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When I was young I had an uncle who would come visit about once a year. He was just a mailman who worked hard–rain, sleet, snow or hail. There wasn’t anything too special about him, but he managed to endear himself to all his nephews and nieces. Every year when he came home, he would bring with him some new magic trick to impress and amaze us. Without it, we probably wouldn’t have even noticed he was back. With it he earned our excitement every time he came home. When I look at the way Jesus called his disciples, I’m reminded just a bit of that uncle. Take the call of Peter, for example. Jesus could have simply walked up to him and said, ‘Hi, I’m the Messiah. Come follow me,” and Peter would have likely ended up in history as just another nameless fisherman working the Sea of Galilee. But instead Jesus grabbed his attention with the only thing that seems to work on fishermen–a huge catch (Luke 5:1-11). Once they were back on land there was no need to convince Peter who he was – Peter knew there was something special about this man. When we talk about praying for the lost, very often we speak in terms that almost seem devious. We go into our closets, silently pray for the salvation of our neighbor and then wait for some sign from God that we’ve been given the green light to tell them that Jesus loves them. While I would never suggest we not pray for our neighbor in secret, I think it’s time we begin to see that prayer can be one of the greatest attention grabbers for those neighbors. When they not only know that we’re praying for them, but also see specific answers to prayer, they realize that there is something special about this Jesus they hear us talking about. I hope this isn’t the case, but it’s almost as though we’ve taken prayer for granted. We’re used to going to church and seeing the list of those who are sick or otherwise in need of prayer. We are very aware that when we are in need we can instantly reach for a phone and call friends who will drop everything and go to their knees for us. We are so accustomed to prayer requests and praise reports that we’ve forgotten what it means to live without the assurance of God’s presence and the support of intercessors. But what about your neighbors? When was the last time someone told them that they were being prayed for? When was the last time they shared their deepest need with someone who responded, “I’ll be praying about that?” The sad fact is that may have never happened. They may not even realize that kind of comfort and power is available to them. Consider the Church in Acts 2. They were a new group, distinct from the other Jews around them, and often very misunderstood. And yet they saw people respond to their message by the thousands. Was it just the preaching? No. Acts 2:43 tells us that “Everyone (Believer and Unbeliever alike) was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.” The people were very aware that there was a power available to those followers of Jesus that wasn’t available anywhere else. The awe that inspired allowed those disciples to be heard by the people around them, which then lead to turning the world upside-down. A few months ago, I called a local mechanic about getting some work done on my car. His wife, who also works as his receptionist, told me they wouldn’t be able to do any work because they had no help at the garage. Times were getting tough and she was afraid that here husband would have to go back to work driving a truck, being on the road and away from his family for days on end just so they could survive. It would have been easy to simply thank her and go back to the phone book looking for another mechanic, but instead I told her that I would be praying about the problem. I could tell from her response that it wasn’t much comfort, but I prayed anyway. About a month later my phone rang. It was the mechanic’s wife. Her voice was full of emotion as she told me to feel free to bring my car by anytime–they had gotten the help they needed and business had picked up again. She seemed to fight back the tears as she thanked me for my prayers and told me there would be no need for her husband to go on the road. I would dare say she had never been that excited about an answered prayer before. I would also venture that the next time their family is in crisis she’ll remember the difference a prayer made. And whether she realizes it or not, she has now put herself in a position where God has her attention and the call to “come follow me” carries a lot more weight. The good news you share with your neighbor has the power to bring them eternal life. But don’t forget that the prayer you share with your neighbor has the ability to fill them with awe as they see a living God who cares for their needs. Be sure to share your source of strength and awe with them. Bret Hammond is the Spiritual Formation Pastor at South Side Christian Church in Springfield, IL

