Six Ways to Pray for Your Pastor

I want everyone that reads this blog to know that pastors are human beings with real struggles in life. In other words, pastors need your prayers. Yes, they have been saved by grace through faith, but so have you. Christians that have placed their faith in Christ are perfect before God right now. Sure we still struggle with sin. Sure we still fall everyday. Yes, pastors do too. Our salvation is never and will never be determined by how good or bad a Christian we are. Our salvation is determined by our faith in Jesus Christ. His perfect life, his sacrificial death for our sins, and his glorious resurrection are what makes us perfect before God through our faith. 

Nevertheless, our faith drives us to become more and more like Christ each day. We are called by God to live holy lives, and the more we walk with God the more we see how messed up we are. Pastors are no different. However, pastors are called to a higher standard according to the qualifications outlined in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. 

With this in your mind, I want to plead with you to pray for your pastor every day. Your pastor is just like you. He is saved by grace. He struggles in this life with the battle between the spirit and the flesh. He desires to be a faithful servant for the job God has called him to do. He is held to a higher and sometimes nearly suffocating standard. He is criticized by not only people outside the church, but sometimes from sheep within the church. And, guess what? This information should drive you to your knees to pray for your pastor every single day. 

Six ways to pray for your pastor:

• Pray for his spiritual walk. You should be praying that your pastor is opening up God's Word and spending time with God in prayer. Pastors are some of the busiest people I know. They are constantly on the phone, planing, preparing sermons, visiting members, visiting others, and trying to spend time with their families. Pray that your pastor makes time for God, and that God would reveal himself to your pastor through his Holy Word. Pray that he remains faithful to the calling God has placed on his life. Pray that he may stay holy during his ministry. Pray that God would protect him from the onslaught of attacks that come from the enemy. Pray for spiritual strength. Pray the whole armor of God over him (Eph 6:10-20). 
• Pray for his sermon. When is the last time your prayed for your pastor's sermon preparation and delivery? Sermon preparation and delivery is not an easy task. Pastors are critiqued for their sermon delivery, for their interpretation of a text, and for anything else you can think of. God has gifted every pastor differently, but one thing remains essential for any sermon: Divine Unction. That's the power of the Holy Spirit throughout the sermon preparation time and delivery. Charles H. Spurgeon said, "Except the Lord endow us with power from on high, our labor must be in vain, and our hopes must end in disappointment." Your pastor's words have no power without the Holy Spirit. Pray for his sermon each day and on Sunday (1 Cor 2:1-5). 
• Pray for his hurt. Pastors get hurt pretty easily. They are called to a "noble task" says Paul in 1 Timothy 3. Pastors want to be faithful to their calling. They want to serve people well. They want to make disciples. However, sometimes the people that God has called them to serve bite (Num 14:1-12). Pastors get hurt by the criticisms, the grumbling, and the straight-up meanness of some people from within the church. Pray for your pastor as he walks in the ways of the Lord in dealing with people in the church. Pray that your pastor would display Christ-likeness and the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23) even when he is hurt by people inside and outside the church. 
• Pray for his healing. This prayer coincides with the last bullet. Pray that your pastor will heal from his hurt in dealing with difficult people and critiques. If a pastor begins to focus on the hurt, he might take his eyes off of depending on God during his life and ministry. It's stressful, both physically and mentally, to be a pastor sometimes. Pray that God will continue to heal your pastor in times of adversity and difficulty. Pray for him to heal and remain content in his calling to the Lord and the people the Lord has allowed him to serve (Phil 4:10-13). 
• Pray for his leadership. Your pastor has been called by God to spiritually lead your congregation. Leading is never easy. Pray that your pastor would be given wisdom and discernment on how to lead the congregation for the glory of God. Pray that the Holy Spirit would get everyone on the right track to make the gospel central to everything that the church says and does. Pray for him as he navigates sometimes turbulent waters. He needs your prayers as your leader, and to be your leader (1 Tim 2:1-4). Also, pray for the congregation to submit to his leadership. 
• Pray for his health. Pastors need your prayer for their emotional and physical health. Being a pastor brings burdens, anxieties, and doubts. It's an emotionally draining calling. Your pastor wants to do well for the glory of God. He wants to be a good pastor, and sometimes these thoughts will bring certain emotional responses to his mind. For example, "Has God really called me to this because I am dealing with some hard situations?" "God am I doing the right things as a leader in order to reach more people with the gospel?" A personal doubt I have, "Am I preaching your word correctly because sometimes no one responds?" You need to pray for his emotional health, but you also need to pray for his physical health. Stresses cause pastors to struggle physically. They may not be sleeping much at night or they might not have time to exercise with the multitude of tasks to complete each week. They may have physical ailments going on that you may or may not know about. Pray for your pastor's emotional and physical health in your prayer time (Jas 5:13-14). 

I believe that we should be taking our pastor to the throne of grace each and every day (Heb 4:16). They are God's servants. They are human. They have struggles just like you do. They are held to a much higher standard. As our spiritual leaders, they need us as the congregation to be praying over them without ceasing (1 Thess 5:17). Are you praying for your pastor? If not, it's time to start.