Tabor Baptist Church

Introduction

• God invariably works through prayer
• The theme of prayer and dependence on God runs through both the Old and New Testament
• Prayer is prominent in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ
• Acts 2 - the Holy Spirit was poured out following prayer
• Many answers to prayer were given in the book of Acts

Example of Park Baptist Church in Merthyr Tydfil

• A remarkable work done amongst the young people in the 1950's - 60's
• A work not dependent on the pastor
• We all have an individual responsibility to pray - as the people of Park Baptist did
• Lynsey Brown was converted in 1967 amongst a number of children from the estate
• Lynsey started a Christian Union and held two early morning prayer meetings (whilst at school)
• The Christian Union was reorganised with a reorganisation of the school
• Remarkable things happened - many were saved over a brief period of 6 months (up to 250 people)
• Lynsey met a number of these people at a EMW Conference
• A remarkable work for young people - like John Calvin, William Williams, Daniel Rowlands
• My burden is that young people would be raised up - like Daniel in Babylon
• We must pray for young people to be saved and to be witnesses to their peers

Personal example in Maesteg

• Teaching young people over two summers as a student pastor
• I had the conviction that I would pastor there one day - after my training at that same church
• A call issued and a ministry begun
• 250 active members but only 4-5 converted
• An utterly confused (and unbelieving) people
• The damage wrought by liberal people
• Two individuals burdened in prayer
• We must not grieve the Spirit but give ourselves to prayer
• Behaviour of the congregation towards the pastor
• Examples
• Difficult for 5-6 years
• Beginning to hear of people converted in other churches - why not here?
• Believing that the Lord can change people - but I struggled and doubted
• The EMW Ministers fraternal - a rich fellowship
• The teaching of Jesus to the Church of Laodicea
• Jesus standing at the edge of the Church
• Luke 11 passage during a prayer meeting - v9-11 stood out
• I never thought that I could know God like some of these aforementioned people
• I was reminded to "ask", "seek" and "knock"
• God will not let us down - in fact He will bless us abundantly
• Contacted by a pastor later that evening to engage in prayer
• God was there
• Back to the big church prayer meeting
• A dead prayer meeting ...
• ... but some of the people affected
• Over the next 6-9 months - a number were converted including some of the 'harder' congregants
• Examples
• God does not send revival often as we cannot handle the mortal strain

• Our work in a local house - to 3'000 students
• Example of his brother
• The Lord worked quite remarkably

Closing Remarks

• I hope that I am not just talking about a past era
• God is still calling us - knocking on the door of His Church
• God will pour out His Spirit if we ask, seek and knock