Jesus prayed big. He wanted to move God, knowing that moving God means moving history and transforming the world.

Pharisees prayed small. They wanted to impress God, treating prayer and life like a competition to be better than others.

“The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

Luke 18:11-14 NIV

In this parable, the tax collector prays powerfully. The Pharisee prays powerlessly. This choice has challenged me throughout my life.

It is especially challenging when I examine how Jesus felt about prayer. Twice in the Gospels, Jesus did something shocking—he drove people out of the temple with righteous anger over their disregard of prayer.

Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.'”

Matthew 21:12-13 NIV

Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, “Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!” His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

John 2:16-17 NLT

Do you see what consumed Jesus? His Father’s house—the place meant for prayer—had been turned into a marketplace. A place to secure things for yourself.

And here’s the uncomfortable truth: This still happens.

It happens to us as individuals, small groups, communities, and churches. We treat God’s people and God’s house as a place to secure things for ourselves. It becomes a club, a network, a community without God—just for our support. This is fine on a human level, but when we do this, we remove the power that should be among God’s people.

That power comes from a kingdom prayer. The kingdom power that accompanies it is why Jesus taught us to make it a priority.

So here’s the question: Do we have the qualities needed for kingdom prayer in our lives? Or have we turned God’s kingdom into our kingdom—using his people to get what we want rather than walking with God to change the world?

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The foundation: “Your kingdom come.”

One day, Jesus was praying. When he finished, his disciples asked him to teach them to pray. What he gave them wasn’t a religious ritual. We know this because he confronted the teachers of religious law who, through seeking to impress the world, became just like the world in their pursuit of position, popularity, and importance:

“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.”

Matthew 6:5 NIV

Jesus continued teaching. He said, “Be careful of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around wearing clothes that look important. And they love for people to show respect to them in the marketplaces. They love to have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. But they cheat widows and take their homes. Then they try to make themselves look good by saying long prayers. God will punish them very much.”

Mark 12:38-40 ERV

Jesus was different from the Pharisees. Jesus prayed to transform the world. It was this type of prayer his disciples wanted to learn because they had seen the power of his life, the drive in his life, the passion of his life, and the resolute conviction of his life.

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” He said to them, “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.”

Luke 11:1-4 NIV

Three words sit at the center of this prayer: “Your kingdom come.”

Not “Give me what I want.” Not “Make my life comfortable.” Not “Bless my plans.”

But “Your kingdom come.”

This is the prayer that changes everything. Because when we pray for God’s kingdom to come, we’re not asking for minor improvements to our lives. We’re asking for a complete reordering of reality—starting with ourselves.

For the past forty years of ministry, I’ve been learning what this prayer means. And I’ve come to understand something profound: The gospel of the kingdom is the central idea moving history.

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The problem: We pray too small.

Here’s what I sense about my own life and the lives of so many people of faith: We pray too small.

We pray about our circumstances and our suffering—which is not wrong. Jesus taught us to pray for our needs (our “daily bread”). But too often, we stop there. We make prayer about survival, stress relief, or getting a break from the difficulties of life.

And when we do that, we experience the smallness of prayers that are only about our lives and not about changing the world.

You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere human beings?

1 Corinthians 3:3 NIV

“Mere human beings.” Ordinary. Small.

Jesus constantly confronted this problem with his disciples. He challenged them about their small faith:

He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

Matthew 17:20 NIV

Jesus told his disciples that their faith was too small to move mountains, which is the kind of faith that allows us to live a world-changing life. This resonates with me; on too many occasions, I don’t pray big enough. I find myself anxious, overwhelmed, and distracted—I’m moving sand or little rocks rather than mountains. Sometimes I think I like it this way; as long as I am busy moving rocks, I don’t have to grow my faith to move mountains.

Jesus was matter-of-fact: “Yes—and if you embrace this kingdom life and don’t doubt God, you’ll not only do minor feats like I did to the fig tree, but also triumph over huge obstacles. This mountain, for instance, you’ll tell, ‘Go jump in the lake,’ and it will jump. Absolutely everything, ranging from small to large, as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of God.”

Matthew 21:21-22 MSG

It is difficult for me to admit this truth. I am not always living a kingdom life, because I am satisfied with doing minor feats.

This is my problem. I pray small. I believe small. I dream small. I live small. What about you?

If you are like me, our satisfaction with the small isn’t from a lack of desire—it’s from facing opposition. Ephesians 6 teaches us that the evil one works to keep us small-minded, survival-focused, and trapped in self-preservation instead of pursuing the kingdom dreams God has laid on our hearts.

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The power: Five kingdom qualities

As I got frustrated with majoring in minors, I discovered what was missing: the core part of Jesus’s prayer, “Your kingdom come,” was absent from my prayers.

