Pray Without Ceasing: Interceding for the People You Serve

Sep 7, 2021 | UA News

The Bible is clear that prayer is powerful! It is not our efforts that yield meaningful change in the world, but the Holy Spirit working through us. Urban Alliance uses their 5-C Framework to strengthen nearly 120 programs in five distinct areas– one of which is Christian Witness. Christian Witness is a program’s capacity to share the love of Jesus and prayer is an important part!

In recognizing the importance of meeting the spiritual needs of individuals who are struggling, Urban Alliance invited program leaders to participate in a training, “Pray Without Ceasing: Interceding for the People You Serve”, to help them strengthen their efforts in offering prayer to people served and the community-at-large. During the training, program leaders received handouts with prayer samples, prayer models, helpful resources on intercession, a tool to help programs assess their practices around offering prayer to those served. The training also demonstrated the power of praying Scripture over our lives and the lives of others. For example:

“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen (person’s name) with power through his Spirit in his/her inner being, so that Christ may dwell in his/her heart through faith. And I pray that (person’s name), being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that (person’s name) may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”(Ephesians 3:14-19)

Additionally, Urban Alliance provided prayer boxes and prayer request cards to each program leader who attended the training. Prayer boxes helped program leaders incorporate the content of the training into their ministry setting. It also was used by leaders to encourage individuals to share their prayer requests in a confidential and safe manner. Currently there are numerous programs using the prayer boxes as an extension of their spiritual support to those they serve.