Tired of Praying Alone? 5 Reasons You Should Have a Prayer Partner

Finding prayer partners doesn’t have to be a struggle. In fact, it can be a great way to deepen your prayer life.

Have you ever wondered what the benefits are of having a prayer partner?  Today I want to talk about prayer partners: how to find them, what to do with them, and why they are so beneficial to your faith and your spiritual growth.

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In the Bible in Matthew 18:19-20, Jesus talks about how when two or three people are gathered together in his name, when they ask for something he will be right there with them and they can have what they ask for. This is exactly what you want to keep in mind as we are talking about prayer partners today. 

Getting Started Looking for Prayer Partners

There are so many ways to find a prayer partner, you just have to open your mind, open your eyes, and look around to see who it is that God might want you to partner up with to pray. Now, this doesn’t have to be like a mentor or somebody who’s further along in their faith.

I actually have found that partnering up with somebody new to their faith is really great for me because it forces me to be more consistent and build my confidence as I am walking along with somebody who’s slightly newer to their faith. Be open-minded about who might be your prayer partner.

You might be in communities already that have that group built in. If you’re in a small group, community group, a life group, or whatever your church calls it those are built-in communities and great places to start looking for prayer partners. 

The other thing that you want to do is be clear about when you’re going to meet, how you’re going to meet, and what are you going to pray about. How are you going to pray? Are you going to get together in person?

Will you pick a time when everybody’s praying at the same time? Are you going to pray for whatever requests pop up? I have seen groups, especially when I was a young mama, where moms committed to getting together once a month to storm heaven with requests for all of the children in the group.

The sky is the limit when it comes to organizing your prayer partners and figuring out how you are going to do things. Be creative with things like technology if you can’t meet in person. 

Benefit #1 of Prayer Partners: Accountability

Now that we’ve got those beginning pieces out of the way, let’s discuss the benefits of prayer partners because I know that sometimes it can seem like just one more thing to do. Especially if you are a highly sensitive introvert like myself and groups and other people can really be challenging and often draining.

There are so many benefits to having a prayer partner or a couple of prayer partners that I really wanted to explore today. 

The first benefit of having a prayer partner is accountability. You are committing to somebody else that you’re going to show up and pray. You might slack off and flake on yourself, but if somebody else is expecting you to do something, you are so much more likely to actually show up and stick to that thing. 

Benefit #2 of Prayer Partners: Building Relationships

You’re also building relationships. The Bible is clear that we’re not supposed to be lone rangers or lone wolves and exist in a vacuum of just ourselves. Even as an introvert, I know this. One way that you can be in fellowship and build community is by having a prayer partner or two.

You don’t have to have a large group of 10, 15, 20, or 50 people because that can be really overwhelming. You can start with one person or two or three people, and you can build a relationship with those people that you have committed to pray with and pray for.

It’s a great way to share your heart, share your struggles, and go deep with a few people instead of trying to connect with a large number of people. 

Benefit #3 of Prayer Partners: Wise Counsel

Wise council is so important and one of the biggest benefits of having other people to pray with. Receiving discernment and wisdom from people who are outside of your current circumstance and situation is helpful when you get so caught up in the painful struggles in your life and don’t see things clearly. 

Being able to go to your prayer group and say, “Hey, I’m really wrestling with this. I’m praying through this. What do you guys think?” allows them to speak the truth to you. They can tell you when something doesn’t seem like the right thing to do. Or help you to consider things you may not have thought about on your own.

Having those people built in who love you and whom you can trust to offer wise counsel is great. It’s also a way to ask questions. You don’t know everything. Maybe you’re struggling with some theological question or some concept or even something really super practical. Your prayer partners can be a great place to go to work those things out and think through all the different things that go around that. 

Benefit #4: More Confidence

The fourth benefit is that you’re going to build your confidence when it comes to prayer. The more that you do something, the more confident that you are going to feel doing that thing. Being able to pray with other people consistently is going to build your confidence when it comes to prayer because you’re going to be praying a lot.

You’re going to be able to pray for many different things, and you’re going to be able to see different styles of how people pray. You just learn so much just by being in that small community. 

Benefit #5 of Prayer Partners: Prayers for Yourself

The last benefit that I want to share today is having somebody to pray over you. I cannot tell you how many times my little prayer group has just been a blessing to me. When I’m struggling and going through hard things I’m so tired and exhausted.

So deep in the pit that I can’t even pray for myself, it is a wonderful thing to have somebody else who will pray for you. Along with that is having somebody who can spot your blind spots. People who are doing life with you every day for long periods of time. They know you.

They know kind of what your tendencies are and they’re able to see things sometimes that you might not see yourself. They can tell you, “This sounds like that same thing that we were praying about about three months ago. And being able to have somebody who can spot those things and point them out to you is so beneficial because it gives you a chance to grow and go through that sanctification and holiness process that isn’t always fun, but it’s still good for you. 

How to Keep Track of Prayer Requests

When I committed to be more consistent in covering my friends and family in prayer, I went looking for ways to stay organized. I have found two ways to never forget a prayer request again.

Method #1: Index Cards

I actually got this idea from my friend Candace at His Mercy is New. For prayer requests from close friends and family, I use index cards to keep track of requests. I keep one request per card. On the card I write down the name(s) of the person(s) I’m praying for, the request and the date of the request, and then I usually write out a prayer. I also write out a verse that God brings to mind while I’m praying over this need.

When it’s time for prayer I simply pull out my cards and start praying my way through them. I keep the cards in a little box or on a keyring so I can keep them together or take them with me in my purse. My favorite thing is being able to write down the answers to the prayers!

Method #2: Prayer Request Sheet

One other way I keep track of prayer requests is simply with a sheet of paper or a prayer journal. I use these for requests that I get in my online prayer community, emails, or church/Bible study. I just make a list of all the requests and I pray over them during the following week. 

Other Helpful Resources:

• The Complete Guide to Breath Prayers
• Prayer Journaling for Beginners
• How to Pray Scripture

Some are some of the benefits of having prayer partners.