The Apostle Paul gives an interesting picture of prayer in 2 Corinthians 1:8-11. He talks to the Corinthian believers about all the hardships he has been through on the missionary trip which he and his team have taken. He says:  “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and He will deliver us.”  The team had sensed that death could come to them at any moment. But then he goes on to say:  “On Him we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.” Here Paul was not talking about prayer in a casual way, not simply stating that when he was on this missionary journey he knew that some people were back home praying and that gave him comfort. No! He believed that there was a battle going on in the heavenlies which required a different kind of praying, prayer like that spoken of in Matthew 11:12:  “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.”  The way  “forceful men lay hold”  of the kingdom, overcoming the gates of hell, is through prayer. Paul believed that as they were on this journey, forceful men among the Corinthian believers were laying hold of the battle through prayer and that prayer had a profound impact on what was literally happening! Paul, when encouraging people to join in prayer, writes in Romans 15:30:  “I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me.” Paul uses another image in Colossians 4:12. Here he was talking about a friend whom the Colossians knew, Epaphras:  “Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured.”  If we were wanting people to pray for us, how many of us would use the terminology that Paul used:  “…join me in my struggle,” “…wrestling in prayer.”  Wrestling is hard work. The Apostle Paul prayed differently than most of us pray in church prayer meetings. The way most believers are praying is what I call, “little answerables.” Most of us are praying for the everyday “fix it” needs of our life. Life is going along all right. Something happens to upset it, and we want to pray that away and get back to normal. As Western believers, many of us have this sense of entitlement that for the believer life should be good. Much of the prayer efforts of a given church, and of my own life as well, are probably the majority of the time those “fix it” kinds of things. “Get this turned around,” “change this so they can be free of that pain and of that illness, or so this financial need can be taken care of.” I call these horizontal prayers instead of upward focused prayers. Most of the time prayers offered for such situations are made out of duty for the one who requested prayer. Because we want to show love for them we pray as they request. We pray the obvious – not thinking about what God wants to do through this situation. Nothing is wrong with people asking for these needs, and nothing is wrong with people praying for them. It is a way to show love to the body. But most of the time we don’t pray about the bigger kingdom things. We need to focus a greater portion of our prayer meeting times on broader things, on more kingdom kind of things. Kingdom Praying How can we move our prayers to become more kingdom focused? What is a kingdom prayer? I think it is two-fold: 1. A kingdom prayer is something that has lasting value and importance in the kingdom of God. We can be praying for someone’s salvation, for example. We can be praying for a certain country to open for the Gospel. 2. We can also pray kingdom prayers in “little answerable” situations. We are praying a kingdom prayer when we know what we are praying in that situation is God’s will. In Romans 8:26-27 we have the Holy Spirit’s role in prayer. It says that when we don’t know what to pray for,  “the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.”  Sometimes I am so focused on what I want to see God doing that I miss what God is actually doing. Through His intercession the Holy Spirit helps me to pray according to the will of God. Model Prayers of Paul To help us focus more on kingdom things, let us look at some of Paul’s prayers. They can be a model for us. Paul had a lot of people under his care with needs. He had started churches throughout Asia Minor and people were being persecuted, etc., and so he had many people with needs, but look at Paul’s prayers. There are twenty-one places in Scripture where Paul is asking God to do something, but in all of the prayers of Paul, I do not see any place where Paul prayed for an answer to a specific need for a specific person. I would be surprised if Paul never prayed for answers to specific personal needs, but we do not see that in Scripture. When Paul lived it would be difficult to keep up with praying specific needs for specific people because communication was not what it is today. It could take a month or more to get a word from a church a distance away and to know what is happening in someone’s life. What Paul’s recorded prayers do say to me is not that I should not pray for specific answers to specific needs, but if Paul spent the bulk of his time praying in another vein, maybe I need to think about praying a good portion of my prayers in that same vein. In Second Corinthians 12 Paul did pray something very specific for himself. He prayed that the “thorn” in his flesh would be removed. We do not know what it was, but Paul felt it was something that was hindering his ministry, keeping him from being as effective as he could be, and so he says in this passage that he asked God to remove that. What did God say? He said,  “My grace is sufficient for you”  (v. 9). God helped Paul to know that He would get greater glory by that being in Paul’s life and God giving him the enablement to overcome it and to operate with it. So Paul stopped praying about that. Many believers observe “The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.” Do we not usually pray some kind of a prayer about getting the persecuted out of their trouble, as Paul first prayed about his “thorn”? I am not for Christians being persecuted, but I know historically that wherever the Church was persecuted, it thrived. In The Christian and Missionary Alliance Church that I grew up in, their largest mission field in 1975 was Vietnam. In it was the largest national Church they had outside the U.S., probably 70,000 to 80,000 believers and hundreds of churches. In 1975 Vietnam fell to the Communists and missionaries had to leave, pastors were persecuted and many of them were thrown into prison for years. Now that the country is opening up again and Westerners are getting back in, they are analyzing where our churches are. They were thirty years without any missionaries or outside help whatsoever, and the Church today is around a million believers. Why the increase? It has something to do with persecution. Oftentimes we want to pray people out of things and God wants to use things in people’s lives to grow them to be more kingdom-minded, to cause people to be drawn to things of the kingdom. That is what Paul had in mind. For What Did Paul Pray? In Romans 15:5-6, Paul prays:  “May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”  In Romans 15:13, Paul prays:  “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Even though the Church in Rome was probably starting to experience persecution and these believers were trying to just survive in a city hostile to Christianity, Paul doesn’t pray for safety or protection for them. That is the first thing most of us would think to pray for. Instead, Paul prays for unity in the first prayer and for joy and peace in the second prayer. Why? Both verses contain the words,  “so that.”  