# more people that pray, the better?



## nwink (Jun 21, 2011)

Is there Biblical support for getting lots and lots of people to pray for a prayer need? I know that may seem like an obvious question, but I know some people who are always asking about prayer needs for their cousin's, friend at church's, best friend's co-worker who has some health concern...and it seems as if they have the mindset that "If I get more people to pray for this need, then God will give us the answer we want."

I'm not trying to be insensitive or saying this type of situation is wrong, it's just a practical prayer matter that has troubled me some before. Thoughts?


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## JML (Jun 21, 2011)

I would say yes. God knows what we need without us even asking, so it is not a matter of God will answer the prayer if more people that pray it. Instead, I think the benefit is to the person being prayed for, as they can be uplifted by the love of the brethren, and for the people praying as they are made aware of others needs. This also makes them think more universally instead of thinking only of their own needs, which is easy to do. I think it all comes back to loving one another. If we love one another, we would want to be aware of and pray for other's needs and if we love one another we would want to tell others of someone's need. It is an encouraging feeling to know that many Christians are praying for you.


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## Skyler (Jun 22, 2011)

It strikes me that Esther also requested prayer support from the entire Jewish nation before going to see the king, did she not?

It's probably too late for me to be thinking, but since I'm doing it anyway, doesn't the Bible describe prayer as a causal force? That is, prayer is something that causes things to happen? 

If so, I'd be hesitant to write that off too readily.


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## Jack K (Jun 23, 2011)

nwink said:


> it seems as if they have the mindset that "If I get more people to pray for this need, then God will give us the answer we want."



That mindset isn't quite right, is it? It turns prayer into something by which we manipulate God, frighteningly similar to the way a witch conjures up a spirit to do his bidding by repeating the proper incantation the proper number of times. We must avoid this.

But I think the temptation to this sort of wrong thinking happens just as easily when we're praying privately as when we're recruiting group prayer. So I don't believe we should avoid asking many to pray for us just because it may lead to a superstitious approach. Rather, we must pray with greater faith in all our praying, becoming so deeply reliant on prayer that we naturally ask many people to pray for us out of our confidence that God will respond lovingly rather than out of superstition.


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## lynnie (Jun 23, 2011)

I see it as a welfare mentality for the most part in my experience. People with minimal prayer lives ask others to pray, they don't want to do the work themselves. I say this as someone who feels called to prayer and spends time praying.

I have "prayer burdens" that God has assigned me and I don't expect others to do the work.

"Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. 18Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops." One person petitioning God is enough for any prayer request. God is not some far off deity and the more people begging and asking the better, he might be persuaded by sheer numbers to grant a petition....no, one child asking the Father is enough.

I think that the situations of your personal life are your responsibility in prayer- your coworker, and neice, and neighbor, and so forth. Nobody knows them, nobody has any emotional engagement with them, nobody else feels that heart burden for them. When we start to pray together as a group for group requests I think it should be more for revival, the church, missions, the persecuted, rulers in high places, etc. 

Of course there are those sudden emergencies- people rushed to hospitals, babies dying. But even there, I think of the passage where the friends of the paralyzed man ripped a hole in the roof and let him down before Jesus, and Jesus saw their faith- the faith of the friends- and healed him. We can be so paralyzed with fear and grief that we can barely even pray or think, and we need our friends to take us to the Lord. That happens. But if we were not so shaken, we could as just one person, like Elijah, pray in confident faith to the Father and see God send the rain.

I have people I pray with, and we do swap requests before we pray. But I make real sure I am doing more to pray for others than I am asking them to pray for my stuff.


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## Fly Caster (Jun 23, 2011)

Paul instructed the Church at Corinth, "You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many," 2 Cor. 1:11.

He recognized that it was through the prayers of the church at Phillipi that his deliverance would come, Phillipians 1:19.

The author to Hebrews implored his readers, "Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly," Hebrews 13:18.

And Paul to the Thessalonians, "Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you," 2 Thes. 3:1.

Paul commands us all to pray for rulers, "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour...," I Tim 2:1-3.

Prayer is an appointed means of grace, and as such has a corporate, as well as an individual use. One of the benefits is that many will praise and glorify God. While wrong notions may attach themselves to our plea for the prayers of other, these same or similiar-type wrong notions can affect our individual prayers. These wrong notions must not, however, cause us to fail to lay hold of the appointed means of grace, either by neglecting private, individual prayer, or neglecting the seeking the prayers of others. We simply need to purge ourselves of these wrong notions and make proper use of the means of prayer for ourselves and each other.


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## py3ak (Jun 23, 2011)

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Matthew 18:19. That certainly would seem to suggest that in prayer, as in many other areas, two are better than one.


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