And Pray for Me, Too

ByJim Stephens

Reading: Ephesians 6; Psalm 106

18 Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere. 19 And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words as I boldly explain God’s secret plan that the Good News is for the Gentiles, too. (Ephesians 6:18-19 NLT)

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians (and to us) has “prayer” woven all through it! There’s Paul’s anthem of praise and his prayer for the believers in chapter 1, his prayer of blessing in chapter 3, and his instruction on prayer and spiritual warfare in chapter 6.

We know that prayer is important. We pray for our needs and the needs of others. We pray for the will of God to be done. We pray for victory in our personal battles with temptation and spiritual opposition. We know we can and should pray about everything both great and small.

This phrase caught my attention this morning, “And pray for me, too”. By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul was revealing great truths about spiritual warfare and the nature of the daily battleground – prayer. He was telling the Ephesians (and us) how important it is to pray constant, Spirit-inspired prayers for ourselves and for Christians all over the world. But there’s something poignant in the little phrase, “Pray for me, too.”

Don’t forget that everyone needs prayer! The new believers and the mature Christians. The young and the old. The “great” and the small. Everyone faces daily battles and everyone needs someone praying for them.

Let the Holy Spirit keep you alert and persistent in praying for others. Pray for your family, for church leaders, for friends, for people in the news, for people you know at work and in your neighborhood, for all kinds of people in all kinds of situations. As people and situations come to mind – pray for them. “And pray for me, too!”

Prayer:

Father, I want to be a Spirit-directed pray-er. Help me and my friends who read this to be awake and aware and sensitively responsive to pray Spirit-directed prayers when we should for all those we need to pray for. Everyone needs someone praying for them!