A prayer walk is an interactive way you can take spiritual authority and do the critical task of interceding for your campus, neighborhood or work place. It’s an on-site prayer meeting that has a way of stirring up ideas, insights, and faith in those who are gathered, in a way that sitting in a room may not.

STEP 1: Set a Time and Place for All Walkers to Meet

Have everyone who wants to pray for the campus gather at a specific time and place on campus. Consider holding the walk at a time when people are active on campus. You might want to reserve a room on campus where you will start and end together. If so, choose a quiet space that will have minimal interruptions, and where you can sit together. Split the group into pairs or threes to cover various parts of campus; assign locations if you’d like. Collect one person’s cell phone number from each small group. Agree on a time to return and debrief the prayer walk together. Plan on an hour for the walk, and perhaps another hour for debriefing.

STEP 2: Communicate that time and place no less then 1 week in advance.

Could be a formal invitation, a social media post or simple a text or conversation. No matter the method, make sure you prayerfully build your team and clearly communicate to them the when and where. Example “Hey Brian, I felt lead to as a few people to walk around MSU and pray. We are going to meet at the Starbuck in east Lansing at 6pm and walk for an hour. Consider this text your official invitation! It’s time for revival at MSU”

STEP 3: Prayerfully make a prayer points list.

Leading up to the meeting time ask God to give you seeing eyes to see what you should be praying for. I like to make a list with 2 categories. A. Prayer focuses and B. Goliaths that must be killed. Remembering to keep the focus the focus. We don’t stair at the giants, we stair at Jesus and he battles the giants. Practically that means fight to be full of faith and keep things positive.

Example of MSU Prayer Points List.

Prayer focuses.

  • Christians on campus would be strong and bold.
  • Mount Hope Church would have favor in planting a church among the students and surrounding area.
  • Jesus would be the talk of the campus
  • Student would experience supernatural miracles that point to Jesus

Goliaths that must be killed.

  • fear
  • sexual perversion
  • striving
  • pride

STEP 4: Ask God to show up.

Appoint 1 or 2 people to stay at the meeting place and pray over the whole prayer walk. Have them invite God to speak to each individual in the group through images, Bible verses, songs, situations seen, etc. Pray that each participant would be open and responsive to God during the walk, expect and prepare for God to answer this prayer! Practically this allows you to start on time but not worry about those that might show up later at the meeting spot.

STEP 5: Start walking, praying, and paying attention.

Go in groups of 2 (4 at the most). As each group starts walking to different places within the targeted area, participants can be praying that God would speak to them. Instruct your team to pay attention to:

  • What’s being advertised on bulletin boards.
  • What values do they promote?
  • What others are doing, wearing, and saying as you pass by.
  • What’s the spiritual climate?
  • Activities and situations in progress while your walking?

Make prayer stops as needed, if your group feels the Holy Spirit prompting you to spend time in prayer for a specific person, building, department, etc.

Protip: You may want to have someone be in charge of taking notes on what you’re each observing. As the leader if you go the extra mile a provide a small journal for them to write your team will love you ever more! Does not have to be fancy a simple note book will go a long way.

STEP 6: Regroup and debrief.

Debriefing the prayer walk is extremely important! When everyone has returned, have one person from each small group sum up what their group prayed for and what they felt God reveal to them. It is helpful to note that one person may receive a picture or a word and not know what it means, but God may give an insight to someone else in the room.

During this time anything that you as the leader suspect is not from God can be set aside. (such as any direction that contradicts Scripture or is not from a posture of kingdom love). These are great “mentor moments”. It’s great leaders who lovingly guide those they influence towards holiness and honor. After every group shares, highlight any patterns, themes, and broad concepts that came up across the multiple prayer groups.

Extra Mile:

Assemble a revised list of specific prayer requests based on the common themes from each group; have someone type them up and email, text or give them to participants so they can continue praying in the days and weeks ahead.