DAY 2: PRAYING TOGETHER
Read Philippians 1:3-8.
If you’ve ever prayed with others, you know that prayer is not something people merely do together, it also brings people together. Prayer is the glue that helps hold a group together. If a group did nothing else but pray together, that group would be stronger than any group that had every other aspect of community without prayer. Why is that so? Because prayer for one another is ultimately an act of great love. Look at Jesus’ prayers, and you will find one of his longest to be for the disciples and even us (John 17:6-26). Nearly all of Paul’s letters contain words of thanks and prayer for their respective churches. The prayers are meaningful because they are wrought in love for the glory of God.
Why is prayer a loving act? Because prayer takes someone’s needs before the One who can do something about it. True prayer is not flippant (“Oh, I’ll pray for you.”), but a real and faith-filled response to a need. When we pray for someone, we are doing the best thing we can do.* So, when a group of people come together in prayer, love fills the place! If you’ve ever participated in one our House of Prayer nights, you can’t help but leave with greater hope, greater unity, greater anticipation for the work of God, and greater love for one another.
To consider:
How often do you pray with others? How have you seen the “glue” of prayer when you pray with others? If you are married, how often do you pray with your spouse? If you struggle in this area, what are some ways you can improve? What are some factors that make it difficult for you to pray with others? Consider why this may be so.
*Of course, there are many times when we can both pray and act (like helping the hungry, James 2:15-17), and in those times we must do both.
