Pray For Your Pastor

Your pastor carries a heavy burden. He has a deep concern for the people in his church and is conscious of the fact that he will answer to God for how well he has shepherd them.

In John 10, Jesus calls himself “The Door.” This is a powerful image of how Christ cares for us. The door or gate in some translations, is not just a gate that swings shut but a reference to how shepherds themselves would keep watch over the sheep at night. The shepherd would sleep in the doorway, preventing the sheep from wandering out and making it more difficult for 'thieves and robbers' to get in. Following the example of the Chief Shepherd, your pastor, like a vigilant shepherd, strives to be there at his post.

In the same passage, Jesus speaks of the 'hired hand' who runs away when wolves come. To many pastors, the old phrase 'hireling' is an insult. A hireling is nothing more than a hired hand, someone watching the sheep only for the paycheck. Your pastor, however, is not a hireling. He is committed to you. He will stay awake all night, and when he does sleep, he blocks the gate, ensuring your safety and well-being.

With this burden in mind, the best thing you can do to help your pastor is pray for him. Here are some tips on how to pray for your pastor.

Pray Regularly

Don't wait until your pastor tells you he needs prayer, pray for him regularly. Create a prayer plan that includes your pastor. Be sure your pastor is part of the normal prayers you pray with your family. Teach your children to pray for his children.

Specifically pray on Mondays, a day when pastors often face emotional difficulties. These are often related to the stress and pressures of Sunday’s ministry. Mondays are known to be the day that pastors resign. It is also a day that many pastors feel depressed.

However you choose to schedule your prayer routine, be sure your pastor is consistently a part of it. 

Here are some practical ideas

• Monday, pray for his rest.

• Tuesday, pray for him with your family.

• If your church has a prayer meeting, join in.

• Saturday, pray for the Sunday sermon.

• Sunday, pray a prayer of thankfulness for the effort he put forward.

Let Him Know You are Praying

Prayer is a powerful tool. James tells us that “the fervent prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” (James 5:16). This means that when we pray with passion, sincerity, and faith, our prayers can bring about significant change. While prayer is often private, knowing he's being fervently prayed for can greatly encourage your pastor. So, whether you drop him a note, send him a text, or shoot an email, let him know he is in your prayers regularly. Just be honest. Be in prayer for him before you tell him.

It's as easy as texting, "I prayed for you."

Pray for His Holiness

The enemy likes nothing more than to see pastors fall. I won't recount the names, but even in the past year, we have seen several well-known and well-respected pastors fall into sin. Pray that God would keep your pastor from sin. Pray, knowing that your pastor will fall alone but that Christ can help him stand. Pray that the Spirit empowers him to avoid temptation, anger, and jealousy. Pray for his holiness.

Pray for His Peace

Your pastor knows things about you and others in the church that add stress to his life. Is there someone sick? He's carrying that burden with them. Are there financial problems? He's walking with those people. Though he may maintain some distance from the issues of his congregation, his love for his people means he carries those burdens. They keep him up at night and wake him up in the morning.

Your pastor also carries the concerns about the church's organization, budget, building issues, and volunteer needs, not to mention his family and personal issues. Pray that your pastor has the peace of Christ in his life. Pray for him not to worry but to rest in God's sovereignty.

Pray for His People

When you pray for the church—your brothers and sisters—it benefits them. It benefits you. It also benefits your pastor. It lets him know he's not the only one watching the gate, so to speak. When you pray for your brothers and sisters, you lighten your pastor's load. He should not and cannot bear that burden alone. As a pastor, few things make me more joyful than knowing the people in the church care for each other.

Pray for His Family

Your pastor loves you. He sacrifices for you. He misses school events, comes home to cold dinners, and skips bedtime routines.  As much as he loves you, he should never love you more than his family. Sadly, many pastors care for their churches to the detriment of their families. Here are some ideas of how to pray for your pastor’s family.

• Pray for his wife to know she's his bride, not the church.

• Pray that his children know he is their father, not the church's.

• Pray that the congregation shows his family more love than they show him.

• Pray that the stresses of pastoring do not weigh on his family.

• Pray that the all-too-common complaints about a pastor do not get back to his family.

• Pray that his kids grow up loving the church.

• Pray that they grow up loving Christ more.

Your pastor carries a heavy burden. It's not easy preaching the Word every week, visiting hospitals, and moderating conflict. There is a lot you can do to help, but it all begins in prayer.

Michael Kostelnik is the pastor of The Grove Church in Painesville, Ohio.