The last section of Providence Bible Fellowship’s identity
statement describes how we practice discipleship by pursuing and strengthening
relationships within the body of Christ. The practice of regular prayer for one
another should be a defining characteristic of these disciple-making relationships.
In Ephesians 6:18 Paul commands the church to “pray at all times in the
Spirit…making supplication for all the saints.” Paul follows this instruction
by asking the church to pray “also for me, that words may be given to me in
opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel.”
If we are to pray like Paul, we must make our requests known
to each other. Paul certainly would have prayed to God for the strength needed to
boldly proclaim the gospel in his private prayers. But God also brings us to
maturity in Christ and affection for Him through our prayers for each other. In
our culture of independence, this process of sharing our struggles, weaknesses,
and supplications can be difficult; but by recognizing our dependence on Christ
and His strength, we are drawn closer to Him.
Paul’s request was not unique to the church at Ephesus. In
Colossians 1:9 Paul writes “we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you
may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and
understanding.” And in James 5:16, we read “therefore, confess your sins to one
another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a
righteous person has great power as it is working.” This pattern of regular
prayer is a defining characteristic of a mature, New Testament church.
I recently interviewed two members at Providence Bible
Fellowship to learn more about how they practice regular prayer for the body of
Christ. Shortly after Curtis Luken and his family began attending Providence, Pastor
Greg preached a sermon on November 29, 2020, called “Our Essential Means of
Endurance.” The sermon was based on the text in 2 Thessalonians 3 in which Paul
asks the church to “pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and
be honored…and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men.” Pastor Greg
described five ways that church members can pray for one another: 1) the gospel
would be glorified in the person’s life, 2) they would receive deliverance from
evil, 3) they would walk in obedience, 4) they would persevere by directing
their heart towards the love of God, and 5) that God would be faithful to grant
these requests through the power of Christ.
After hearing this sermon, Curtis incorporated this
structure in his prayer life by creating a calendar with the names of every
church member assigned to a day of the month. On a particular day, Curtis would
pray specifically for those five or six individuals that were listed on the
calendar. In addition, Curtis is involved in the greeting ministry at church.
When he greets someone entering the church, he will sometimes use the
opportunity to ask them what is happening in their life so that he can be more
specific in his prayers. If anyone would like an updated copy of the calendar
that Curtis uses, ask him for a copy and he would be happy to share.
Anthony Mele is another church member who regularly
practices prayer for the body. In the home fellowship group (HFG) that he
leads, Anthony begins the study with prayer. Time is intentionally set aside
for the HFG group members to share their praises and burdens, and each HFG
member prays for the person sitting next to them. The Home Fellowship Group
also has a text messaging group chat in which prayer requests are shared. In
addition, Anthony also leads the men’s Reveille group that meets on the Saturday
of the month at church. Any man is welcome to attend and join Reveille; and it is
a time when men get together to share their prayer requests. Each person writes
down their name and their prayer requests on an index card. This card is then
given to someone else who keeps it after they leave the meeting. Over the next
month, the card provides a reminder of how each man can pray specifically for
another member of the body.
Finally, the first Wednesday of every month is also a time
when the church gathers together as a body and commits to a time of prayer. In this
public prayer, our church demonstrates its commitment to growing closer to
Christ. Each of these examples at Providence offers a practical way to pray for
each other and grow closer to Christ. I pray that we may all grow in our desire
and affection to share each other’s burdens.
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