Through Bible study and prayer, I discovered that there are five kingdom qualities essential for bringing kingdom power to our prayers. Without kingdom faith, mindset, heart, and dreams, we cannot pray the kingdom prayers Jesus taught us to have.

1. Kingdom faith

Kingdom prayer begins with faith.

In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

Ephesians 3:12 NIV

So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

Hebrews 4:16 NLT

Jesus lived and died so we would boldly come to God’s throne in prayer.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us …

Ephesians 3:20 NIV

So here’s the question: How bold is our life? How bold are our goals?

Kingdom faith isn’t timid. It’s not cautious. It’s not playing it safe. Kingdom faith believes God can do exceedingly and abundantly above all we ask or think.

Kingdom faith says … 

• “I believe God can use me to change my relationships.”
• “I believe God can use me to transform my workplace.”
• “I believe God can use me to inspire people who do not believe in or know him.”
• “I believe God can move mountains in and through my life.”

Without kingdom faith, we cannot pray kingdom prayers.

2. Kingdom mindset

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 12:2 NIV

Kingdom mindset is the conviction that we are here to change the world.

This is what sets kingdom individuals and kingdom churches apart from people without faith in God. It’s the difference between “human” and “kingdom.”

“Human” improves the world. “Kingdom” changes the world.

The kingdom mindset says: “Rather than reacting to the challenges of my life, I will see them the way Jesus does—as opportunities to make God’s voice audible and change the world.”

This is what Jesus modeled:

• He saw the woman at the well as an opportunity to transform a town.
• He saw the storm as an opportunity to reveal God’s power).
• He saw the cross as an opportunity to redeem humanity.

The kingdom mindset reframes everything:

• “My job isn’t just a paycheck. It’s the path to fulfill my purpose.”
• “My neighborhood isn’t just where I live. It’s my sphere of influence.”
• “My struggles aren’t just obstacles. They’re opportunities for God to show his power.”

Without a kingdom mindset, we pray survival prayers. With a kingdom mindset, we pray transformation prayers.

3. Kingdom heart

The most powerful kingdom prayer in Scripture is found in John 17.

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”

John 17:20-21 NIV

This is the kingdom heart. It’s not merely focused on our circumstances and suffering. It’s focused on the purpose that runs through all of this: to change the world so people can know God and walk with him for eternity.

The kingdom heart is …

• Not self-centered but God-centered.
• Not focused on comfort but on mission.
• Not about what we can get from God but what God can do through us.
• Not about our kingdom but his kingdom.

Without a kingdom heart, our prayers become transactions. With a kingdom heart, our prayers become transformations.

4. Kingdom dreams

Here’s the question that will define 2026 for each of us: What are our kingdom dreams?

Not our survival goals. Not our comfort plans. Not our stress-reduction strategies.

Our kingdom dreams.

Kingdom dreams answer this question: How can I use my talents, resources, relationships, platforms, and opportunities to make God audible to those who do not know about the true God of the Bible—the real God, not the caricature they’ve read about or experienced through secular or religious institutions?

Kingdom dreams are not about living an ordinary life. They’re about living a life that’s on a destiny course to glorify God and change the world.

You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere human beings?

1 Corinthians 3:3 NIV

God doesn’t want us to be mere humans living ordinary lives. He wants us to be kingdom citizens living extraordinary lives.

Kingdom dreams are …

• Big enough to require God — If we can accomplish it on our own, it’s not a kingdom dream.
• Specific enough to measure — Vague aspirations aren’t dreams; they’re wishes.
• Aligned with the gospel of the kingdom — Does it advance God’s purposes in some sphere of life?
• Sacrificial enough to cost something — Kingdom dreams demand more than leftover time and money.

5. Kingdom prayer

Now we come to the fifth quality: kingdom prayer itself.

Kingdom prayer flows from the previous four qualities. It’s what happens when kingdom faith, kingdom mindset, kingdom heart, and kingdom dreams come together in conversation with God.

Here’s what’s critical to understand: We should pray about our daily needs in kingdom prayer. Jesus said to ask for our “daily bread” in Luke 11. But there is a purpose for praying for our daily needs. It is so we can make the gospel of the kingdom known.

Kingdom prayer isn’t …

• “God, get me through this day.”
• “God, make my life easier.”
• “God, remove this problem.”

Kingdom prayer is …

• “God, give me what I need today so I can advance your kingdom.”
• “God, use this challenge I’m going through to display your power and change someone’s life.”
• “God, turn my struggle into a vision of inspiration that draws people to you.”

Kingdom prayer says …

• “Your kingdom come in my relationships.”
• “Your kingdom come in my workplace.”
• “Your kingdom come in my community.”
• “Your kingdom come in this generation.”

“Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.”

Matthew 18:19 NIV

When kingdom people pray kingdom prayers together, supernatural power is released.

“It is written, he said to them, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer.’”

