Appreciating our Pastors & Ministers through Prayer
“His Word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot” (Jeremiah 20:9).
I am compelled by the Holy Spirit to share with you what God ignited in my heart one morning! I was prayerfully reading the Word of God from 1 Thessalonians 5 and suddenly, it was as if my heart was set on fire and the all- consuming Holy Spirit began speaking to me directly from the very scriptures Paul spoke to the Thessalonian church!
God Speaks Out on behalf of Leaders, Pastors, and Ministers
“Dear brothers and sisters (Mary Ann), honor those who are your leaders (pastors, ministers, those who stand before our Lord and Savior in our behalf) in the Lord’s work. They work hard among you (Mary Ann) and give you spiritual guidance. Show them great respect and wholehearted love because of their work” (1 Thessalonians 5:12-13a TLB).
“Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. Do not stifle the Holy Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 16-17, 19 TLB).
A Passionate and Urgent Command to the Church
Beloved, I would be stifling the Holy Spirit if I did not share this command that is addressing all of us to pray, pray, never stop praying for our leaders (pastors, ministers, those who stand before our Lord and Savior in our behalf)!
I believe there is no doubt these spoken words from Paul were passionate and breathed forth with an urgent call from the heart of our Father God to all of us, the church!
Prayer Before Ministry
God’s spoken Word from the book of Acts declares that there must be prayer before ministry. Church, we must not stifle the Holy Spirit! We must cry down the Heavens for our leaders, pastors and ministers by praying for them and praying the Word of God for them. Truthfully, the firm foundation on which the Church stands today is through prayer, through that communication with God.
Voices from Leaders, Pastors, and Minsters
I went forward with steps that the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart and contacted a few pastors in the city and asked them if they would share with you the importance of heeding the Truth to pray for our leaders, pastors and ministers as they serve us all.
Pastor Joe Sanders, from The Sanctuary Fellowship, will speak about who should be praying for our pastors. Second, Pastor Rickie Bradshaw, from First Southwest Baptist Church, will talk about what it is we ought to pray. We will then have the opportunity to hear from Pastor Roger Patterson, a pastor at West University Baptist Church, about why we should pray for our pastors. Finally, Pastor Lee Hsia, a pastor at Houston’s First Baptist Church Downtown, will answer how do we pray for our pastors.
These are questions that you may have had as a lay person in the church. It is essential that we, the bride of Christ, adhere to those truths that Paul shared with the Thessalonians. God is speaking this today to each one of us, that we are to pray for our pastors, highly esteem them, and show our appreciation for their hard work. As they serve us, we should serve them through prayer.
Stay tuned in these next few podcasts that come from the very heart of our leaders, pastors and our ministers in the city. Praying for our leaders, our pastors, and our ministers should be an ongoing fulfillment of God’s command. We are to continually pray for them by taking the sword of the Spirit and supporting them from the Truth of God’s Word.
Join me as we share our appreciation throughout all seasons for our pastors and our ministers and praying by faith the heart of God from His Scripture!
Believing and praying with you for leaders, pastors, and ministers,
Mary Ann