Jesus the Small Group LeaderSample

Pray Selflessly

Jesus prayed for YOU! Isn’t that unbelievable? Here he is on the eve of his crucifixion, talking to God, and he lifts up all “those who will believe.” That’s the type of love and affection that Jesus feels for all of us. 

The question we want to ask today is this: if you were to listen or read back through your last handful of prayers, how much of what you talked to God about focused on other people?

This isn’t an accusation! Really, it’s more of a confession. So many of us are caught up in everything that we have going on that it’s just easier for us to pray for ourselves. It may not even be that we are asking God for a lot, but that we’re thanking him for all that he’s done for us. Which is great! There’s nothing wrong with praying for ourselves, and it’s an important part of our communication with God.

Yet, if we want to emulate the prayer life of Jesus, we have to realize that in what was arguably one of the most important moments of his life, he prayed for other people. He prayed for the people that believed in him. He prayed for the people that would one day believe in him.

One of the greatest ways you can serve and love others is by praying for them. An indicator of your love for those around you will be evidenced by your prayers for them. Imagine what the Christian community would look like if every time we told someone we were going to pray for them, we actually did. Imagine the encouragement fellow believers would get to experience, knowing that they had a body of believers talking to God on their behalf.

Your small group can experience that. And it can start with you. Let your group members know you’re praying for them, not just to check the box and to be a “good leader,” but because you care enough about them to talk to your Heavenly Father about what’s going on in their life.

You don’t have to wait. Start today. Who are you going to pray for?