Nineteen of Paul’s prayers contain those words. In other words Paul prays, “I pray this ‘so that’ this will happen.” In these two verses, the unity of believers which he prays for would bring glory to God. Jesus prayed for unity of believers in John 17. Jesus prayed  “that all of them may be one, Father…so that the world may believe that You have sent Me”  (v. 21). Jesus also said in John 12:32:  “I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” Paul knew that when outsiders saw the unity of the Church they would be drawn to Jesus Christ in great numbers. Therefore, rather than pray for the obvious, for protection, he prayed with kingdom eyes: something like “Give them unity so that people would be attracted to the Gospel.” When the Church is in unity, something happens in the heavenlies, and people are attracted to the Gospel. There are many communities in Indiana where groups of pastors are praying together. In one of those communities, five to seven years ago, they started doing Concerts of Prayer together, perhaps quarterly or every fifth Sunday. The pastors prayed together each week. They had intercessors from churches gather one Tuesday night a month to pray for their community. There was a lot of unity. Three or four years ago the mayor noticed this. He was not a believer, but he came to the pastors’ group and said, “I understand your intercessors pray each month for the community. If I gave you prayer requests that were around the vision we have for this city, would they pray for that?” “Sure,” they responded, “we will do that.” So every month the mayor’s office sends a list of needs. There is something about unity that causes people to be drawn to the Gospel. In the second verse, Romans 15:13, Paul prays for joy and peace amid the turmoil of their lives so that they would overflow with hope. People who have hope in tough times are very attractive to those who don’t have hope. Some have watched a believer go through a very difficult situation, maybe a health need or a difficult family situation, and see they do it with a sense of trust that was evident or a sense of peace, even a sense of joy. Unbelievers wonder at that. “How can they do it?” they think. “I couldn’t do it like that.” That gives the believer a chance to share Christ. God uses those things in people’s lives. We want to pray people out of things and God may want to use those things to grow His kingdom and to attract people to the Gospel. Paul knew that, so rather than pray people out of these difficult situations, he prayed that they would have peace and joy and hope in the midst of them, so people would be attracted to the Gospel. Paul’s Prayer for the Ephesians Ephesus was the center of the worship of Artemis or Diana. At one time when he was there, some of his companions were attacked by a mob. Paul knows the stress and pressure the church is under. But instead of praying the obvious for them, protection for them, he prays for spiritual development and fruit in them. In Ephesians 1:15-19 we read: “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your   love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and His incomparably great power for us who believe.” A little later in Ephesians 3:16-19 Paul prays:  “…that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” That’s a kingdom prayer! That is seeking that whatever a person is going through, whatever is happening in his or her life, that it would serve to bring them deeper into a relationship with Christ. Paul was always praying for things that would develop godly character, Christ-likeness, wisdom, discernment and such things. I am in many church prayer meetings, and I cannot recall any time hearing one believer praying for the spiritual development of another believer. Paul’s Prayer for the Philippians Look at Philippians 1:9-11:  “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ – to the glory and praise of God.” In virtually all of Paul’s prayers he seems to pray more for the process than the results. He does have an idea of what he wants the results to be. In most of his prayers he has a “so that” which is what he wants to happen. The results that Paul wants to see in the Philippians’ lives is he wants them to be discerning of what is best, and he wants them to live pure and blameless lives. But what does he pray? He prayed that their love would abound more and more in knowledge and in depth of insight. He prayed that they would become more loving toward each other, that they would have knowledge of Christ’s love for them, etc. What is the connection between the results and what he prayed for? What would happen in your church if all of a sudden one day a grace of love came over your congregation so that everybody started loving one another more, everybody began understanding Christ’s love for them much more than they now did? What would happen to the petty little annoyances and offences that tend to keep churches bogged down? We wouldn’t get offended. We wouldn’t attack one another. Things would get done in a board meeting much quicker. We may sacrifice our opinion and accept that of others about a decision being made. If that happened in a church, do you think we would live more blameless lives? We’d start to be discerning and doing what’s best. That is what Paul wanted to happen so he prays for love. Paul’s Prayer for Philemon Go to the book of Philemon. Philemon was probably a Christian businessman and had a house church in his home. Paul had come into contact with a man named Onesimus who was one of Philemon’s slaves who had run away. Onesimus had come to Christ and wanted to return to Philemon and make things right so Paul sent a letter urging Philemon to take him back into fellowship. Paul writes to Philemon:  “I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ”  (v. 6).   