We Can All Pray
3/6/2024
Written by: Frieda Dowler
In February, we received a challenge through two Sunday messages to leverage our lives for eternal impact. We were shown how to serve others the way Jesus did and to be effective for the cause of Christ by becoming a Gamechanger. It was a call to be involved. Maybe you don’t feel like you have much to offer or are physically limited. But there is something we can all do to be a Gamechanger. WE CAN ALL PRAY.
Our church and our ministers need prayer. They have been given immense leadership responsibility and need our prayer support. The following is taken from a brochure I found among my mom’s things when she passed from this life in January. She was committed to prayer, and I wanted to pass this on to our congregation. The author has also passed from this life, so I quote him without plagiarizing his un-copywritten work. His name, Jim Somerville, resident of Ontario, and a retired pastor himself.
Ten Ways to Pray for your Pastor
1. Pray that God will protect our pastors spiritually. Because our pastors have taken a stand for Christ and seek to minister to God’s people, Satan will do everything that he can to destroy their ministry. The Apostle Paul pleaded with believers to uphold him in their prayers: “Pray…for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” Eph. 6:19–20 NIV.
2. Pray that our pastors will be empowered by the Holy Spirit. Our pastors may be good preachers, excellent organizers, and wonderful counselors, but without the power of the Holy Spirit, nothing of significant value will be accomplished through their ministries. God said, through the Prophet Zechariah, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit.” Zech. 4:6 NIV.
3. Pray that our pastors will know God’s will and do it. Pray that our pastors will have spiritual insight to know God’s will and the courage to carry it out. Paul wrote, “We have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.” Col. 1:9 NIV.
4. Pray that our pastors will make personal devotions and quiet time a priority. With all the demands that pastors face, it may be easy for them to sacrifice the time they have set aside for devotions. Yet the loss of personal devotions will rob the ministry of its effectiveness. Jesus said, “Seek first {God’s} kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Mat. 6:33 NIV.
5. Pray that our pastors will resist temptation. We hear more and more often about pastors who have succumbed to temptation and have publicly disgraced themselves. The Apostle John wrote about three areas in which Satan tries to defeat us: “the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life”1 Jn. 2:16 NIV. Pray that our pastors will recognize in each temptation the hand of Satan, turn from the temptation, and flee to Jesus.
6. Pray that our pastors’ ministries will be Christ-centered. We live in a day of “pop psychology” and “feel-good Christianity.” Many preachers try to fill their pews by entertaining their listeners. They may have forgotten that Jesus said, “I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." Jn. 12:32 NIV Pray that our pastors will point people to the Savior.
7. Pray that our pastors will be concerned about the lost. Many churches claim to be Christians and yet deny that people outside Christ are lost–in spite of the fact that the Bible teaches, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him” Jn. 3:36 NIV. Pray that our pastors will believe the Gospel and will proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to people who are lost, who are “without hope and without God in the world.” Eph. 2:12 NIV.
8. Pray that our pastors will have compassionate hearts. Jesus was concerned for hurting and lost individuals wherever He found them. He sent out His followers with specific instructions: “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those have leprosy, and drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.” Mt. 10:8 NIV Pray that the love of God for hurting humanity will flow through our pastors’ hearts and that needy, hurting people will be blessed.
9. Pray that our pastors will handle opposition well. Pastors who are doing God’s work in God’s way will not be exempt from criticism. In fact, Jesus said, “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven: Mt. 5: 11–12 NIV. Pray that our pastors will embody the love of Christ in handling criticism and personal attacks from those who try to undermine their ministries.
10. Pray that our pastors will give glory to God. Being successful can be dangerous. Sometimes, pastors, in the midst of success, forget the Savior and take credit for what belongs to God alone. Paul wrote, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” Gal. 6:14 NIV.
This list of ten ways to pray was compiled by a minister. He knows the perils of leadership and coveted these prayers for himself. Print them and put them in your Bible. These prayers will cover our ministers as God moves mightily through Victory during these times of chaos in the world.