How to Pray for Prayer Requests Biblically
By Daniel Szczesniak
As anyone in the church knows, prayer requests are something we come across on a regular basis. Yet there are surprisingly few resources on how to pray for specific, real-life, everyday needs.
Today we’re going to consider how to pray for prayer requests biblically.
Typical Prayer Requests
You know what this looks like in many church group settings:
Andrew and Sarah want to buy a house. They have three kids, all under five years, and are financially ready to move from their tiny two bedroom apartment into a home that has space, indoors and out.
They put an offer in on a property that looks absolutely perfect for their young family. At your small group, they ask for you to pray with them about it.
How do you pray for this request?
Meanwhile, we keep going around the room.
David has a nephew getting treatment for spina bifida.
Samantha is concerned about her sister who hasn’t been coming to church as regularly.
Kayla has a decent job but is looking for one with better hours and more opportunities for advancement.
Nick and Avery are going out of town for a couple weeks.
And Austin mentions family members and coworkers who aren’t saved.
Habitual Prayers for Prayer Requests
I know the way I all-too-easily pray for these things. It can be a mix of Christian jargon and a “please bless them” followed by a “please help them with…” request for whatever the person is asking for.
Lord, we ask that you would bless them as they…
If it be your will, please give her…
Help him to…
Now, asking for God’s blessing, for his will to be done, and for God to provide help are certainly not unbiblical. We should pray that way!
But let’s be real. We all know what we’re talking about here: We pray trite, awkward, and automatic words and phrases that come to mind for lack of something better.
I want to pray more dynamically than that. I hope you do too!
Throughout the Bible, we see rich, deep prayers in the Psalms, powerfully convicting prayers in the apostolic letters, and eye-opening, theologically profound prayers from Jesus.
When we measure our habitual prayers against Scripture, I think it is a normal and healthy response to want to pray better and to pray more in line with what God cares about.
Before we get to the Scriptures, let’s paint a picture of the different types of needs people often or typically tend to bring up during small groups and prayer times.
9 Types of Prayer Requests
In broad brush strokes, here are 9 types of common prayer requests.
Salvation of friends, family, coworkers, neighbors
Health issues and healing
Decisions about life (marriage, buying a house, jobs, school, moving)
Responses to major life changes (marriage, kids, job loss, death, relocation)
Travel (vacations, visiting family, work-related, missions)
Parenting
Personal piety (Scripture reading, prayer, service, spiritual depression, personal holiness)
Stress (work, family, relationships, money, time management)
Politics and culture (world events, abortion, tragedies, elections, laws)
Now, how should we pray about these things? How do you pray for these types of prayer requests biblically?
One of the best places we can turn is Paul’s prayer for the Colossian church.
Paul’s Prayer in Colossians 1:9-14
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
That’s quite the prayer!
Let’s look a little more closely at what he’s actually saying. As we do, we can break this down into specific requests.
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you…
1. Be filled with knowledge, wisdom, and understanding (1:9)
may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,
2. Do what is pleasing to the Lord (1:10)
so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him:
3. Bear fruit (1:10)
bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;
4. Be strengthened & built up in character (1:11)
being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy;
5. Give thanks (1:12)
giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.
6. Worship (1:13-14)
He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Paul prays for knowledge, works, fruit, strength, thanksgiving, and he prays in such a way that leads him to worship. Take a look over those six things and make sure you see them in the text.
If the goal is to pray biblically, Colossians 1:9-14 can be our model for all those “typical” prayer requests we’ve mentioned above.
Of course there are many other wonderful ways to pray (especially the Psalms and The Lord’s Prayer), and many other biblical ways to think about handling prayer requests, so let’s not pretend that this is the only way. It’s one way. But it’s a very helpful one.
Three Observations
Before we go any further, I want to make three general observations from verse 9. This will help us understand how to use the prayer the way I think it was intended to be used.
1. We pray in response to circumstances
“And so, from the day we heard, we… pray for you”
Paul heard something (see 1:3-8), and so or therefore prays. That’s exactly what we’re doing when we hear prayer requests and therefore pray specifically for that request.
That’s why this passage is a good model for praying biblically for prayer requests.
2. We must pray continually
“... we have not ceased to pray for you…”
Paul says this often. The most memorable version is from 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing.”
We see the same thought in Romans 12:12, Ephesians 6:18, Philippians 4:6, and later in our current letter, in Colossians 4:2: “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.”
So it’s a command. It’s also a command that Paul models for us, which is what he’s doing in verse 9. He says, “We have not stopped praying for you, and as we pray we are asking these things.”
3. We must pray about the situation, for spiritual growth
“We… pray for you, asking that…”
That’s an important distinction, and I think that’s where our prayers get off track. All too often we simply pray about the situation by asking God to give us what we want.
We’ve already named the things Paul is praying for: Knowledge, fruit, thanksgiving, etc. But note that Paul is praying in response to a situation: “And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray…”
We’re not going to get into that specific situation other than to note that Paul heard something from Epaphras about the Colossians, and his response was to pray for them. Colossians 1:9-14 is what he prayed regarding that specific situation.
Why is that important? Here’s why.
