I’ve been under the stage with my friends Steph and Nancy, as well as my nephew Brad, at outreach events on various university campuses. We’ve all been with our faces to the floor in pleading prayer while the bands above shook the stage—and while the gospel of Jesus Christ was shaking hearts.
My longing has been for God to stir in revival and spiritual awakening on campuses—and not only on campuses, but in churches, cities, and our nation. So crawling under a stage to pray seems like a small sacrifice when so much is at stake. We desperately need a Christ-awakening, and many people have gone before me with worn-out knees and that same prayer for God to move.
Stirrings of Awakening
And now, a year later, I can see that God is hearing those cries and He is moving! On the National Day of Prayer (NDOP) last year, Steph and I crawled under the stage at the Mariucci hockey arena at the University of Minnesota campus to pray while Bob Bakke and Nick Hall led a few thousand students and adults in prayer for this great awakening. (I guess we can be thankful for concrete instead of ice!)
Since that time, I can tell you that thousands of university students have given their lives to Jesus Christ. Nick did not know a year ago that he was to be launched on a nationwide tour that allowed him to preach the gospel message to hundreds of thousands of people in more than 50 cities. He saw the stirring of revival as more than 150,000 people stood up and surrendered their lives to Christ!
And since that time, God moved in the hearts of many prayer leaders across this nation to launch OneCry, a unified call to prayer for spiritual awakening in the U.S. Bob Bakke did not know last year that God would lead him to host and produce a radio broadcast on perhaps a thousand radio stations on the National Day of Prayer on May 3 of this year. He will be calling our nation to urgent and fervent prayer exactly a year after our NDOP gathering.
And as an added bonus, my nephew Brad did not know at the time he was praying with me under a couple of stages that God would launch him as a student ministries pastor. His heart for prayer will no doubt have an impact on the students in his church and beyond.
Under Your Own Stage
Crawling under a stage to pray has a component of “hiddenness” in intercession. No one but God knows that you are under there, and no one but the Lord can hear your prayers over the sound of the band, students cheering, and the preaching of God’s truths. But I believe His ears are attuned to those who earnestly seek Him with sincere hearts and not a lot of fanfare. I agree with the Psalmist (116:2): “Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath!” If that means crawling under a stage, I’m there! If it means on my face in the quiet of the night, I trust He is bending down and listening to my cries.
What stage has God called you to crawl under to pray—for the sake of His fame and glory? Is He calling you to slip out of bed, go to your knees, and pray for the salvation of a loved one? Does He want to you to pray fervently in the early morning on behalf of your pastors and the leadership of your church?
Praying together in corporate prayer and larger groups is absolutely essential. But don’t forget the powerful times of prayer that come from behind closed doors or under stages. Consider how the Lord might be calling you to seek Him in the hidden places. The Lord is waiting to bend down to listen to you—and move heaven and earth in answer to your prayers.
