Pastors Begin Triad Prayer Groups

Editorial by Mike Hewitt

Recently our pastors asked if I would consider setting up a prayer group where they could pray together, share each other’s burdens and connect with Christ as a ministry team. This is a fantastic idea! Prayer is the lifeblood of our walk with Jesus, and the depth of our pastors’ relationship with Christ is vital to their own spiritual well-being. It is also vital for successful ministry in their churches and the forward movement of our conference mission.

We already have a conference call prayer group established for Mountain View Conference members that is an incredible blessing to all who participate. Because some of the pastors already join the conference call, I wanted to try something different.

As I thought and prayed, I remembered a small groups class I took while attending Andrews University (Mich). Professor Don James proposed the idea of triad prayer groups or small intimate prayer groups with no more than three people. I felt that triad prayer groups would work well for our pastors. Trust and transparency about individual feelings and struggles is usually easier in a small group than a large one.

Last month our triad prayer groups started with a 40 days of prayer initiative so our pastors could renew their relationship with Christ, connect with and begin to share their experience with fellow workers who can easily relate. I regularly tell our pastors that their success in ministry is directly influenced by their relationship with Christ. Jesus is the Lord of the harvest and the One who must lead our pastors, or their work will not have lasting results. We are very excited about our pastors entering into triad prayer groups where they can regularly renew their relationship with Jesus, hold each other accountable and support and encourage each other in ministry.

Mike Hewitt serves as president of the Mountain View Conference.