When we say,  “…share your faith…”  we think of sharing with an unbeliever but Paul is probably referring to the body of believers, sharing with them what Christ is doing in your life. In Philemon, what Paul wants to happen for Philemon is that he would have a full understanding of everything he had in Christ. What he prays for is that Philemon would be active in sharing his faith. What is the connection between someone sharing his faith and his having a full understanding of all he has in Christ? If someone is constantly sharing what Christ is doing in his life and giving glory to God for that, do you think God would give him things to share? God would give plentifully to one like that, and he would be learning about God’s love, and about His being a provider, His trustworthiness and His faithfulness, etc. That person would be sharing them and getting a deeper understanding of who He is. Before and after church we are standing around chatting about our week. Seldom do we talk about spiritual things. If in those times, everybody would make it a practice of every week sharing one thing with one person that Jesus Christ did for them in their life that week, or something fresh and new that they have learned about Him perhaps in their devotional time – if everybody was sharing what Christ was doing, even those who weren’t used to seeing such things would get their eyes opened. They would start to look for such things. Instead of taking things as coincidences, they would realize this was something God was doing for them and they would share it. It would be an exciting place to be. God would be getting glory. That is what Paul is praying for here for Philemon. Get active in sharing your faith, because if you do that, you’re going to get a greater understanding of who Christ is in you. Some Applications We have looked at how Paul prayed, but how does that apply to us? Take someone who perhaps has a sore foot. I come from a group that believes in divine healing and in laying on of hands and praying for the sick. If I don’t know anything else from the Lord that He wants to do, that is what I will do. But I also know God doesn’t always heal instantly. He may want to do things in people’s lives. Maybe the afflicted believer has a neighbor who isn’t a believer and when the latter hears that the one with the sore foot will need surgery and will be laid up for a while, she takes her some meals or runs errands for her. Thus the neighbor comes in touch with the believer more than she ordinarily does. So the believer is able to share Christ with her. Maybe that is what God wants to do. Think of a student struggling with a class. She wants to be a doctor. Her father is a doctor. She wants to follow in his footsteps no matter what. But maybe God has something else in mind for her. She may not turn God’s way until she struggles with her own choice. How about a neighbor with whom there is a boundary dispute? The neighbor wants to put in a fence with the posts on the property of the believer. Maybe God wants to do something in the heart of the neighbor because of the way the believer responds in that situation. So we approach prayer needs carefully and ask, “What does God want to do?” Do not just pray the first obvious thing – “Fix it.” Ask, “What does God want to do to grow His kingdom in and through this?” Three Principles There are three principles you can follow when you have a need to pray for. 1. The first is, don’t immediately jump to the obvious when you pray for a need. Instead, start by seeking God as to what He wants you to pray. What is it He wants to do in the situation? What might His will be? Is there something you sense God wants to do? What’s the “so that”? What would give glory to God in this situation? Begin to pray that. I firmly believe that if we get into a mode where we will seek God for what we should pray in a situation and pause and listen, that many times God will give us that. Even when we are dealing with somebody on the spot, we can get in a mode where we listen and breathe a prayer – “Holy Spirit, what do You want me to pray about this?” 2. The second principle is, don’t be so quick to pray the result. Pray the process. Pray for spiritual development and fruit in the life of the one with the need. Ask God, “What characteristics, what things are You wanting to grow in this family? What do You want to do to bring glory to Yourself in this situation?” 3. The third thing is, what do you do when you don’t know what to pray? You’ve asked God and you aren’t getting anything. Pray Scripture. What’s a promise from Scripture you can grab ahold of and pray for that person? Is there a verse that God quickens in your heart to pray for that person? Like Paul, think about what we can be praying of a spiritual development nature for people in and through these things. Seek God, asking, “What is it You want me to pray?” –Jonathan Graf is the author of  Praying Like Paul: Learning to Pray the Kingdom for Those You Love .

