Constant prayer for Portland pursued

By KALEIGHA RAMEY

CNNW intern reporter

PORTLAND — In 1995 the city of New York was divided up and covered in prayer by a group of 35 churches committed to inviting God’s hand into their city. Within five years, the crime rate had dropped 70 percent and one of the largest American cities had become one of the safest.
A similar effort has begun in the greater Portland metropolitan area. Headed up by radio station manager James Autry and his ministry, Serving Our Neighbors (SON), the city and its outlying areas are being divided up to be covered in constant prayer.
This effort, officially titled the Greater Portland Prayer Coalition, has met — and plans to continue meeting quarterly — to assess progress and formulate ongoing strategies.
The next meeting of the coalition will be Saturday Oct. 27 from 9 a.m. to noon at a location yet to be determined.
Twenty-four-hour prayer, seven days a week, 365 days a year is the goal. Autry’s radio station, KKPZ “K-Praise” 1330 AM plans to introduce worship and intercession on the air from midnight to 6 a.m. this fall. Autry hopes to have the city fully covered by at least 31 area churches during the hours of 6 a.m. to midnight, one church being assigned to cover one day of the month, by sometime this spring.
More than 120 churches now participate in the effort in New York City, and Autry hopes to see the same sort of results in Portland.
“The goal of my heart is that SON coordinate prayer for the city and to launch ‘The Lord’s Watch’ over our city,” said Autry. He also hopes to focus the prayer on the Luis Palau Portland Festival coming in August.
SON has been around since 1999, and “it’s time to kick it up a notch,” said Autry.
Autry can be contacted at info@servingourneighbors.org or 503-515-5647.