1 —Punk Messiah
God’s story from beginning to end describes glory getting dirty and dirt getting blessed. The Creator made humanity out of the dust and if, on that day, we left a little dirt behind in the creases of his hands, it was surely a sign of things to come . . .
Scripture Reflection: John 1:14; Hebrews 2:14-18
- John 1:14 contains the shocking truth of the incarnation: that Jesus was both gloriously divine and scandalously human. Pete talks in this chapter about the offensive impact this would have had for both Greeks (who despised the body) and Jews (who had a deep reverence for the holiness of God). What aspect of Jesus’ incarnation do you find shocking or difficult to comprehend?
- Looking at the depths of Jesus’ humanity, Pete says: “We believe in omnipotence surrendering to incontinence. . . . We believe that God’s eternal Word once squealed like a baby, and when eventually he learned to speak, it was with a regional accent. The Creator of the cosmos made tables, and presumably he made them badly at first. The Holy One of Israel got dirt in the creases of his hands.” How does it feel to imagine these deeply human aspects of Jesus? How does this change your view of God? Reflecting on Hebrews 2:14-18, knowing that Jesus suffered and overcame human temptations, how does that change the way you approach the trials you are facing today?
- “We believe in the Word made flesh who dwelt among us as a kind of prayer, and sends us out to speak the ‘Amen’ in every dark corner of his creation.” Where could God be sending you today to speak “Amen” and bring incarnation in the darkness? What unlikely place could you transform into a place of prayer? Is there any area of your life where you might be more afraid or proud to get your hands dirty than Jesus was?
Prayer
Jesus, thank you for your miraculous, scandalous incarnation. Thank you that you put on skin and bones. That you cried, that you felt tired. That you got dirt underneath your fingernails. And that you walked through everything I will experience in this life, meaning that I am never alone, even in the depths of suffering. Would you send me into the dark corners of this world to bring your light? Amen.
2 —The Time of Our Lives
We were discovering that prayer didn’t have to be boring and benign, the gentle pursuit of sweet ladies in their autumn years. It could be militant, defiant, catalytic, even violent.
Scripture Reflection: Exodus 33:15-16; John 14:13-14
- In this chapter, Pete describes his personal journey of growing dissatisfied and discontent in his faith, becoming “increasingly hungry for a truer Christian experience.” Have you ever felt the kind of spiritual hunger he is describing? What do you do when you feel this hunger?
- John 14:13-14 contains a bold promise from Jesus concerning our prayer lives. The journey of 24-7 is that prayer can be powerful, exciting, and subversive, and yet, as Pete says, often we are guilty of talking more about Jesus in public than we ever talk with him in private. How is your personal prayer life? Do you think there are times when you are guilty of talking more about Jesus than with him? What practical steps could you take to grow in prayer?
- Between his vision of the army of young people and the disaster of 9/11, Cape St. Vincent became an important holy place, a “Bethel location” for Pete. Do you have any significant Bethel moments, Scriptures, or locations where you have encountered the presence of God? Reflect on the importance of these in your Christian journey.
- “That was, I guess, what our non-stop prayer room was all about: a busy church finally exhaling; making a little space for God. And much to our surprise, when we eventually did make that space, he accepted the invitation almost immediately.” Where might your busyness have overtaken your pursuit of God’s presence? How could you, and your church community, make some space for God to walk into the room?
Prayer
“Put salt in our mouths that we may thirst for you.” Amen.
PRAYER OF ST. AUGUSTINE
3 —Encounter Culture
The point of prayer, the entire impetus behind the 24-7 movement, is not the power that it releases but the person it reveals.
Scripture Reflection: Psalm 27; John 2:13-17; Jeremiah 29:12-13; Hebrews 12:1-2
- In this chapter, Pete argues that “the focus for any true house of prayer should never be prayer itself, but rather the Father himself at its heart.” How does this description of prayer, defined by the importance of seeking the presence of God, affect your view of prayer and the way you engage with it? Reflect on the prayer of David in Psalm 27:4. Are you challenged by David’s plea in these verses? How might you recalibrate your focus in prayer?
