Why does GEM Pray at 10:02?
If you’ve been around GEM for any bit of time, you’ve probably heard murmurs of “Ten2”, “10:02”, or the “10:2 Prayer”.
Perhaps you’ve been in a morning meeting, listening attentively to the speaker, when suddenly a collection of phone alarms begins going off at 10:02.
What’s this all about?
In short, it’s a call to action. A call to pray. A call to beckon the Father fervently with the prayer Jesus gave his disciples.
“He told them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’” — Luke 10:2
But have you heard the story of how God inspired global workers at GEM to pray this prayer daily at 10:02 AM?
From the words of Charles Cross, one of our workers on the French field at the time, now GEM VP, “It all started at the Camp of the Peaks during our Annual Field Retreat in 2008. The Annual Retreat is a time for the missionaries to get away, have fellowship, be inspired by great teaching, and enjoy God’s creation in the French Alps.”
During this time, a guest speaker preached about the power of Luke 10:2 and the urgency to pray this prayer Jesus gave us.
“Afterwards, the team made a commitment to pray daily for the lost and for more workers,” said Charles.
“Day after day, month after month, and year after year, the team turned to the Lord at 10:02 AM. We would pause to pray for the lost and for more workers. We know that God answers prayers and so, in obedience to Jesus’ command, we prayed. We were excited to see what God would do.”
Prayer is a discipline. And at times it can feel futile.
Are my prayers being heard by an attentive, loving Father or are they hitting the ceiling and bouncing back like a phone call straight to voicemail?
“Slowly,” Charles continued, “we saw God answering our prayers. Interest in France as a mission field was rising, we had more inquiries about coming to join our team, and more workers began arriving in France.”
By 2016, eight years after the call to pray Luke 10:2 daily, the France field had doubled to over 50 missionaries.
God heard. And God answered.
But still, the need is great.
The French field has since seen many long-term missionaries return from the field and the urgency for more gospel workers in France is as strong as ever.
Across Europe, the missional needs and opportunities abound even more.
This is why we continue to pray—for the work is not done and the workers are still few. And the commitment to pray Luke 10:2 has grown far beyond the French field and has become a mission-wide call for GEM.
At 10:02 AM each day, phones buzz across three time zones in Europe and four time zones in North America where our workers are located. We pause to pray, asking the Lord to raise up workers to join us in the harvest field in Europe. And we ask him for a harvest of people ready to hear the good news of Jesus upon the arrival of new workers.
On top of this daily 10:02 AM reminder, we gather as a mission twice each year for a 24-hour day of prayer. Each February 10th (10/2 in European calendar-writing) and October 2nd (10/2 in US calendar-writing), we gather virtually and in person to pray.
This year, the theme for our February 10th Day of Prayer is “Your Voice Matters” based on the verse in Ezekiel 22:30:
“I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one.”
Would you pray with us? Join us in standing in the gap before the land of Europe, asking for the Lord to bring revival to this continent and raise up a generation of workers to reach it with the love of Jesus.
You can catch our latest prayer gatherings here.
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About the author: Grant Klinefelter is a storyteller with Greater Europe Mission and serves in Birmingham, England. Visit grantandnaomi.com to learn more.