Last week we started looking at the Christian basis for prayer. This week we think about broadening our prayer concerns. Remember, this really isn't theory. How will this affect the groups you are a part of in 2009?

Expanding our concerns

Our prayers are often of a totally different character to the prayers of the Bible. For example, look at the prayers in the following passages:

• 2 Samuel 7:18-29
• Matthew 6:5-15
• Colossians 1:3-14

Note the concerns of these prayers: the grand purposes of God; the salvation of Israel through David's dynasty; the growth of the gospel and of believers; the coming of the Kingdom of God; the renown of God. In short, they are God-centred, not self-centred, prayers. They are full of thanks to God, rehearsing his holiness and saving power, and asking him to fulfil his plans to save the world.

Paul sets an agenda for prayer meetings in 1 Timothy 2:1-7. Read this now.

We are to pray for everyone, with the focus upon godly living and the salvation of all. Of course, we can bring our personal needs to God in prayer (see 1 Pet 5:7; Matt 6:25-34). By bringing all matters to God, even the minor details of our lives, we express faith in God's rule over all things. God has committed himself to provide and care for us.

Collecting prayer points

The old routine of collecting prayer points is a mixed blessing. It is good to hear others' concerns so that we can pray very specifically. It is one of the key ways we express our love for each other. But this routine does present some problems. It takes a lot of time, and the actual praying gets tacked on the end of the discussion. It can become repetitive, with the same issues being raised every week. It can be difficult at certain stages of the group's existence for people to be honest and open with their prayer requests. The main problem, however, with sharing prayer points is that it promotes self-centred praying.

Beyond our personal concerns, what should the group be praying about? Our prayers should reflect God's purposes in his world, so we should pray for:

• Gospel preaching. The group might adopt a missionary or evangelist for whom they can pray, as they keep track of his or her activities and needs.
• Unbelievers. Pray for the salvation of your unbelieving friends and families. Pray more widely for the conversion of those in positions of power, of people who have a public profile, or even of neighbours whom you don't know.
• The growth of the church in godliness. Pray for your church's programmes and plans. Perhaps adopt a particular ministry, such as Sunday School, and pray for it for a period.
• Our own growth in godliness. This is an important focus for the group. Pray about your responses to the sermons you hear. Pray about the Bible studies you do in the group—that God will help you to apply what you learn to your mind and behaviour. Most groups need help in doing this, lest they drift into their own concerns rather than God's concerns, as expressed in the Bible passage. We need to learn to pray with ‘open Bibles’, rather than forgetting what we have just studied as we start our time of prayer.

The group dynamics of prayer

It can be hard to get everyone in a group to pray out loud, especially when the group is quite new and people are not yet comfortable with each other. How can we make this easier for each other?

• Leading in prayer. When we pray with others, we are not only praying to God, we are also leading others in prayer. This is true in any Christian context, such as conferences, committees and church. We must be conscious of others, not in order to impress them; on the contrary, we must seek to serve them. Here are some practical tips on serving people in prayer:
  • Use the plural pronouns ‘we’ and ‘our’. This signals that we are all praying, not just the person speaking.
  • Say short prayers so that everyone can maintain attention.
  • Avoid jargon or complicated expressions; use language that everyone in the group will understand.
  • Don't switch into an unnatural ‘prayer mode’. Use your normal voice and keep a normal posture.
• Form smaller groups. Reducing your group size into twos or threes for prayer can lower people's anxieties and allow them to pray more openly. Single sex prayer groups can have the same effect.
• Formulating prayers. When time is spent discussing what we want to pray, people are often more confident and willing to pray. A sense of unity in prayer is developed, making it easier for people honestly to say ‘Amen’ to each prayer. Discussing and formulating prayers before praying need not make praying a formality; it simply brings the group together in their support of the prayer.

Prayer partners

You might wish to form ‘Prayer Partnerships’ within your group where small groups of people regularly pray together. This tends to build more prayer into group life, as well as deepening some of the friendships in the group. There are endless possibilities for how such a group might operate. Here are but a few suggestions:

• Pray together only during group meeting time.
• Pray together during the week, outside the group time.
• Pray for each other during the week, without meeting together.
• Change prayer partners every few weeks or months.

Exercise

Is your group too narrow in its prayer concerns?

What ministries could you adopt for prayer? List a couple here.

Does your group suffer from the ‘prayer point routine’? How could you improve upon this?

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