Pray for Your Pastor(s)
by John Kimball, CCCC Director of Church Development
When a missionary family is preparing for the field, any agency worth its salt will make the development of an intercessory prayer team a mandatory priority before that family leaves home. When a church planter is being evaluated for a new work, a major priority by those guiding him will be the gathering of a cadre of committed intercessors before relocation and networking begin. Intercessory prayer is a non-negotiable for every area of ministry, and especially for those on the “front lines” or where spiritual warfare will be significant. And yet, very few congregations have such a team to stand in the gap for their pastor(s).
When I speak of an intercessory prayer team, what images come to mind? A prayer chain? A weekly or monthly gathering of people for fellowship and prayer? What do you see? What I’m talking about is a group that is in covenant with the pastor and with each other to spend significant time daily praying for the pastor, his family, and his ministry. They pray on their own, and they make a point of praying together as often as possible. The actual size of the group is not nearly as important as the level of deep love for and commitment to their pastor and each other.
Every pastor’s prayer need is unique, so there cannot be a cookie-cutter approach to this vital investment. It would be nearly impossible to compile an exhaustive list, but here are some primary categories of intercession to consider with just a few details each:
The Pastor’s Spiritual Health
• For a fresh encounter with the Holy Spirit every day
• For a personal identity rooted immovably in Christ
• For a regular and abiding connection to the Father in prayer
• For clear personal vision and direction
• For freedom from distraction by the enemy
The Pastor’s Emotional Health
• For strong and consistent Sabbath rhythms
• For a dedicated day off (especially with family)
• For good life-giving friendships
• For a peer group for prayer and accountability
• For a Christ-honoring thought life
The Pastor’s Physical Health
• For a healthy diet
• For good sleep patterns
• For consistent exercise
• For protection against illness
The Pastor’s Family
• For ongoing safety and security
• For a healthy, Christ-honoring marriage
• For his wife and children to have strong, abiding friendships
• For protection against injury and illness
• For their children to have good relationships within the church family
• For the church to have realistic expectations of the pastor’s family
• For the pastor’s discipleship work to always begin at home
The Pastor’s Fruitful Ministry
• For clear revelation from God on vision
• For congregational partnership on the mission of the church
• For transformational discipleship in both the congregation and the harvest
• For a foundation of intercessory prayer in his own life and within the congregation
• For his personal leadership in evangelism and building relationships with pre-Christian people
• For him to understand and live out his divine design for the kingdom of God — that he will focus on areas where he is gifted and strong, and will delegate in areas where he is not
The Pastor’s Provision
• For the church to pay him a truly adequate salary or release him enough to pursue a gainful dual income
• For his financial obligations to remain current
• For his family to be debt-free
• For the ability to live at the same lifestyle level as his community and congregation
• For the church to adequately maintain the parsonage and property (if applicable)
As you can see, if a congregation consistently prays this way for their pastor — and especially if there is a dedicated group of people who have covenanted with the pastor to make this their personal intercessory mission every day on his behalf — the difference can be enormous.
Do you pray like this for your pastor? Does your pastor have a dedicated intercessory prayer team? If not, then both your pastor and your church are left wanting in the single most-important area of protection and provision the Lord provides.
Intercessory prayer for the pastor, the church and the community is a vital part of our CCCC Church Development Process. Would you like more information? Contact the CCCC Office at (651) 739-1474.