When we consider family and friends who are living outside of a relationship with Jesus, it is sometimes difficult to know how to pray effectively without giving up. Often, it is not enough to proclaim the message to those we love. There are forces of darkness working overtime to keep people from hearing and responding to the gospel. The salvation of people is a spiritual battle, but God has given us spiritual weapons with which to fight and make a way for those we love to enter the Kingdom of God. Here are 9 biblical ways to pray for lost people we care deeply about: 1. Believe that their salvation is possible.Mark 10:25-27 –  “‘It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.’” The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, ‘Who then can be saved?’Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.’” Prayer:  Lord, I believe that _______’s salvation is possible! 2. Intercede for them daily – don’t give up! 1 Timothy 2:1-4 –  “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.” Prayer:  Lord, I bring _______to Your throne! Help me remember to let Heaven hear his/her name every day! 3. Ask God to draw them to Himself. John 6:44 –  ““No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him…and I will raise him up on the last day.” Prayer:  Father, draw _______to Yourself so that he/she can hear and believe the Gospel of Christ. 4. Pray for the Holy Spirit to convict unbelievers concerning sin, righteousness and judgment. John 16:8-11 –  “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.” Prayer:  Lord, please convict _______of sin and help them to recognize that righteousness comes only through Jesus Christ. 5. Ask God to remove the veil that blinds the minds of unbelievers. 2 Corinthians 4:4 –  “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” Prayer:  Father, please remove the veil that blinds _______’s mind. Do whatever You need to do to get his/her attention. 6. Know that you have the authority to demolish strongholds.2 Corinthians 10:4 –  “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.” Prayer:  Lord, I pray in the powerful name of Jesus that You will defeat the work of Satan in _______’s life! 7. Ask God for good soil. Matthew 13:19-23 –  “When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” Prayer:  Father, please help the Gospel to fall on good soil in _______’s heart so that he/she will hear the word and understand it! 8. Yield to the will of God. 1 Corinthians 3:6-7 –  “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” Prayer:  Father, teach me, as I pray, to yield to Your plans and purposes for _______instead of my own. 9. Praise God for His victory over the power of the enemy. Psalm 44:4-8 –  “You are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob. Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes. I put no trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame. In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever.” Prayer:  Father, we praise You, that in the Name of Jesus You will have the victory in _______’s life.

Do you ever find yourself asking God to “just save all the lost people”? If you have ever wanted to have some specific, biblical ways to pray for those who are still lost in darkness, here are seven simple ways to posture yourself before the Father and ask for Him to move: Praying for Open Eyes “I am sending you, to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me” (Acts 26:18). Jesus commissioned and sent the Apostle Paul out on mission, just as Jesus has also commanded us to do! Pray:  Father, show me how to pray in such a way that people’s eyes are opened so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the grip of Satan to the freedom of God. Your word commands us to go into the world so that the lost may receive the forgiveness of their sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in You! Use me to reach my family, my neighbors, my city and beyond so that You alone will receive the glory! And when eyes are opened may they see and experience new life forever. Listen:  Take some time to wait expectantly before the Father. What is God revealing to your heart? Is there a response, a change, an act of repentance or forgiveness that needs to be paid attention to? Is God showing you a next step towards being the answer to the prayer you just prayed? Salvation for the Lost Should Be Our Heart’s Desire “Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for  their  salvation” (Romans 10:1). Paul was in anguish over the lost in Israel. Do we share his grief for the lost next door, in our families, at our workplaces, in our nation and across the earth? Pray:  Lord God Almighty, touch my heart so that it longs for the salvation of every person in every nation on earth. May Your Spirit deepen my anguish over those lost in darkness. I cry out to You to give Jesus His inheritance – the ends of the earth! Listen:  Take some time to wait expectantly before the Father. What is God revealing to your heart? Is there a response, a change, an act of repentance or forgiveness that needs to be paid attention to? Is God showing you a next step towards being the answer to the prayer you just prayed? The Good and Acceptable Prayer “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties  and  prayers, petitions  and  thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:1-4). God doesn’t want our lives to be hurried, out of control and frantic. He wants us to lead tranquil and quiet lives in godliness and dignity. This is possible when we pray for others (especially our leaders and those in authority to come under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Pray:  Father, because You desire all to be saved and to know the truth, that is on my heart also. May I be faithful to pray for all of the men, women and children you place upon my heart and give me a burden to seek You on their behalf. Help me to always pray for those in authority so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. Listen:  Take some time to wait expectantly before the Father. What is God revealing to your heart? Is there a response, a change, an act of repentance or forgiveness that needs to be paid attention to? Is God showing you a next step towards being the answer to the prayer you just prayed? The God Who Is Always On Time “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). We are an impatient people, used to getting what we want instantly. We are even impatient in prayer, wanting results more than we want to wait upon God’s timing. Let’s choose to believe He is at work in the lives of those for whom we pray and that He will bring their salvation about at the perfect time. Pray:  Father God, You are always right on time, even when I am anxious for answers or results. Help me to faithfully pray for friends, family members, neighbors, co-workers and others who have not yet declared that You are Savior and Lord of their lives. You love every person and want them all to be a part of Your forever kingdom. May I faithfully pray for all of those You put in my path to be drawn to You! Listen:  Take some time to wait expectantly before the Father. What is God revealing to your heart? Is there a response, a change, an act of repentance or forgiveness that needs