EP 39: 6 Powerful Ways to Pray for Your Pastor
It is so important for us to keep our pastors covered in prayer. Here are 6 powerful and effective ways to do just that, in addition to 6 ways we can intentionally care for our pastors and their families. Hit that play button and let’s dive in!
Welcome
Hello, hello! Welcome to episode 39 of the Daughter of Delight podcast! Whether you are a first-time listener or an avid listener of the podcast, I pray this episode finds you doing well and enjoying the start to your New Year. Today, we are going to talk about some really powerful ways to pray for our pastors. When it comes down to it, I’d say we can all be better about this. So, something I want to invite you to commit to doing moving forward is to be better about praying for your pastor and their family. Walking in a pastoral role and leading a flock is far from easy. Our pastors stand in need of our prayers, so let’s make sure we keep them covered!
Monthly Review Giveaway Announcement
Before we get started, I want to tell you about a little something I have decided to do. So, here’s the thing- podcast reviews are really important when it comes to the overall growth of the show and getting the word out there. Which means I need your help!Starting this month, I am going to select a review of the month and gift that person with my favorite things! This month’s giveaway bundle is a book called Women of the Word by Jen Wilkin and a Starbucks gift card. As someone who holds a degree in theology, this book covers SO much of what I literally paid to learn in one of my college courses. It is seriously that good, trust me. Now, this monthly giveaway we will be doing moving forward is only for my podcast listeners and I will constantly be changing things up to keep it fun. So, with that in mind, please consider leaving a review for the podcast!
Have you already reviewed the podcast?
If you have already left a review and feel like you are missing out on all the fun, I have good news for you! You can leave an updated review so that you can also enter for your chance to win! I will announce the review of the month winner on the first Wednesday of February. That is, February 3. If you are planning on entering for your chance to Women of the Word and a Starbucks gift card, be sure you submit your review by January 30. I’m excited to get this started and hope you will participate in all the fun!
6 Powerful Ways to Pray for Your Pastor
Alright, so here is what I’m going to do for the purpose of today’s episode! I’m going to share 6 powerful and effective ways to pray for your pastor and 6 intentional ways to care for your pastor as well. That’s a total of 12 goodies I’ve got for you! Ready to get started? Let’s do it!
01) Pray for spiritual protection against Satan's schemes.
Satan delights in tempting us and poking at our weaknesses. He will do whatever he can to succeed. That being said, let’s pray that the devil would not succeed in establishing a foothold in the lives of our pastors. Let us pray for God’s continued protection over them and that our pastors would daily take up the shield of faith. A great passage of Scripture to pray for spiritual protection against Satan’s schemes is Ephesians 6:10-19, which says:"10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints” (ESV).
02) Pray for boldness to preach the gospel.
The opportunity to communicate the sound truths of God’s Word brings with it great responsibility. It is not something that is to be taken lightly and it’s important that the whole Word is preached, not just the easy-to-digest parts of Scripture. Pray that your pastor’s confidence would be placed in the hands of Christ rather than the hands and expectations of the church. That your pastor would boldly feed their flock for the sake of Christ and not the sake of man. Pray that the Holy Spirit would give your pastor the strength to preach the glorious Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ boldly, powerfully and effectively. Some great scriptures for this prayer point are Ephesians 6:19 and Acts 28:31. "...that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel." -Ephesians 6:19 (ESV)“...proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.” -Acts 28:31 (ESV)
03) Pray your pastor to have good friends.
Being a pastor can feel incredibly lonely! Think about how much your pastor invests in the lives of God’s people. Your pastor is constantly listening and ministering to people in order to point them to Christ, so pray that he would be surrounded by good friends who are intentional about pouring into him. Pray for your pastor to have friends where he can be fully himself and not just “the pastor.” Recall Exodus 17 when Israel defeats Amalek. Starting in verse 8…8 Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. 9 So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose for us men, and go out and fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” 10 So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. 12 But Moses' hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. 13 And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword.Sis, pray that your pastor would have friends like Aaron and Hur. A great scripture to pray over your pastor’s friendships is Psalm 133:1, which says,"Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!" (ESV)
04) Pray for your pastor to have a spirit of wisdom and understanding.
