The objective of the Leader 101 Course is to cultivate the habits of highly effective spiritual leaders. As we move to a new habit this month, remember that joy is foundational to everything else that we do. So, continue the spiritual disciplines you began last month. All of the articles on joy can be found here.
The content of the Leader 101 Course is being made available to everyone in the LK10 Community (ie, those who have subscribed to the LK10 Newsletter). However, the best learning takes place in the context of “communities of practice”. We call these, Leader Teams. To find out more about Leader Teams and to apply, click here.
LESSON TWO: Cultivating the habit of praying the 10:2b prayer
FIRST WEEK.
(Our learning process in LK10 always starts with our relationship with the Holy Spirit as our Coach (Paraclete) He is the One who leads us into all truth. So, read until He stops you. Use that as the beginning point for dialogue with Him. Repeat.)
Your assignment this month is very simple. Study, meditate on and (more importantly!) obey the command that Jesus gave in Lk 10:2b. “Therefore, beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest field.”
Do this as close to daily as possible with your CO2 partner. We call this prayer “The Leadership Solution”. We’ve found that, if you have God-prepared leaders, starting and nurturing life-giving small groups (house churches, etc.) flows easily and organically. The 10:2b Prayer is the part we get to play in securing those leaders.
“What the Church needs to-day is not more machinery or better, not new organizations or more and novel methods, but men (I believe he is using “men” in the generic sense) whom the Holy Ghost can use — men of prayer, men mighty in prayer. The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but men — men of prayer.”
― E.M. Bounds, Power Through Prayer
THREE ASSIGNMENTS THIS WEEK
1. What part of the harvest field has God called you to? In Mt. 28:19-20, Jesus commands us to “make disciples of all nations”. The word for “nations” in the Greek is ethne which actually just means a group of people. It could be a geographical group (the city of Denver, the state of Texas, the country of Kenya, or even just your neighborhood). It could be an ethnic group or age group or some other type of group (Filipinos, Millennials, the US Army, etc.). Peter was an apostle to the Jews and Paul was an apostle to the Gentiles (Gal. 2:8). The LK10 Community has a special (though not exclusive) focus on the “Dones”. These are the estimated 30% of adults in the US who now say “I’m done with church.” (To read more about the “Dones”, go here.)
Notice in the second video below, the geographical location that J. Edwin Orr prayed for. Do you have a sense of the harvest assignment the Lord has for you? (If you don’t, begin to ask Him what that is.) Pray 10:2b for your harvest group or region. Beseech the Lord to send workers/leaders into that group or geographical area. (And, ask Him to connect you with those workers/leaders.)
2. Watch the video of my interview with Kenny Moore below. This is the story of how we began praying this prayer 15 years ago. Notice the second prayer we prayed in addition to 10:2b.
3. Watch the second video below which is the story of J. Edwin Orr. It’s the story of how praying for “laborers” led to a remarkable revival in 1932.
First video. Click on the photo below of Kenny to watch my interview with him…
Second video. When I was a student at Fuller Seminary in the early 1970s, I had the privilege of taking a class on the history of revivals from Dr. J. Edwin Orr. At the time, Dr. Orr was well into his 70s and certainly knew more than any man alive about what the Spirit of God had done in periods of revival throughout history.