Prayer Prompts

By Karen Wingate

“How do I know how to pray for someone?”

During an afternoon walk, I encountered a lady from my neighborhood bible study group. We spent a moment in chitchat, then she told me she was curious about something.  After asking the above question, she elaborated. “I get all these prayer requests, and I don’t know what the person needs.” Her shoulders slumped. “What if I pray for something they don’t want?” I wanted to hug her for her vulnerability.

I’ve felt the same confusion over how to pray for someone, especially a request with barebone details. I belong to one group that has members fill out prayer cards at the beginning of a meeting, then at the end, we select a card so we can pray for that person over the next month.

One time, my selected card simply read, “My health.” I felt frustrated. Any health diagnosis is a complex web of needs. What could I pray for specifically for this precious lady?

Conversely, when I asked for prayer for my eighty-nine-year-old mother who was near death, several people told me they were praying for complete healing. Is that what I really want? I wondered. Is that what God wants? 

Yes, Romans 8:26,27 tells us that the Holy Spirit fills in the gaps when our knowledge is incomplete, but in other places, the Bible gives specific prayer prompts. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians outlines three talking points he used when praying for the believers in Ephesus. I’ve found it helpful to pray that the person in need grow in their knowledge and understand about God in these three ways.

Know the personality of God. In Ephesians 1:17, Paul says, “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit  of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.” We can ask God to give our friends His wisdom to meet the situation they face and that, through the experience, they will come to know Him better.

Know the promises of God. Ephesians 1:18 says, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people.” Anyone in crisis needs a dose of hope. As Christians, we find our confidence in the promises of God—promises that He will help us, stay with us, and have the glories of heaven waiting for those who have put their trust in Him. We can pray our friends find renewed hope as they watch God at work in their behalf.

Know the power of God. Paul goes on to pray, “and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 1:19,20).” Our friend’s situation might look impossible by human standards. We can ask God to demonstrate His great and mighty power to overcome anything. I often pray that God will provide in such a way that bystanders—whether family members, medical staff, or creditors—will be convinced this had to have come from God. Other times, I’ll implore the Lord, “Give my friend a story to tell,” a story that begins with “Let me tell you what God did for me.”

When I shared this outline with my neighbor, her shoulders straightened.. “Those three prayers would apply to anyone,” she said. She is so right! The lady who asked for prayer for her health? I can pray that, through her health issues, she draws closer to God, she witnesses God’s provision in a way that builds her hope and trust, and she gets a front row.0 seat to view the amazing power of God. 

And my mother? In the last week of her life, moments happened as if they were scripted by an unseen hand. As my siblings and I gathered in her room for those final hours, we lived the powerful peace and unity of God. In the end, we had no doubt of her destination because of her hope in God’s ultimate promise—Heaven’s halls where she would find complete healing.

Karen Wingate

Author: Karen Wingate is author of three devotional books including, With Open Ears: 60 Reflections on the Wonder of Sound from a Woman Born Blind (Kregel). You can learn more about Karen at her website www.karenwingate.com. 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karenawingate/