In order for this to occur, your pastor must be growing in faith, knowledge and obedience. He must be daily planted in the Word of God and daily pursuing an intimate relationship with Christ. So, this prayer point is two-fold. Pray that your pastor would have an earnest desire and love to be a student of God’s Word and that God would bless him with a spirit of wisdom and understanding in return. A lovely passage of Scripture for this particular prayer point is found in Isaiah 11:2-3. It says, "And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear” (ESV).
05) Pray for your pastor’s family.
Pray that your pastor’s family would be blessed. Pray that your pastor would love his spouse as the church. If your pastor has children, pray that your pastor and his wife would both manage their family well so that their children will obey them with proper respect. (1 Tim. 3:4-5) And last but not least, pray that God would strengthen and protect your pastor and his family against the attacks of the enemy (2 Thess. 3:3), and that your pastor’s household would always choose to serve the Lord (Josh. 24:15)."Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her." -Ephesians 5:25 (ESV)“As for parents, don’t provoke your children to anger, but raise them with discipline and instruction about the Lord.” — Ephesians 6:4 (ESV)"But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one." -2 Thessalonians 3:3 (ESV)
06) Whereas there are SO many different ways to pray for our pastors, our last point for today is this: Pray for your pastor to enjoy and savor the rest that is ours in Christ.
Unfortunately, burnout for pastors is far too common. Noone is a superhuman and far too often our pastors are treated as if they are. Pray that your pastor would intentionally carve out time for rest and relaxation. And, as a result, pray that your pastor would be refreshed by spending time in the presence of our Creator. "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” -Matthew 11:28-30 (ESV)
6 Meaningful Ways to Care for Your Pastor
Alright, so now that we have explored 6 powerful ways to pray for your pastor, let’s take a look at 6 special ways to care for them.
01) Write your pastor a note or email to encourage him and let him know how God used a recent message of his to bless and grow you in your faith walk.
Pastors love to hear how the Lord is working within the church body!
02) Care for your pastor financially.
Whether it’s a gift card to a local coffee shop or an anonymous letter in the mail that blesses your pastor and his wife with a date night, get creative in the ways you financially support your pastor’s ministry efforts.
03) Thank your pastor every chance you get.
Ministry is often a very thankless job. Going out of your way to let your pastor know how appreciative you are of his leadership will make quite a mark.
04) Care for your pastor’s wife.
Oftentimes, pastors' wives are overlooked or met with unrealistic expectations. If you haven’t already, carve out time to get to know her. She’s human, just like you. She’s got her own mess, just like you. Let her know you see her and value her. Let her know you care.
05) Care for your pastor by forgiving him.
Sis, no one is exempt from sin. Not even our church leadership. We all sin and fall short of the glory of God, but God’s grace is powerful and stronger. His grace carries us through! And just like God shows it to us without restraint, let us forgive our pastors of their shortcomings as well.
06) last but not least, care for your pastor by being a student of God’s Word.
Here is what I mean by this: far too often we place the responsibility of knowing the Word of God in the hands of our preachers and teachers. And although their responsibility is to communicate the Word of God, it’s our responsibility to know it! And once a week just won’t cut it. Care for your pastor and for your spiritual health by daily rooting yourself in the Word of God.
6 Ways to Powerfully Pray & Care for Your Pastors
And there you have it! Six powerful and effective ways to pray and care for your pastor. Sis, we have no excuse to not pray for our pastors and their families, so it’s my prayer that we would commit to doing just that as they seek to make His name known for the sake of Christ.If you enjoyed this episode, would you do me a favor and leave an iTunes rating and review for the show? Or, take a screenshot of this episode and add it to your Instagram story to help encourage others to take on the challenge to pray for their pastor!
Thank You
Thanks so much for your support, sis. I’m so thankful you are a part of the Daughter of Delight community and cannot wait to see what God has in store for us this year. Talk with you next Wednesday!