- What do you think of Pete’s statement “It might be healthier if we all just stopped being Christians for a bit —a week, a month, or even a year”? What might it look like for Jesus to “hack your system” and refresh your perspective of who he is and what he is calling you to do? How might you pursue wonder this week?
- Pete says in this chapter that Satan’s number one aim is simply to divert your attention away from Jesus. He lists just some of the ways this happens, including sin, busyness, shame, pain, religion, Candy Crush Saga (!), obsessive relationships, a golf handicap, a pay rise, and illness. What do you currently find are your biggest obstacles to prayer? How might you overcome these things?
- Based on the “house of prayer” texts, Pete identifies five clues to Christ’s priorities for his church: presence, prayer, mission, justice, and joy. How do you see these priorities outworked in your church community? Are there any ways in which you could help to increase these individually or with friends?
Prayer
God, my desire is to encounter your presence. Would you help me to fix my eyes on you, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on your beauty and seek your face? Would you lead me in the way of wonder today? Amen.
4 —The Presence Paradigm
The most important discovery you will ever make is the love the Father has for you. Your power in prayer will flow from the certainty that the One who made you likes you, he is not scowling at you, he is on your side. All the other messages of this book lose their meaning without the infilling presence of God the Father.
Scripture Reflection: Psalm 84; Acts 2:1-12; Romans 8:15
- “The hour you spend in the prayer room is when you refocus, re-centre on Jesus, becoming fully aware of his presence once again. When this happens, you can carry God’s presence with you into the other twenty-three hours of the day, knowing all the time that he is with you, he is for you. . . . When problems arise you’ll pray in real time, right then and there. . . . In fact, your life will become that moment: a continual conversation with God.” What did you think of Brennan Manning’s description of prayer? Does this change anything about your approach to your quiet time?
- What did you think of the challenging statement from Madeleine L’Engle that “to be a witness is to be a living mystery. It means to live in such a way that one’s life would not make sense if God did not exist”? Reflect on the witness of your own life. What areas of your life right now don’t make sense to your non-Christian friends, and where in your life could you be challenged to live more counter-culturally?
- Pete argues in this chapter that our primary calling as a house of prayer for the nations is to celebrate and demonstrate God’s presence on earth. How important do you think this “presence paradigm” is? What does this look like for you and your church community? What practical measures could you put in place to increase your celebration and demonstration of God’s presence in your community?
Prayer
“How lovely is your dwelling-place, LORD Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.” Thank you, God, that you have made me a temple of your Holy Spirit and that I can encounter your presence in my life every day. Help me today to carry your infectious, joyful presence to everyone I meet. Amen.
5 —All Hell
The truth is this: There are terrible evils that will only be restrained, and wonderful blessings that will only be unlocked, by our prayers. “You do not have,” says the apostle James very simply, “because you do not ask God” (James 4:2). The Lord’s purposes are contingent upon our prayers because he has chosen to work in partnership with our free wills.
Scripture Reflection: Ephesians 6:10-20; Job 9:10
- In this chapter Pete talks about the authority we have as Christians in the spiritual realm. He identifies two opposing problems we often have in this area: overplaying our own significance, and underestimating the authority we have as children of God. Which of these do you identify more strongly with? What might God want to teach you today about the role your prayers play in the spiritual realm?
- Have you ever experienced God performing miracles in your life or the life of your friends? How did these “mountaintop” moments affect your relationship with God?
- Reflect on the armour of God found in Ephesians. In which of the areas below do you want to grow more, and what practical steps could you put in place this week to do that? The armour of God: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:10-20).