Matthew 21:13 NIV

This is what we’re called to: kingdom prayer that moves God, changes history, and transforms the world.

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The gospel Jesus actually preached

What I’m calling us to isn’t new—it’s forgotten. And it’s powerful.

In churches, we often reduce the gospel to personal salvation: “Jesus died for our sins so we can go to heaven.” That’s not wrong, but it’s incomplete. The gospel Jesus preached wasn’t only about personal salvation; it was about advancing the kingdom and changing the world.

Jesus had a phrase he used over and over:

Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.

Matthew 4:23 NIV

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Matthew 24:14 NIV

The gospel Jesus preached wasn’t just about personal salvation. It was about the kingdom of God breaking into human history and transforming everything it touches.

The apostles understood this. The final words of the book of Acts show Paul spreading the kingdom gospel:

For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ—with all boldness and without hindrance!

Acts 28:30-31 NIV

Paul preached the kingdom. Jesus preached the kingdom. The early church understood they were part of something bigger than individual conversion—they were part of a kingdom that was advancing, permeating, and transforming the world.

This is the gospel Jesus wants us to believe in.

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The kingdom Daniel prophesied

The kingdom of God isn’t a recent development. It’s been God’s plan from the beginning.

King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream. Daniel interpreted it. And in that interpretation, we see the nature of God’s kingdom:

 In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.

Daniel 2:44-45 NIV

Three things stand out:

1. “This kingdom is not built by human hands” — It’s not a political movement, a military conquest, or a cultural takeover. It’s a spiritual force.
2. “This kingdom transforms all other kingdoms” — Its impact does not come from seizing political power, but from transforming hearts and culture. Where God’s kingdom comes, society changes for the better, regardless of who governs.
3. “This kingdom endures forever” — Empires rise and fall. Governments change. Cultures shift. But God’s kingdom keeps advancing.

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The kingdom is a force, not a retreat.

Is the kingdom of God a retreat—a place to hide from the world—or a force meant to transform the world?

The answer is clear in Scripture.

“The Kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman used in making bread. Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour, it permeated every part of the dough.”

Matthew 13:33 NLT

Yeast doesn’t create a corner of the dough and stay there. It permeates the entire batch. It transforms from the inside out. You can’t see it working, but eventually, the whole loaf rises.

That’s the kingdom. It’s not a place where we hide from the world. It’s a transforming force that permeates every part of society it touches. Small. Invisible at first. But unstoppable.

The kingdom doesn’t conquer by force. It transforms by its presence.

This is why Jesus didn’t lead a political revolution. It’s why he didn’t establish an earthly empire or try to take over Rome.

The kingdom works differently. It advances through living representatives who carry God’s reign into every domain of life: relationships, work, education, technology, art, business, and government.

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My personal kingdom dreams

Let me be vulnerable with you. I’ve spent forty years in ministry, and I’ve seen both the power of kingdom prayer and the danger of small prayers.

I’ve watched churches turn into marketplaces. I’ve seen believers settle for ordinary lives. I’ve experienced the opposition that tries to keep us small-minded, survival-focused, fighting for breaks instead of fighting for kingdom dreams.

And I’ve made a decision: 2026 is going to be different.

Here’s what I sense God calling me to—my kingdom dreams for this season:

• Relationships: Investing in those God has entrusted to me—family, spiritual peers, next generation leaders—helping them discover and pursue their own kingdom dreams.
• Writing: Creating content that makes God audible to the spiritually curious and inspires kingdom-focused believers to change the world.
• Church: Equipping thousands of people to live as kingdom representatives in every sphere of society.
• Technology: Making inclusive tools that serve the vulnerable—demonstrating kingdom values through doing good for everyone, regardless of what they believe.
• Service: Building an inclusive community called “Beacon of Hope” for adults with special needs, who are all too often forgotten.
• Digital media: Advancing the gospel of the kingdom to 1M+ people who won’t walk into a church.

These aren’t personal ambitions. They’re kingdom dreams. And they require kingdom prayer.

These are my kingdom dreams. What are yours?

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What are your kingdom dreams?

This is where I want you to stop reading and start writing.

Not tomorrow. Not later. Right now.

Because the difference between people who pray kingdom prayers and people who pray small prayers is this: Kingdom people have kingdom dreams.

Here are the questions we each need to answer:

1. How can I use my talents to advance God’s kingdom?
   Not just “What am I good at?” but “How can what I’m good at make God audible to people who don’t know him?”
2. How can I use my resources to advance God’s kingdom?
   Not just “What do I have?” but “How can what I have be leveraged for impact in God’s kingdom?”
3. How can I use my relationships to advance God’s kingdom?
   Not just “Who do I know?” but “How can my influence open doors for the gospel of the kingdom?”
4. How can I use my platform to advance God’s kingdom?
   We each have a platform. It might be our job, our social media accounts, our neighborhood, our family, or our school. We need to ask not just “What do I post?” or “Who do I follow?” but also “How can I use this for kingdom purposes?”
5. How can I use my opportunities to do good and advance God’s kingdom?
   We need to ask ourselves, “What doors has God opened for me? What invitations have I received? What possibilities are in front of me that could become kingdom opportunities?”

