The 100 Year Prayer Meeting

There are some men and women in history whose lives are a prophetic flame that
continue shining to inspire the generations who follow them. Count Zinzendorf is one of
them.
He was born into the German upper class at the beginning of a new century and began to
seek God at a young age. Indeed through his teen years he adopted his life!s motto" #I
have one passion$ it is %esus %esus only.! &hen he left college at '( years old he handed
his professor a list of seven prayer groups that he himself had launched. His passion and
fire didn!t dim with age$ in fact it increased.
)ventually when the young Count *icholas went off on his Grand Tour + a rite of
passage among young noblemen where they e,plore and see the world + he arrived at an
art gallery in -usseldorf. There he had an encounter with %esus through a painting called
#.ehold the /an! by -omenico 0eti. 0rom then on he decided to dedicate his whole life
to serving %esus despite the discouragement of his fellow noblemen and tutors.
1eturning back to his estate the young Count soon had opportunity to do 2ust that. In
'344 Zinzendorf was approached by a band of /oravian Christians who were facing
persecution in their own country. They asked him if they could stay on his land and he let
them settle in a down they named #Herrnhut! or #the 5ord!s watch!.
.y '343 the /oravian community was deeply divided and critical of each other. They
were disgruntled and disagreed sharply on points of doctrine and belief + threatening to
break apart the whole community. Greatly distressed by this the Count withdrew from
illustrious public life and fame and began to reach out to the /oravians with the love of
%esus. 6t Herrnhut Zinzendorf visited all the adult members of the community. He drew
up a covenant calling upon them #to seek out and emphasise the points in which they
agreed! rather than stressing their differences.
7n '4 /ay '343 they all signed a covenant to dedicate their lives to the service of the
5ord.
7n '( %uly a 8pirit of intercession with groaning and tears fell on Zinzendorf. This prayer
produced an e,traordinary effect. The whole community erupted in a movement of
prayer.
7n 44 %uly many of the community agreed on their own accord to meet often to pour out
their hearts in intercession and worship.
7n 9 6ugust the Count led an all:night prayer meeting following a large gathering of
prayer at midnight where the whole group was moved by great emotion. 7n 8unday ';
6ugust the /oravian <astor 1othe while leading the service at Herrnhut was
overwhelmed by the Holy 8pirit at about noon. He hit the deck before God=and so did
the whole congregation. They stayed there late into the night worshipping weeping and
crying out in prayer.
7n &ednesday '> 6ugust '343 the Holy 8pirit was e,ploded amongst the /oravians.
7n 4( 6ugust 4? men and 4? women covenanted together to pray in regular intervals of
one hour each day and night night and day. 7n 43 6ugust this new order began. 7thers
caught the fire of intercession and the number involved increased to33. They all faithfully
observed the hour that had been set:aside for them.
The kids also touched powerfully by God began a similar plan among themselves.
Those who heard their young cries were profoundly stirred. The children!s earnest pleas
had a potent effect on the whole community.
This awesome prayer meeting started in '343 and went on for ';; years. It was utterly
matchless.
.ut the /oravians weren!t content to stay and pray$ the <rayer meeting launched over
';; missionaries in 49 years from Herrnhut around the world + and all of them were
soaked and supported by 4?:3 prayer. Count Zinzendorf and the /oravian /issionaries
had a profound affect on many others worldwide + including two young men called %ohn
and Charles &esley who led a revival that shook the @A and the nations of the world.
Count *icholas died in '3(; but the prayer revival and missionary movement he
founded far outlived him. Boung men and women continued to flow across the earth
carrying the fires of revival to all who needed to hear. 7ne story of the /oravian
missionaries that never fails to stir the heart"
%ohn 5eonard -ober and -avid *itschman are names you may not readily recognize.
%ohn was a potter and -avid a carpenter. 7rdinary occupations. ),traordinary young
men. They are men who left the security of their 2obs and families to become the first
/oravian missionaries in '3>4.
%ohn 5eonard -ober and -avid *itschman are unsung heroes. These men were not going
on a nice short term mission to the Caribbean or even 6frica or China but they sold
themselves into slavery to answer the call #come and minister the gospel to us!. It gives
new meaning to the phrase Csold out for ChristD. They heard of a slave:master in the
&est Indies who had banned all preachers of the Gospel from the island of slaves he
presided over. The only way they could reach out to these poor lost souls was to 2oin
them. They became slaves in order to have the opportunity to reach the slaves.
Their life!s purpose was to follow the 5amb who had given His life for them and for all
the souls of the world. 7ne of the men left his family begging on the wharf for him to
reconsider and stay. .ut the call and heart of God for these slaves in the &est Indies was
even greater than the pull of home. 6s the ship pulled away from the docks the men lifted
a cry C/ay the 5amb that was slain receive the reward of His sufferingD which became
the resonating heartbeat of the /oravian /issions movement.
Through a young man like Zinzendorf who dared to say yes to %esus and keep saying yes
the downtrodden the forgotten and the broken received hope from heaven.
http"EEwww.burningheartsco.comEherosEnicholas:zinzendorfE