to be paid attention to? Is God showing you a next step towards being the answer to the prayer you just prayed? The Savior Who Seeks the Lost “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). Perhaps no one comes to Christ apart from the prayers of at least one other person. We won’t be able to verify this until heaven; however, more people will have the opportunity to come to Christ if we pray than if we don’t. Pray:  Lord, because You came to earth, I have been saved for the purpose of living a life that is Christlike and to pray for the salvation of all who are lost. You found me when I was lost and living apart from the fullness of life You promise to those who love You. Thank You for allowing someone to pray for my salvation, for putting people in my life to speak of You, and for convicting my heart through Your Holy Spirit of the sin in my life. Thank You for the greatest act of sacrificial love – dying on a cross for my salvation and the salvation of all those who have yet to call You Lord and Savior. May I have the privilege of praying thousands into Your kingdom! Listen:  Take some time to wait expectantly before the Father. What is God revealing to your heart? Is there a response, a change, an act of repentance or forgiveness that needs to be paid attention to? Is God showing you a next step towards being the answer to the prayer you just prayed?   Prayer for Blinded Minds “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (II Corinthians 4:4). Because Satan has blinded the minds of those who have yet to know Christ, their minds need to be opened to see the true light of His gospel. As we pray, God moves to change hearts and minds. He makes a way in the most difficult of circumstances for those who are lost to be saved. Pray:  Lord God Almighty, we pray for the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ Jesus, who is Your very image, to be made known to those who are lost. Draw them to Yourself as we seek Your face and ask that in Your mercy, You will move to remove whatever is blocking their minds to receive the gospel. Let them see the futility of going their own way and the blessing of embracing the life-giving Savior. Show me how to help people draw closer to You. Listen:  Take some time to wait expectantly before the Father. What is God revealing to your heart? Is there a response, a change, an act of repentance or forgiveness that needs to be paid attention to? Is God showing you a next step towards being the answer to the prayer you just prayed? Lord of the Harvest “Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore, beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest’” (Matthew 9:37-38). Jesus made it very clear to His disciples what their mandate would be – bringing lost people into the kingdom. Never has there been a time in history when more people were in need of Jesus – all across the earth. Jesus said we are to “beseech” the Lord. Other words for beseech are implore, beg, and plead. Are we willing to pray the price of eternal life for countless loved ones, friends, neighbors, co-workers and even those we have never met? Pray:  Lord of the Harvest, awaken my heart more fully and move upon the hearts of those who have yet to discover their usefulness in the amazing harvest that is ripe and ready to be gathered. Give us compassion for those who are lost! So many are wandering in darkness every single day, and so many others are completely without hope. Show me how to bring others with me to step into the harvest field together. May we be faithful to pray earnestly for the lost who are unreachable by human contact, but who can be reached through the power of Your Spirit as we pray! We ask that You will raise up more workers, and more people who will tell their God stories to the lost across the street and around the world! Listen:  Take some time to wait expectantly before the Father. What is God revealing to your heart? Is there a response, a change, an act of repentance or forgiveness that needs to be paid attention to? Is God showing you a next step towards being the answer to the prayer you just prayed?

Here is a simple prayer tip for a prayer room, a 24-7 season of prayer, or for families at home. One person will need to monitor the activity and keep things in order. This is easily adaptable to your own creative ideas! Materials Needed: Small clothespins or other kinds of similar clips Large corkboard, bulletin board, or really any kind of board. Sturdy twine or wire Any kind of paper or 3×5 cards Small table with instructions, cards/paper, things to write or draw with, Bibles, etc. Two baskets or boxes – one for prayer requests/praises that have yet to be put up and one for the prayer requests that have been prayed over for a specified season of time. Set-Up:  The picture here is just one way to do this prayer station. Be as creative with this as you wish – there is no right or wrong way! Your prayer wall might look very different from this one. It’s just here to give you the basic idea. Attach two or more strands of twine or wire to the back of the board and stretch horizontally to the other side in the back. Put clips or clothespins several inches apart along each wire all the way across. Label each strand above or below as to what the focus is. We suggest leaving the top strand for PRAISES/ANSWERED PRAYER. Others can be labeled things like: One Another, Pastors & Staff, Missionaries, Lost people, etc. Whatever you wish to focus on. Consider leaving all of the praise reports up as they don’t need to be moved – maybe get some additional clips, or clip one to another so that people can see all of the amazing ways God moves. The person monitoring the requests should check regularly to be sure everything is in order and perhaps follow-up on the requests that are in the basket to see if they need another round starting at the beginning. If possible, follow up to see if the prayer has been answered or needs an update. Instructions for use (again, just a suggestion): Use this prayer wall to lift up the needs of others, to leave a request of your own, and to share praises/answered prayers. 1. To post a prayer request : Use one of the cards/papers provided or bring your own to write your prayer requests/praises. You can even put a picture up if you wish (this is good for young pre-readers/writers). Be sure you have the person’s permission. Be sure to put the date on the back of your request. 2. To pray for others: Read and then pray for one or more of the requests that has been posted. When you are finished praying, put your initials on the back with the date and move the card/picture/etc. one clip to the right. This way, as each person prays, the request keeps moving to the right and will be prayed for multiple times. If the request you are praying over has reached the last clip to the right, put it in the basket to your right. 3. To post a praise or answered prayer: Clip your praise/answered prayer anywhere on the designated row for praises and answered prayer, and be sure to write the date when the prayer was answered or the praise was given on the FRONT! 4. To join in the praises, read through what has been posted!   Remember, you can use this idea as a jumping off place for your own creative ideas!