Prayer
God, thank you that you provide for our needs and even our desires each and every day. Thank you that sometimes you work in wondrous miracles and sometimes in the beautiful creativity of the normal. Please help me to understand and take hold of my authority in the spiritual realm, that I might partner with you in the coming of your kingdom. Amen.
6 —Super Bowl
The King of Kings requests your presence “at the very seat of government.” He offers you a place on his executive so that you can influence his actions on behalf of the people. . . . The Bible is clear that our opinions and choices really can shape history; that our prayers really do make a difference in the world.
Scripture Reflection: 2 Chronicles 7:1-14; Luke 18:1-8; 2 Corinthians 1:20
- Pete talks about intercessors actively laying hold of the promises of God with “violent insistence.” Have you ever experienced prayer like this? Reflecting on the parable of the persistent widow (Luke 18), how important do you think this kind of intense and intentional intercession is, and how might you grow in this area? What prayers might God be calling you to keep praying and not give up?
- Pete makes a challenging statement when he says: “I suspect that many of our prayer meetings today are less effective than they could be because we merely ask but we don’t expect.” In your church community, what is the level of expectancy when you pray? Do you expect God to move in nations or major stadium events like the Super Bowl story when you pray for them? How can we raise the faith level in our prayer times?
- In this chapter Pete argues that far more of our prayers are consistently being answered than we will ever realise, but that we are blind to the goodness of God all around. The solution, he says, is this: “Our eyes can only be opened to see the world as it truly, objectively is by nurturing a daily attitude of gratitude.” How might you begin to nurture gratitude more on a daily basis? Pause and reflect on the blessings that God has given you this week and the way he has been present with you every day.
Prayer
God, I thank you that the wild and radical truth of the Bible is that the rusty hinge of human history turns out to be the bended knee. Thank you that in the place of prayer you invite us in to partner with you in your work in the world. Would you increase my expectancy and faith? May my prayers be an “Amen” to your desires today. Amen.
7 —Blue Camp 20
Secretly I was struggling profoundly with the same temptations to stop pioneering, to settle down for an easier life. . . . Somehow the world I’d been trying to change had begun changing me. I’d always had a thirst for adventure, but it had been the craziest five years imaginable; it had been heaven, but it had sometimes also hurt, and I simply wasn’t sure I could face any more pioneering.
Scripture Reflection: Hebrews 11:1-10; Ephesians 4:1
- Pete describes in this chapter the encounter he had with God which challenged his temptation to settle down and pushed him back into pioneering for the vision which had once fired his soul: “It’s perfectly possible to settle for our current level of spiritual experience, but we are given the opportunity to strike out again into the wilderness seeking a deeper place of relationship with God than ever before.” Where have you experienced this temptation to stop chasing after your dreams and visions? Or to settle for a smaller, more sedate version of what God has called you to do?
- Abraham pressed on into the calling of God rather than settling as his father had done before him. Pete argues in this chapter that often the pain and grief we walk through in life causes us to re-evaluate the vision and calling we have and can make us settle in the place of our pain. Is there any disappointment or pain that has caused you to doubt and bury your God-given dreams, or to redefine your relationship with God and the calling he has for you? How could your friends and church community support you in this?
- In this chapter, Pete describes Brian as an anam cara, a “soul friend,” and together they supported and pushed one another into the frontiers to which God was calling them. Do you have anyone you would describe as a “soul friend” in this way? How might you encourage them this week to keep pressing into the visions and dreams God has given them?
Prayer
“Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves; when our dreams have come true because we have dreamed too little; when we arrived safely because we have sailed too close to shore. Disturb us, Lord, when with the abundance of the things we possess, we have lost our thirst for the water of life. Stir us, Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture on wider seas, where storms will show your mastery; where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars. We ask you to push back the horizons of our hopes and to push us into the future in strength, courage, hope and love. Amen.”
AUTHOR UNKNOWN
8 —Strange Angels
The church is a prayer-fuelled missionary movement, continually discomfited by the consequences of its own gospel.
