01.29.10
UW Platteville: We Are Ready Because It's Time
by Tim Collier, Wisconsin Co-State Coordinator
“I have a hunch God is going to mess some people’s lives up with this prayer thing,” one student said. “I generally think that’s a good thing.”
While we were together, I thought to myself that a week of prayer is a lot of prayer and a lot of slots to fill. As I overlooked the room where students were signing their names to time slots for the next week, I suspected it would be a stretch to fill the week, and there would probably need to be a further appeal by the organizers to other groups elsewhere to get it done. The group there was not small, just not large enough by my estimation to easily fill prayer for a week straight.
Well, I was wrong. By the time I needed to leave and head back to Madison, Pete Johnson, one of the main coordinators of the prayer room reported to me that almost all of the slots were filled.
There were two things that hit me that night that brought to light some wisdom Trent Sheppard had shared through his recent book "God on Campus" and a podcast from the Campus America gathering in Kansas City on January 1. At the gathering, Trent told about his and his wife’s recent experience having a baby and her actually being born four weeks early. For them, they felt like they were unprepared for it, but God made it clear to them that it was His timing and they were ready. They were ready because it was time. Reflecting on how Trent likened this to the experience of Campus America, calling a nation’s campuses to an unbroken Year of Prayer during 2010, I am beginning to see God demonstrate that it is time. Extraordinary prayer is happening in seemingly ordinary places—namely Platteville, Wisconsin—and He is the one calling these sons and daughters to Himself in it.
The other bit Trent wrote about in his book that rang true to me that night was the viral effect of friendship and prayer. He shares from history of different bands of friends on campuses who prayed together, intentionally engaged the world and encouraged one another and how many of these networks of prayer-filled friendships have deeply impacted the world.
That night in Platteville, I conversed with Zach and Mike, two UW-Madison students who had driven out with eight others just to be there to encourage and pray with the UW- Platteville gang as they started their season of prayer.
“Some of the Platteville students were real supportive of us last year and joined us when we had our 24-7 prayer room, so we want to return the love,” Zach told me.
I have no doubt that these bands of prayer-infected friends on campuses who are connecting, encouraging each other and driving hours of distance to be together for this purpose are helping each other accomplish amazing feats and will seriously impact their generation as well as those following for the Papa’s kingdom here on earth.
These guys are ready because it is time. We are ready because it’s time.
How to pray for UW-Platteville as they finish out their week of prayer, which finishes at 7 p.m. ET on January 29 [taken from their campus wiki page]:
-Unity among the campus ministries
-Christians' focus on Jesus, dependence on God in everything
-That prayer would become focus, our response, and our best plan.
-That we would begin to understand and live in the reality of Christ's Victory
-Boldness and revival
[This story was originally posted at the Campus Wisconsin blog.]