Then, write your kingdom dreams:

1. “My relationships kingdom dream is …”
2. “My work kingdom dream is …”
3. “My ‘doing good’ kingdom dream is …”
4. “My kingdom dream for the church is…”
5. “My worldwide kingdom dream is…”

These aren’t survival goals. These aren’t comfort plans. These are kingdom dreams—big enough to require God, specific enough to measure, aligned with the gospel of the kingdom, and sacrificial enough to cost something.

And once we’ve written them, we’re ready to pray kingdom prayers.

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Let this be the year of kingdom prayer

For twelve days now, we’ve been on a journey. We’ve learned to pray or harden. We’ve discovered destiny, fought doubt, turned impossibility into possibility, practiced forgiveness, received vision, confessed for freedom, surrendered our emotions, returned with humility, battled bitterness, and found our identity in God’s calling.

In 12 days of prayer, we’ve learned 12 kingdom-building principles:

1. Pray or harden (Day 1) – Choose prayer as oxygen for the soul.
2. Embrace your destiny (Day 2 – Esther) – We were born for such a time as this.
3. Pray through doubt (Day 3 – Thomas) – Faith grows when we’re honest about our doubt.
4. Turn impossibility to possibility (Day 4 – Mark 9 father) – Journey from prayerlessness to prayerfulness.
5. Practice daily forgiveness (Day 5 – Jesus/Luke 7:47) – When we’re forgiven much, we love much.
6. Pray vision into existence (Day 6 – Nehemiah) – God-given vision is sustained by prayer.
7. Confess for complete freedom (Day 7 – James 5:16) – Honesty with God and others relieves the burden of guilt.
8. Surrender emotions to God’s will (Day 8 – Gethsemane) – Emotional prayers align our lives with God’s will.
9. Return with humility (Day 9 – Manasseh) – God responds to humility, not résumés.
10. Fight bitterness and keep dreaming (Day 10 – Hannah) – Be a dreamer, not a hater.
11. Find identity in calling (Day 11 – Mary) – God develops us in obscurity and gives us a calling.
12. Pray kingdom prayers (Day 12) – “Your kingdom come” is our life’s purpose.

Now we understand: All of this has been preparation for kingdom prayer.

And now comes the moment we spread our kingdom dreams before God and say: “Your kingdom come. Use me to build it.”

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Four prayer starters

Perception — Change how you see

“God, help me see that my life is not about survival—it’s about kingdom advancement. Show me that my challenges are opportunities to glorify your name and change the world.”

Process — Change how you think

“God, transform my thinking from human to kingdom. Help me develop a kingdom mindset—the conviction that I’m here to change the world, not just survive it. Change how I think about my daily bread: it’s not just provision for survival but fuel for mission.”

Purpose — Change what you live for

“God, free me to live for kingdom dreams, not survival goals. Show me that the purpose of my life is to make earth look more like heaven. Help me define specific kingdom dreams that are big enough to require you, specific enough to measure, aligned with the gospel of the kingdom, and sacrificial enough to cost something. Teach me to pray kingdom prayers—prayers that move you, prayers that change history, prayers that transform the world.”

Path — Change where you are going

“God, lead me on the path of kingdom prayer. Show me the next step in my kingdom dreams. Give me boldness to pray big prayers—mountain-moving prayers, world-changing prayers, history-making prayers. Lead me to people who will join me in kingdom prayer so that where two or three agree, supernatural power is released. Make 2026 my year of kingdom prayer.”

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A final word

Twelve days ago, we started with a simple truth: Life makes us pray or harden.

Now we understand: Prayer doesn’t just keep our hearts soft. It transforms us into people who can transform the world.

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

Matthew 6:33 NIV

Let’s seek first his kingdom. Not our comfort. Not our success. Not our reputation. His kingdom.

When we make kingdom prayer our priority, when we align our lives with kingdom dreams, when we pray “your kingdom come” and mean it—everything changes.

Welcome to 2026. The year we stop praying small and start praying kingdom prayers.

A song for your playlist

“Wake Up” by Terrian:

Lyric highlight:

I made a deal with fear, You keep me warm, I’ll stay here
Been addicted to comfort, and it’s not even real
I know complacency, it is a silent kill
In all transparency I love the way that it feels…
Help me Lord, I need to wake up
Put that fire under my feet
Fell asleep, I need to shake up
‘Cause I’ve been settling
Wasted time, I gotta make up
I need You to set me free