Partners in Prayer

 I think probably every believer realizes that prayer is an important part of their Christian walk. The Bible is full of verses about prayer and we know that it is the way we talk to God. He talks to us primarily through His word, the Bible, and we talk to Him through prayer. In any relationship, communication is necessary to keep it healthy and good. 

   Prayer has been an important part of my life for many years but it has just been in recent years that I have truly come to understand the necessity of praying with others. I wish I could figure out a way to state that more strongly. Praying with others in not just a good idea, it is crucial! I am still learning and growing in this but I want to share some of what I have come to love in the last few years. 

   There are verses that would point us to individual prayer “but when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret” (MT 6:6) and we see Jesus went off alone at times to pray (MK 6:46, JN 5:15). I think individual prayer is essential but I think we need to make praying with others a priority as well.

My Story of Praying with Others

During COVID

   It was when COVID started that I started meeting with my mother-in-law on a regular basis for the purpose of prayer. It was a time of unknowns, it was obvious that the world needed prayer and we had extra time right then (as things were shut down) to pray. She lived across the street at the time and I would walk over, we would sit outside or sometimes even go on a walk (it is okay to pray with your eyes open) and we would pray – for our family, for our neighborhood, our church, our country and our world.

During Marriage Problems and Divorce

  Then a few months later my marriage started falling apart. It’s probably the best thing that ever happened to my prayer life. Not that I recommend it – just work on your prayer life without that incentive if you can! Anyway, I continued to pray with my Mother-in-law but also met regularly with my parents, my sister who lives ½ a mile away and a friend from church. Also I have other sisters, children and friends who I would see or visit with on the phone fairly frequently and we would take time to pray together. I do want to mention that even though it was my life that was falling apart we didn’t just pray about that, we also prayed for what was going on in their life, in the church and beyond. I am sure that my kids and I would not be in the place we are today without the power of prayer.

During Normal Life

   Currently I still meet weekly with my sister and friend and bi-weekly with another friend. And I still try to pray when possible with others as well. I decided it wasn’t just something for times of deep troubles, it is something I need regularly. Here is why:

There is Power

“Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.” 

Matthew 18:19 & 20

As Christians we have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us but from this verse I believe there is an even greater sense of God’s presence when His people meet together in His name. Asking God together for something seems to be even more powerful than asking Him on your own. At least that is how I read this scripture.

   I love the story in Acts 12 about when Peter was in prison and the Christians met together to pray fervently for him. In the night an angel came to rescue Peter. When he went to Mary’s house people were still gathered together and praying for him. God answered their prayer!

There is Healing

“Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” James 5:16

James 5:16

I believe this. I think this has been one of the things I have appreciated most from regularly praying with others. To share with them the sins that I am struggling with and have them pray for me. Not only pray for me when we are together but also throughout the week. It has been my privilege to pray for them in their struggles as well and by God’s grace we have seen victories. We have seen healing. Do we have a lot more growing and healing to do? Oh yes! But we are on the journey.

There is Comfort

    I don’t know if there is anything quite so comforting to me as hearing someone praying for me. I know that they are talking to the Creator of the Universe who can do anything. Yes, I pray for myself on my own too but something about hearing others do it makes me feel incredibly loved.

There is a Deeper Understanding of Others Hearts

   When I pray with others I find that we come to understand one another better. I feel like I get to see a little bit of their heart as they open themselves up to me and to God. This has helped me to be more compassionate and patient and I am incredibly grateful for that.

   I have learned to be more careful in what I say because of these times of prayer with others. I am not a private person and my family is not in general made up of private people. Growing up I knew that I should not speak of others in ways that were not true and we shouldn’t gossip but we didn’t have a problem with sharing news such as “So and so is going on a trip”, “So and so is having surgery”  or even “So and so is struggling with depression”. However I have learned that there are people that are far more private than I am and don’t want things shared. So I have learned to ask “Is it okay if I share this and ask others to pray?” and sometimes they say “Yes” and sometimes they don’t. This is still a work in progress for me but I am trying to really respect the people that I visit with and pray with and for.

Give it a try!

    If you don’t already have people that you pray together with on a regular basis I highly recommend trying it! Find someone you trust and who loves Jesus and then ask them.  Set a schedule and try very hard to stick with it. Think through your schedule and look for a convenient time. If you can do it right before or after work one day a week or around some other event. I usually spend around an hour with the people I meet with. Even if you have just half an hour available you can make it work. When I meet with my sister I have music lessons to teach right after so I set a timer on my phone. We share prayer requests for that amount of time and then we pray and then I leave. It is efficient but still incredibly helpful. It is preferable to pray with others in person but on the phone works too. I have done that many times.

  Please share your thoughts on praying with others and other tips you have on strengthening your prayer life. You can leave them in the comments!