YOU NEED A PRAYER PARTNER

Do you have a prayer partner? Someone may ask, “Why would I want one or need one?”

Sooner or later, and likely it will be sooner rather than later, you will need God’s help. You’ll face an alarming crisis, an urgent need, or a critical decision. A prayer partner can help you shoulder the burden and find God’s answer.

God never intended for you to live the Christian life all alone. You need a prayer partner to join you in taking your petitions to the Father.

When the Lord called me to launch Northeastern Baptist College, I knew the needs would be so large, and the challenges so great, I would need several prayer partners. My first action was building a personal prayer team. I called them: The Determined Dozen—twelve men I knew would pray for me no matter what.

We all need prayer partners!

THE PRAYER PARTNER YOU NEED

What do I look for in a prayer partner? A good personal prayer partner is:

  1. Someone I can trust.
  2. Someone I know will pray for me, no matter what challenges come my way.
  3. Someone already close to the Father, who has a strong relationship with Him.
  4. Someone who talks to Him regularly.
  5. Someone who has a pattern of seeing the Father answer his prayers.

That’s the kind of prayer partner you and I need.

BONUS GIFTS

Last week we began considering bonus gifts every believer receives when we trust Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We considered Gift #1—direct access to the Father.

THE PRAYER PARTNERS YOU HAVE

Today, Gift #2—you have two prayer partners for life. Your two prayer partners meet all five criteria above. In fact, they exceed all expectations. Romans 8 introduced your two greatest prayer partners.

The Holy Spirit

“Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercessions for us with groanings that cannot be uttered” (v. 26).

Through the years, some have misinterpreted this verse. They assumed it referred to some kind of Spirit-inspired ecstatic utterance. Notice, however, the Spirit’s prayer “cannot be uttered”; it does not come from our mouths at all. It refers to something altogether different.

The verse says we have a weakness: we don’t know what or how to pray. Thankfully, our prayer partner does. The Holy Spirit personally connects with the Father on our behalf and in our place. He prays when we can’t. He prays the right thing in the right way.

The Spirit is praying to the Father for you. And what a prayer partner He is! He can be trusted. He prays for you, no matter what challenges you face. He is as close to the Father as one can be. He talks to the Father regularly, and His prayers are always answered. If you are a believer, He is your prayer partner.

But wait. What if you haven’t been good enough? You haven’t done enough. You haven’t lived out your priorities today. Instead, you sinned. What if the enemy is accusing you of failure, and you know he’s right? Not only do you not know how to pray or what to pray, you don’t feel worthy to pray. Is there hope? Absolutely.

Jesus Christ

“Who is he that condemns? [Whether it’s you, another person, or the Devil, the condemnation is meaningless.] It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us” (Rom 8:34).

Jesus Christ alone has the authority to condemn (John 5:22).

He loves you so much He died in your place taking the full penalty for your sins. He rose again, defeating sin, death, and the grave. This very moment He is seated at the Father’s right hand. And notice what He’s doing. He’s praying for you!

Right now, two members of the Godhead are your prayer partners. God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are bringing your needs to God the Father. Furthermore, Jesus said that the Father hears your prayers because He loves you (John 16:26-27). No wonder Paul began our paragraph in Romans 8 with a rhetorical question, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (v. 31).

When you received Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you received Gift #1—direct access to the Father, and Gift #2—the two greatest prayer partners: Jesus and the Holy Spirit. When you make requests to the Father, remember, two prayer partners are already praying for you.

And He’s ever interceding
To the Father for His children;
Yes, He’s ever interceding
To the Father for His own;
Through Him you can reach the Father,
So, bring Him all your heavy burdens;
Yes, for you He’s interceding,
So, come boldly to the throne.
[Source]

As someone said, “I came cringing, cowering, crawling, holding up my empty thimble, hoping for a little blessing. If only I had known You better, I’d have come running with a bucket!”

With Great Anticipation,

Dr. Mark H. Ballard