How do we pray during prayer request time in church?
We, of course, start with praise. Then, we go down the list of sick people. Then, we pray for those needing salvation. Maybe we throw in that brother who needs a job. Finally, we end in thanks. Nothing wrong with this. But it is interesting how we only pray for the weak. During prayer request time, we never raise our hands and say, “Pray for all of us to increase our faith.” We rarely pray for the strong.
Did Paul pray this way?
Paul did the opposite. Over and over, Paul wrote things like, “I remember you in my prayers night and day,” and “I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers.” He never mentioned sick people. He occasionally prayed for the unsaved. He mainly prayed for the recipients of the letters, that they would grow and thrive in their walk with God. He also requested that they pray for him. How often do we pray for our fellow church members?
Why did Paul not pray for the list of sick people? Perhaps because he believed in praying for the church body to become stronger, and then when the sick came for prayer, they were healed right away. They didn’t have to be on the prayer list week after week.
What if we prayed like Paul? What if we spent time praying for ALL the church members to grow stronger in their faith and walk with God? Perhaps, then, our prayers for the sick would be answered more often. There are definitely verses in the Bible that encourage us to pray for the sick. (James 5:14. “Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.”) However, there are actually more verses about praying for the whole church.
Here’s what Paul’s prayer list would look like:
- Thank you for these people and help them be of one mind.
- Fill them with joy, peace, faith, love, and hope, and supply their needs.
- Help them do no evil, and make them complete.
- Bless them with grace, and help them walk worthy of You.
- Help Israel be saved.
- Help me to speak boldly.
- Deliver me and be magnified in my body.
- Help me to visit my friends in other churches.
Below, you will find all the prayers of Paul that I could find in the Bible in his letters to the churches.
I highlighted Paul’s requests. Buckle your seatbelt, there are about 2200 words. (The verses are from the New King James Version.)
Romans 1:8-10 “First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers, making request if, by some means, now at last I may find a way in the will of God to come to you.”
Romans 10:1 “Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved.”
Romans 15:5,6,13 “Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus, that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ… Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Romans 15:30-33 “Now I beg you, brethren, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and through the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in prayers to God for me, that I may be delivered from those in Judea who do not believe, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, that I may come to you with joy by the will of God, and may be refreshed together with you. May the God of peace be with you all. Amen.”
I Corinthians 1:4-8 “I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
2 Corinthians 1:11 “You are also helping together in prayer for us, that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the gift granted to us through many.”
2 Corinthians 9:10-15 “Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness, while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God. For the administration of this service not only supplies the needs of the saints, but also is abounding through many thanksgivings to God, while, through the proof of this ministry, they glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal sharing with them and all men, and by their prayer for you, who long for you because of the exceeding grace of God in you. Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (In context, he is praying that God blesses them because they gave a liberal offering to the poor.)
2 Corinthians 13:7-9 “Now I pray to God that you do no evil, not that we should appear approved, but that you should do what is honorable, though we may seem disqualified. For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth. For we are glad when we are weak, and you are strong. And this also we pray, that you may be made complete.”
Galatians 6:18 “Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.”
Ephesians 1:15-21 “Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.”
Ephesians 3:14-21 For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 6:18-20 “praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints, and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”
Philippians 1:3-6 “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
Philippians 1:9-11 “And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”
Philippians 1:19,20 “For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.”
Colossians 1:3,4,9-12 “We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints… For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.”
Colossians 4:2,3,4,12 “Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving; meanwhile praying also for us, that God would open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in chains, that I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak…. Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.”
1 Thessalonians 1:2-4 “We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God.”
1 Thessalonians 2:13 “For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.”
1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 “For what thanks can we render to God for you, for all the joy with which we rejoice for your sake before our God, night and day praying exceedingly that we may see your face and perfect what is lacking in your faith? Now may our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you. And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.”
1 Thessalonians 5:23-25,28 “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. Brethren, pray for us… The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.”
2 Thessalonians 1:3-5 “We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer.”
2 Thessalonians 1:11,12 “Therefore, we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power, that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
2 Thessalonians 2:16,17 “Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work.”
2 Thessalonians 3:1-5 “Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you, and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith. But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. And we have confidence in the Lord concerning you, both that you do and will do the things we command you. Now may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ.”
2 Thessalonians 3:16 “Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all.”
1 Timothy 2:1-4 “Therefore, I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For 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.”
2 Timothy 1:3,4 “I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy.”
2 Timothy 1:16-18 “The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain; but when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very zealously and found me. The Lord grant to him that he may find mercy from the Lord in that Day—and you know very well how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus.”
Philemon 1:4-6, 25 “I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers, hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints, that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus… The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.”
The Apostle Paul encouraged us five times to imitate him.
- 1 Corinthians 11:1: “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.”
- 1 Corinthians 4:16: “Therefore I urge you, imitate me.”
- Galatians 4:12: “Brethren, I urge you to become like me, for I became like you.”
- 1 Thessalonians 1:6: “And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit,”
- 2 Thessalonians 3:7: “For you yourselves know how you ought to follow us, for we were not disorderly among you;”
Let’s try imitating Paul’s prayers:
- Read his prayers. Change the words into the way you would speak, and pray his prayers over the people in your church. When Paul says, “pray for me,” you can use his words to pray for your pastor and other ministers.
- Obtain a list of your church members. Include the new people who haven’t come long and may not be on the list yet. Pray for each person the way Paul did.
- Write down the names of missionaries your church sponsors or people you know in other churches. Pray for them.
What if we prayed like Paul prayed?
A wonderful evangelist, Tim Gaddy, once preached that a healthy church leads to growth. You don’t look down at your baby and say, “Grow! Grow!” No, you provide a stable home with running water and heating. You feed and nurture the baby. You provide the proper culture for growth. Then, automatically, they grow and develop.
Suppose our main prayers were for the church to be full of faith and for our services to be full of the Spirit. Sick people would be healed more quickly. The unsaved would come in, feel the Spirit of God, and our faith would be strong enough to bring the miracle they need in their lives.
I’m not saying don’t pray for the list of ill people. But try praying Paul’s prayers first and see what God can do.
