It’s easy to get discouraged by everything going wrong in the world. Scroll through your phone or watch the news for five minutes and you’ll read about war, corruption, violence, injustice, and suffering. Sometimes the problems seem so overwhelming that we wonder if our prayers even matter. This is where “Your kingdom come” can help—it’s an invitation for God’s power to inhabit the earth. We tend to think of God as some distant being, or a presence up in the sky, but one of the primary ways the Bible describes Him is as a King. When you think of Him that way, it’s easier to picture Him ruling and reigning over all things—not distant, but very near. And one day, He will return and establish His kingdom fully on the earth. So when Jesus teaches us to pray, “Your kingdom come,” He is inviting us to see the world from a different perspective and reminding us that even in darkness, you can see little glimpses of heaven everywhere.

In February 2023, something remarkable happened in the small town of Wilmore, Kentucky. A routine chapel service at Asbury University ended like every other service. Students were free to leave—and most of them did—but a handful stayed behind to pray. There was no famous speaker or special music; a few students simply stayed to linger in God’s presence. Over the next few hours, that handful of students became dozens, and dozens became hundreds. Before long, word spread, and thousands of people of all ages began traveling from across the country to this small town—including me. I drove to Asbury because I wanted to see it for myself. The night I attended, I had to park a mile away, and it was pouring rain, but people were praying and singing as they waited in line, unbothered by the weather. After waiting in the rain for 2 hours, I finally got inside, and what I witnessed was a little piece of heaven. Students confessed sins, reconciled relationships, sang, worshiped, and prayed. For more than two weeks, Hughes Auditorium remained open nearly around the clock.

Of course, God’s kingdom doesn’t only break through in a chapel service. Sometimes it looks like a foster family welcoming a child into their home, a volunteer helping addicts at a recovery center, or a missionary serving halfway around the world. And sometimes it’s a simple act of forgiveness between two people. You can see heaven all around you if you’re looking for it.

Every Person in Every Place

Several years ago, I heard my pastor, Kevin Gerald, teach that we should pray for God’s kingdom to come specifically to the places and people we are near, and my family decided to implement this every day. When we passed a school bus, we would pray, “God, let Your kingdom come to the kids on that bus.” When we passed an office building, we would pray, “God, let Your kingdom come to that business.” Those daily prayers started to change me. What began as a small act of obedience became a daily reminder that God cares about every person in every place I pass. I started noticing people I used to overlook, and I began to see them not just as strangers, but as people God wants to love and lead—people who need to experience heaven.

Over time, this simple prayer became a way of life. I found myself walking into stores and quietly praying, “Let Your kingdom come to this employee.” I’d sit in traffic and pray for the cars around me: “God, move here.” I’d sit in the bleachers at my kids’ games, and I couldn’t help but think about all the people who needed a touch of heaven in their life. Praying “Your kingdom come” gave me an expectation that God could show up wherever I was.

That’s what “Your kingdom come” does: It opens our eyes and turns routines into opportunities. God isn’t limited to a church building; He also shows up in hockey arenas and ball fields, which is one reason I serve as a sports chaplain. It’s true for you, too. When you begin praying this way, your office will become a mission field, and your neighborhood and school will become places where heaven can break in.

On Mission

The Bible uses the word “ambassador” to describe what it’s like for Christians to live on Earth. An ambassador lives in one country but represents another, and their little piece of land is their home away from home. As Christians, our citizenship is not with this world—we belong to another kingdom. We live here, work here, raise our families here, and pay our taxes here, but our values and priorities come from somewhere else. We represent Jesus wherever we go. That means when you walk into your office, your cubicle is an outpost of heaven. When you teach, your classroom is heaven on earth. When you coach a team, you represent heaven on the sidelines. When you change diapers, mow the lawn, or cook dinner, you are taking care of heaven’s embassy. 

But it doesn’t stop there. We pray for God’s kingdom to come, but we must also play a part in bringing it here. Over the centuries, Christians have cared for widows and orphans, built hospitals, established schools, fed the hungry, fought to end slavery, dug wells, run homeless shelters, adopted children, served the poor, visited prisoners, translated the Bible into thousands of languages, and risked their lives to bring the hope of Christ to places of darkness.

I heard a story about a Vacation Bible School teacher who told a student, “if the Kingdom of God is within you, then everywhere you go, you ought to leave a little heaven behind.” I think that’s exactly what Jesus meant. Wherever we go, we have the opportunity to establish His kingdom on earth. This world will never fully become heaven until Christ returns, but if we try our best, we can have a taste of what it will be like. When we pray, “Your kingdom come,” God answers through you and me. 

Practice:

Take a moment to pause and look around your home, school, workplace, gym, and neighborhood. Where do you want to see heaven break through today?

Prayer:

Father, open my eyes to the people around me and the places I pass each day. Let Your kingdom come to my home, my conversations, and the everyday moments of my life. Teach me to carry Your presence in every place I go. Let Your kingdom come—to me, around me, and through me. Amen.