SCL

Wow! All I can say right now. Too convicted.

Here is how sad I am. I often pray for that person as I walk away, but it is not because I actually care about their needs. I just want to get it off of my conscience so I don’t feel like I lied.

That is so not the heart of Christ.

On this one, I learned something from a friend. She advised me that when someone asks me to pray, I should say, “Good idea. Do you mind if I pray for you right now?” And I do – with the person who needs it. It’s been a lot more effective and meaningful than my silent, sometimes forgotten, attempts to pray later.

I Almost always pray for people Dont Say it if you Dont mean it. Write it Down or something Geez

I’m totally with Craig…

Lol I liked this one. That’s like when people say to me “yeah we should totally hang out” and I say “yeah definitely” and then I don’t see them for a month. When we finally bump into each other again, we repeat the process.

But I wonder, what’s the difference between praying for someone and not praying for them? I guess nothing other than the your own internal level of guilt cos prayer doesn’t actually do anything.

Sad, but true, guilty as charged. I like the “pray right when you part ways” idea…

OJ: if ‘prayer doesn’t do anything’ why does the Lord ask us to do it?

someone else already said this, but i think it’s a best practice as well, one that i don’t always do but am always blessed when i do: that is to pray right then and there if possible, because it is all too easy to forget once you walk away.

I’ve freaked people out because I insist on praying for them right then. Seriously. If you ask me to pray for you, I’m either going to do it then or I’ll forget.

I’m chiming in on the pray right away idea. It used to make me uncomfortable to do it, but I’ve seen incredible power come from it. There is more power when two or more agree on the prayer, so why not do it when you’re together?

Guilty. Definitely pray for them when you are with them.

Wow, so true. And here’s how I justify it: Since God knows our thoughts, simply the act of saying “I’ll pray for you” is roughly equivalent to actually praying. Right? RIGHT?

Haha. Wow. Perfect intro.

My old youth pastor always said, “I’ll pray for you as God brings you to mind,” and he explained to me that it was his way of remaining truthful about the fact that he probably wasn’t going to pray for a situation every.single.day for the rest of forever, but it left room for God to bring random events and people to his mind.

I’ve adopted that philosophy (in addition to having a more regular, written-down prayer list), and it’s amazing what things and people come to mind at the weirdest times.

This is my biggest pet peeve EVER.

Ahhhh… 99.2% of the time that line is uttered it falls into this category. It is the nice Christian ending to a conversation that started out just as shallow.. the “How are you doing?”(read– I expect you to say fine… but if you respond with more than a one word statement then I’ll throw you the good-ole “be prayin’ for ya” card)

I hate it when certain friends toss it to me.. because I know them well enough to know that they don’t spend time really praying about ANYTHING.. let alone me.

I have started to either pray for people on the spot or right after seeing them. The “pray as God brings you to mind” is an excellent idea!

Which reminds me… I have to go pray for my friend who’s having a baby tomorrow… cause I told her I would.

I’ve been thinking about this lately. Whenever I say this to someone, I really do full intend to follow through. This is why I say “I’ll try my best to remember” because honestly, I forget sometimes.
Lately, I’ve also learned the more you actually talk to someone, the more you find out their prayer needs.

……….seriously.

yesss. seriously. + how do we become better at this? at having a heart for somebody’s needs, + not just feeling like “praying” is the right thing to say we’ll do. + how awesome it would be to make a habit of praying for someone as soon as you leave them? really awesome, is how awesome.

Pastor John Moore, then in Yuma, AZ, now in Mesa, AZ, once preached on this and, man, was I feeling convicted! His solution was to pray right then: don’t just say “I’ll pray for you,” actually pray right then, no matter where you are. It is also easier to remember the person in prayer later if you’ve already lifted them up, once.

I’d say that, and once the one I’m talking to expresses his gratitude reply with “Ha, you really thought I would!”
xD

Zinger! Praying on the spot has it's value, but so does praying later on. I speak not as one who does this as often as I should, but it bears saying. Writing it down might be a good idea, especially if it's not someone close to you. But it is also good to set aside time in our prayers as intercessory prayer. That doesn't have to be anything spooky or hyperspiritual. It's simply bringing others' needs to God just as we would bring our own.

I confess, I used to be this way. I've gotten to the point now where I keep a notebook with me and write down when someone asks for prayer if it is an awkward time/place do do so. It's also been really awesome to see needs of friends via the internet and from the quiet of my desk I can say a prayer for them. Know that when I said in the comments about the Sabbath post that I am praying for you I did and am! Thanks for the reminder we need to be more diligent about prayer.

Well I don’t have it that bad, but occasionally when I do then it helps me to remember to pray for them because I feel guilty if I don’t. But ya I always wonder if when someone tells me that ‘do they actually mean it?’

wooowww… all i did was read the title and i thought "ooouuucchhh!!!!" because conviction came hard and fast… this is a problem of mine. :[

http://www.belovedbelove.wordpress.com

How about praying for them right then and there?

That is exactly what I do (immediate prayer). If I tell you that I will pray for you, you can count on at least one prayer, within the next few minutes. For sure. Because I used to do that all the time too (say it, and never do it). It is definitely "Christianese"

I like asking them if I can pray with them- and that way we both know that they are prayed for!

One similar to this one is “Let me know if I can help,” said by Christians to families or individuals in their times of extreme need. Unlike the comment “I’ll pray for you,” where people probably won’t know whether or not you’re following through, people do know when they aren’t being helped. This seems to be a way to get out of doing anything; this type of person will say, “Well, I don’t help them because they don’t ask.” It’s a rare gem of a Christian who is empathetic enough to spot a need and follow through to fill it. If we look at the parable of the Good Samaritan, we’ll notice no one there asks for anything. The Good Samaritan sees the need and does what he can to help. All of us as Christians, we need to not just offer to pray, not just offer help, but really do it! As the saying goes, we’re the only Jesus some people will ever see . . . and I want them to have a good opinion of Him.

I this we have all done this… doesn't make it right.
I'm going to start doing what your friend Carter does. Pray immediately upon leaving the conversation.

i had the same conviction hit me last fall and started praying ASAP after i heard a prayer request, similar to carter. i totally agree it works!

I think i remember reading a verse in the bible that goes with this. Something saying specifically like, dont say you'll pray for someone and then don't. idk, does anyone know of any scripture like that?

Or saying "I'll pray for you" to a person who has not asked for it, but has offended you by disagreeing with you on some subject you have strong feelings about. Usually accompanied by the tone of voice that indicates that not only do you know you are right, but you are also better than they are because you have God on your side.

Ugh. Not Jesus' message of love AT ALL.

One time, a lady at the real estate office, who was an unbeliever, was having panic attacks and all kinds of issues and I said I'd pray for her. Do you know, she came up to me at the company luncheon – in front of the Jehovah's Witness sitting next to me – and said – you haven't been praying for me have you! So, of course I didn't want to ad lying on top of not doing what I said I'd do – especially PRAYING – so I admitted I hadn't been. She responded with – I knew it, because nothing had happened!! She had more faith that my prayers would have moved her mountains than I did! I told her I'd pray for her from then on, and I still do when I think about her – gonna pray right now matter-o-fact. AND, I'm going to include eagles just for some insurance. Holy Awesome Amen, Praise the Lord.