Study Guide
PRAYING AS A MINISTRY
8,223 words, about 41 min read
There are many aspects of prayer to be considered and many questions to be answered. We can come into agreement that we must pray and that our hearts must be free of iniquity, but I believe it is necessary and vital that we also understand the whys and wherefores of prayer. I think it is time that we take a closer look at this ministry so that we have a full knowledge of why we do what we do.
WHY SHOULD WE PRAY?
Philippians 4:6
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
St.Luke 18:1
And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
1 Thessalonians 5:17
Pray without ceasing.
Throughout the Word we are admonished to pray. Jesus did not make a request, but gave a commandment regarding prayer. The Apostle Paul further reiterates to the church at Thessalonica. We should always pray. We are not to be anxious, but should fully utilize the platform of prayer provided. The Prophet Samuel stated this so clearly in 1 Samuel 12:23.
1 Samuel 12:23
“Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you.”
To be able to talk with God is not only a privilege, but also an honor. We, His sons, can go boldly before our Father to make our requests known. It is our responsibility, our duty. If we fail to pray, we sin. God moves as a result of the prayers of His sons. When we go to our Father on behalf of an individual or a situation, we should see Him move. If God is not answering our prayer, we must seriously examine why.
James 5:16
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
WHAT HAPPENS IF WE FAIL TO PRAY?
God made covenants with His people to meet them when they prayed. He has also promised us that He will meet us inside of prayer. This ministry has a history of prayer. In fact, its foundation is prayer. We were instructed by God to set aside times for prayer. Just as Solomon prepared a place to meet God we have chosen to meet Him in the sanctuary. God has been faithful over the years to meet us in our prayer sessions. There was a time when 6 a.m. and 12 noon prayer was hallowed and God met us in every session.
Isaiah 56:7
Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.
Let us look at II Chronicles 7:7 and 12.
II Chronicles 7:7
Moreover Solomon hallowed the middle of the court that was before the house of the LORD: for there he offered burnt offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings, because the brasen altar which Solomon had made was not able to receive the burnt offerings, and the meat offerings, and the fat.
II Chronicles 7:12
And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice.
God heard Solomon and told him He had chosen to meet His people in that place. He let them know that if they refused to reverence Him there that He would forsake them and cause others to realize that where He once was, He would no longer dwell. God honored the times His people set aside to meet Him, and declared that He would respond to them. But He also says that if we begin to turn away from Him and not reverence the times as holy and sacred He will turn away from us.
2 Chronicles 7:12-22
12 And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice.
13 If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. 15 Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place.
16 For now have I chosen and sanctified this house, that my name may be there forever: and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.
17 And as for thee, if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, and do according to all that I have commanded thee, and shalt observe my statues and my judgments;
18 Then will I stablish the throne of thy kingdom, according as I have covenanted with David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man to be ruler in Israel.
19 But if ye turn away, and forsake my statutes and my commandments, which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods, and worship them;
20 Then will I pluck them up by the roots out of my land which I have given them; and this house, which I have sanctified for my name, will I cast out of my sight, and will make it to be a proverb and a byword among all nations.
21 And this house, which is high, shall be an astonishment to every one that passeth by it; so that he shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and unto this house?
22 And it shall be answered, Because they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath he brought all this evil upon them.
We must be mindful that God has commissioned us to pray and that prayer is sacred to Him. If we are not faithful in prayer, God will not work with us.
St. Matthew 21:13
And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.
St. Mark 11:17
And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.
WHAT TIMES HAVE WE ADOPTED FOR THE CONGREGATIONAL/CORPORATE PRAYER?
Psalm 55:16-19
16 As for me, I shall call upon God, And the LORD will save me.
17 Evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and murmur, And He will hear my voice.
18 He hath redeemed my soul in peace from the battle which is against me, For there were many who strive with me.
19 God shall hear, and afflict them, even he that abideth of old. Selah. Because they have no changes, therefore they fear not God.
