Lord, Teach Us to Pray: Easy Ideas to Help You

Written by John Franklin

This is second in a two-part series from a previously published article Lord, Teach Us to Pray. Create an Environment for Prayer is the first part of this series.

 Now, that you are convinced you need to make a prayer a more vital part of your Sunday School, what you need are some great, practical ways to make it happen. Here are some suggestions to help you:

Pray at Specific Times
Suggest that specific times for prayer occur during the Bible study session. When teachers schedule prayer time in the Bible study group, they model prayer, allow members to "catch it'', and create the opportunity to practice praying. Usually it is best to pray at the end of class because doing so ensures that the lesson is taught and that members hear the Word of God first. Allow approximately five to 10 minutes for prayer.

Appoint a Prayer Leader
When taking prayer requests, guard against people's tendency to talk or share too much. Appoint a class prayer leader to whom all requests can be sent as needs arise. This helps guide requests and the prayer leader or teacher can generate a list for members' use during the week.

Vary the format for prayer
One month teachers may ask members to pray in small groups; the next month, as a large group, the next month, for the person on their right or left. Remind leaders that there are different ways to pray - on their knees, standing, using conversational prayer or Scripture. Variety promotes renewal and guards against staleness.

Pray with a Specific Emphasis
A specific focus through repetition helps members recognize God's answers and remember their requests. Also, this type of focused prayer helps create a sense of mission. You can accomplish this in at least two ways:

• Choose a different focus each month -  staff, missions, the lost, or another specific ministry.
• Choose an ongoing, comprehensive approach. For example, the FAITH Sunday School Evangelism Strategy®, a LifeWay ministry, mobilizes and encourages praying for the lost in Sunday School classes and provides an excellent platform toward that end.

Pray in Settings Beyond Sunday Morning
Since Sunday School is not an extended prayer meeting, much of the discipling must occur outside the Sunday morning session. In relationship to prayer, such discipling beyond Sunday morning can occur in the following ways:

1. Pray in your Sunday School Planning Team meetings and in the general periods of weekly leadership meetings.
   
2. Make prayer an integral part of worship services. Involve all ages (including children) in prayer, to demonstrate that all can approach God in prayer.
   
3. Vary the times and ways in which prayer is used keeps the worship service vibrant and facilitates God's moving in unexpected ways among His people.
   
4. Establish an intercessory prayer room. Encourage members to sign up for a time period at least once a month. Consider providing a notebook in which answered prayers are indicated. Sometimes such a notebook lists staff members, specific needs, and other opportunities for which to pray.
   
5. Ask Sunday School class ministry leaders/teams who are responsible for prayer to generate a different prayer focus each month and then pray for specific requests relating to that during the week. For example, one week's focus could be for each other's families; another, for specific lost people; and another, for your church body.
   
6. Create class prayer chains for impromptu prayer requests or to have members focus on praying for each other.
   
7. Suggest e-mail prayer lists, which can be used during the week.
   
8. Organize prayer for special events. For example, if your church has a revival coming up, ask members to sign up to pray in home prayer groups before the event.

How you encourage leaders and members to pray is limited only by your imagination. But, use all available means, both inside and outside Sunday School classes and departments, to help your members understand and practice prayer.

John Franklin lives in Nashville, Tennessee, and is a former Prayer Specialist for LifeWay Christian Resources. Franklin travels and speaks extensively calling churches to seek God's face in prayer. You may contact John Franklin by email or learn more about John at www.johnfranklinministries.org.

He is the author of And the Place Was Shaken: How to Lead a Powerful Prayer Meeting, A House of Prayer: Prayer Ministries in Your Church, By Faith: Living in the Certainty of God's Realityand co-author of Spiritual Warfare: Biblical Truth for Victory. 

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