The NightWatch

A woman wearing glasses and a camouflage headscarf is sitting on a stool, playing an acoustic guitar and singing into a microphone on a stage. She is surrounded by music equipment and a music stand.

24/7 worship and prayer, specifically praying through the night, makes sense when we have touched a little of who God is, when we see how He is worthy of unceasing adoration.

A woman with glasses and curly hair tied back, wearing a beige shirt, sits at a keyboard and sings into a microphone in a large, empty room with rows of chairs, some people in the background.

The Importance of the NightWatch

Two women performing music on stage, one singing into a microphone and another adjusting sound equipment, with music instruments visible in the background.

The NightWatch at the International House of Prayer (IHOPKC) covers the hours from midnight to 6am. Within a ministry that runs twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, a committed group of people are needed to labor through the night hours. Because of the lifestyle change the NightWatch schedule requires, a unique dedication exists among this company of intercessors in the IHOPKC family. These intercessors, singers, and musicians have rearranged their lives in order to carry the torch of intercession through the night hours.

A woman with brown hair wearing a striped shirt and tan pants, sitting at a desk with a computer and wearing black headphones, in a room with rows of chairs and dark wall-mounted screens.

The NightWatch Mandate

A typical day in the life of a NightWatch intercessor begins in the early afternoon and ends after leaving the prayer room at 6am. The NightWatch is a diverse group of IHOPKC staff, community and visitors from all stages of life, from single young adults to families with children.

The Nightwatch Mandate, with a special blessing, is found in Psalm 134: “Behold, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord, who by night stand in the house of the Lord! Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord. The Lord who made heaven and earth bless you from Zion!” We receive the blessing that the Lord promises those who stand in His house through the night.

“Behold, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord, who by night stand in the house of the Lord! Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord. The Lord who made heaven and earth bless you from Zion!”

— Psalm 134

Standing by Night in the House of the Lord

Night-and-day prayer is a divine initiative born in God's heart. The increase of night-and-day prayer in the Church across the nations is a prophetic indicator of what lies ahead in redemptive history.

24/7 prayer is not just about keeping a schedule. Rather, it is a response to the greatness and majesty of God. Because His greatness is unsearchable, it only makes sense for our worship of Him to be unending. Isaiah prophesied that there would be watchmen who would stand before the Lord night and day and ask Him for His purposes in the earth and ultimately the nation of Israel (Isaiah 62:6-7).

A young man with short hair and wearing a white t-shirt and jeans is standing at a black music stand, singing into a microphone in a dark indoor setting with blue-lit equipment around him.

The call to the NightWatch is a call to extravagant devotion. It is the Lord’s desire to raise up a people who will love Him in the night. On the night of Jesus’ betrayal, the hour of judgment and salvation, He found no one to stand with Him. But in the final hours of history—the time of escalated judgment and salvation—who will tarry with Him through the night?

The NightWatch as a Lifestyle

The NightWatch is a unique context for prayer that facilitates a lifestyle of voluntary weakness. By its very nature, the NightWatch creates the opportunity to engage with the Lord in a focused way by limiting distractions and extracurricular activities.

Embracing the NightWatch is akin to a form of fasting, not just from food but from the conventional patterns of daily life. It involves sacrificing sleep and other activities, dedicating those hours to prayer, worship, and meditation on God's Word. This intentional pursuit of God in the stillness of night provides a distinct atmosphere for deeper communion and intimacy with the Lord.

Person wearing a brown hoodie playing a keyboard with colorful lights in a dark environment.

Behold and Bless the Lord

Worship with Prayer through the night hours keeps the fire of adoration burning to change the spiritual atmosphere over our cities.

The One Thing Needed: Communing with God

A person wearing glasses, a black cap, and a black and white striped sweater is playing a keyboard in a dimly lit setting, smiling and enjoying the music.

“Behold, bless the LORD . . . by night” is a call to a contemplative lifestyle in which we spend our lives before the Lord (Ps. 134:1; Lk. 10:42). By contemplative lifestyle we mean deep communion with God. Just like everything else in the kingdom, our first call in the NightWatch is to love the Lord. He is calling us to the “one thing needed”—the primary thing. Deep communion with God is to be our preoccupation in the night, whether in worship, intercession, or service.

Psalm 27:4: “One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple.” Desire defined: The one thing humanity desires is to see beauty, and the only beauty that will satisfy is the beauty of the Lord. We are created with a thirst for the eternal.
Luke 10:42: “One thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.” Desire satisfied: Desire is satisfied as we sit at His feet and let Him kiss us with the kisses of His Word and unfold the pleasure of His divine love to us (Song 1:2).
Philippians 3:13–14: “One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” The journey of desire: It calls us to set a marathon pace.