Yanick came in, walking with crutches. His legs, twisted and useless from birth, held his weight long enough to move his crutches one step forward. Then another. His friend had insisted he come to this meeting to be prayed for in the name of Jesus.

Born in a Muslim village in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Yanick had never met a group of Christ-followers. It was a small group. Yanick was surprised to see several people he recognized. They talked about knowing Jesus, and a man taught from the Bible.

Then someone asked Yanick if they could pray for Jesus to heal his legs. “Of course!” he agreed, but he nearly laughed at the question. After all, he had been born like this.

A short time later, Yanick walked out of the meeting carrying his crutches! And in the following days, he and many of his family and neighbors came to know Christ.

God does the impossible when we pray! We hear stories like Yanick’s all the time. Miracles like this are quite common in places where people have never heard the Good News of Jesus.

As Global Disciples, we want all that we do to be conceived, birthed, and carried out in prayer, believing that God transforms both our lives and the lives of others through prayer.

Transforming prayer takes us from self-centered, wish-list praying into a passionate pursuit of Jesus. As we pursue intimacy with our Heavenly Father, the Holy Spirit transforms our minds and reorders our priorities. The Holy Spirit softens hearts, opens minds, and draws people into relationship with Jesus. Through prayer, God removes the blinders that keep people from seeing the light of the Gospel that displays the glory of Christ (2 Corinthians 4:4). Prayer is foundational to any evangelism or mission effort.

We regularly practice prayer and fasting within Global Disciples and with our partnering churches and programs. On the first Friday each month, our staff, leadership, and the programs we serve in 71 countries, are asked to fast and pray for the people and trainings affiliated with Global Disciples. It’s been our pattern now for 28 years.

We facilitate prayer teams sent to areas with little Gospel witness, in need of spiritual breakthrough. God has honored those intercessors as they stand in the gap on behalf of people isolated from the Good News of Jesus.

Some on our Global Disciples team set alarms on their phones for 9:38 A.M. and 9:38 P.M.—a reminder to ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers (Matthew 9:38). We ask for Jesus to fill us with his compassion for the lost.

In prayer, your lives and ours are transformed as we delight in being co-laborers with Christ in the mission to which we have been called together. What an honor! May we continue to grow in prayer and see God doing immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine for His glory (Ephesians 3:20).

–Galen Burkholder, CEO & Founder