David expresses his need to beseech God all day long. He knew that God was his answer no matter what situations he found himself in. David had a track record of experiencing Him in the midst of adversity. He prayed with an assurance because he knew his help came from the Lord.
In this ministry, we have established times for the congregation to come together in prayer (online).These times are 6 a.m., 9 a.m.,12 Noon, 3 p.m., 6 p.m., 9 p.m. Midnight, and 3 a.m. and at least 30 minutes before each service. Prayer three or four times a day helps to establish us in the need to seek God constantly. At these times, wherever there is a BTI worship center, prayer should be going on. The prayer sessions were established to bring the congregation into the mind that was established in the beginning of this ministry. However, we know that it is designed to produce a lifestyle of prayer.
WHY DO WE PRAY AT PARTICULAR TIMES OF THE DAY?
Watch: 1. The rendering of some form of the Heb. shamar (to "protect") and may mean a day or night watch; thus there was a guard of the king's house (2 Kings 11:5-7) and in Jerusalem under Nehemiah (Neh 4:9; 7:3). The Jews, like the Greeks and Romans, divided the night into military watches instead of hours, each watch representing the period for which sentinels or pickets remained on duty. Thus we read of "a watch in the night" (Ps 90:4). The proper Jewish reckoning recognized only three such watches, entitled the first or "beginning of the night watches" (Lam 2:19), the middle watch (Judg 7:19), and the morning watch (Ex 14:24;1 Sam 11:11). Those would last respectively from sunset to 10:00P.M.;from 10:00P.M.to 2:00A.M.; and from 2:00 A.M. to sunrise. Subsequent to the establishment of the Roman supremacy, the number of watches was increased to four, which were described either according to their numerical order, as in the case of the "fourth watch" (Matt 14:25), Grk. phulake), or by the terms "evening," "midnight," "cockcrowing," and "morning" (Mark 13:35). These terminated respectively at 9:00
P.M., midnight, 3:00 A.M.,and 6:00A.M. 2. Heb. shaqad (to "be alert") is to be wakeful, and so watchful, either for good (Jer 31:28; 51:12, see marg.) or evil (Isa 29:20, see marg.). 3. Grk. gregoreo means to "keep awake, to watch," and so to take heed, lest through remissiveness and indolence one be led to forsake Christ (Matt 26:41; Mark 14:38). 4. A Roman sentry, one of the soldiers who guarded the tomb of the Lord (Matt 27:65-66). Grk. koustodia; "Watch," . (From The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Originally published by Moody Press of Chicago, Illinois. Copyright (c) 1988.) We realize that under the New Covenant, we are admonished to, “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
We are not legalistic inside of setting these times. We know that there are no specific times that we must pray but rather, prayer should be a lifestyle for the sons. These are the times we have chosen to set as time for corporate prayer for Bible Teachers International. Times when we can come together and pray for the ministry and things pertaining to our calling. Just as God met His people in the Old Covenant inside of the watch hours, He meets us inside of the hours we have set to watch and pray. This does not eliminate times we come together for fasting and supplication and other such prayer sessions.
Habakkuk 2:1-4
1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.
2 And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.
4 Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
Here Habakkuk is talking about standing in intercession for the people of Israel. But let us look at how he approached God. He made his request known to Him and then waited for instructions to tell the Israelites. He believed that God would speak and instruct him so he went up to the throne expecting Him to do so. How many times do we pray on one of these prayer platforms, but pray vain and repetitious prayers and do not really believe God will answer? Oftentimes we come together in prayer but we pray and do not expect God to talk back to us. We are often asking God for things, whether natural or spiritual, but not expecting God at that moment to lead and guide us inside of the prayer. Habakkuk says, “I will watch and see what he will say unto me”. And he declared that, “…the Lord answered me…” He prayed and knew that the Lord would answer Him.
ARE THESE THE ONLY TIMES/WAYS WE SHOULD COME TOGETHER TO PRAY?
