Although many pastors struggle with prayer — they are human, after all — one place they are often seen praying is in public settings. Pastors pray during worship services, at the start and end of Sunday school classes, during small group meetings, at hospital bedsides and in the homes of church members. When a pastor is in the room, people generally know who’s going to be asked to pray. If there’s food, pastors are expected to say the blessing or grace. Most of the time, in my dry sarcasm, I just want to say, “Grace!” and move on — but I digress.
Generally, pastors are asked to pray in casual group settings for good reasons. It’s a sign of honor and respect for the role of a pastor. However, sometimes this practice carries a hint of superstition — the idea that pastors have special praying power or that God hears a pastor’s prayers more than anyone else’s. While pastors and elders do have a special calling and authority from God to oversee and protect his flock, that doesn’t mean they have extra mystical praying power.
James makes this clear:
Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit. (James 5:16–18, ESV)
Another common reason pastors are asked to pray in group settings is that many Christians feel weak or unskilled in public prayer. Public prayer is, in some ways, public speaking. Most people would rather die than speak in public. Add feeling inadequate at praying and it’s no surprise the pastor is asked to pray. The pastor can take off the pressure.
But this is where the title of this article comes in. Yes, pastors are called to pray for their people, to carry their sins and burdens to our Savior. But pastors should not be the only ones praying in and for the church. As James reminds us, we are to pray for one another. Pastors do not pray so that others don’t have to. Pastors pray for, not instead of, their people.
So, pastor, I want to challenge you: model prayer and encourage your people to pray. Keep praying for them — but don’t pray instead of them. When it’s time for the potluck to begin, encourage or invite someone else to pray. Gently shepherd your people toward greater participation in prayer. Teach your church the truth that a deacon or fellow church member can pray just as effectively at a hospital bedside as a pastor or elder. When having dinner in someone’s home, do them the honor of encouraging the head of the household to pray. Model prayer, encourage prayer and shepherd your people in learning to pray. Acknowledge that it can feel awkward — but encourage them to do it anyway.
So, dear pastor, keep praying for your people — but also, don’t pray for them.
4 Responses
In one of my churches a man stated he wanted to learn more about praying. We started a group. I created lists of prayer needs and included names of youth in the church, missionaries, those in the nursing home, etc. so attendees could feel more at ease. One by one the group grew to 10 and each one eventually prayed out loud. The group continued after I left the church. Praise God.
Hey Stephen, this is wonderful to hear. A downside to the loss of church prayer meetings is the opportunity for people to grow in group prayer. I am glad that Lord led this man to reach out and you led in a way to strengthen your people. To God be the glory that it continued on!
I would love to see more of this. Outside of Deacons being asked to pray over the elements for Communion or at the close of a business meeting, the invitation for church members to lead a prayer is only seen during Bible Study and Intercessors Prayer group, in my observation. I must add that I’ve never witnessed a woman asked to pray, publicly during any of our services or meetings, at least not that I can get recall, and wondered if your “church member” mentioned in your article included women members?
Hey Lisa, thank you for your comment. This is certainly an area for churches to think about in their more formal worship settings. In response to your question: It is incumbent on pastors and elders to equip and teach all members of the local church, male/female, young/old, mature/immature, etc. The question of gender roles in the local church is a bit outside the scope of this article, but I would encourage you to share this article with your church leadership and open up discussion with them. Thank you for reading and sharing your thoughts on this topic.