How to Connect with God and Each Other

Did you know there is more prayer-power when two pray together than when one prays alone? That’s what Jesus promises in Matthew 18:19-20.  Here are His exact words: Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them. That’s TWO…like you two as a married couple!  You don’t have to go out hunting for a prayer partner; you have a built-in TWO right there in your own house.

Notice the first thing Jesus says about the two of you praying together.  You must be “agreed”… be in real harmony with one another… to tap into the power.  He promises that IF you are agreed, the Father will do what you ask.  We can’t explain how this works; we just know it does, because Jesus keeps His promises.  When the two of you pray together, He declares that your prayers will be POWERFUL. He also promises He will be right there with you and your mate in a special way.

What a promise! And what an encouragement! Jesus wants us to pray together.  He says, “Look what the Father and I will do for you if you pray together!”  Now, that’s motivation!  You want your prayers to be more powerful…right?  You want to know that Jesus is right there with you when you pray…right?

O.K. this is what you desire, but you might be thinking, “We’ve tried praying together, but she prays for everything!  When she’s done, all that’s left for me to pray is “Ditto!”

Or, “I fall asleep while he’s praying.  I’m a mom – I’m always tired.”

Or perhaps, “We don’t pray together. It’s too embarrassing to pray out loud in front of my wife.”

Good News!  There are simple ways to overcome these concerns and make praying together fulfilling AND exciting.  Keep reading and we will help you discover practical ways of praying together that are easy and comfortable…ways that will bring you closer together than ever before.

First of all, prayer is simply a conversation with God.  So if you and your mate are praying together, it is simply a three-way conversation – three friends talking together. When you’re talking with friends, you don’t hog the conversation, do you?  (Well, you shouldn’t.)  You talk back and forth, each person entering in, each listening to the other. That’s what Conversational Prayer is…a conversation with God.  And since you and your mate are in the Throne Room together, it is the two of you having a conversation with God.

Suppose you and your spouse are concerned about your son’s school grades. When you pray for him, one of you might start: “Lord, we are really concerned about Timmy. He’s having trouble keeping up with his math assignments and is falling behind.”  The other can chime in: “Father, he’s really anxious about his grades.  We’ve tried to help him with his home-work, but he’s just not getting it.”  Back to the first mate: “What can we do to help our son, Lord?  I never really ‘got’ math when I was in school, and I’m at a loss to help him.”  Second mate: “I think I understand his math homework, but I need a better way to help him understand it.  We need Your wisdom to know how to help him.”  First mate again: “Thank you, Lord, that we can count on Your help.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

See?  It’s a conversation.  But wait a minute…it’s a three-way conversation.  Don’t be afraid of some silence as you pray together. God wants to get a word in too.  He may bring a Scripture to mind, or a person He wants you to pray for. He may even reveal a new strategy to solve your son’s problem (or whatever problem is at hand). When you are praying, God has your attention and can speak to your heart and mind.  Remember what He said in Jeremiah 33:3, Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.

So there are three of you in the Throne Room.  This is an intimate time together.  There is a connection…a closeness.  You are in the arms of the Father, so it’s really all right to be in each other’s arms as well.  At least hold hands as you pray.  If you’re not used to praying together, it’s going to feel awkward at first.  But the rewards of closeness…of connection…of power in prayer…make it so worthwhile.  And we promise it will get easier.  Not only easier, but as natural…and necessary…as breathing.

To help you find that “easy spot,” here’s another practical suggestion that really works:  Pray Scripture together.  This is the easiest way to start a three-way conversation with God.  It’s easier to read a script than to make up what to say, isn’t it?  So let Scripture be your script.  And you know what?  God loves when you pray His Word back to Him.  Don’t you love it when your child spouts your words?  You know he’s actually embracing what you’ve told him.  Well, it warms the Father heart of God to hear you embracing what He’s told you in His Word.

Take a look at Philippians 4:6-7: Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

This Scripture means a lot to us right now.  Our sump-pump recently malfunctioned, creating a raw sewage back up in our house. We are still wrestling with all the repairs, as well as with our builder, luckily we found a roofing company which did a great job, you can see my review here. So we have been praying this Scripture something like this: Harold: “Dear Lord, help us not to be anxious about this mess and how we’re going to pay for it.”  Bette: “But instead, we are bringing the whole thing to You and trusting You for the solution.”  Harold: “But first of all, we want to thank you, Lord, for helping us discover the problem quickly.  It could have been so much worse than it was.” Bette: “We long for Your peace that transcends our understanding, because our understanding is so self-focused right now.”  Harold: “So guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus and help us not to worry and fret.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

We’ve simply been praying Philippians 4:6-7, applying it to our own situation, praying it conversationally phrase by phrase. Easy, huh?

We hope you will take the opportunity right now to start experiencing all the good stuff Jesus promises when you pray together. Colossians 1:9-12 is a good place to start. Paul begins by saying, For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God… And then he continues to express all the good things he’s been praying for the Colossian believers.  …to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. …that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.

We urge you to pray this prayer right now…for each other, for your children or perhaps for a friend. Pray it phrase by phrase, taking turns.  Think about each phrase as you read it out loud.  What a powerful prayer to pray over someone you love!  When you finish, you can know assuredly that you have been heard, that your requests were according to God’s will, that there was great power in your prayer and that Jesus Himself was with you in a special way, just like He promised.

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