Scripture Reflection: Acts 10:9-15; Isaiah 6:8; Mark 2:13-17
- In this chapter Pete argues that true prayer provokes and propels us out of our “holy places” to engage with the unchurched and overcome any religious prejudice. In this way, many 24-7 prayer rooms have spilled out into radical missional expressions all over the world. In what ways are you and your church community being commissioned out from the place of prayer into mission in your local context? How might you increase in missional prayer (praying for the lost in your community and beyond) and prayerful mission (stepping outside the church walls and reaching the lost)?
- Pete describes Brian’s faith journey and the incredible, unique way in which he was positioned to pioneer the work in Ibiza. Think about your own journey of faith and the experiences and lessons God has taught you along the way. How might recognising God’s hand in your testimony help lead you to step into your destiny?
- “To reach the unchurched we will have to leave the church to visit places and people we might previously have considered ‘unclean.’” What do you think of this statement? Reflecting on the witness of Jesus to the “unclean” people of his day, who do you think is culturally “unclean” in your neighbourhood? How could you reach out to these people?
Prayer
“Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding and my entire will, all I have and call my own. You have given all to me. To you, Lord, I return it. Everything is yours; do with it what you will. Give me only your love and your grace; that is enough for me.”
PRAYER OF ST. IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA
9 —Porky the Pirate
Those who pray continually without engaging missionally are simply missing the point. If we claim to have our eyes fixed on Jesus and yet fail to focus on the profound needs that break his heart, we are hypocrites.
Scripture Reflection: Mark 11:15-18; Romans 15:20-21; Hebrews 12:1-3; Isaiah 56:4-8; Hebrews 10:19-23
- Pete talks in this chapter about the two axes of the Christian life: the vertical axis of coming to God in prayer and worship, and the horizontal axis of going out into all the world to make disciples. Which of these two do you find comes most easily to you and your church community? How might you grow in both of these aspects to increase your intimacy with God and your mission to your neighbourhood?
- Reflect on Mark 11:15-18. As well as the fact that the people were being exploited, Pete argues that Jesus was angry that people were being excluded from the house of God: “His message was unequivocal: A house of prayer that is inaccessible, unwelcoming, and disengaged from the lost is failing to be a true house of prayer.” Are there any areas of your church community where you could be more focused on including, welcoming, and engaging outsiders? How could you develop a culture of welcome and inclusion in your church that goes beyond offering a cup of coffee on a Sunday morning and shaking their hand on their way out?
- Pete shared some of the stories of radical mission pioneering which inspired the 24-7 prayer movement to continue to step outside the prayer room and define itself by the fact that “the majority of people in our generation are turning their backs on Jesus.” What stories of mission have most inspired you? What impact have these had on your expectation of what the Christian life looks like?
Prayer
Jesus, we love encountering your presence in the place of prayer and worship. Thank you that you could not be contained by the Holy of Holies, but continue to break through into our lives every day with your presence. Please give us your heart for the lost, unsettle our cosiness and our comfort, and send us out to go and carry your presence like light bulbs to every lost and excluded corner of this planet. Amen.
10 —Word on the Street
The flow of the gospel is this . . . “I was hugged . . . until I cried, held so close that the excrement wiped off me onto his white robes, listened to until I had no more lies inside me, accepted until I was changed.”
Scripture Reflection: Acts 17:16-34; Luke 23:32-43; Luke 15:11-24
- Reflect on the examples of mission explored in this chapter, from Hudson Taylor with his ponytail, to the Jesus Loves Ibiza Bible, to the apostle Paul evangelising with the use of an idol. What would mission which recognises and celebrates what is good in culture look like in some of the “weird and dark” places of your neighbourhood? Where might you have heard the whisper of God emanating from unlikely people this week?
