Praying Friend

To me, one of the most precious gifts is the gift of a praying friend. Paul asked for and valued the prayers of the church (Romans 15:30-32; 2 Thessalonians 3:1-2). He also prayed constantly for believers and urged believers to pray for each other.

And so from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding…

Colossians 1:9ff

Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints…

Ephesians 6:18

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people.

1 Timothy 2:1

Just as it is a privilege and a blessing for me to be able to come before the throne of grace because of Jesus our high priest making a way, it is a privilege to bring others before the throne of grace that they might find mercy and grace in their time of need. It is a further blessing when others do the same for me. Prayer looks to the only One who has true hope and help. The One who hears and answers prayer is sovereign, omniscient, omnipotent, faithful, loving, compassionate, gracious and merciful. There is no better Person for us to cry out to.

Paul’s letters are filled with prayers for believers, and his focus is on the spiritual. That doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t bring temporal needs to God as well, but the spiritual requests are eternal. Those are the prayers from others that I treasure most. I want to be continually conformed to the image of Jesus. It is how I try to pray for others because I know how much it means to me to be prayed for in that way. One way to do that is to pray Scripture or truth for someone.

I am grateful for several of my prayer warrior friends who I can text at any time with a prayer need, and they share theirs. It is an incredible encouragement to know I have that prayer support. I also know that there are people out there (some I know of and some I probably don’t) who pray for me regularly. Again, I am grateful. I know I need prayer. Prayer for the ministries I am involved in. Prayer for ongoing struggle with sin. Prayer for spiritual warfare. Prayer for my writing and so many other things. I am comforted in the good and bad times knowing I have that prayer support.

There is an older song that I have shared with some of my prayer warrior friends. It highlights the preciousness of prayer.

More Than You’ll Ever Know

Watermark

Something brought you to my mind today I thought about the funny ways you make me laugh And yet I feel like it's okay to cry with you

Something about just being with you When I leave I feel like I've been near God And that's the way it ought to be, yeah

'Cause you've been more than a friend to me You fight off my enemies 'Cause you've spoken the truth over my life

And you'll never know what it means to me Just to know you've been on your knees for me Oh, you have blessed my life

More than you'll ever know, yeah, yeah, yeah

You had faith, when I had none You prayed God would bring me a brand new song When I didn't think I could find the strength to sing

And all the while I'm hoping that I'll Do the kind of praying for you that you've done for me And that's the way it ought to be

You have carried me You have taken upon a burden that wasn't your own And may the blessing return to you A hundredfold, oh yeah, a hundredfold, oh yeah

I want to leave you with a few reflections:

1. If you don’t have anyone you regularly pray for and share your needs with, find someone. I know it can be scary to ask, but you might be surprised at what God does. And even if you don’t ask someone to be a prayer partner, begin yourself to pray for someone specific on a regular basis and ask them how you can pray for them.

2. If you do have people that pray for you, thank them and God for the gift of their prayers.

3. If someone asks you for prayer, try praying with them right then or text your prayer for them. Knowing that someone is praying for me is a blessing, but actually praying with them or reading what they are praying for me can be even sweeter and more encouraging. It may feel strange at first, but it will become more comfortable as you practice it.

4. Begin praying Scripture for people. You can look through Paul’s letters or other parts of Scripture and start your own list or you can go to the “Free Resources” page here on my website for “Prayers for a Friend” and “Prayers From Colossians” to get you started.

Don’t take for granted the great privilege and blessing God has given you in a praying friend and being a praying friend.