5 Reasons We Don’t Pray on the Spot
As I said last time, God has challenged me to be more immediate and bold in response to His unction to pray. Talking with my family, the consensus was “It’s hard . . . it’s really hard.” For once, I didn’t disagree. I started thinking about what makes it hard and (maybe) what we can do to push through the resistance and be more bold in praying with people on the spot. Here’s what makes it hard . . .
1. “I don’t want to be ‘that guy” – Whether he’s real or imagined, we all have a picture of an ultra-spiritual, somewhat greasy, obnoxious, “un” or “ill” educated “Bible-thumping” zealot who’s out of touch with culture, relationships, and reality.
2. “I don’t want to ‘put God on the spot” – If I pray one-on-one for a person, what happens if I ask God to do something and He doesn’t come through? Haven’t I hurt the Kingdom? Shouldn’t I just say “I’ll pray for you” and leave it there. They’ll never know if I did or didn’t and they’ll never really know how I prayed. Both God and I are safe!
3. “I’m not ‘hearing’ that unction to pray” – When we get busy, distracted, and overwhelmed with our ‘stuff’, it’s less likely we’re going to hear God’s whisper calling us to pray. We and the people we’re involved with miss out on these special moments of prayer when we’re operating out of our own wisdom and knowledge . . .when we don’t make time for the Holy Spirit to fill and focus our hearts.
4. “I won’t know what to say” – Jesus told us to trust the Holy Spirit in those situations. John 14:26 (AMP) :
“But the Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will cause you to recall (will remind you of, bring to your remembrance) everything I have told you.
When God gives us the unction to pray and we respond with a ‘yes’, the Holy Spirit gives us the words to say to the Father. It all turns on our obedience.
5. “I’m afraid I’ll be rejected outright” – Yes, there’s that chance. The person might say “Thank you so much, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable with that right now”. And that’s o.k. You’ll know you obeyed and acted on the unction and you can pray for them later on, no worries. But what are the odds they’re going to say something like “How dare you!” “You’re a freak!” “Get away from me, you fanatic!”? Not too high. People know it takes courage to offer to pray for someone on the spot. They’ll know you care because you pushed through your fear, and you did it because you care about them and their problems (NOTE: In 31 years, I’ve never had anyone say ‘no’ to my offer to pray for them on the spot. I just don’t do it enough.).
An ancient Chinese proverb says “a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” What if growth in your faith and your relationship with Jesus hinges on your willingness to press through this fear of ‘going public’ with your faith? What if simply offering to pray for someone . . . out loud . . . in person or on the phone . . . is your next step?
Prayer – Lord give me the courage to stop worrying about what everyone else thinks and the confidence to be about Your business in the conversations I have with people who are suffering. I need Your wisdom in how to pray, but first I need courage make the offer.
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Responses (4)
I totally agree Regi- I doubt I have prayed for more people on the spot than you, but just recently I offered to pray for a man at church after he shared some things he had been going through, and he actually declined! He told me he doesn’t want to burden God with his problem and after I (rather shocked) encouraged him God feels differently, he declined again and told me he “believes differently” about that. I was floored. I let him go but felt awful about it. I wish I had continued exhorting him to get prayer, but in that case my problem was not my willingness to step out of my comfort zone to pray but to actually argue with him that it is the right thing to do! Great post.
Totally with you Sam. Thanks for the comment.
I have prayed with various people in my last couple of jobs. You can’t do it always, but I’ve found many times when people in need come across your path. I had a poor lady who has just taken her husband to the rest home and earlier in the year had lost her only child. You could hear the pain in her voice as she asked about my product. I took a chance and commented that she had been through quite a bit this last year, and now she is alone. I said I was a believer, to which she responded she also was a believer. I asked if she would mind if I prayed with her on the phone, to which she said that was alright. I prayed and the Holy Spirit gave me direction and she thanked me afterwards. I have done this on various occasions and have no one say no, but I don’t ask everyone. Sometimes people need a touch in that moment and we are in the right place to touch them. I don’t preach to them, have often given a verse, but mainly just simply allowed the Holy Spirit to give me direction in praying. It’s not as hard as you think, it’s really quite natural! Jesus did it all the time. Thanks Regi
I agree Paul, not always and not everyone. But it certainly feels good to obey that unction when the Holy Spirit brings it . . . to push through the fear of “what people might think” and do what my Father would have me do. Thanks for the comment.