Many churches today are using the catch phrase “Prayer-Care-Share” (which comes from the Lighthouse movement of the late ’90s and early part of this century). The idea is to encourage members to first pray for their neighbors’ salvation, next look for ways to care for them, and finally gain an opportunity to share Jesus Christ with them.

Now the Mapping Center for Evangelism and Church Growth has released a technology tool that can help churches make it easier for their people to reach their neighbors through Prayer-Care-Share. Called the “5 Mission Tool Kit,” this resource offers important up-to-date data that can make your church and praying members more effective. For a $99 one-time purchase you get the following:

• Drive-Time Map that shows your church homes with overlays defining how far you can drive from the church building in 10, 20 or 30 minutes.
• Church Home Cluster Analysis that divides your mission field into ZIP+2 areas with a strategic analysis, showing where your congregants live and where they are clustered in neighborhoods.
• A Member Survey on Neighborhood Outreach that recruits your congregants to participate in prayer-care-share.
• A 20-30 Closest Neighbors List that is provided to each member. This gives each participant in prayer-care-share his or her neighbors’ names in street-walking order so he or she can pray for them by name. It also gives them information helpful in meeting their neighbors.
• A 10 Closest Member Report that shows each member which other church members live close to them. This can be valuable in increasing fellowship, and in joining Christian neighbors together to pray for their other neighbors.

Most believers recognize the importance of praying for lost people around them, and neighbors are potentially the most responsive due to relationships. When a church can provide information to help its members pray more effectively, prayer will be sustained over the long haul and a church is more likely to see people come to Christ as a result.

Go to MappingCenter.org/5MissionTools for more information on how this resource might help the prayer and evangelism efforts of your congregation.