11
P RAYER AT P RAYER M OUNTAIN
HATWE HAVE called Prayer Mountain is really much more than a retreat area dedicated to prayer.
Originally, this land was purchased for a church cemetery. Since Korea has been a traditionally Buddhist country, having a church burial place was very important to us.
W
When our present church was being built in 1973, the dollar was devalued. This caused the Korean won (which is tied in value to the American dollar) to suffer, and we entered into a deep recession. Then, the oil crisis hit us, worsening our already fragile economy. Our people lost their jobs, and our income went down.
Having signed contracts with the construction company, and experiencing an unprecedented increase in building costs, I suffered greatly, seeing the possibility of a financial collapse. Despondently, I sat in my unfinished church building, wishing the still bare rafters would just fall on me.
During this crucial time in my ministry, a group from
our church went to the property and started building a place to pray, mainly for their suffering pastor. Although I saw the need for this in our church, my concern was the added expenses that kept piling up on my desk.
Seeing that only a miraculous intervention of God would deliver us from a catastrophe, I joined the intercessors at Prayer Mountain. One evening while we were meeting to pray on the ground floor of our unfinished church, several hundred joined me in prayer.
An old woman walked slowly in my direction. As she approached the platform, I noticed that tears were filling her eyes. She bowed and said, "Pastor, I want to give these items to you so that you may sell them for a few pennies to help with our building fund."
I looked down, and in her hands were an old rice bowl and a pair of chopsticks. I said to her, "Sister, I can't take these necessities from you!"
"But, Pastor, I am an old woman. I have nothing of value to give to my Lord; yet, Jesus has graciously saved me. These items are the only things in the world I possess!" she exclaimed, tears now flowing freely down her wrinkled cheeks. "You must let me give these to Jesus. I can place my rice on old newspapers, and I can use my hands to feed myself. I know that I will die soon, so I don't want to meet Jesus without giving Him something on this earth." As she finished speaking, everyone there began to weep openly. The Holy Spirit's presence filled the place, and we all began to pray in the Spirit.
A businessman in the back of the group was deeply moved and said, "Pastor Cho, I want to buy that rice bowl and chopsticks for one thousand dollars!" With that, everyone started to pledge their possessions. My wife and I sold our small home and gave the money to the church.
PRAYER AT PRAYER MOUNTAIN This spirit of giving saved us from financial ruin.
As the years have gone by, Prayer Mountain has grown to be a place where thousands of people go daily to have their needs met, fasting and praying. We have added a modern ten-thousand-seat auditorium, which is now too small to hold the crowds that come. Attendance varies, but normally at least three thousand people daily are praying, fasting, worshiping, and praising our holy and precious Lord. In this atmosphere of concentrated prayer, healings and miracles are a common occurrence.
Last year, over 1,288,000 people registered at Prayer Mountain. This makes this "haven of prayer" the front line of our attack on the devil's forces on this earth.
Nowhere in this world are there more people praying and fasting. God hears our prayers, and the answers are too numerous to mention.
In the chapter on fasting and prayer, I will more fully discuss the method by which we practice this biblical means of getting needs met. However, I cannot emphasize enough the importance of fasting and prayer in order to see revival begin and continue.
Not only do we have group prayer at Prayer Mountain, but we also have individual prayer in our
"prayer grottos." These small cubicles are actually cut into the side of a hill. At these prayer grottos, people can get very still and quiet before God. In my own "prayer closet," I can shut the door and commune with my heavenly Father in concentrated and prolonged prayer.
Previously, I called Prayer Mountain a "haven of prayer." The reason I did this is that preparations are being made that will house thousands of people not only from Korea, but also from every corner of the earth. I believe there are many Christians who are longing for a place where they can meet God in a dynamic way. Not
that God can't be found everywhere men seek Him in spirit and in truth, but there is no place on earth that has more concentrated prayer than Prayer Mountain.
Christians are not satisfied with just hearing about the moving of God; they desire to see what God is doing.
Therefore, roads are being built, proper housing is being erected, and facilities are being enlarged to accommodate what God is about to do. David wrote:
He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings. And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city for habitation.
—PSALM 107:35-36
So the heathen shall fear the name of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth thy glory. When the LORD
shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his glory. He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayer. This shall be written for the generation to come: and the people which shall be created shall praise the LORD.
—PSALM 102:15-18