Holding the Rope: Praying for RP Global Missions
Is there a correlation between prayer and the success of gospel outreach? The Apostle Paul thinks so. In the closing paragraphs of his letter to the Colossian church, Paul writes, “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ...” Since that time, many other missionaries have also made that very connection, contending that prayer support is vital to the advance of the God’s kingdom in the world.
William Carey, one of the pioneers of the modern missions movement, likened prayer support to “holding the rope.” As he was about to undertake his mission to India, he compared the task of missions to a man about to descend into a deep mine. The explorer said, “I will go down if you will hold the rope.” He then asked this friends to take an oath that they would never let go of the rope while they lived. Carey used this story to illustrate the importance of supporting the missions work, especially through prayer.
James O. Fraser was a pioneer missionary to the Lisu people who lived in a remote mountainous region of China. The Lisu were very resistant to the gospel, and James grew despondent in his efforts to reach them. Then he wrote home to his mother urging her to organize a group of people who were committed to praying fervently for the Lisu. Not long after the prayer meetings began, 129 Lisu families came to faith in Christ. Fraser later declared, “I believe it will only be known on the last day how much has been accomplished in missionary work by the earnest prayers of believers at home.”
One way you can “hold the rope” for the work of RP Global Missions is to participate in our weekly online prayer meetings. Join fellow supporters from across the US and around the world in prayer, asking God to advance his kingdom through the ministry of RPGM. Prayer points are provided covering the “RPGM Funnel” and the various mission fields. (The “Funnel” is the training pipeline for RPGM.)
The prayer topics are updated monthly, and each prayer meeting has a volunteer who facilitates the prayer time. If you are camera shy, that is OK; you do not have to have your camera on. However, for security purposes, we do ask that when you first join the meeting that you please identify yourself and the church that you attend.
The online prayer meetings follow this schedule every month:
First Tuesday of the month at 8:00 pm Eastern
Second Sunday of the month at 4:00 pm Eastern
Third Monday of the month at 8:00 pm Eastern
Fourth Sunday of the month at 4:00 pm Eastern
Interested in holding the rope? Please join us as we pray that God would open doors for his word and work around the world, and that he would be glorified through the work of RP Global Missions. The link for the meeting is provided in each week’s RPGM Weekly Prayer Points. To sign up for this email, go to rpglobalmissions.org/subscibe to sign up.
Scott is a Congregational Missions Advodate (CMA) for Manchester RP Church and facilitates one of the online prayer meetings. He is married to Linda and has two adult sons.