising money to serve as AIMers to Madagascar and it seemed their plans were at a standstill. Their family came to one of our prayer meetings. My brother-in-law was attending this prayer meeting and was used of God to minister to their spiritual needs, praying with heavy anointing for them to have the strength, wisdom, and direction they needed. The family felt that they received an anointing at this prayer meeting that would follow them to the mission field. Shortly thereafter, through the united efforts of our church, friends, and family, the Benson family was in Madagascar.
Just last month I was in Fort Worth, TX visiting my son, but the prayer meeting group still met at my house. Rachael and another woman felt a spirit of travail and both were praying in tongues. One of the attendees this night was a Native American. She was astonished to hear Rachael speaking in what she believed to be an Apache war language. She recognized the language because she had heard it spoken; however, she did not know the meaning of the words. She knew enough to write down the words she did recognize and is currently researching the words to find the meaning. I am constantly amazed at how God confirms his Word in my own living room! I often think back to when we moved into this house, and I asked God to bless it and use it to His glory. I am thankful He has.

As the word of our powerful prayer meetings began to spread, the attendance grew as other hurting people came for strength and answers to prayer, with as many as 17 filling my living room at one time. One of the regular attendees is a native of Pakistan who had taught at a university in her native country. She did not understand what was happening. However, because of her emotional pain, she faithfully attended the prayer meetings. One night she was amazed and confounded when she witnessed something that puzzled her. Because of a stressful situation at work, I needed a touch from God—and God supplied that touch mightily as one of the fellow prayer warriors ministered to me. Shaking with anointing, this prayer warrior laid her hands on me and began to pray and speak in other tongues.

After the prayer, the woman from Pakistan began questioning the prayer warrior closely about how she had felt during the experience. This woman from Pakistan said she knew something powerful was happening because the prayer warrior was speaking Chinese! Our friend couldn’t speak the language, but she could recognize the language.

The experience from Acts chapter two had been repeated in my own living room! Even as those in the book of Acts, she also marveled at hearing a language of her experiences in her native country! “And they were all amazed and marveled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue wherein we were born? ...we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God” (Acts 2:7-8, 11).

First of All, Prayer

God continues to bless even as we continue to learn. One thing we have learned is that we cannot allow the prayer meetings to become just a social gathering. At times we have to stop and reevaluate our sessions to make sure that prayer, with praise and supplication before God, remains the focus of these meetings. We have been assured over and over again that consistency and perseverance and the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man really “availeth much” (James 5:16). As Bro. Suber so ably preached to us, in everything, it is “first of all, prayer.”

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Joy Williams has become a confirmed believer in the power of home prayer meetings. She feels that more home prayer meetings could change the world.