They began having at least one or more requests every single day from neighbors. And, they have been very busy praying for each and every one of them. God has been giving the girls some new ways to relate to the neighbors as they have been praying. Here are some of the changes they recently made: The girls wanted their neighbors to know that they really are praying through the prayer requests, so they updated their sign from “How Can We Pray for You?” to “We  Are  Praying for You!” They added a small tree with the names of each person or family they are praying for. For example, Adam lost his job so the card reads “Praying for Adam.” Neighbors can walk by and see their names on the tree knowing that Zalaiah and Makiah are on the job interceding for them! The weather is getting warmer, so they have also added a small bucket with water bottles and ice for people passing by to have something cold to drink. There is also hard candy which doesn’t melt in the sun for people to pick up. The girls’ mother, Shari, says, “We are going to need a bigger table!”

Scripture tells us to pray without ceasing. How do you do that in a practical way? Why not try establishing some prayer triggers as reminders to pray throughout your day? This requires a bit of discipline at the beginning as you will need to determine what triggers would be most effective for you and would be easily remembered. Establishing prayer triggers is also a great way to teach kids to pray regularly. Each time you see a school, you could use it as a prayer trigger to intercede for students, teachers and administrators. When you see a police car, ambulance or fire truck, pray for the first responders in your city. The news is always a great trigger – whenever you watch the news, pray over each story, event, happening, etc. Maybe you could use your refrigerator as a trigger and pray for those who are hungry. Some people will use random triggers such as praying for family members as you brush your teeth. You will need to establish a habit so you attach these prayers to the act of teeth brushing. How to Add Prayer Triggers as Prayer Reminders: What things do you want to remember to pray for continually? Make a list of those things. What thing, activity or person do you see or do regularly that you could associate with each one of the things you want to pray about? For example: I want to pray for my neighbors. Every day I go check the mail, so I attached my mailbox and the act of going to get the mail to praying for my neighbors. Pretty soon, after building this habit over several days, this became a regular prayer time. I would choose a different neighbor each day to pray for as I would go get the mail. The mailbox and the act of going to get mail was now an established Prayer Trigger. Establish one or two prayer triggers firmly in your experience of prayer before moving on to another. Otherwise you could get overwhelmed. Take the time to let these prayer habits settle into your heart each day. What random triggers could you use to remind yourself to pray about other things that are on God’s heart, like unity, revival, praying for the lost, etc.? Prayer triggers are a simple and fun way to engage in the practice of praying without ceasing. Remember to always be listening to how God might want you to be the answer to the prayers you are praying!

A church in Florida was in the midst of building a larger church. Before the paint and carpet stage, the church leaders and staff went to the areas of the church where their primary responsibility was to be. They spent time praying over their spaces. Next, they took pencils and wrote scriptures on the floors, walls, etc. Afterwards, the entire group met and prayerwalked the entire building indoors, praying Scriptures, worshiping, and adding written Scriptures to places they sensed the Spirit was leading them to do so. They asked the Lord for His guidance, wisdom and blessing. Following this, they prayerwalked the outside of the building while asking God to draw lost people to the church, praying for the various community and world-wide outreaches of the church, and planting tent pegs with Scriptures written on them at the corners of the property. It was such a powerful experience that they invited the entire congregation to join them to prayerwalk inside and outside the building and property. We would suggest doing this for any new church space or addition. Also, what might God do in response to small groups praying for members who move to a new home, or build one? What a great way to bless one another as the body of Christ!

