Week of Prayer Kickoff 2026

After this full morning already, can we open our Bibles to Acts 13-14? Something unique and applicable happens with the church at Antioch. One writer summarizes this as a “Pauline cycle for church planting.” Concisely, the pattern that emerges is something like: “[G]o where people are, preach the gospel, gain converts, gather them into churches, instruct them in the faith, choose leaders, and commend believers to the grace of God.” This kind of Gospel work is our hope for the Wilsons and Baumans. And, notice how this emerged in Acts 13:1-3…

Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then, after fasting and praying,they laid their hands on them and sent them off. (13:1-3)

Today, we’re launching into a Week of Prayer. We’re going to be consistently praying together as a body. There will be small group gatherings to pray. Wed PM rhythms are back, so we’ll be able to pray there. The Elders are proposing that we fast on Mondays during the coming season. And, one prayer piece is asking God for direction, much like the church at Antioch did. We want our church life to be rooted in what Christ and the Apostles did, as reflected in God’s Word. So, fasting and prayer will be our habit for a season. And, we’re going to pray for both of these couples in a moment, specifically.

A quick word on fasting, if this is new to you. There are all kinds of fasts we could pursue. Fasting is more than a weight-loss trick. It’s a gift from God to pursue Him rather than other things. You could fast from television, your phone or tablet, meals, and drinks, and replace this with time to seek God. Jesus gave instructions on when we fast. My personal habit with my family of children is to eat supper together and begin the fast. I wake up, take meds, drink coffee, but abstain from food, skipping breakfast and lunch, then rejoin my family at supper. This rhythm allows me not draw all kinds of attention to my practice. But when my tummy yearns for something, I use that as a call to pray and seek God. It seemed that for the church at Antioch, fasting led them to some answers they were seeking about setting apart people for the work God had called them to. And, that’s where we’re at with the Wilsons and Baumans. Will you join us for a season of prayer and fasting?

After this commissioning at the beginning of chapter 13, Paul and Barnabas go to Cyprus, where God was with them as the Gospel progressed. From Cyprus, they sailed to Perga on the Pamphylian coast. Despite initial success in the synagogue, Paul encountered intense Jewish opposition and turned his message toward Gentiles. From there, Paul and Barnabas ventured into Lycaonia, visiting the Roman colonies of Iconium and Lystra. Along the way, Paul healed a cripple in Lystra and was stoned, while he and Barnabas established at least four churches. Their consistent strategy involved targeting major population centers, preaching first in synagogues to Jews, then allowing the message to spread to Gentiles, while carefully establishing their work through encouragement and instruction. The journey lasted approximately two years, from AD 47–49, and upon returning to Antioch, Paul and Barnabas reported how God had opened a door of faith for the Gentiles. Look at the summary at the end of chapter 14, beginning in v.21…

When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, 22 strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God. 23 And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting, they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed. 24 Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. 25 And when they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia, 26 and from there they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had fulfilled. 27 And when they arrived and gathered the church together, they declared all that God had done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 And they remained no little time with the disciples. (14:21-28)

So, in one respect, we get to be the church at Antioch. The Wilsons and Baumans have returned, and we’ve gathered together to hear all that God has done with them. We get reports from international partners because this is what the Bible says churches do. But on another level, if you look at v. 23, the practice was to appoint elders and commit them to the Lord with prayer and fasting. Today, our church welcomes Jason Nather into the role of an elder. So, I think it would be fitting for us to commit him and Stacy to the Lord as they serve us. Ron Rhoades is going on sabbatical this year, so I’ve asked him to pray for Jason and Stacy.

And, this is distinctly Christian. Spurgeon’s famous illustration involves college students visiting his London church on a Sunday. Before the service began, a man—who turned out to be Spurgeon himself—offered to show them the church’s “heating plant.” Though it was a hot July day and they weren’t particularly interested, the students agreed. When their guide opened a basement door, they discovered 700 people engaged in prayer, preparing for the service upstairs. Rather than attributing the church’s growth to Spurgeon’s preaching alone, he deliberately redirected attention to the unseen labor of prayer warriors working beneath the sanctuary. And that’s what makes this call Christian. It’s not coffee, donuts, or some other metric. It’s simply God being at work. Therefore, we fast and pray, expressing our need for His help.

So, Wilsons, Baumans, Nathers, Ron, come on up and let’s pray together.