Churches differ in the meetings and structures that they have, and so it is not easy to generalize. But let us assume that as a church we have a mid-week Bible study in the church hall and probably in the evening. This Bible study is predominantly lead by the Pastor or other gifted church members or leaders. This should paint a picture of the type of meeting that we are talking about. I will look at the more informal Bible study that might be held in a home later when I look at prayer in house groups.

You are already one step ahead when you come to the mid-week Bible study or prayer meeting as it is generally only the more committed who will be attending. Having said this… we do need to work at getting more of the church to attend these meeting.

So we are in a mid-week Bible study, mostly the more committed members in attendance – how to we get these people to pray, and to pray like their lives depended on it?

Let me say that we must not belittle or forget the value of those who only pray in silence, or with their minds and not their lips. Better to pray with your mind and not your lips than to pray with your lips and not your mind! Many people pray, fervently, faithfully and consistently who only pray in their heads.

Let me make a few notes about people who only pray silently.

1. Their prayers are just as valid, just as precious to the Lord, just as needed by the church and the lost.

2. It is however, hard for the rest of the group of people who you are praying with, to join in to agree with these unheard prayers.

3. People who until now have only prayed in silence – may find great reward in praying aloud. They may find:

   1. Relief from guilt, (not that praying silently, or not praying out-loud is necessarily sinful)

      They may feel guilty because:

      1. People have made them feel guilty by telling them they must pray out-loud

      2. They feel they are letting others down by not praying out-loud

      3. God has been telling them to and they have been resisting His prompting

         We must be careful how we counsel or comfort people. The last one of these requires very different handling to the others.

   2. Liberation

      A freedom from the fear that had held them from praying out-loud

   3. A greater power in their prayers

      A word spoken-out has a power behind it. It is a powerful thing to hear a passionately prayed prayer – even if it was you that was praying it! But it may have more power than you might think – a word spoken is powerful.

   4. Greater expression

   5. Easier to pray consistently without being distracted

      It is much harder to wonder in your thoughts while speaking out your prayers

So how are we going to help people to pray publicly and aloud who have never done so before, or who have very seldom done so, and how shall we strengthen those who have only done so trembling before men as it where. (Trembling before God is a great thing, being shy before men may not be so good).

There are a number of practical things we can do.

1. Pray for them

   1. Pray for them before hand perhaps as a leadership or just privatly

   2. Pray for them right there before them.

      This will have to be handled sensitively, but it can be very helpful to pray for people and maybe even to put a hand on their shoulder and ask God to free them to pray. Some people would hat this and feel even worse after, talk to people, listen to them and be sensitive to the Holy Spirit.

2. Lower expectations

   No I do not mean that we stop expecting God to answer our prayers – but that we let people feel comfortable to pray short simple prayers.

   If for some time you have had a few people at your meeting who are great prayers, (not that you get better and worse quality prayers), who are good at speaking – who pray long and lofty prayers, full of ye’s and thou’s, and who can pray for… well almost forever without loosing their train of thought or drying or getting all muddled. Then the rest of the group may be feeling somewhat inadicute.

   Let them know that a short simple prayer is valid and valuable. In fact you need to do more that let them know – you need to help them FEEL, BELIEVE that their prayer is needed and powerful.

   Passages like Matthew 6:7 come to mind ^“But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.”

3. Fuel for their prayers

   It might be helpful if people had a soarse of idea or topics for prayer. If there are a largish number of items that need prayer, it will help the more shy to choose a topic and then think up a prayer about it.

   Is that the wrong way to speak of praying, ‘think up a prayer’? Forgive me if if feels wrong to you that you ‘think up a prayer’, but most new or nurvus prayers do. The think of a subject – they plan what to say – they memorize exactly what they will say and then… someone else prays almost the same prayer and they feel they must start again. Yes, to pray again for the same this would have been great – but they feel it would be inadiqualt or look like they where copying.

   Give them lost of ideas and subjects to pray about. This can be done by using:

   1. Flip char and brainstorm ideas

      Ask the group for items for prayer and using a flip chat and pen and write them down as they are called out. You could do this for items for praise, thanksgiving, intersessions etc.

   2. Hand out prayer items

      This might take a bit more preparation beforehand. Items or subjects for prayer can be gathered together and then handed out these can include

      1. Missionary prayer letters

      2. Missionary newsletter

      3. Church family news

      4. Church outreach news

      5. local news

      6. national and world news

      Some of these could just be handed out and others could be put together into A4 notice sheets. If you made them topic rather than current news based they could even be laminated and used a few times. You could put it all on one sheet and give a copy to everyone in the group, but it would be better to have a few with referent subjects or you may find that one of your ‘good prayers’ will go right through the list and leave the rest struggling for originality.

   3. Data projector

      Much as the two above, but with the items on a screen, the items can again be divide into subjects and people asked to start with a time of adoration with themes and Bible verses suggested on the screen and then thanksgiving, intersession, etc.

4. Let people know that silence in a prayer meeting or a time of prayer – is not wrong or a failure!

   Many people find silence in a prayer meeting very uncomfortable.

   What happens in a typical prayer meeting silence? (I may be exaggerating – but only a bit)

   1. Those who are comfortable praying, have been praying for some time and have suddenly realised that they need to give the shy prayer an opportunity to get a word in.

      Those who are comfortable praying spend most of the silence thinking, “come on – someone pray! May be I should pray again, well not yet. Come on pray”

   2. Those who are shy about praying spend there time in this silence

      1. Thinking of a subject that has not been prayed about too much

      2. Trying to think of something original to say about it

      3. Memorizing a whole prayer from ‘Dear LORD’ to ‘Amen’

      4. Practising it in their head to see if they really can get all the way through without having to extemporise.

      5. Plucking up the currage to pray

      When they are ready, they then have to judge if anyone else is about to pray – couldn’t pray when someone else way about to.

      Then just as they are ready to pray – one of the confident prayers just has to pray – they can contain themselves no longer. During their prayer they wander through a number so subject and leave the shy prayer thinking – “I can’t pray on that now!”

   So what can we do about this?

1. 1. 1. Helping the shy to pray, to feel comfortable praying for subjects that have already been prayer for and to pray short unprepared prayers, with help.

      2. Teach people to be comfortable with silence and to not feel that silence is wrong or a failure of prayer.

      3. Help people have some ideas what to do during a silence

         1. Listen to God (HOW!!!)

            • Read some Bible

            • Actually try listening

              Just listening or Ask and listen (ask God things and wait for an answer)

            • List in your head your friends, neighbours, work collogues, church events etc. to see it God gives you a prayer to share or pray in your head

         2. Meditate on Scripture