Praying The Length of The Contiguous United States

During the Covid-19 lockdowns, our ministry was forced to adapt. Most of us were unable to leave our homes except to buy food. Our churches were mandated to close. There was no meeting of any kind.

We recognized that the church was never meant to be exclusively attached to a building.So rather than relying on people to come to us, we went to them.

Every morning, pastors in 18 of our villages woke up around 5:30 am. We "met" on a social media texting app and prayed together between 5:30 - 6:00 am. At 6:00, we all went out to our villages, prayer walking.

I spent some time teaching and training our pastors how to pray as they walked and engage with people outside their homes. They quickly learned an easy way to evaluate their people's spiritual and physical needs.

We started this ministry almost 1000 days ago from the time of this writing. While some of us have missed days along the way, we have made this daily prayer time a priority. It is arguably the most essential and fruitful part of our ministry.

I started the first few days of prayer walking my neighborhood and the surrounding area. However, due to the cervical damage I suffered from a car accident a few years prior, my feet went numb after about 5 minutes of walking. I changed shoes, consulted a physical therapist, tried a chiropractor and finally consulted an orthopedic doctor. It was finally recommended that I have spine surgery.

Surgery was not an option for me.

Neither was walking with numb feet.

I told myself I could pray anywhere, but the truth is I wanted to be out there with our team.

So I started prayer - biking instead of walking, and to my surprise, I had no numbness in my feet.

I also recognized that biking allowed me to cover more areas in a shorter time, so I began prayer biking every morning. We fast once a month and prayer walk (bike) daily.

While I can't speak for the other 18 pastors who have faithfully walked their villages over the last 1000 days, I kept a record of my biking distance.

To date: I have biked the length of the perimeter of the contiguous United States of America.

According to the free republic, the perimeter of the contiguous United States is estimated to be 8,878 miles:

The U.S.- Canadian border is 3,283 miles.
The U.S.-Mexican border is 1,386 miles.
The lengths of the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific coasts are 1,719, 1,315, and 1,175 miles, respectively.

If you take the measurement of the 1963 boundary agreement:

The U.S.- Canadian border is 3987 miles.
The U.S.- Mexican border is 1933 miles.

The lengths of the jagged coasts are more difficult to compute than the relatively smooth national borders. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) publishes two sets of data regarding the length of the coasts. One measurement they title "coastline," and the other they title "shoreline."

The coastline is the length of the coast measured using a "ruler" of length 30 minutes of latitude. It is the length of the general outline of the coast, ignoring small bays, peninsulas, and islands. Using this method, NOAA found the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific coastlines to be 2,069, 1,631, and 1,293 miles, respectively.

The bottom line is - two estimates of the perimeter of the Contiguous United States come in somewhere between 8,878 miles - 10,913 miles. (14,288 km - 17,562km)

I have biked 17,615 km - 10,945 miles.

Nearly every morning before the sun comes up. We start our day with prayer.

This may sound like I'm boasting, and if that is how it is received, please accept my apology, as that wasn't my intention.

Honestly, I have included this story here for two reasons:

1) People ask me frequently about the "success" we've seen in our ministry. I respond, any success is result of the Lord. We faithfully pray, and we faithfully go. Yes, there is strategy, but we begin with a desire for faithfulness and submission to the Lord. Then He does the real work.

2) The second reason I have included it is because I want to solicit you to join me.

It's not complicated. Walk throughout your neighborhood. Pray by name for your neighbors as you pass their houses. If you don't know their names, pray a scripture. If you don't know the scripture to pray, ask that the home would be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord. Pray for their salvation. The point isn't what you pray; it's THAT you pray.

If someone is outside, say hello. If you feel like talking, then talk. At least learn their name. A straightforward approach is to let them know you are praying for those in the neighborhood and ask if there is anything you can pray for before you go.

Then pray for them.

You don't need to carry on a lengthy conversation if you're an introvert. You don't need to engage in a theological debate. Lay them and their requests at the feet of the Lord. Then move on and repeat daily.

However, if someone does as you to pray for something, try to remember it for the next time you see them. Write it down if you're forgetful.

Start small. Let the Lord work in and through you.

Will you join me?

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