Change in Model of Prayer Tents - Prayer Tents

Written June 8, 2020

Change in Model of Prayer Tents

In 2018, the model of Prayer Tents was changed over time to incorporate the need for small groups. This article will explain the need for the change and how it is transforming today. Even though the methods (the what) may be modified, the purpose (the why) of Prayer Tents are not changing. We exist for people interested in God to connect with Christians near them, that is, form relationships in person, so that they may come to encounter Christ.

Founding Model of Prayer Tents

When Prayer Tents began in 2015, the intent was to welcome people seeking God to an individual Christian near them. This was implemented by having Christians sign up with their home/church/work addresses defined. The main page directed “interested” persons to connect with a Christian near them.

Once they shared a brief insight into what they wish to talk about, they were asked to fill out additional information about them to best match them with someone similar to them.

These settings would be stored on local devices (called cookies) so that the anonymous “interested” person may come back for continued dialogue with either the same or other similar-to-them Christians.

Once they submitted this form, a counter would begin for three minutes. Within these three minutes, individual Christians that registered that are proximally closest to them (home/church/work/last login location) would be alerted (approximately 10-15 members) via notification, text message, or by email, based on preference. The alert would let them know the optional information the user provided along with their “request.” Depending on the Christian’s availability, the first person to connect would dialogue with the “interested” person on Prayer Tents.

The dialogue can lead to many things, including a follow-on phone call, an invitation to a group meeting or church, or simple prayer to help the person in need. To maintain anonymity, even a voice/phone feature was included so that they can talk on their devices without the need for the exchange of phone numbers. This was how “interested” persons connected with Christians.

The results are filled with great stories, such as a person coming in tears seeking Jesus after talking with a Christian, especially when s/he prayed for that 'interested' individual. Other stories include members coming to the Christian's church taking public transportation that took over an hour each way. Other stories include connecting with Christians from a bit of a distance (different states in the United States) and, therefore, connected the person to another church nearer to the 'interested' person. In this case, the Christian had connections with the other church's leaders to get them connected. Churches that signed up on Prayer Tents received many calls, too many (shared in the next section).

People came to Christ. People seeking God came with hunger and desire to learn more. However, this was still a model to be developed.

Difficulties experienced with the Old Model of Prayer Tents

Despite the successes, difficulties existed.

• One Christian cannot always be available. There were situations where a Christian accepted a request from an “interested” person. The conversation goes on for more than 40 minutes, having a good dialogue. A few days later, the same person returns and requests the Christian’s time. The Christian is busy at the moment and cannot respond at that time. The “interested” person does not return. Since the “interested” person is anonymous and has left no contact information, there is no way for the Christian to reach back out to that person.
• Too many phone calls and alerts. Receiving many contacts from people around one's church may be seen as a positive thing since it shows that many people are seeking and are interested in learning about God. However, with so many people putting up requests and having fewer (in comparison) Christians available, the same Christians were receiving alerts multiple times throughout their day. Christians had to place time restrictions to manage numerous alerts. Additionally, a lead pastor in a church in Los Angeles, California, reported that he has been receiving calls at 2-3 am. As much as he loves the persons who call, it was affecting his family and professional life. He was not the only one.
• What to say, and are the Christians true believers? One of the concerns about anonymous one on one conversations was that many people who claim to be Christians might not be genuine Christians. Even Christians who have been in church for a long time may not know the Scriptures or even have a deep relationship with God to share correctly with those who may be interested. Unfortunately, there are no objective ways to determine whether a person is a Christian or not since a Christian is simply a person who has a relationship with God through faith in Jesus who has forgiven him/her for their sins. (To mitigate, Prayer Tents relied on local churches' leadership to verify membership and standing).
  
  Additionally, it may be challenging for the Christian to present him/herself in a one-on-one conversation. That fear may also discourage Christians from 'accepting' requests for dialogue. Instead of relationship-building, it may become a confrontation of knowledge where people who may have studied apologetics may boast of their knowledge while the 'interested' is only seeking love and answers.
• Much more anonymity than true interactions. A life-on-life relationship is a crucial tenet of Prayer Tents. The intent for anonymity in Prayer Tents' old model was to welcome 'interested' people to share whatever may be on their minds until they can gain trust in Jesus (and the Christian). The goal has been to enable them to exchange contact information for continued conversation or meet at a Christian gathering, but in reality, many conversations (and relationships) ended in anonymity.

The transformation that is required, the new Prayer Tents

As a result of learnings from the original model, below are the changes:

• Focus on the relationship through discipleship. Christians are not islands who work alone but are part of a small group who know each other. They would be close-knit in relationships so that the 'interested' persons may observe such close relationships that are difficult to find in the world today. Through discipleship, Christians would be expected to grow and draw closer to God through the continued gathering.
• When an “interested” person seeks a Christian, they can reach out to the “admin” of a small group who can direct him/her to join them in their next group meeting, which is frequent enough that the “interest” may not feel dismissed. Additionally, if one group’s timing does not work, another existing group may be more suitable. The “interested” person has full freedom, while Christians continue to grow in discipleship together. This discipleship is what produces disciples.
• Support small groups of local churches while encouraging building of Biblical small groups in and outside the modal church. Prayer Tents welcomes registration of existing small groups so that the “interested” people can find such groups near them. Those small groups can be within the local church or other Christian sodality organizations. We seek to provide resources so that groups, including family units, can worship together without the need for much preparation.