In the life of the local church church, prayer must be more than an individual practice or liturgical habit. For the church trying to lead a quiet and faithful witness (1 Thess. 4:11-12), Prayer becomes the lifeblood, strong wall, and fortress that sustains and protects the community. Prayer plays a crucial role in uniting and fortifying the church against challenges, and may even foster a resilient and thriving church community.
Praying for our local church is scriptural.
Toward the end of Jesus’ life and ministry, Jesus prayed a significant prayer for the church. This prayer, offered publicly by Jesus before his closest friends and followers, was a heartfelt plea for unity, perseverance, and the display of God’s glory (John 17:20-23). Throughout Scripture, prayer is continually emphasized as crucial for the local church community’s unity, perseverance, and faithfulness. In this prayer for the church, Jesus was not only expressing God’s heart and mission but also modeling a way of interceding for the church that I believe Jesus intended all of his followers to continue. Through the influence of Jesus, prayer became central to the early church’s life, as they devoted themselves to it (Acts 2:42). Paul, too, exemplified this practice of interceding for the church and calling the church to pray, praying for his emerging churches and encouraging them to do the same (Philippians 1:3-5; Colossians 1:9). Paul calls us to be a people that are always praying in the Spirit – all kinds of prayers and for all kinds of requests – for the church, the people of God (Ephesians 6:18). In fact, Paul didn’t only pray for his churches, and call for them to pray for each other, but he even asked them to pray for him in his struggles (Romans 15:30; 1 Thessalonians 5:25). The responsibility to prayer cannot be removed from the local church community.
Praying for our local church has practical implications.
In I Am A Church Member by Thom S. Rainer, Rainer suggests belonging to a local church involves “praying together as a family for the church where God has placed us” (Rainer 2013, 60). He suggests the local church also needs individuals who “seek to pray together for the church” (Rainer 2013, 63). Similarly, in his book Autopsy of a Deceased Church, Rainer’s experience and research show that when a church was no longer praying and hoping together as a community that is invested together, then “the church started dying” (Rainer 2014, 68). Throughout his research and ministry, it seems that Thom S. Rainer has found prayer to be an essential act of investment and life in the local church. For this reason, Rainer suggests committing to praying for our churches, asking God to keep us “passionate and believing prayer as the lifeblood of the church” (Rainer 2014, 68). Prayer is an essential glue – the lifeblood – for the local church community that is scriptural, but has practical implications.
Prayer is a strong wall and fortress of the church.
Though I could not find the source, Martin Luther is credited with once saying, “Prayer is a strong wall and fortress of the church.” In light of the scriptures and Rainer’s findings above, I like the image of prayer being a strong wall and fortress. It is the force that keeps the onslaught and defeats at life from overwhelming us in the battle. The Psalms tell us that as we dwell in God—an act that prayer facilitates—we find rest under the shadow of the Almighty’s protection. God becomes our refuge and fortress, teaching us to trust in God alone (Psalm 91:1-2). Similarly, Proverbs describes the name of God as a fortified tower, offering safety and rest to those who seek refuge there. Prayer is a powerful way to run to God, dwell in the presence of God, and honor the name of God. Most of all, Prayer is an act of trusting, and those who trust in God will find their minds, communities, and lives enveloped in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3). In the Lord’s Prayer, a pattern for our prayer lives, Jesus invites us to pray that we do not become overcome by the temptations and trials of the world – because it’s possible to be overrun and we need a strong wall and fortress. Through prayer, we as individuals and church communities, can stay within the protective embrace of God’s guidance and strength, we are shielded from being overwhelmed by these challenges.
A suggested framework for praying for the local church.
No matter the type of church community you belong to—whether it is a megachurch or a house church—prayer must be a foundational practice for your community’s effectiveness. At River Corner Church, we use a framework of seven prayer prompts, which may be helpful to you and your congregation. When our family first started in 2022, we developed and introduced these seven prompts to guide our prayers for our growing church. Each prompt corresponds with a day of the week, addressing key priorities for a developing church community. Now, more than two years later, I continue to keep these prompts with my Bible and regularly pray through them for our simple community of Jesus followers. I offer this framework as an example for you to develop your own or to adopt for praying over your local church—building a strong wall and fortress of prayer around your community.
- Sunday. We pray to know God better and for our church community to deepen its connection with God individually and during our moments of communal worship.
- Monday. We pray to understand the scriptures more and for our church community to experience renewal as we faithfully live and love like Jesus.
- Tuesday. We pray for increased love for each other and for our church community to strengthen its commitment to journeying through life together.
- Wednesday. We pray to be more sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit and for our church community to bring healing and peace to the places we each live, work, and play.
- Thursday. We pray for responsible stewardship of our mission and for our church community to wisely steward, invest, and leverage what God has entrusted us with.
- Friday. We pray for increased joy and guidance in our church community and for our church leaders to be healthy, encouraged, and strengthened.
- Saturday. We pray for spiritual influence in our region, for our church community to connect with neighbors, and that God brings new life and people to our church.
Again, this isn’t anything special or formulaic. It is merely a framework I developed to pray for our church community, and I merely offer this framework as an example for you to develop your own or to adopt for praying over your local church—as a way in which you can help to encourage the lifeblood of your church community, and build strong wall and fortress of prayer around your community.
Praying this for our church community has been special.
I am excited about what God is doing in our local church community, River Corner Church. Although it hasn’t been an otherworldly experience or an instantaneous transformation, and despite the challenges, obstacles, and setbacks, most days I sense a profound new life emerging. When Katie and I first began leading here, River Corner Church was in a season of relaunch and reimagination. Since then, the church has slowly began to embrace a story of resurrection and new life. I believe that our deep passion for community, commitment to teaching the scriptures, breaking of bread, and prayer are why God’s favor and grace have enabled this community to remain resilient and grow incrementally. Even more, I believe that prayer, in particular, is a cornerstone of our church’s vitality and cohesion. My goal is to lead a quiet life, focusing only on what I can do—primarily praying for our local church community and trusting God to nurture our growth. In prayer, we ask for new lifeblood, for a strong wall and fortress around our community, so that God will keep us from not being overwhelemed or overcome in the temptations and trials of life.
Sometimes there seems to a connection between prayer and revival.
As someone who has been an avid fan of reading about various church revivals, I have constantly found that an individual’s or church’s commitment to prayer has been one of the most essential and vital threads in each chapter of revival. For our church community, from the season of relaunch to the current signs of hopeful resurrection and growth, I believe prayer has been our constant companion, and must be. Prayer must be our source of strength. Too often, we desire revival without putting in the necessary effort, yet prayer is the crucial groundwork. The harvest is plentiful, but we need to pray to the Lord of the harvest for more workers and for guidance in the work of our hands (Matthew 9:37-38). Perhaps revival happens after a commitment to prayer, because prayer also becomes pathway to a deeper connection with God and one another.
In Closing
As Thom S. Rainer wisely notes, prayer is indeed the lifeblood of the church. Echoing Martin Luther, it serves as a strong wall and fortress, and as the scriptures reveal, it nurtures vitality and resilience. Prayer is the essential glue that binds us to the vine and the unyielding foundation of our community. I encourage you to commit to praying for your local church with greater intentionality. Through prayer, we align our hearts with God’s purposes and strengthen our journey forward with hope and anticipation. Let’s continue to uphold prayer, knowing it is vital for the health and growth of our churches and the fulfillment of God’s mission in our world.
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