- “We were discovering, I think, that prayer is more than a preliminary to evangelism —it can also be an effective form of missional engagement in its own right. People who don’t want to be preached at almost always still want to be prayed for.” What did you think of this idea of prayer as a form of missional engagement? Have you ever tried it? What were your experiences like? And would you ever consider exploring this within your community and neighbourhood?
- What did you think of Pete’s argument that the traditional idea that we must first articulate a coherent confession in order to activate Christ’s forgiveness may well be unbiblical? How does it change the nature and style of our evangelism if we approach people as those who have already been forgiven by Jesus? In what practical ways could you put that into place this week?
Prayer
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ where I lie, Christ where I sit, Christ where I arise,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of every one who speaks to me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
Salvation is of the Lord.
Salvation is of the Christ.
May your salvation, Lord, be ever with us. Amen.
PRAYER BY ST. PATRICK
11 —Boy’s Town
The simple key to fighting injustice and unlocking your highest destiny is the word yes addressed to God. Perhaps he is waiting for you in a prayer room somewhere even now, or speaking to you through this book, inviting you to seek his face and to allow your heart to be broken with his deep concerns. Perhaps he is wanting to wreck your life for good; longing to give you the commission for which you were born.
Scripture Reflection: Isaiah 58:1-12; Luke 4:14-21; Amos 5:21-24
- “‘No!’ she wanted to cry. ‘We can’t just ignore a place like that. Surely that’s why we’re here. Not to play religious games. Jesus wouldn’t have ignored Boy’s Town, and neither should we.’” Has God ever broken your heart like this for a particular place or people? How might your sung worship and prayer spill over into acts of justice and care for the poor in your community this week?
- Kelly’s compassion and calling to the people of Boy’s Town resulted in many personal sacrifices being made in order to reorder her life around the broken, the hurting, and the lost. Are there any sacrifices (for example, your time or your finances) that God might be calling you to make as you serve those that he has placed on your heart? How could you support one another in this pursuit within your church community?
- “The church, at its best, has always been radically committed to a gospel that is revolutionary both socially and spiritually.” What do you think of this statement? What might it look like for the kingdom of God to radically transform both the spiritual and practical needs of your community?
Prayer
I am no longer my own but yours.
Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing, put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you, or laid aside for you,
exalted for you, or brought low for you;
let me be full, let me be empty,
let me have all things, let me have nothing:
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things
to your pleasure and disposal.
And now, glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
you are mine and I am yours.
And the covenant now made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.
PRAYER BY JOHN WESLEY
12 —The Foundery
The consequences of the gospel are profoundly structural as well as spiritual. The cross of Christ must be brought to bear on the systemic strongholds of sin within societies, as well as the individual realities of personal repentance and morality.
Scripture Reflection: Luke 18:18-29; Luke 10:25-37; Proverbs 21:15
- When faced with the injustices in our world or when terrible disasters take place, it can be challenging to truly intercede for God’s intervention. Pete lists four reasons why he suggests we struggle with this: a limited worldview, a low self-esteem, doubts about prayer, practical questions about how to pray. Do you identify with any of these? Is there anything else you would add to the list?
- Do you find Pete’s “three Ps” helpful in beginning to pray for global justice? (1) People afflicted: comfort. (2) Pastors: courage. (3) Peacemakers: clarity. Often it is easy to overlook or forget justice issues in our prayer lives. What creative measures could you put in place to help you remember the three Ps and intercede for justice when you see suffering in your community or on the news or social media?
- If “justice is what love looks like in public” (Dr. Cornel West), in what practical ways could you love your neighbourhood this week? What systems of oppression or dark pockets of suffering exist, and where could you “pick a fight” with injustice both globally and locally?
Prayer
Jesus, thank you that through prayer and action in the world, we can live our lives as an “Amen” to your heart for justice. Help us to dismantle the systems and structures that are creating pain in our world. Teach us how to show love and justice in our communities. And may we always love you, love our neighbours, and take the gospel to the nations. Amen.
