Praying for our Spouse or a friend…Praying the Word.

I was emailing a gal tonight who’s been struggling in her marriage. Her husband had fallen away from the Lord due to hurts and disillusionment caused by others. He’s allowed bitterness and resentment to rob him of his walk with the Lord and turn him into an angry, hurting man.

She’s been hurting too…knowing that the man she married is still in there somewhere, but not sure how to help him, or help to break him free of the pain he’s locked in. Here’s one suggestion I gave her, that might help you in a situation you find yourself in right now.

Pray the Word.

Pray the Word, you say? How? Why? What good will that do? I already pray every day for him, and I’m not seeing a lot of change.

But you see, the Word is powerful and cuts like a two edged sword…it discerns the heart and mind of a man and it brings light and truth anywhere it’s used. We don’t understand how it works, or why, but Christians through the ages have proven time and again, that using the Word in prayer, is one of the most powerful way to pray.

Find 5-10 scriptures that resound in your spirit…ones that you KNOW are for the person you’re praying for. Write them down, individually, on 3×5 cards, then pray each one of them, every day, for that person. Here’s an example of what I prayed for my husband: Ephesians 1:17-20. This is fairly long, so bear with me…but I think you’ll see what I mean.

Lord, I’m lifting up Allen before you. I pray that you will give him spiritual wisdom and understanding, in Christ Jesus, so that he might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that his heart will be flooded with light so that he can understand the wonderful future that he has, to those that you have calle. Help him to realize what a rich and glorious inheritance he has been given. Lord, I pray that he will beging to understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for any of us who believe Him…This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realm.