Prayer has always been at the center of my life and ministry, but over the past year the weekly Hour of Prayer on our His Way Atlanta Facebook page has become something even more meaningful than I expected.
What began as a simple idea turned into a ministry that connected people across states, countries, and circumstances. Looking back, I want to share how it started, what it taught me, and what I hope people take away from it.
Where the Idea Came From
The idea for the Hour of Prayer actually began years ago during COVID.
At that time, I was preaching for a congregation in Stevenson, Alabama. When churches were unable to meet in person, I started doing a live Hour of Prayer on Facebook so our congregation could still spend time together seeking God.
When I later moved to Atlanta to help build His Way Atlanta, I stopped doing the prayer hour. Between the time change and the work of building the ministry, it just didn’t seem practical to continue.
But one of our board members remembered it.
Over the course of my time here, he suggested three different times that I should start the Hour of Prayer again. By the third time he said it, I realized I needed to listen. Out of respect and love for that Christian brother, I decided to begin the Hour of Prayer again.
And I’m very glad that I did.
Learning to Pray for an Hour
One thing I quickly learned is that praying publicly for that long takes practice.
If you haven’t spent much time in extended prayer, especially public prayer, an hour can feel exhausting. It can wear on you mentally and emotionally at first.
But over time you begin to grow stronger in prayer.
Just like anything else, you become conditioned for it. Your prayers become deeper, more meaningful, and it begins to affect every part of your prayer life—both public and private.
The Unexpected Growth
One of the most surprising things about the Hour of Prayer was how quickly it grew.
Within a few weeks we began receiving prayer requests from people all over. Not just from those watching live, but from people watching the recordings later.
At one point we had prayer requests coming from seven different countries and six different states in the U.S.
What really struck me was how many people simply wanted someone to pray for them.
Sometimes you start something small thinking you’ll struggle to come up with things to pray about. Instead, we found ourselves overwhelmed with requests from people seeking prayer for their lives and their families.
What Prayer Reveals About Life
One thing praying for so many people teaches you is that life is very similar for everyone.
When you’re living inside your own struggles, it’s easy to think your problems are unique or that no one else understands what you’re going through.
But when you hear hundreds of prayer requests, you realize the needs are the same everywhere.
People are praying for:
- Health and healing
- Cancer diagnoses and surgeries
- Jobs and financial stability
- Pregnancies and growing families
- Safety while traveling
- Loved ones who are struggling
- Grief and loss
The details may differ, but the human experience is remarkably similar.
Watching God Work in People’s Lives
Another blessing has been watching people’s lives unfold through their prayer requests.
Many people submit requests week after week, and over time you begin to see the progression of their situations.
Sometimes you watch someone regain their health or recover from surgery.
Other times, you hear the difficult news that someone has passed away.
Through all of it, I’ve been reminded of something important: God answers every prayer.
The answer may not always be what we expect or even what we want.
But prayer helps us remember that God is still in control and that His plan is greater than our understanding.
The Encouragement of Community
Ministry can sometimes feel lonely.
There are moments when it feels like you’re the only one doing the work or carrying the burden. But for an entire year, faithful people continued showing up to pray together.
Even though I couldn’t see them face to face, their messages and participation reminded me that I wasn’t alone.
That meant more than they probably realized.
What Comes Next
When we started the Hour of Prayer, I committed to doing it for at least one year. Now that we’ve reached that point, we’re going to shift things slightly rather than stop completely.
Some weeks will continue to be an Hour of Prayer, while other weeks may include Bible study or devotional teaching.
This will help create some balance and hopefully allow others to participate as well.
The One Thing I Hope People Remember
If there is one thing I hope people take away from the Hour of Prayer, it’s very simple:
Pray.
Prayer should never be the last thing we try when everything else fails.
It should be the first response to whatever situation we face.
Scripture tells us clearly:
“Pray without ceasing.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:17
My hope is that the Hour of Prayer has encouraged people to do exactly that—to make prayer a constant part of their daily lives.