There can never be too much prayer going on in a worship center. It is a blessed thing when the congregation can just come together to sit before the Lord. This is also very vital. There should be times we come together even to talk to the Lord about our own spiritual disposition and need for Him. There can be times when the entire congregation comes together to pray for a specific situation. For example, the saving of souls, the pulling down of a stronghold that the enemy has set against the ministry or that the Father would give victory in a certain crusade or ministry endeavor.
When Bible Teachers International was established over 35 years ago, the Determinate Council commonly referred to as the “DC” would sit for hours before the Lord and pray for souls and the well-being of the ministry. Souls poured into the ministry. We would ask the Father to send out ministering spirits into the hedges and highways and would bind souls to the Kingdom of God, loosing them from Satan’s clutches. We would determine and redirect the destiny of situations. Once the “DC” prayed for a man who was facing life imprisonment. God answered our prayers and that man never served a day in prison. Another time we prayed for God to take a man off the earth because he was a stumbling block to God's people. God honored our prayers and soon after that, he died. Why would God do this? These leaders believed in the power of prayer and presented God with a life. Most importantly, they prayed with a pure heart.
HOW LONG SHOULD EACH SESSION LAST?
The prayer sessions routinely should last half an hour, however, it may go over the recommended time or just under the hour as long as all prayer requests are taken before the Father.
WHAT SHOULD BE THE FOCUS OF OUR PRAYERS?
1 Samuel 12:23
Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you:
One of the things that we must always do is make sure we stay in a mode of interceding for others. Prayer is not a platform that we spend most of our time selfishly praying for ourselves although we may have times that we might petition God on our behalf. Prayer is a platform for ministry. This is the time that we take to petition God for any prayer requests or concerns in the lives of the people in the local church, or in other works, as well as for the leadership of the ministry, our congregation on the internet, friends, family members, world affairs, etc.
1 John 5:14-15
14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
When we pray we must do so in accordance with the will and purpose of the Father. This simply means when we pray, our focus should be that His will be done inside of specific situations. Many times when we pray we are not sure whether God hears us or not. In fact, we live in “a hit and miss syndrome.” We rejoice when we actually see the manifestation of our prayers and even are astonished that God even answers. When He does not, we just believe that maybe it was not God’s will.
WHO SHOULD PRAY DURING CORPORATE PRAYER?
Hebrews 5:1-2
1 For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins:
2 Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity.
All of the sons of God should be people of prayer. Again, prayer should be the lifestyle of every son. We have been taken from among men and ordained for men. We should maintain constant communication with our Father on behalf of others.
James 5:16
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
We should choose people to pray according to the burdens the Holy Spirit may have laid on their heart. Some people are sensitive to souls. Some people have great faith for healing while others have great concerns for world affairs. Be led by the Spirit in selecting those to pray.
FOR WHOM OR WHAT SHOULD WE PRAY?
It would be absolutely impossible for us to include everything for which we should pray in this study guide, but I have listed just a few examples and reasons that we should pray for them.
GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS
1 Timothy 2:1-4
1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;
4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
The Apostle Paul is exhorting Timothy on prayer. From the passage we can see that we are to pray for people everywhere, and specifically for governmental leaders, and all who are in authority. The heart of the king is in God’s hand. All too often the sons of God are guilty of talking about politics and politicians more than they pray. We are to pray for our leaders that decisions made are those in accordance to God’s will. Paul even further gives the reason why we are to pray. He says pray that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. That is, so that we may have the freedom to serve our Father and present Him to others as He truly is.
FOR THE NATION
The following scripture shows “a shadow and type” of the prayer we pray for our nation.
Zechariah 13:1-6
1 In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.
2 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.
3 And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth.
4 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive:
5 But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth.
6 And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
We see our nation becoming a sort of Sodom and Gomorrah, but we must pray that God will have mercy. It may seem that sin is so tolerated and permitted, even by our spiritual leaders; those who are considered our “heroes''. But God is admonishing us to continue diligently in prayer. Sin has abounded, but when those of us who know that God is not a promiscuous God stand in righteousness as intercessors for our nation, then and only then will He move on our behalf.
