A House of Prayer
Where would the Church be without Jesus Christ? That's kind of like asking, "Where would a car be without an engine" or "Where would a person be without their head?" It seems ridiculous to think that a church would try to function apart from the person of Jesus Christ. After all, isn't it the Christian Church - the Body of Christ - the Church of Jesus Christ? And yet so many of us in churches today try to do the work of ministry on our own, apart from the power of Jesus Christ.
At Powellhurst, we want to be a house of prayer. What does that mean? It does not mean more prayer meetings or longer prayers in our services. When a person prays, they are expressing their dependence on God. They are recognizing that they need Him. Being a house of prayer is a heart attitude. It is all about dependence. We want to be a church on its knees, humbly recognizing that without the power of the Spirit of God flowing through us, we are powerless to accomplish the work that we have been called to do. To not pray is to declare our independence from God - to try to be the Church without Christ.
God has transformed our lives and we believe that God can transform our neighborhoods, the city of Portland, the state of Oregon, the United States, and the world. This will not happen through human ingenuity, fancy programs, quality curriculum, or charismatic leadership. Jesus Christ can take over our community, but He first wants control of His church. He has promised to act in power when His people pray (John 14:14-16). The tools of the early church were "prayer and the ministry of the word" (Acts 6:4). Why should we use anything different?