What in the world is prayer-walking?  Multi-tasking for physical and spiritual health?  A dangerous walk with eyes closed?  A prayer marathon?  In Paul’s letter to his friend Timothy (1 Timothy) — as he is giving instruction on how to “fight the good fight” and lead a movement that sees people’s lives transformed by the gospel — he writes these words…

¹I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— ²for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ³This is good, and pleases God our Savior,⁴who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. ⁵For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, ⁶who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time. ⁷And for this purpose I was appointed a herald and an apostle—I am telling the truth, I am not lying—and a teacher of the true faith to the Gentiles. ⁸I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.

Let me highlight three points from Paul’s challenge…

1) Pray for everyone — including but not limited to those in authority over us — with every kind of prayer you can pray.  So that we can all live lives filled with peace and godliness.  And the only way for that to happen is…

2) If more and more people know Jesus.  And you know what?  God wants everyone to know Jesus and be transformed by the gospel.  So…

3) Tell people to lift up holy hands (make sure you are right with God, sin confessed etc) without anger (make sure your relationships are reconciled) and pray everywhere.

So to sum it up Paul wants holy, reconciled people to pray everywhere for everyone with every sort of prayer — that’s what prayer-walking is all about.  Will it make a difference?

Sherman Brand was the director for Campus Crusade here at Penn State University in the late 70’s. According to Brand, the late 70’s was a time when some found it difficult to find friends at Penn State who HADN’T recently heard the gospel. And prayer was the key to preparing the way for evangelism of every sort. Once they had Josh McDowell come and speak. Brand says,

We’d been praying fervently for that time. Students gathered for extended prayer, often walking across the campus two by two to blanket it with prayer. Normally Josh McDowells speaks no more than three times on a campus but the third meeting was so crowded that we had to have two talks that night. The campus had a total of 32,000 students and an estimated 12,000 came those 3 nights.

I’m not saying that 21 Days of Prayer for Penn State will result in 12,000 people trying to come to Calvary on Campus to hear about Jesus… but what if God would so choose to respond to our prayers in such a way again?  If you haven’t had an opportunity to go prayer walking at Penn State or — if you don’t live in Centre County — in  your neighborhood wherever you live, could I encourage you to give it a try?  See what God might do.