Consider taking what are normally “wasted” moments of life and turning them into powerful seasons of prayer for others by establishing a prayer zone around yourself! Here are some examples: You have arrived early to an event:  Can you imagine sitting in a half empty stadium or concert venue with lots of time on your hands before the event begins? Instead of checking your phone, set up a prayer zone and begin praying for those sitting around you, and others as they come in and find their seats. This is a wonderful opportunity to bring the power and presence of God into the lives of people you might otherwise never notice and might completely ignore. Some might be hurting, others confused or lonely…and many are lost without the hope of a Lord and Savior. Scripture says in James 4, “You do not have because you do not ask.” Imagine the spiritual impact you can have on people simply by paying attention and setting up a zone of prayer to invite the Spirit of God to move in the lives of people. Praying for people is a powerful example of love and compassion. Waiting Room:  While you are held captive in a waiting room at a hospital, or doctor’s office, begin to pray for those around you. Ask God, through His Spirit, to show you how to pray for each person. This place of waiting has now become a prayer zone! Standing in Line:  Instead of being exasperated or frustrated by your wait, take time to pray for each person in the line ahead of you and behind you. Ask God to meet these people. Pray blessing over each person.   A Child’s sports practice:  Sometimes the endless practices can wear on a parent or grandparent, but if you take time to use this opportunity to set up a prayer zone around you and pray for the other parents, grandparents, the kids and coaches, etc. you have just created a sanctuary for God to move in the midst of many lives! As you can see, there are many more examples of how to use Prayer Zones! God can transform any season of waiting into a sacred space where He is invited to move in the lives of people around you. Who knows how many people might be filled with joy they can’t explain, or feel comfort, peace, strength, etc. growing in them…the very thing he or she needed in this moment – because you set up a Zone of Prayer around yourself and interceded on their behalf?

Have you ever considered praying for the businesses and business people in your church, asking God to prosper them so that they might become a blessing to the church and to others? The prayer ministry team in one church in Texas began to do just that and saw God do amazing things! In Genesis 12, Abraham was called by God to leave his country and go where the Lord was calling him to go. He promised Abraham that he would be blessed so that he could become a blessing to all the peoples and nations of the earth because of his faithfulness and obedience. It was Abraham’s story that prompted Abraham’s Blessing. The church purchased some plastic pages with slots big enough for business cards and put the pages in a binder. Next, they began to share with the congregation that on a certain Sunday they were going to collect the business cards of everyone who owned, managed or were part of a business. After the business cards were collected, the congregation prayed for the businesses in their community to honor the Lord and that they would prosper in amazing ways so that they could bless God’s kingdom. The businesses and people represented by the cards in the binder were regularly prayed over by the leadership of the church and by the prayer team. On Sundays, the binder was placed on a table in the sanctuary where it was accessible to the congregation. Also, a different business was focused on each week. The person on the business card came forward and was prayed over. Through the weeks and months to come, the congregation watched God answer their prayers in big ways through prospering the businesses and their owners/managers/salespeople, etc. Here are some of the Scriptures that you can use to pray over the businesses and business people in your congregation and community – for the glory and praise of God and for the sake of His kingdom: Deuteronomy 28:3    “Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country. Deuteronomy 28:8  “The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you.” Deuteronomy 28:12  “ The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none.” Job 36:11:  “If they obey and serve him, they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity and their years in contentment” Ps 37:4:  “Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Ps 34:9-10:  “Fear the LORD, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing.” Deut 11:13-15:  “So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the LORD your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul— then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil. I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.” Matt 6:19-21:  “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” 1 Chr 29:11-12:  “Yours, LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you…” Luke 6:38:  “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” 2 Cor 9:10:  “Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.” Ps 84:11-12:  “For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless. LORD Almighty, blessed is the one who trusts in you.” 1 John 5:14-15:  “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.” Jer 17:7-8:  “But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” Matt 6:31-33:  “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear? For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. “ Mal 3:10:  “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” Prov 3:9-10:  “Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine. “ Acts 14:17:  “Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” Isa 58:10-11:  “And if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday… You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.” Ps 37:3-5,11:  “Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart…” 2 Cor 9:6-7:  “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” 2 Cor 9:8:  “And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” Deut 8:18:  “But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.” Phil 4:19:  “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Ps 115:13-14:  “he will bless those who fear the LORD— small and great alike. May the LORD cause you to flourish, both you and your children. May you be blessed by the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.” Prov 11:25:  “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.” 3 John 1:2:  “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” Jer 29:11:  “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Be sure to follow-up by asking business people to give testimonies about how God has answered the prayers of God’s people. It will encourage and build faith in the congregation to watch the Father bless those who have been generous as He has blessed them - even when it wasn’t easy for them to trust that God would be able!