A few weeks ago I posted that our team will be starting a prayer ministry in Joinville. We want to start a network of Houses of Prayer, but we’re not planning to start with followers of Jesus. Naturally, if someone who already follows Jesus wants to participate we’re more than happy to have them. But, we’re looking for lost people to start this ministry.

Some of you may already be wondering whether I’ve lost my mind. I have not. Let me explain.

Prayer is our communication with God – we speak and we listen as God speaks. So, we want to teach people who do not know God how they can get to know Him. Many people in Brazil believe that there is a God, but they also believe that they have to have a mediator to go to God on their behalf. We want to teach them that there is just one mediator between God and man – Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 2.5). The very simple truth is that they can know God and talk to Him and He will talk to them.

Our team spoke to about 70 people a couple of weeks ago offering to come and pray in their homes. Yesterday, we spoke with about 120 people with the same offer. We’re still waiting for people to accept the offer. So far, just one person has invited us to enter her home and pray for her family. Yesterday was her son’s birthday. One of our team members sent her a text message to wish her son a Happy Birthday. Here is her response:

Thank you but our life is self destructing, the devourer is having a party in our house, in our life! There is no more peace, love, joy. It is so difficult that there is no more will to live. It has been 5 years that my husband has despised me. He never wanted his son. We have lived as strangers under the same roof. He kicked me out of our bedroom and for 5 years I’ve been sleeping in my son’s room. I’ve fallen into deep depression and several times tried to kill myself. I spent the first year of my son’s life locked in the house crying. My husband doesn’t ever remember our son’s birthday. He says that I’m ugly, old, fat, etc and it is difficult to continue on with all of these humiliations. God bless you for remembering my son.

When we began training people to go into houses to pray for people we told them that they were about to leave the four walls of the church building and enter reality. Here is our first dose of reality. We’re trying to schedule the first visit in this home for this weekend.

Please pray for us as we begin this ministry. Pray that God will draw many people to Himself through prayer.

I can’t help but wonder how many people like this woman live in the shadow of your steeple. You are more than willing to pray for me, and for that I am extremely grateful. Are you willing to go find those around you like this woman and teach them how to have a relationship with God, with our Savior Jesus Christ?