Questions about how to pray are at the top of the list that I receive every day. So many of you have been transparent about your personal struggles regarding prayer in your walk with Christ and it’s been my pleasure in the Lord to encourage you. I’ve had several of my readers ask about intercessory prayer; that is, praying for others. Do you know that both the Hebrew and Greek word for interceding is ‘paga’, and means, “to meet.” When we pray to God on behalf of another, we are causing a “meeting” to occur between us and God and in spirit are bringing the other person to the throne room too. It’s a powerful, spiritual encounter on behalf of another person.
I’ve had a number of you ask what it means to “cover” people in prayer and I wanted to share with you my personal way of intercession in hopes that it will encourage you. If you know me, you know I love to pray and praise God; there is no greater joy for me than being in His presence. But like everyone else, I have to live life and can’t spend all day in prayer. I have two kids under four years of age! So to bring balance to my prayer life I pray specific topics or people on specific days. Of course, the Holy Spirit’s guidance and the urgent needs of those the Lord brings into my life trump my schedule, but overall, I have found that when I have some sort of outline or schedule it helps me stay on track spiritually.
On Sunday’s, I am reminded to pray for the church. I start by praying for my local congregation and its needs right on down to those listed weekly in the bulletin to include the ill, new births, and those grappling with grief due to a loved one. Then I pray for the other churches in town and then on to the church in the whole, specifically, the Body of Christ.
Monday’s I spend praying in depth for my family. Although I pray for my immediate family daily, I take this day to get into details about their lives by doing an “inventory” for them emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and physically. For example, I have a loved one who is obese. So I pray for healing in that area as well as his diabetes, his obvious food addiction, as well as his spiritual state. I leave no proverbial rock uncovered in the lives of my loved one and spend time listening to the Holy Spirit on areas the Lord wants me to pray for them.
I have set Tuesday’s apart for my friends and their families and intercede for things I know they have in their lives that are happening or are scheduled to occur. During my time of “listening” the Lord always brings to mind friends I’ve had for years or that I haven’t heard from in forever and shows me things in their lives they are struggling with. Time and time again I’ll hear from these friends after praying for them. It’s amazing!
On Wednesdays, I pray for the world, starting with our current President all the way down to our local representative. I pray for Israel and other countries and pray for God’s will over them. I pray for the fulfillment of the Great Commission. I pray for missionaries, for prisoners in prisons (those with and without bars), for Martyrs and for things I hear about in the news and the families involved.
Thursday is the day that I specifically focus on having an attitude of gratitude. I spend the majority of my time praising and thanking God for things in my life and the lives of those I spend the rest of the week praying for. Actually, I take time every time I sit down to pray to write out my praises and thanksgiving to the Lord on paper. It helps me keep focused and I enjoy my time doing that immensely.
On Friday, I spend my time praying for those who do not know the Lord. I start with those closest to me and go out from there to friends, people in my town, nearby towns, and so on. I love this day because I try to leave business cards where ever I go that talk about finding freedom in Christ and take time to pray that the Lord will send people to those cards and give them the strength to call me and ask about Jesus. I pray for the waitress that served me at the restaurant on Sunday afternoon and the cashier at Walmart that checked me out previously in the week. The list goes on and is potentially endless until the entire world comes to know the Lord! I even pray for people who go to church because not everyone who comes through a church door knows Jesus as their Savior.
On Saturday’s I pray for the special needs of my family, my friends and their families, and for the sick. Something I want to encourage you with is not just to pray during the time you set apart for one-on-one prayer, but pray throughout the day as the Lord brings people to mind.
In closing, if I could teach you anything about prayer (besides the necessity of it), I’d encourage you to pray the solution, not the problem. For example, if you struggle with anxiety, pray, “Father, Your Word says be anxious for nothing, but in all things, through prayer and supplication I am to make my request known unto You and You will direct my path. So I trust that You are going to supply all my needs and show me the way to go in this specific situation. I look on high for your guidance and will wait in surety until the answer comes!” Believe me, your entire prayer life will change if you pray the solution instead of the problem!
If I could give you one gift in life it would be the gift of prayer. There is no greater place to be than in the throne room before the King of Kings. Please know you can contact me anytime and I will help you know Christ in any way possible; and if I don’t know the answer, we’ll find someone who does!
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