While we must pray about the situation itself (as Paul says, “for you,” c.f. Matthew 6:10, 1 Peter 5:7, 2 Corinthians 12:8), the aim of our prayer and the actual request should be for spiritual growth in the midst of it.
Take Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:7-9. A “thorn” was given to him, “a messenger of Satan to harass me.” Paul prayed three times about this issue, specifically that it would leave him. That’s praying about the situation.
Here’s the Lord’s answer: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” So Paul prayed for the resolution of the situation, and God’s response was that it was designed for his spiritual growth.
An Example
Let’s apply these three observations practically. Andrew and Sarah, who have put in an offer on a house, ask for prayer. What do you pray?
Of course you must pray that they will get it. We can and should ask our heavenly Father for good things.
But we need to see that Paul shows us how to continue praying for this request from Andrew and Sarah as they wait to hear about their offer on the house.
What do they really, ultimately need? Well, they need wisdom. They need to walk in a worthy manner as they wait, putting their trust in the Lord. They should be bearing fruit, growing in patience and endurance, learning to give thanks, and all of this should result in God’s glory being manifested in their lives.
And it doesn’t stop with their house offer. This is how to keep praying for them after they get the house, as they move in, as their family grows, as the roof needs to be replaced six years later, and as their lives move forward in sanctification and grace.
Do you see how that works? The content of our prayers should be biblical. The specific topic we’re praying about will change along with the ups and downs of everyday life, but the actual requests will stay the same.
Now we’re ready to look at the specific things we should pray for each prayer request.
6 Things to Pray for Every Prayer Request
I’ll try to make it easy to remember with two “W” requests, two “B” requests, and two “G” requests.
Wisdom
Worthy Walk
Bear Fruit
Be Strengthened
Give Thanks
Glorify God
1. Wisdom
“... that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding…” (1:9)
When Andrew and Sarah put in their offer on the house, their need for knowledge and wisdom didn’t stop. It really only grew.
How are they going to handle the details of inspections and counter offers in a way that is pleasing to the Lord? What if the offer falls through - will their knowledge of the Lord’s will help them to respond with grace and hope?
Or maybe they get the house. Will they have the wisdom to see it as a matter of stewardship to make it welcoming for hospitality, yet avoid making an idol out of having the perfectly decorated home?
They’re going to need a lot of godly wisdom and understanding to pursue home ownership in a way that honors the Lord. Ask for it!
2. Worthy Walk
“... so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him…” (1:10)
Ephesians 2:10 tells us that we were created in Christ Jesus for good works. That’s another way of saying that the purpose of our salvation and sanctification is so that we can please, honor, and glorify God by walking in a worthy manner.
This walk includes not only our actions and works, but also our attitudes and thought patterns and desires. So we should be asking the Lord that our brother and sister might be pleasing to the Lord as they seek a house in the way they think about it, in the way they desire it, how they respond to getting it (or not getting it, or bumps in the road along the way).
In all the ups and downs of house hunting, our prayer is that they would be sanctified in their hearts, minds, and deeds.
3. Bear Fruit
“… bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God…” (1:10)
The wisdom and the worthy walk that we’re praying for should result in good fruit. It’s our hope and expectation that as God answers those first two prayers, the natural result would be good fruit.
That fruit might be peace as they develop a deeper trust in God’s provision, a greater joy in response to trials, more opportunities to show the love of Jesus in practical ways to their neighbors, a better marital relationship, or any number of other blessings.
We don’t know what the fruit might be, but our job is to pray that this lovely couple would bear fruit as they live out their faith and grow in their knowledge of the Lord.
4. Be Strengthened
“... being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy…” (1:11)
“According to his glorious might.” This is a reminder that our spiritual character, our every ounce of strength, our ability to endure and thrive in any situation, all of these things are a gift from God.
God is bringing about this specific situation - house buying, an illness, a difficult and unbelieving coworker - to display his power. He is the one who gives endurance, patience, and joy. He is the one who gives the strength to bear fruit in every circumstance. So ask him to provide!
5. Give Thanks
“... giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.” (1:12)
Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 that it is God’s will that we give thanks in all circumstances. So you can ask, “What is God’s will in this situation?” and one answer will always be, “That we would give thanks to him.”
Note here in Colossians 1:12 that the ability to give thanks is not rooted in getting a specific answer to prayer. Yes, we should give thanks when we receive good things that we ask for. But what about when we don’t get it - is Paul saying we should be thankful for disappointment? For bad results, like the death of a loved one or the loss of a job? Sexual abuse or divorce? A family member turning from the faith?
No. Those are sad things. God doesn’t require us to act contrary to what the situation calls for - there’s a time to weep. Rather, the secret of giving thanks is to recognize that your circumstance does not change the fact that God has qualified you to be in his family.
So our thanksgiving is founded on the finished work of Christ, and not the particulars of the situation. As you pray for a prayer request, ask that God would enable them to give thanks based on their standing before him as an heir with Christ.
6. Glorify God
“He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (1:13-14)
As Paul considers the foundation for thanksgiving, he begins to exalt the work of God in Christ. This is the place to which all prayers should lead.
You, as the one praying, can honor and worship the Lord as you pray biblically. You can also make this a part of your request, that as the person for whom you are praying responds in thankfulness, that they, too, would glorify God in that situation by rehearsing all that God has done for them.