This past week the faith community convened the annual Fresno-Clovis Prayer Breakfast. FPU was well represented by members of our staff, faculty, students and trustees. We gathered with thousands not just for breakfast or to hear the speaker, but to pray as one accord. Instinctively, Christians view prayer as an essential devotion. We believe that God answers prayers; that prayer with the word of God is a spiritual warfare weapon, and that faithfulness in prayer yields results.

The medical community for decades has affirmed the physical and psychological benefits of prayer. A query to The National Library of Medicine yields over 66,000 research papers on the effects of prayer. Even with all the evidence intuitively, medically and most important biblically, we find this practice difficult to maintain except in times of desperation when we have lost all other resources. So, when we pray, we often approach this devotion quite casually. Even in our churches, which Jesus described as a house of prayer, we spend so little time in prayer.

Oswald Chambers said: “Prayer does not equip us for greater work; Prayer is the greater work.” The apostle Luke records Jesus directing the disciples to always pray and never give up. Yet we are distracted by work, family and the cares of this life. These are all important, but we find it difficult to find a special place for prayer. Our prayers are reflective of our faith and our trust in God. We try to appease ourselves with cursory prayers before meals and meetings, maybe even during congregational worship. But we recognize those prayers lack the fervency to have impact for change.

This year’s Fresno-Clovis Prayer Breakfast gave our community a breakthrough in corporate petitions. Our focus was God and intercession for others. The Spirit of God awakened many of our senses to the power of agreement which bolsters faith. Prayer which grows faith become foundational to creating unity in vision and work. Martin Luther framed it this way: “to be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing.”

Join us in this community of faith in doing the “greater work.” As we gather on occasions, within departments or with a few colleagues, let us find time to complement our work with prayer. This unity of heart is insured to impact our students, encourage one another and establish an effective outreach as we “engage the cultures and serve the cities” through all five campuses and our seminary. Let us purpose to make prayer the breath of our community. “The effective fervent prayers of the righteous avails much with God” (James 5:16).