The whole church must pray!
A lie has wormed its way into the church with extremely harmful effects on the work of God's kingdom. This lie is the perception that the task of prayer resides with a small group of indivi duals or intercessors. This is not a biblical concept. It is the responsibility of all believers to pray. The whole body of Christ is the house of prayer of which Jesus spoke in Mt.21:13. Prayer is not only for those who have a gift of prayer. Yes, some people do spend long hours in prayer every day. Yet, the task of intercession is the responsibility of all Christians. Few people have difficulty praying for their own needs. Why then is it so difficult when we have to pray for others, our communities, our country and the nations? Why then do we want to shift this responsibility onto others?
To a large extent the problem is a result of what people have been taught on this issue over the past years. Yet, it is also true that intercessors have taken so much responsibility upon themselves and to such a degree, that others are thinking: it is enough if the 'intercessors' are praying, my prayers are not really needed. Still, the Bible tells us something different. Paul repeatedly called upon believers to pray. In the book of Acts we read how believers gathered daily at their homes to pray.
This issue needs serious attention in the church, without burdening people with feelings of guilt. People need to be taught to pray, to be encouraged to pray and also to experience the privilege of prayer. Let us encourage each other to start with 5 or 10 minutes and allow the other to grow until they can spend longer periods in prayer.
Sidney Ponton