When the Church Prays

Maybe you’ve heard the adage “the family that prays together, stays together.”

But did you know there’s actual data to support that? Researchers found that when a family takes time to pray every day, their family relationships tend to be stronger.

I think it’s good to pray with your family and to pray over meals. It’s good to stop and have a word of prayer together and to encourage all your family members to do so.

There’s also power in corporate prayer when we unite as the church. Yes, it’s good to pray by yourself, but it’s even better to pray with someone else. Jesus said, “If two of you agree here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you.” (Matthew 18:19 NLT).

It matters when we pray together for something. In the Book of Acts, we find the story of Peter, whom King Herod arrested for preaching the gospel. Verse 5 of chapter 12 tells us, “But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him” (NLT).

We see from this verse that they prayed together (“the church prayed”), and they prayed persistently (“prayed very earnestly”). And the next thing we know: Peter was free.

The chapter opens rather ominously. We read that Herod is in power, and Peter is in prison. But by the time the chapter closes, we see that Herod is dead and Peter is out of prison.

That’s the difference prayer can make. It’s great when you can come to church and say, “I’ve got a burden today, and I’d really appreciate it if you would take a moment to pray for me.”

The church should be a loving place for hurting people, a safe place for sad people, and a place for unsaved people to be saved.