Category: Praying for Others

Ephesians 1:18-20 NLT
¹⁸ I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. ¹⁹ I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power ²⁰ that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

“People who pray seldom for others show that they care little for them.” [Osborne, Grant, Ephesians Verse by Verse. p.36]

“There is great joy when we pray for others. In these Ephesians passages, especially as you read between the lines, can’t you feel Paul’s joy? Paul can’t contain all that is bubbling forth in his heart for the people he is praying for. From this and other passages like this, we can see that Paul’s life was most fulfilled and satisfied when he is praying for others! Likewise, we are most fulfilled and satisfied when we pray for others. Praying for others is one of the greatest joys and greatest demonstrations of love and care.” [Pastor George]

Prayer: Lord, thank you for inviting us to experience the great joy of loving others through prayer. Overwhelm us with this joy as we pray. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s worship the Lord to God of Revival by Bethel Music (click here).

-DW

Let’s read and pray aloud the following Scripture:

Philippians 3:7-9a NIV
⁷ But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸ What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ ⁹ and be found in him.

“Prayer is a fire which needs fuel to burn and a match to light it. If the fire burns low we can fan it so that the flame may burn more fiercely. But all the fanning in the world cannot create a bonfire from a single match nor from a pile of dead, cold fuel. Fire must come from above; indeed he has already come. The Holy Spirit burns quietly within the Christian ready to light the fuel of Scripture’s truth. But the fuel must be there. In Paul’s case it is evident that his mind was so soaked in divine truth that it served as the fuel by which his prayers caught on fire.”  [White, John, Daring to Draw Near. p.129]

Prayer: Lord, thank you that the Holy Spirit burns within us and that your Word is the fuel for our prayers. Ignite our prayers afresh so we can pray in accordance with your will. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s praise the Lord with Spirit of God by New Life Worship (click here).

– DW

 

Ephesians 1:15-17 NLT
¹⁵ Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, ¹⁶ I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, ¹⁷ asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.

“We have every spiritual blessing in Christ and how Paul prays is how we are called to pray. How Paul prays for others is how we are to pray for others. The first step in praying for others like Paul is to simply learn how to receive like Paul, to experience God’s love over and over again. In many ways, praying for others is simply a by-product of how much we are experiencing God’s blessing in our own lives. Praying for others will be an overflow of all that God is doing in our lives.” [Pastor George]

Prayer: Lord, we say yes to you today. We open up our hearts and lives to you so that we can receive all that you have for us afresh. As we experience more of you, will you teach us to pray for others with the whole of our lives. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s worship the Lord to Forever & Amen by Cody Carnes and Kari Jobe (click here).

– DW

Ephesians 3:17b-19 NIV
¹⁷And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

“Love and power, power and love… And these are the themes that run through the great prayer that Paul prays for the young Christians to whom he is writing… Perhaps the best Christian doctrine is that which emerges from the life of prayer… This, we may suppose, is part of the secret of the extraordinary power that seemed to flow through his preaching, his pastoral work and his writing… Prayer brings together love and power: the relation of love that grows up between God and the person who prays, and the flowing of power from God to, and especially through, that person.” [Wright, N.T., Paul for Everyone – Prison Letters. p.39]

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your love and power that has changed our lives. As we continue to experience your love and power, we pray for the people you are placing on our hearts on our campuses, workplaces, families, and cities. We pray that they too will experience this same power and love. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s worship with the song Don’t Ever Stop by Chris Tomlin (click here).

– DW

Let’s read and pray aloud the following Scripture:

Ephesians 3:14-21 NIV
¹⁴ For this reason I kneel before the Father, ¹⁵ from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. ¹⁶ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. ²⁰ Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your great love for us. As we continue to experience the fullness of your love and power, help us to position all of our hearts and lives as a life of prayer unto you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s worship to Fall Afresh by Kari Jobe as we sing over our churches, our cities and our campuses (click here).

-DW