Joining God's Mission from Your Dinner Table

A New Resource on Family Prayer for the Nations

A young child sat at the kitchen table with his siblings. Twice a day, this table turned into a makeshift altar when his father knelt for family prayer. Morning and evening, the father poured out his heart on behalf of his children, wife, village, country, and world. As the young boy watched his father pray, his own heart was formed to love God and others. He began studying Greek and Latin in pursuit of a life in service to God’s mission. All the while, he devoted himself to regular rhythms of prayer, following the example of his father.

The boy’s name was John G. Paton, pioneer missionary to the New Hebrides. Paton’s description of his father’s prayer life is worth quoting in full:

How much my father’s prayers at this time impressed me I can never explain, nor could any stranger understand. When, on his knees and all of us kneeling around him in Family Worship, he poured out his whole soul with tears for the conversion of the Heathen World to the service of Jesus, and for every personal and domestic need, we all felt as if in the presence of the living Saviour, and learned to know and love Him as our Divine Friend. As we rose from our knees I used to look at the light on my father’s face, and wish I were like him in spirit,—hoping that, in answer to his prayers, I might be privileged and prepared to carry the blessed Gospel to some portion of the Heathen World.¹

The consistent moments of family prayer in the Paton household began to mold young John’s heart for what would become a lifetime of faithful ministry in the South Seas. And even tonight, future John Patons, William Careys, Lottie Moons, or Amy Carmichaels will eat with their families at the dinner table. Day by day, prayer for the nations can slowly shape lives—young or old—to understand and participate in God’s work among the nations.

Why This Book?

After becoming a dad, I desired to put this truth into action. Each night, my family gathers for a regular time of worship around the dinner table. We spend time meditating on a verse of Scripture, discussing gospel need around the world, and praying together. I have used several different resources to try to accomplish these objectives, but nothing does them all in a succinct, age-appropriate way.

My new book, From Argentina to Zimbabwe: An Alphabet Prayer Adventure, seeks to fill that gap. The book can be read straight through like a traditional A–Z children’s book, or it can serve as a daily guide for family prayer. Each of the 26 entries includes: 1) a fun fact about a specific country; 2) a relevant Scripture passage for meditation; and 3) a sample prayer to guide family worship. This resource helps families engage in regular times of prayer while fostering a culture within the home that aligns with God’s heart for the nations. It can also aid missions mobilizers or local churches as they equip children and families to participate in the Great Commission.

How Can Families Engage in God’s Mission Together?

My hope is that this book will help parents and children join in God’s mission. Just as James and Janet Paton led their family in interceding for the nations, parents today can devote themselves to simple actions that yield eternal dividends.

1. Model through Influence and Instruction

Parents should remember that discipleship begins in the home. While the local church is essential, it should not become a way of outsourcing the responsibility that mothers and fathers have to pass along the faith to their children. When Paul wrote to Timothy, he mentioned the importance of his mentee’s family heritage:

I recall your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and now, I am convinced, is in you also. (2 Tim. 1:5).²

The fruit that we see in Timothy’s life was cultivated from a young age. It wasn’t the result of his own efforts alone. He had a faithful mother and grandmother whose faith in Christ became a model for his own. Discipleship is both passively caught through influence and actively taught through instruction. After giving the greatest commandment to love God, Moses instructed Israel, “Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deut. 6:7). As you’re on “the road” with your physical or spiritual children, make the most of every opportunity to model the gospel in word and deed.

2. Pray Both Inwardly and Outwardly

Prayer is a simple yet central task for believers who join in God’s mission. Prayer has both an outward and an inward orientation. Our prayers are heard by our Father who is in heaven. He calls us to pray for his “kingdom to come” and “will to be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10). Our prayers look outwardly, longing for the day when “the nations rejoice and shout for joy” (Ps. 67:3).

Jesus himself teaches us how to pray for his mission: “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest” (Luke 10:2). Is this prayer oriented inward or outward? In the verses following, Jesus sends these disciples out to enter towns, heal, and preach the gospel of the kingdom. To summarize, the disciples were to pray for God to send laborers to the harvest, but they themselves were the answer to that prayer! When we pray outwardly for God’s work among the nations, we should also look inwardly and ask, “How are you calling me to be a part of this work?” As families gather to pray for laborers, my hope is that the Spirit would lead some to go to the harvest field themselves.

3. Raise and Release Your Arrows

James Paton’s consistent time of family worship and prayer influenced his son John to the ministry and ultimately the New Hebrides. Because of his deep walk with Christ, James understood that his children belonged not to him but to God. John described the sorrow and joy that his father expressed when sending him to seminary:

His lips kept moving in silent prayers for me; and his tears fell fast when our eyes met each other in looks for which all speech was vain! We halted on reaching the appointed parting place; he grasped my hand firmly for a minute in silence, and then solemnly and affectionately said: “God bless you, my son! Your father’s God prosper you, and keep you from all evil!”³

Parents recognize that their children are “a heritage from the Lord, offspring, a reward” (Ps. 127:3). Yet, these rewards are not meant to be hoarded for their own pleasure or enjoyment. Children are raised for a distinct purpose. The Psalmist depicts children as “arrows in the hands of a warrior” (Ps. 127:4). Arrows will not remain in the quiver forever. Instead, they will be released and sent into the field of battle. Parents who send their children follow the example of their Heavenly Father, who sent his only Son into the world (John 3:16).

The Great Commission is a collective endeavor. It begins in the home, maybe even at the dinner table. No matter your specific family dynamics, you can begin participating in God’s mission today through simple yet significant practices. It’s my hope that From Argentina to Zimbabwe will help you, your children, your friends, and your church pray for and engage the nations—one letter at a time.

From Argentina to Zimbabwe: An Alphabet Prayer Adventure is available today!
Click here to order, or check out the podcasts below to hear more about the book.

1. John G. Paton, John G. Paton: The Autobiography of the Pioneer Missionary to the New Hebrides (Vanuatu) (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1965), 21.

2. All Scripture comes from the CSB version.

3. Paton, John G. Paton, 25.