Have you ever asked someone to pray for you? To keep you in their prayers? Do you think they do? Or do you think they agree to because it’s the “Christian” thing to do?
I was driving home one day, and these thoughts came to me out of nowhere. I wondered if people really prayed for me when I have asked. Then I started thinking back to when others have asked me to pray. I started to feel a little ashamed. Hypocritical. I’ll be honest, at one point in my life (before I really became a prayer warrior), people would ask me to pray for them, and I’d give the, “girl, yes. You know I will keep you in my prayers.” Now, sometimes, I would pray, but, other times, I didn’t. Now, it has been many years since then, and I have grown a LOT. I wouldn’t even think of telling someone I would pray for them and not actually pray.
This led me to think back on times when people asked me to pray for certain things for them. I wondered if the outcome of their prayer would have turned out differently had I really prayed like I promised. I wondered if some of my prayers didn’t come to fruition because people told me they would pray and they didn’t. It reminded me of Matthew 18:20 (KJV), “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst of them.”
As you can see in the scripture above, the Bible says, “Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” I am no expert, but I think that prayer is one way to help bear someone else’s burden. I think we are expected to help hold someone up during their time of need. And why wouldn’t we want to do that anyway?!
All I know is that there have been many times in my life where I felt like it was just too much and it was during those times that I requested prayer from others. Sometimes I got the outcome I prayed for and other times I didn’t. Could it have been because someone else was not helping to shoulder my burden by taking my requests to God? On the other hand, did I stop someone else from getting the blessings they should have received because I did not help bear their burden? I have no idea, and probably never will. I know that somewhere along the way (I don’t even remember it’s been so long), I really started praying for others. I mean, I will see an accident, and pray. Watch the news and pray. Read a sad article and pray. Pray for souls of people who have passed that I don’t even know. I am a praying fool!
I will ever know for sure if I blocked blessings, but one thing I do know is that I will never have to worry about it again because I no longer take that route, and thankfully, God is a forgiving God.
And. That. Is. Growth!
This week I challenge you to join me in prayer for others – just as you would pray for yourself.
Thanks for taking the time to read this post. I’m not where I want to be, but I’m a little less Salty than I was yesterday!
Salty