Zechariah 13:7-9
7 Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.
8 And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein.
9 And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.
If we continue fervently in prayer, the world in all its perversion can see that the prosperity message that is being taught is ludicrous. Even those who are teaching it will begin to recognize that God is not allowing them to continue. God is not winking at sin and greed. He does not accept us walking after the flesh and trying to justify it with His Word. On the contrary, He expects us to be holy as He is holy! The world will begin to see that the fountain that was opened up unto them is Christ and those who refuse to accept Christ will indeed be cut off. God will raise Him up a people who will reverence Him. These are the people whom He will not be ashamed to call His. Also in praying for the nation, let us not forget that we are also commanded to pray specifically for the peace of Jerusalem.
Psalm 122:6
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.
OUR BRETHREN IN CHRIST (The Body of Christ)
Isaiah 45:11
Thus saith the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me.
Ephesians 1:16-17
16 Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers;
17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
There is so much error in the Body of Christ today. Many of our brethren are teaching doctrines that have turned the members of the Body of Christ away from God and caused them to go after the weak and beggarly things of this world. Rather than seeking for the riches of God’s glory, the sons of God are striving to get rich. The Word of God is being preached to them in such a way that they feel they must go after the “good life” here, rather than accepting that the sons of God are all pilgrims passing through this world. Therefore, the Body of Christ is weak and powerless against the wiles of the enemy.
We must realize that we are members of one body. It is our responsibility to pray for our brethren that they hear the voice of the true Shepherd and turn away from the rudiments of this world and turn their hearts back to the Father. If we talk more than we pray, the Father will not be pleased with us.
THAT SOUL WINNERS BE SENT INTO THE HARVEST
St.Luke 10:2
Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.
It is not the will of the Father that any should perish. His desire is that all men, women, and children come to repentance. We must therefore pray that laborers be sent forth to reach those souls who are already destined for the kingdom. We must never be presumptuous that people do not want Christ. We might look at a situation and say that a person is too far for the Holy Spirit to reach. But if we pray, the Father, the Lord of the harvest, will send the right laborer to reach that individual and they can be won for the kingdom. Never underestimate the power of prayer.
FOR OUR OWN SPIRITUAL GROWTH
Ephesians 3:14-19
14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
Even though we are God’s children we have to be raised in the knowledge of the adoption that took place. Our minds must be persuaded as to who we are. The more we realize who we are, the more we will walk in the Spirit and present to the world the hope of the Gospel. These are the spiritual traits that we have received. The riches of God’s glory allow us to walk through situations, circumstances and relationships. If we are not rooted and grounded in the love of God, how can we persuade others of that same love?
St.Luke 22:45-46
45 And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow, 46 And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.
Jesus knew the vulnerable state of the disciples and encouraged them to pray. He knew it would not have been long from then that the enemy was coming to challenge them. As Jesus told His disciples to pray, we, too, must also pray that we not be trapped by the snares the enemy has set for our lives.
SPIRITUAL LEADERS
2 Thessalonians 3:1-2
1 Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:
2 And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith.
Ephesians 6:18-20
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,
20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
Colossians 4:3
Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds:
We cannot be presumptuous that just because someone is called into the five-fold ministry that all is always well. The enemy seeks to stop whomever he can from operating inside of the purpose and plan of the Father. Leaders are no exception, we need to be covered by prayer. There were many times in the Word where the apostles solicited the prayers of the saints. Two of these requests are noted in the above scriptures. Paul asked for prayer that doors of utterance be opened, that the Word would have a free course, and also that they be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; those enemies of the preaching of the Gospel.
FOR OUR ENEMIES
St.Luke 6:28
28 Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.
Why would Jesus instruct us to pray for those who despitefully use us? He knew the power of forgiveness in the heart. He knew the delivering power of allowing love to flow in the worst situations. We can be persuaded of this in the situations of our lives that we have to pray for. When we pray for our enemies they can see the light of Christ shining on them in darkness and can follow that light into His glorious kingdom.
