PRAYER VIGILS

vigil [ <>

To be on a vigil is to be wakeful for a purpose. To the ancient Romans, that could be to stand guard, spy on the activities of a possible enemy, or prepare for a holy occasion. Originally, the desire to take part in the holy occasion is so strong that you can't wait for it to happen, which means you're so full of determination that waiting and getting ready is all you can do, to the neglect of sleep or food. You don't want to miss a second of it, you want to be there even for the preludes or the first sunbeams.

A prayer vigil (or prayer watch) happens when someone(s) get that way about praying It can be done individually, but it's usually done by a group of people who set it up to make sure there is always someone praying. The Moravians at Herrnhut were able to keep it up for over a hundred years. Most churches and ministries would have trouble doing it for a hundred hours. Today's vigils are done to hold a specific matter in prayer before God. Usually, it's to prepare for a specific action, such as reaching out in witness for Christ, starting a ministry with the poor, making a major decision, or supporting a broader Christian ministry or mission. Traditional church vigils for holy days are not really 'prayer' vigils because so much else is involved, but they do contain much prayer.

To start a vigil, someone has to want it passionately enough to get 8 or more people to commit at the start. (These early joiners help shape and lead the vigil.) That group must decide what the vigil's focus will be, and stick to it. It's important to get the full support of a church pastor. Once that is done, it's a good idea to prepare a written guide that tells what a prayer vigil is (assume they don't know), what this vigil is being done for, how long it will run, and how they can take part in it. Also, it should tell them who to talk to about it. Have one focal place for the vigil, where people know they can go to be part of it. This place can be a sanctuary or a prayer chapel, or even an outdoor site. The place must be fairly quiet, worshipful, and easy to get to. Many can be there at any one time (in fact, plan that there would be times when many will be there), but there should always be someone there for the entire vigil. Privately encourage those who can't make it there to pray at home, according to the guide's schedule. Try to involve prayer-people from other churches, especially those from churches your church doesn't normally relate to.

One last note. A two-hour event is not much of a vigil, but is instead a concert of prayer event or a long prayer meeting. To state the obvious : a vigil takes vigilance -- and puts your vigilance to the test at least a bit.