God honors bold prayers because bold prayers honor God.
Prayer is our greatest responsibility and highest privilege. At NCC, we pray like it depends on God and work like it depends on us. We pray in the will of God and to the glory of God. We pray the scriptures, and we “pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.” (Eph. 6:18). We dream big and pray hard—and we have witnessed God’s miracles in our own lives and in our city!
What is the bravest prayer you can possibly pray?
Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”
Here at NCC, we really believe that.
God honors bold prayers because bold prayers honor God. We’ve seen God answer bold prayers over and over and over again. One prayer can change anything. One prayer can change everything.
A church founded on bold prayers
In 1996, Pastor Mark and Lora Batterson started pastoring National Community Church. It was small group of nineteen people, but they prayed bold prayers. God has blessed us beyond our wildest dreams, but that certainly isn’t a testament to us. It’s a testament to the power of prayer. Probably needs a bit more here.
Sometimes the boldest prayers are the everyday prayers.
We pray bold prayers because we know God can move mountains. We also know the mountain is often US. So we pray everyday prayers for our own transformation—offering ourselves up to God and asking Him to do His transforming work in us.
We pray . . .
- That we’ll continue to experience personal revival
- That’ we’ll become prophetic reformers who see the good and partner with Holy Spirit to find the great
- For an increase in the depth of our abiding and hearing from the Lord
- That we’ll learn to create with the Creator
- That we’ll get a new revelation of the hidden treasures in Christ
Watch stories of answered prayer
We know prayer works. We’ve seen God work miracles in our own lives.
Drawing circles of prayer
The Circle Maker
In the first century B.C., a severe drought in Israel threatened an entire generation. In desperation, the people asked a Jewish sage named Honi to pray for rain. What he did next became legend, as recorded in the Talmud. With the faith of Elijah, Honi drew a circle in the sand and prayed this prayer: “Sovereign Lord, I swear before your great name that I will not leave this circle until you have mercy upon your children.” As his prayer ascended to heaven, rain descended on the earth. Ultimately, Honi the Circle Maker was honored “for the prayer that saved a generation.”
God honors bold prayers because bold prayers honor God.
It’s the story of Honi that inspired Pastor Mark to write The Circle Maker. And that book has inspired some bold prayers. He says “I’ve met NFL coaches who are circling their stadiums; congressmen who are circling the Capitol; realtors who are circling their listings; and students who are circling their schools.”
The physical act of circling isn’t what’s important, though there is biblical precedent. The Israelites circled Jericho thirteen times over seven days before the walls came down.
Circling in prayer is nothing more, nothing less, than persistence in prayer. Sometimes you have to pray through until you break through. And when you do, you discover that prayer is the difference between the best you can do and the best God can do. Prayer is the difference between you fighting for God and God fighting for you. Prayer is the difference between letting things happen and making things happen.
Circling our city in prayer.
When we circle things in prayer, we make that physical whenever we can by praying as we walk.
We circle our city as we prayer walk for racial reconciliation. We pray and walk as we serve meals to our friends on the street. We pray and walk our neighborhoods. Every time we open a location or plant a church, we physically walk around it, circling it in prayer. We prayer walk our homes, our kids’ schools, the Supreme Court, the Capitol Building, the White House.
Pastor Mark’s 4.7 mile prayer walk was the beginning.
“On a hot August day in 1996, I felt prompted to pray a circle around Capitol Hill. It was inspired by the promise in Joshua 1:3: “I will give you everywhere you set your foot.” That 4.7-mile prayer walk was the catalyst for the miracles God has done since. It’s no coincidence that we own several properties right on that prayer circle — Ebenezers Coffeehouse (201 F Street, NE), the Miracle Theatre (535 8th Street, SE), and Capital Turnaround (770 M Street, SE).”
He concludes, “Of course, it’s not about buildings. But those buildings are the physical location of spiritual breakthroughs. In those physical spaces, we have seen thousands of people discover the transforming power of God’s grace!”
Pray with us. Walk with us.
prayer gatherings
House of Prayer
Every Thursday – HOP is on Summer Break until September 5, 2024.
7:14pm
Capital Turnaround
Child care for babies through elementary (5th grade) is now available. Please register here.
Upper Room
Every Wednesday – Upper Room is on Summer Break until September 4, 2024.
12:00pm
Capital Turnaround
The Upper Room is a new community space dedicated solely to prayer. After Jesus rose from the dead, his friends gathered in the Upper Room where, as Acts 1 tells us, “they all met together and were constantly united in prayer.”
Upper Zoom
Every Wednesday – Upper Zoom is on Summer Break until September 4, 2024.
7:14am
Online
People from all over the country and across the world gather in our online prayer room. To join the Upper Zoom prayer, please register below.
prayer appointments
One-on-One
Meet with an NCC Pastor or Prayer Partner, an experienced and trained layperson. Please fill out this form to register.
Sozo Inner Healing
For inner healing and deliverance, consider a Sozo prayer session: it’s a Spirit-led, effective 2-hour interactive conversation with God through trained prayer ministers, focusing on root issues hindering your connection with God or others. It’s not counseling and is completely confidential. Please email [email protected] to register.
NCC Campus or Online
To receive prayer after Sunday services or at House of Prayer, look for the prayer team at your campus. A trained member of the Prayer Team will pray with you on the spot. If you’re watching our services at live.national.cc, you can request prayer during the service in the chat and a trained prayer team member will pray with you.
learn how to pray
New to praying? Here’s a short script you can follow.
Greet God
Remember, you are talking to a person. How might you address God? God. Father. Friend. Almighty. Holy. Savior. Redeemer. You may address Him differently depending on what you want to talk to Him about.
Express Gratitude
Tell Him what you are thankful for.
Request Help
Tell Him what you are concerned about. Remember, the simple phrase “help me” is sometimes the most powerful and honest prayer you can pray.
Listen
Jesus wants to talk to you! Prayer should never be a one-way monologue but an on-going conversation, and that means we have to pause long enough to listen. While His voice is often inaudible, it comes to us in unmistakable ways—first and foremost in the Bible but also in feelings deep in our gut and the voices of friends who follow Him.