13 —Dirty Dancing
In Christ we find the name above every other name, the single key to eternal salvation, recklessly risking his reputation for the sake of love. He clearly didn’t care about the opinions of the religious establishment, wasn’t afraid of being corrupted by sinful company, didn’t feel the need to protect his precious brand. Again and again, Jesus chose to plant his glory in the dirt.
Scripture Reflection: John 1:14; John 8:1-11; Revelation 5:8-10
- “In Norah’s room that night, watching a pastor from one of the most religious places in the Western world risking his reputation for a moment of grace with a single broken soul, I saw this same contagious holiness in action.” In describing that beautiful dance between Kelly’s pastor and a retired prostitute, Pete reminds us that our calling as Christians is not to shy away from the “dirt” but to carry with us “contagious holiness” and bring grace wherever we go. How could you pursue contagious holiness this week? Is there any area where you might value your reputation more than the opportunity to show grace and kindness to people around you?
- What do you think of the following statement from Pete? “It may well be important to advocate for the poor politically, to fight against systems of oppression structurally, to shop ethically. But Jesus teaches us to earth such engagement in localised compassion. Resisting those who wanted him to take a far stronger political stance against Roman tyranny, Jesus changed the world by changing individual hearts.” Does this challenge the role that justice and mercy play in your day-to-day life? What about the life of your church community?
- True justice begins at home with simple acts of kindness. What tangible act of kindness could you do this week that would show grace to brokenness and contagious holiness to those in your neighbourhood? Try committing to at least one relational, incarnational act of kindness this week.
Prayer
Jesus, thank you that again and again, you chose to plant your glory in the dirt. Thank you that you showed up before we had done anything at all to heal ourselves or save ourselves or make ourselves more deserving, when we were still just an unholy, seething mess. Thank you that you stood with great dignity, faced us squarely in our shame and, with a smile, invited us to dance. Please help us to live with small and great acts of kindness to the broken people around us, that we might live with contagious holiness and incarnate your grace to everyone we meet. Amen.
14 —Let Us Begin
When you become a Christian you take your first step out of futility and into your destiny. When you keep surrendering your life, your plans and preferences, again and again, to the Lordship of Jesus, saying yes to whatever he says, you look around one day blinking in amazement at the ways he has deployed you, the places he has taken you, the person he is enabling you to become.
Scripture Reflection: Ephesians 3:20-21; John 17:20-26
- Reflect on the Jesuit “Litany of Humility.” Which aspects of this do you find hardest to pray? How might it affect unity within your church community and across all the denominations in your city if Christians everywhere were committed to unity and living this level of humility?
O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being loved, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being extolled, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being honoured, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being praised, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being preferred to others, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being consulted, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being approved, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being humiliated, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being despised, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of suffering rebukes, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being calumniated [slandered], deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being forgotten, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being ridiculed, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being wronged, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being suspected, deliver me, O Jesus.
That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be esteemed more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That, in the opinion of the world, others may increase and I may decrease,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be chosen and I set aside,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be praised and I go unnoticed,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be preferred to me in everything,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
- “If the previous years had taught us anything at all, it was simply to say yes to God and work out the details along the way.” As this book draws to a close, is there anything you feel God calling you to say yes to?
- What would “Blue Camp 20” look like in your life? And what is your “Santa Fe”? If, as Pete says, we have only just begun, what are you going to do to make sure you keep pressing on after God rather than settling where it feels comfortable? In reading this book, have you heard any divine whispers of kingdom mischief he might be calling you to create?
Prayer
Sovereign God. We would be a people consumed by your glory. Set alight by the fire of God. Help us to live in the radical simplicity of saying yes, OK, and amen to your divine whispers . . . the plans that you have for us. And may we continually, just like Jesus, give of ourselves to the lost, the broken, and the needy. Spreading contagious hope and holiness . . . that your will would be done and your kingdom come in every corner of the earth as it is in heaven. Amen.