Prayer is the Greatest Role for MSTs
By Carol Tobin
In Acts 2, we find a description of church in its most fundamental form: They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. (v. 42-45)
I remember some years ago when I had one of those “a-ha!” moments: this is what happens in Ministry Support Teams (MSTs). We are drawn into the dynamic of God at work, where community forms around God’s mission. MSTs jointly shoulder the financial challenges, digging deep into their own resources to see the work go forward. MSTs are invited to focus on prayer and to experience joy when the “many wonders” begin to unfold.
“Prayer really does make a difference as we join with God in His work. It makes a difference in the spiritual realms as we live in the authority and power that we have been given through Jesus,” says Mark Schoenhals, worker in Thailand. I am certain that all of our workers resonate with that.
Sarah K., chairperson for the MST of workers Yosiah and Anita (names changed) shares, “There is something beautiful and powerful about gathering together with other believers in prayer for a common purpose. Anita’s request from the beginning was for us to pray, so I set a time length and make sure to make prayer the main agenda for almost all of our meetings.”
Some MST prayer coordinators have launched separate monthly gatherings that provide a context for focused prayer.
Lisa Hawkins solicits an update from her sister Sarah Schoenhals (wife of Mark) serving in Thailand, so that when we gather around her kitchen table at 7:30 one Thursday each month, we have the “inside scoop” as we pray.
Despite being a young professional with her own demanding ministry involvements, Sarah is emphatic, “Prayer is the most important type of support we can give. In our busy schedules it is all too easy to neglect this discipline. Having a monthly time set for prayer is vital.”
The question before us as we serve on MSTs is: Are we experiencing the Acts 2 kind of life? Might that life be enhanced by an increased focus on prayer together?