Jesus invited people to pray for him. He invited people to pray for workers in the harvest field. He invited his disciples to pray for him in the garden. And he invited people to be in constant prayer. He expected his disciples to pray.
‘Delegate’ may not be the best word, since it implies not doing it yourself after you have passed it off. But the word does imply the action of inviting others to take part.
Prayer is essential to kingdom work. What if we invited more people to participate? It may be the most important thing we do. Here are some concrete ways to practically “delegate” prayer:
– Break up prayer needs list into one item per person on a prayer team.
– Hand out a slip of paper with a prayer need for the day or week and give it to people in your circle of leadership.
– As you begin in any leadership meeting, hand a prayer need to each person in your circle and invite them to pray aloud for this need as you enter into a time of prayer.
– Invite people from your team / congregation to sign up for prayer times slots for a specific season or reason in the life of your church.
– Take a prayer walk – assigning each person a space in the church building to go and specifically pray for that ministry, leadership, people, effectiveness. (ex: one person to pastor’s office, one person to children’s wing, one person to sanctuary, one person to parking lot, etc).
– Through letters, articles, and other publications, invite people to pray on a regular basis.
– Begin prayer meetings in your church – pinpointing leaders who can take it on once a month, once a week or daily if possible.
– Develop a culture of being prayerful people by unashamedly praying before and after each leadership meeting, rehearsal or gathering. Pray before meals with people. And invite others in your church to open in prayer for meetings or gatherings.
– End a leadership meeting a few minutes early and hand out assigned areas in your community or city for each person to drive through and pray for on the way home that evening.
– Community Prayer Drive – Get your leadership team together and drive to seven or eight pre-determined stops in your community (courthouse, school, prison, etc). At each stop, get out of the vehicle, circle up and pray for the place, the leadership, the issues, and for God’s power to be at work.
– Invite your children to pray for meals or before bed. Sometimes pray for them, but teach them to pray as well.
– Organize a personal prayer team for yourself – as a leader, worship leader, pastor, or youth pastor, or any staff person in the church – you need people on your side praying for you. Stay in touch with this team through email, texting or whatever means works. Make a point to meet with them and thank them personally.
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