Praying for You

One of your friends just told you that her parents decided to get a divorce. Her world is totally shaken and she’s really struggling. You don’t know what to say and you know that the only thing that will give her the strength she needs to get through this difficult time is prayer. So, you give her a hug and say, “I’ll be praying for you.” A week goes by and you realize that you’ve listened to your friend a ton, you’ve talked to your parents about what her family is facing and you’ve even thought about her hardship, but you haven’t actually prayed for her. 

A lot of people offer to pray for other people, but scarcely follow through. If you say you’re going to do something, be the type of person who does what you say you’ll do. There’s significant power in prayer, so don’t offer prayer to someone if you aren’t actually going to pray for them. Prayer brings life, restoration, peace, strength, encouragement and so much more.

It’s common to offer prayer, but time passes and you haven’t even uttered a word. Here are two helpful tips for those situations:

Prayer is Bigger Than You May Think

Many people minimize or overcomplicate prayer. We think it has to be some sort of routine or a specific set of motions or words. We believe prayer can only happen in quiet spaces. We believe we have to say certain words, bow our heads, fold our hands or bend our knees. What most of us don’t consider is that prayer is a simple conversation with God and it happens through the motion of our day. 

As you go about your day, whenever your friend comes to mind, you can pray for her. Even if it’s a quick, “Lord be with my friend today,” or “Give my friend strength,” as you walk down the hall at school. That prayer is significant. God hears it and He will honor it, which will make a huge impact on the life of your friend. You don’t have to reference a prayer journal to pray, God can place people and situations on your heart as a test of obedience. Are you willing to talk to Him about what He wants you to talk about? 

The conversation you had with your friend could actually be a prayer. God can use you in that time to speak love, support and compassion to your friend. God uses people to speak words or correction and encouragement to the people He loves. By seeing your conversation as a moment of prayer, you can ask the Lord to guide your conversation and then let His words fill the space. Even if they are your words, with a prayerful posture and attitude, God will use that moment for His glory and to support your friend. 

Prayer Can Happen in the Moment

If you’re going to offer to pray for your friend, why not do it then and there? Just ask your friend, “Do you mind if I pray for you right now?” If she says, “Yes,” then offer a prayer at that moment. It doesn’t need to be long or full of flowery words, it just needs to be meaningful and spoken from the heart. You can simply say, “Lord, be with my friend during this very difficult time. Give her the support and love she needs. Amen.” You don’t even need to close your eyes or bow your head. Those can all be helpful postures to help you focus when praying, but feeling like you have to be in the perfect setting and position can actually prevent the prayer from even happening. A prayer only needs to take a few seconds to change an entire lifetime.

If your friend says that she doesn’t want you to pray for her at that moment, you can ask if she’d be comfortable with you praying for her whenever she comes to mind. If she says, “Yes,” then do what you said you would do. If she says, “No,” then be grateful that you have a friend who is honest and respect her wishes. The Lord may move in her heart, and you may find that she comes to you in the future seeking prayer. 

Download 9 Verses About Prayer