These words not only guided John Flores from Santa Cruz, Bolivia to Tyler, Texas but also are foundational for his life. John arrived at Jacksonville College and soon discovered, as many entering students often do, that few others had the same passion to get together and spend time with God. Rejecting cynicism, he chose instead to pray, gathering nightly with his friends just outside of the school cafeteria.

God is sneaky!

At the nearby Tyler Junior College, another group of friends - Lesley, Alissa and Kayla - had also begun to pray every Wednesday for their campus.  When John and Lesley eventually did meet, they were excited and encouraged to learn that God was drawing others to prayer too. These two bands of friends easily decided to join their efforts, praying for both of their campuses.

In December 2007 as they sought God’s heart for their campuses, God put it in John’s heart to hold a 24-hour prayer vigil for campuses in East Texas. What this would look like he did not know - he had never done this before, but he trusted that God could handle the details. With the help of Facebook they scheduled their event and invited students to sign up for 1-hour prayer slots. Their 24-hour prayer vigil began with slots that were unfilled, but as each hour came and went students showed up eager to take part and pray. As the hours passed, more students began showing up than were scheduled.  At 10pm ten students arrived hungry to be in God’s presence and by 2am eighteen students were present in prayer.

Following The Leader

This band of friends have clearly heard the Father’s heart to call students back to Himself in the place of prayer.  Since December, they have held one 24-hour prayer vigil a month (with the exception of February).  As they have prayed for one another and leaders on their campuses and have made room in their schedules, the Wesley Foundation on campus has offered their chapel for these students to have a prayer space.  In addition to the growing movements of prayer on Jacksonville College and Tyler Junior College, students from the University of Texas-Tyler are hungry for more of what they have experienced and are looking to carry this fire to their campus this Fall.

John recently graduated from Jacksonville College and considers it an awesome privilege for God to have invited them to work with Him in this way.  His greatest desire continues to be to live a lifestyle of prayer and hopes that 10 years down the road he'll be able to call up these same college friends and ask, “What are you doing tonight?” and to hear “We are getting together to pray.”