Last week I dismantled the “prayer wall” we set up in the sanctuary.
If you saw it in person you know it wasn’t much to look at—just three foam boards decorated peppered with post it notes. But when I pulled off the first note, the whole thing suddenly felt weighty in a way Styrofoam never should.
Over Good Friday and the National Day of Prayer our church family had filled that wall with hundreds of hand-scrawled prayers:
- Healing from cancer, migraines, and chronic pain
- Rescue for marriages on the brink and prodigals on the run
- Freedom from addiction, anxiety, and depression
- Provision for jobs, tuition, and rent
- Boldness for witness, revival in our city, peace in our nation
I kept reading, stacking the little squares into a growing pile on the floor. By the time I finished, the mix of heartache and hope had me blinking back tears. So many battles inside one congregation—and so much stubborn faith that God still listens.
Three verses rang in my ears the whole time:
- Philippians 4:6-7 – “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God…”
- 1 Thessalonians 5:17 – “Pray without ceasing.”
- James 5:16 – “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”
The wall is gone, but those commands—and the promises that fuel them—are very much alive.
If you’re looking for practical ways to carry these burdens forward, here are three rhythms I’m experimenting with:
- A Daily Pause
Set an alarm for a specific time (I chose 7:14—a nod to 2 Chron 7:14). When it buzzes, I pray for two or three requests I remember from the wall.
- Mid-Week Check-In - Join our prayer chain at https://my.bbcconline.com - pray for our church family each week.
- Sunday Prayer Corners
After each service a few of us linger up front. No microphone, no spotlight—just an open invitation: Can I pray for you right now? It’s amazing how many walls go up (and then break down) in those five-minute conversations.
Did you slap a Post-It on that wall? Let me know how God is moving. Drop a comment, send a DM, or catch us after a church. Your update might become the story somebody else needs when hope feels thin.
The same God who heard every whispered square of paper still bends His ear toward us today. Let’s keep talking.
Grace and peace - Pastor Sam
