Holy in the Daily

Blog posts to help women over 50 face their challenges with clarity, confidence, and resilience.

Get your 1st BURST OF CLARITY NOW.

Join over 800 women on my email list who applaud my FREE eBooks and refreshing, actionable lessons.

Ideas For an All Night Women’s Prayer Meeting

All night women’s prayer gatherings have been a part of church life for many years. They may happen monthly, or only once a year, but such gatherings offer a time and place for women to gather, fellowship, and pray.

This last Friday was our first all night women’s prayer meeting at Father’s House in a few years. Some of us used to meet overnight on a regular basis, but our lives got busy and the overnight prayer events got put on the back burner. We’re now moving them front and center.

Ideas for planning a women’s prayer event

Plan your gathering enough in advance so women have time to arrange childcare and meals for their families while they are gone.

Include the who, what, why, where, and when in your announcements. We chose a Friday night from 10:00 p.m. to Saturday morning at 6:00 a.m. Women were encouraged to come for part the evening or spend the night.

Choose a prayer focus for the evening, such as praying for your community, your church family, a specific missions outreach, or a nation or people group. Our prayer focus was to support a team of women from Father’s House ministering the same weekend with Because Justice Matters in San Francisco.

Women’s prayer stations

At this gathering we set up seven stations, or prayer areas. Throughout the night we encouraged the women to participate in the different prayer areas. Worship music played in the back ground. Every hour or so we would gather together for a devotional or to share what the Lord was showing us. It was a good time to compare notes.

Our first station was a gathering area for group prayer, discussion, and a computer side-show of our prayer focus for the evening—prayer support for our women’s team ministering in San Francisco. If you are focusing on a community or nation, you might want to place a map of the area at one of your prayer stations.

Communion by Susan Gaddis

We also set up a communion station where women could take communion and pray alone or with another.

snack table for women's prayer meeting

A snack and fellowship area is a must when women gather together. We kept the snacks very simple.

women's prayer worship

 We provided open spaces where women could take part in expressive worship and prayer.

women's prayer art

A creative area for artistic prayer brought some amazing results of the unseen translated into the seen.

women's prayer meeting nap area

We also provided a sleeping area for those who wanted to nap during the night. (Sometimes you just gotta admit you aren’t 30 years old anymore!)

women's prayer in small groups

Our last station was an intimate area where women could pray in small groups or one on one.

About half the women slipped away between 1:00 and 3:00 in the morning, but the rest stayed, prayed, or even slept as needed through the night.

Only eternity will tell the results of this prayer meeting, but I know our women’s team ministering in San Francisco appreciated the prayer support. For us who stayed home to pray—it was a night to remember as we grew closer to Jesus and each other.

What has been your experience with all night prayer meetings, and what ideas can you share with us?

(For more creative group prayer ideas, pick up my book, Intercessors, God’s End-time Vanguard: How to Pray Effectively for the Things That Matter Most.)

Growing with you, Susan

“Jesus likes it when we share.” -Adelaide, age 3: Pass this along to everybody and their brother. OK, maybe not everybody’s brother, but you know . . . all of your friends would be nice. (You can use the cute little share buttons below.)

Related posts:

Yes, Prayer Changes Things!

How to Pray Your Child HOME

Five Tips For Learning How to Pray Effectively

Sponsor:

Share this post with your friends: 

This Post Has 6 Comments

  1. Nosipho

    please help me I am trying to organise a womens prayer session but for women and children in communities, I want it to be a big function.

    1. Susan Gaddis

      Probably your best place to start, Nosipho, is with the local pastors and women’s ministry groups in the communities you are thinking about. I never work on something like this alone, but with a team of people.

      Put together a team who can help you plan, organize, and promote the event. There are probably many people who would like to help you, you just need to seek them out.

      If you need more ideas on how to structure a prayer session, there is a section in “Intercessors, God’s End-time Vanguard” that gives several examples you might find helpful.
      Blessings to you,
      Susan

  2. Sheba

    Hi, My pastor’s wife is losing her only brother soon. He is dying and he wanted to die at home so he is home. Rose, pastor’s wife, is with her brother she says “until the end”.

    i would like to have a prayer meeting for her and of course, our pastor when they get back. I don’t know when that will be but it is within a week.

    so, i have never done this, but i feel her pain. i cry because she is hurting, so i feel that i want to do something with the ladies and congregation when they return. there are other church people who are willing to come, i know. they know her and we hve all worked together before.

    please help.
    thank you,
    sheba yazzie,
    the navajo nation

    1. Susan Gaddis

      Hello Sheba,

      It sounds like you care deeply for your pastor and his wife, and that is so wonderful. They could really use the prayers of the church during this difficult time.

      Why don’t you ask the folks from your church to meet you at the church, or in your home, one evening this week and you can pray together for your pastors and all they are going through right now as well as for Rose’s brother.

      It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, just come together and pray peace, direction, and healing over them. I’m sure everyone would love to combine their prayers with yours. Even if only one person shows up, that is all you need.

      Blessing to you as you walk with your pastors through this difficult time.

      Susan

  3. nhle

    Hlw Susan , im Nhle i am in need of starting a wonen spiritual movement in my area where we are going to gather as women of different churches n pray n give women oppoturnities that they dont get from the churches encouraging each other with the word ,business,health/beaty so i want it to be the whole night event pls help me how can i conduct it

    1. Susan Gaddis

      Hi Nhle,
      How wonderful that you have a vision for the women in your area. That is amazing!
      Since I’m not familiar with the women, the venue, or the details of your plans, I’m not able to advise you how to conduct it except for what I’ve written in other comments above.
      God bless you in your new adventure!
      Susan

Leave a Reply