How Do I Pray
- Jack Selcher
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
Pray for me! Multiple people have messaged me through Facebook with that request. They usually live in Africa, India, or the Philippines. I have never met any of them, know nothing about them, or their needs. How do I pray for them? We will return to that.
In churches I have served, members of the congregation usually share specific prayer requests. “My husband had a heart attack and is in intensive care in the hospital.”
At least ninety percent of the requests concern physical ailments. It is okay to pray about health issues because God invites us not to be anxious about anything but to turn our anxieties and worries into prayers (Philippians 4:6-7). But as you will see, most scriptural prayers concern our spiritual needs.
Our requests would benefit from a scriptural alignment. The Apostle Paul’s prayers and Jesus’s prayers were far more diverse than ours. Let’s examine them to see how to pray as they did. Some scriptures are listed under multiple categories. Pray for:
Physical Needs
1. Daily sustenance (Matthew 6:9-13)
2. Whatever concerns you (Philippians 4:6-7)
3. The removal of suffering (Matthew 26:42)
4. Healing for others (Acts 28:8)
5. Other Christians (Ephesians 6:18)
6. God’s mighty power to strengthen us (Colossians 1:9-12)
7. Great endurance and patience (Colossians 1:9-12, 1 Thessalonians 1:3)
8. Power for goodness (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
Mental Needs
1. Insight to discern what is best (Philippians 1:9-11)
2. God’s mighty power to strengthen us (Colossians 1:9-12)
3. Great endurance and patience (Colossians 1:9-12, 1 Thessalonians 1:3)
4. Overflowing with thanksgiving to God (Colossians 1:9-12)
5. Power for goodness (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
Emotional Needs
1. Whatever concerns you (Philippians 4:6-7)
2. The removal of suffering (Matthew 26:42)
3. Full joy (John 17:15,17)
4. Speaking God’s word with great boldness (Acts 4:29-30)
5. Knowledge of the hope to which God has called us (Ephesians 1:18-19)
6. The Spirit to empower and enlighten us to comprehend Christ’s love (Ephesians 3:14-19)
7. Other Christians (Ephesians 6:18)
8. God’s mighty power to strengthen us (Colossians 1:9-12)
9. Great endurance and patience (Colossians 1:9-12, 1 Thessalonians 1:3)
10. Overflowing with thanksgiving to God (Colossians 1:9-12)
11. Power for goodness (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
Spiritual Needs
1. Forgiveness of sins (Matthew 6:9-13)
2. Whatever concerns you (Philippians 4:6-7)
3. Submitting our will to God’s will (Matthew 26:42)
4. Driving out an impure spirit in Jesus’ name (Mark 9:29)
5. Escaping life’s temptations (Matthew 6:13)
6. For God’s ongoing mercy as a sinner (Luke 18:13)
7. My faith and that of others not to completely fail (Luke 22:32)
8. For power to finish the work God assigns to us (John 17:1)
9. Sanctification by God’s word (John 15:15,17)
10. Complete unity among believers (John 17:11, 23)
11. Speaking God’s word with great boldness (Acts 4:29-30)
12. Demonstrating God’s power through our ministry (Acts 4:29-30)
13. For others to become followers of Christ (Acts 26:29)
14. Open doors of ministry (Romans 1:10)
15. Salvation of our countrymen (Romans 10:1)
16. For the Lord’s people to be receptive to our ministry (Romans 15:31)
17. Knowledge of the hope to which God has called us (Ephesians 1:18-19)
18. The Spirit to empower and enlighten us to comprehend Christ’s love (Ephesians 3:14-19)
19. Knowledge of the riches of our glorious inheritance (Ephesians 1:18-19)
20. Knowledge of God’s incomparably great power for us (Ephesians 1:18-19)
21. Knowledge of God’s will (Colossians 1:9-12)
22. Knowledge of God (Colossians 1:9-12)
23. God to make us complete with His full life and power (Ephesians 3:14-19)
24. Other Christians (Ephesians 6:18)
25. An open door to proclaim the gospel clearly (Colossians 4:3-4)
26. Declaring the mystery of the gospel fearlessly (Ephesians 6:19)
27. The gospel to spread rapidly and be honored (2 Thessalonians 3:1-2)
28. Insight to discern what is best (Philippians 1:9-11)
29. Being pure and blameless on the day of Christ (Philippians 1:9-11)
30. Being filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Christ (Philippians 1:9-12)
31. Pleasing God through our good works (Colossians 1:9-12)
32. God’s mighty power to strengthen us (Colossians 1:9-12)
33. Great endurance and patience (Colossians 1:9-12, 1 Thessalonians 1:3)
34. Overflowing with thanksgiving to God (Colossians 1:9-12)
35. Standing firm in God’s will with maturity and confidence (Colossians 4:12)
36. Faith-generated work (1 Thessalonians 1:3)
37. Love-prompted labor (1 Thessalonians 1:3)
38. Being worthy of our calling (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
39. Power for goodness (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
40. Faith-prompted deeds to bear fruit (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
Safety Needs
1. Those who persecute and mistreat you (Matthew 5:44, Luke 6:28)
2. Deliverance from the enemy of the faith and evil people (Matthew 6:9-13, John 17:15,17, 2 Thessalonians 3:1-2)
3. Whatever concerns you (Philippians 4:6-7)
4. Escape from all that will happen at the end of time (Luke 21:36)
5. The removal of suffering (Matthew 26:42)
6. Safety in dire situations (Acts 12:5) and from unbelievers (Romans 15:31)
7. Other Christians (Ephesians 6:18)
8. God’s mighty power to strengthen us (Colossians 1:9-12)
Relationship Needs
6. Whatever concerns you (Philippians 4:6-7)
7. Those in authority over us (1Timothy 2:1-4)
8. Little children (Matthew 19:13)
9. Complete unity among believers (John 17:11, 23)
10. Other Christians (Ephesians 6:18)
11. God’s mighty power to strengthen us (Colossians 1:9-12)
12. Great endurance and patience (Colossians 1:9-12, 1 Thessalonians 1:3)
13. Overflowing with thanksgiving to God (Colossians 1:9-12)
14. Christian leaders (1 Thessalonians 5:25)
15. Power for goodness (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
So, how do I pray for those I don’t know who request it? I don’t have the last word in prayer wisdom, but this is what I message them: “Father in Heaven, I pray that your grace will abound toward NAME and meet all their needs so they will be prepared to do every good deed you have planned for them for Your glory. Amen.” That prayer is based on 2 Corinthians 9:8 and Ephesians 2:10. #freediscipleshipresources #freeevangelismresources #freechristianleadershipresources
See free spiritual growth resources for Christians at https://www.christiangrowthresources.com.
God has empowered me to write “His Power for Your Weakness—260 Steps Toward Spiritual Strength.” It’s a free, evangelistic, devotional, and discipleship eBook. Pastors have used it in Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia to lead 6,714 people to Christ and teach the basics of Christianity to 16,260 people. I invite you to explore it.
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