What is 24-7 Prayer?

24-7 Prayer is an international, interdenominational movement of prayer, mission and justice that began with a single, student-led prayer vigil in Chichester, England in 1999 and has spread, by word-of-mouth, into 100+ nations.

For more than a decade the global 24-7 Prayer meeting has continued unbroken, impacting locations as diverse as the US Naval Academy, a German punk festival, war-zones and underground churches, the slums of Delhi, the jungles of Papua New Guinea, ancient English cathedrals and even a brewery in Missouri.

Along the way, this unusual prayer meeting has given rise to numerous new initiatives, communities and ministries particularly focusing on the poor, the marginalised, students and those outside the reach of normal expressions of church.

Thanks to an innovative approach to spirituality and culture, 24-7 Prayer has also captured the attention of newspapers and magazines from Rolling Stone to Readers Digest, and was the subject of a British television documentary.

I believe, as a 59 year-old woman, sitting in this prayer room, that if these young people are the next generation, our world is in safe hands. Liz, UK

The aim of 24-7 Prayer is Reconciliation

The 24-7 movement seeks to prioritize Christ's two greatest commandments: to love God with all our hearts and to love our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:30). We pray and work for reconciliation at three levels: spiritually - where there is broken relationship with God, socially - where there is broken relationship between people, and environmentally - where there is broken relationship with our world. 24-7 Prayer exists, therefore, 'to reconcile the world to God through Jesus Christ'. We seek to do this by mobilising the Church in prayer, mission and justice.

For Christ's love compels us because... God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation... We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. 2 Cor. 5

You can find out more about our Vision.

How does 24-7 Prayer work in practice?

Last night, as you slept someone, somewhere was praying 24-7. In fact, right now, as you read these words, people are interceding in scores of locations around the world. This has been continuing every minute of every hour of every day since 1999. Participating groups simply find a venue in which to establish a night-and-day prayer vigil by splitting each day into one-hour shifts, thus filling anything from a weekend to many years with an unbroken chorus of prayer and worship. Keeping rules to a minimum, we simply encourage groups to make their place of prayer as creative and accessible as possible, and to particularly focus on young people and the emerging culture. 

Many of these 'sacred spaces' link up here on the web, forming a unique chain of interconnected, global intercession. You can view some of the groups praying right now.

Launching 24-7 prayer in one of our inner-city church properties has probably been the most important thing we have done to date. Dr Timothy M. Johns, Kansas City, MO

You can find out more about our model of prayer.

Why 24-7 Prayer?

24-7 Prayer rooms have marked many of the greatest epochs in the growth of the Christian faith:

  • The church was born in a 24-7 prayer room in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, and it was said of them 'they all joined together constantly in prayer' (Acts 1:14)
  • Early Christianity was incubated by the monsatic prayer centers of the Desert Fathers, the Celtic communities of Northern Europe, and eventually the Benedictine and other orders.
  • In the 18th century a Moravian community, under the leadership of Count Zinzendorf, prayed night-and-day for more than a hundred years, thereby launching the great missionary thrust of the Reformation. One of their converts was John Wesley, founder of Methodism.
  • In the 20th century a multi-racial 24-7 prayer room in Los Angeles sparked the Pentecostal and charismatic movements bringing spiritual renewal to nearly 500 million people today.

24-7 Prayer is one of the greates things we've ever experienced, Alex Hughes, former Territorial Commander of the Salvation Army

Now you can get involved too!

Why not launch the wildest, most extreme, most exciting prayer meeting your area has ever seen? On this web site you can find out all you need to know to prepare for a life-changing experience of God's presence. We'll offer you a choice of resources to help you set up a 24-7 Prayer Room, then all you have to do is find a venue, get your friends excited and GO!

Either:

  • Read more about 24-7 Prayer Rooms and what it takes to make it happen in our Prayer section
  • Register a prayer room straight away, if you're confident you can sustain a week or more of continual prayer.

The vision behind 24-7 is directly from heaven. It just works! Ocke Kruger, Germany

What else does 24-7 Prayer do?

24-7 Prayer rejects any form of cloistered spirituality that separates itself from the needs of the world. There's an old Russian proverb that says, 'Pray to God, but row for the shore!'   We believe in turning prayer into practical action. For this reason expressions of creativity, hospitality and mission seem to emanate from 24-7 prayer rooms around the world.

The more we receive in silent prayer, the more we can give in our active life. Mother Teresa of Calcutta

24-7 missionaries and communities serve some of the poorest people in the world. (Check out the video of our friend Kelly in Mexico). Outreach initiatives that have been born from 24-7 Prayer, include:

In addition to this award-winning website, which currently welcomes more than 150,000 unique visitors every month, 24-7 Prayer offers a number of useful training resources, including:

  • 24-7Titles - books which equip and inspire lifestyles of prayer, mission and justice.
  • The Transit internship program, based with a 24-7 community for a year..
  • A suite of other training opportunities online.

Communities

At the heart of the 24-7 movement there is an expanding network of missional communities inspired by ancient Celtic monasticism and committed to celebrating Christ-centered lifestyles of prayer, mission and justice. These communities are generically known as 'Boiler Rooms' but can have all sorts of local names including 'Houses of Prayer'. The six core practices of all 24-7 communities are: creativity and prayer, hospitality and mercy, learning and mission.

The restoration of the church will surely come from a sort of new monasticism which has in common with the old only the uncompromising attitude of a life lived according to the Sermon on the Mount. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Jan 14, 1935

Staying Connected with 24-7 Prayer

Like what you read? We'd love to help you get connected and infected with the 24-7 virus too!

  • Add this site to your favorites and log on regularly to share prayers, stories and keep your finger on the pulse.
  • Spread the word. Tell your friends about this site - you could even add a link to us from your emails or your website
  • Stay informed - make sure you've signed up for the free weekly 24-7 Rewind email bulletin.

24-7 Prayer is a modern-day adventure of faith. Every month we rely on God to provide, so that we can continue to run this website, support our staff, and to resource prayer rooms all over the world. We are growing fast, but by God's grace and the generosity of His people, we have never yet failed to pay a single bill. Please, if you believe that prayer is the key to revival, do consider becoming an answer to our prayers by making a regular donation to resource the many exciting aspects of the 24-7 mission to this generation.

Thanks to the 24-7 website, I can now say that I am a Christian.