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This article was originally published in Edition (1) of Prayer Magazine, Autumn 2004. Europe is a mission field with more than 500 million people either completely uninterested in church or has never heard the good news of the Gospel. Whichever way you look at it – there is a huge job to be done. Right from the outset of this article, (which will form the basis of our vision), I must lay down some guidelines. Everything you read from this point on is written from the ‘glass is half full’ perspective. A positive, we can make it – kind of approach. If we accept the defeat of Christianity in Europe we deny the power of the Cross at the most fundamental level. If you are like me, in the early days when you first believed, there was a gentle yet raging desire in your heart, to hear as much worship as possible. You wanted to attend as many meetings as you could and pray the most outrageous prayers your mind or heart would allow. There were no boundaries, or fears, but instead boundless passion. You wanted to know all the terminology of this new found faith, you read through the bible for the 200th time like it was the first time, and all this wrapped up in a simple prayer ’Use me, Lord’. Those days have come and gone for most of us, and the routine of Church life holds little of that innocent, child-like zeal that we had. But today something is stirring; a desire to see a breakthrough for God in the UK & Ireland like never before. Many aspects of the Church are re-organising, reshaping, sharing information and ideas with each other. As the sun’s rays usher in the dawn of a new day, there seems to be a desire for change amongst most Christians we meet, and they are praying for it like never before. Across these Isles, there is an optimism rising from the ashes of past hurts and failed projects, for God to breathe on us again. There is an opportunity to work together for the sake of every non-believing man, women and child in these nations; to saturate our workplaces, homes towns and villages with faith-filled prayer for real community and social transformation. This is a vision of calling for a level of prayer never before seen in the UK & Ireland, and with the publication of this magazine, it means we have at least begun to join in. If you like this article, why not subscribe to Prayer Magazine - https://www.prayermagazine. Copyright Use - You can use and reprint this article if desired. However, we require that you reference Prayer Magazine and the Author in the reproduction. |