PRAYER REQUESTS
Ezekiel 22:29-31
29 The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have vexed the poor and needy: yea, they have oppressed the stranger wrongfully.
30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.
31 Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord GOD.
Daily we receive requests, whether over the Internet, in writing, or verbally that we pray for various situations. As we continue to present God a righteous life, we can stand in the gap, and make up the hedge for the people. As a result, God will answer the prayer. There are people who trust in the power of our prayer. We must take on the responsibility of living a holy life so that nothing will hinder our prayers from being heard. We must be willing to pray for others that we may not be personally acquainted with, just as we would want someone to pray for us or for our family members. If we sow seeds of prayer for others, when our time of need comes, the Holy Spirit will put it in someone's heart to intercede for us.
WHEN WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT TO PRAY, THE HOLY SPIRIT MAKES INTERCESSION FOR US.
Romans 8:26-27
26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
The only way this can be accomplished in us is that we walk in the Spirit. He will use us as vessels of prayer if we present Him with a pure heart. God always examines the heart.
IS THERE EVER A TIME WHEN WE SHOULD NOT PRAY FOR A PARTICULAR INDIVIDUAL OR SITUATION?
The answer to this question is definitely “Yes.” In the scriptures below we see three different occasions the Lord instructed His prophet, Jeremiah, not to pray for the people. There comes a time when He has already passed judgment and has purposed what He will do.
Jeremiah 7:16
Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.
Jeremiah 11:11-14
11 Therefore thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though they shall cry unto me, I will not hearken unto them.
12 Then shall the cities of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem go, and cry unto the gods unto whom they offer incense: but they shall not save them at all in the time of their trouble.
13 For according to the number of thy cities were thy gods, O Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem have ye set up altars to that shameful thing, even altars to burn incense unto Baal.
14 Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear them in the time that they cry unto me for their trouble.
Jeremiah 14:10-11
10 Thus saith the LORD unto this people, Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the LORD doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins.
11 Then said the LORD unto me, Pray not for this people for their good.
1 John 5:14-16
14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
16 If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.
If He has revealed His will in a matter, then we must be obedient. If judgment has already been passed, there is nothing else we can do but ask the Father for mercy. For example, a prayer request might be sent in for an individual for healing that you know God has spoken specifically to you that the person is going to die. The only thing you can pray in that matter is that God extends mercy to the individual. It will be futile for you to pray for healing. You would simply be praying outside of His will.
An example to note when praying for requests is that someone might ask for prayer that their child be released from prison. That person might be in prison for a season to get his or her attention or even as a way of saving his or her life. It could even be that God is allowing them to suffer the consequences of their sin. In these cases, if we pray for deliverance, we are praying against the will of the Father. We must remember, however, that our Father is a God who is full of mercy.
Psalm 145:8
The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion, slow to anger, and of great mercy.
There could be a situation where the Lord has passed judgment, but remember, He always hears the cries of His children. We must display the character of Christ. He, too, was merciful and full of compassion. If we stand as a propitiation for another, our Father just might extend mercy in the situation. An example of this is when God told Abraham that He was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18). When Abraham prayed, God told him that He would spare the city if righteousness could be found. He told Abraham this because of Abraham’s prayer. It is not God’s will that any perish, but that every man, woman, boy and girl, come to repentance.
St. Matthew 15:22-28
22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.
26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.
27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.
28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.
Here Jesus told the Canaanite woman that He was only sent to the Israelites. She worshiped Him and solicited His help. He granted her petition because of her faith in Him. This does not mean every time we ask God to change His mind that He will. Sometimes He will allow the consequences of sin to remain. Our praying, however, may help the individual bear the consequences. Also, praying may help bring the individual to a place of repentance. Repentance does not mean the consequences will automatically change.
WHAT ARE SOME THINGS WE SHOULD NOT DO DURING CORPORATE PRAYER?