Prayer: No. 1 issue in churches, survey of evangelical leaders shows

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) - A LifeWay Christian Resources survey of more than 1,300 evangelical leaders from around the world revealed that the need for consistent and passionate prayer in church and personal life is the No. 1 issue in today's churches.

The April 11 announcement of prayer as the No. 1 issue culminates a LifeWay ebusiness initiative to ask evangelical ministry leaders from a variety of backgrounds to rank the "Top 10 Issues Facing Today's Church."

According to the survey's final results, the top 10 issues were:

1. Prayer: The need for more ongoing, passionate prayer in both personal and church life.

2. Discipleship: The need for involvement of every believer in being continually transformed into the image of Christ.

3. Leadership: The need for clear, biblical vision and direction by church leaders.

4. Evangelism: The decline among Christians in personal sharing of the Gospel.

5. Doctrine/Worldview: The growing pressure to compromise principles to make truths more palatable to an audience. The widening influence of explicitly anti-Christian culture and negative influences on the church.

6. Apathy: The seeming lack of personal interest, support and enthusiasm from the pews for the work of the church.

7. Marriage: The negative effects on families that result from divorce, adultery, etc.

8. Relevance: The seeming inability of the church to answer questions one has living in the "real world."

9. Homosexuality: The rising social pressure to accept same-sex behavior and relationships.

10. Abortion: The church's lack of an effective response to 30-plus years of legalized abortion.