We’ve all heard them at one time or another. Those three little words: ‘pray for me’.
How do we respond most of the time? We’ll say ‘I will’ and truly mean to do it. We’ll say a little cursory prayer and, too often, that’s it. What we don’t realize is what an honor it is for someone to ask us to pray for them.
We are like the apostles waiting in the garden while Jesus prayed. “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” (Matt 26:36) Perhaps Jesus meant them to pray with Him, to help Him face the horror that awaited. But Jesus found them asleep. “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour?” He trusted His apostles to watch and wait with Him prayer. But they didn’t see the trouble coming; they were asleep.
Too many times we are the sleeping apostles. We mean to pray, but we don’t pray with our entire being. When we are asked to pray for someone or a situation, we should count it as an honor and responsibility to pray with our whole heart, even when we don’t know the whole story.
We are the sons and daughters of the Living God. Can we not pray for those in need or will Jesus find us sleeping on the job?