Praying in Community

Moving ahead through Daniel and his friend’s first big encounter with Babylon, King Neb had decided that these four young men were “ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom.” So, they entered the king’s service.

From here, we will be exploring the story of Daniel 2 and how Daniel petitioned and praised God together with his friends in prayer for God to give them wisdom, insight, and understanding of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream.

When you need answers, when things are not going as you thought, when the culture of the world overtakes you, what is our response.. prayer!

The first thing to notice in the story of Daniel is that he knew that he needed help, in this moment he needed the community to pray.

“Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. He urged them to plead for mercy…”
- Daniel 2:17-18

The church prayed for Peter while he was in prison (Acts 12:5). Paul asked the Roman believers to “strive together in prayer” for him (Romans 15:30).

Contrary to much belief, prayer is primarily not an individualistic moment. Many of the most well-known prayer passages in scripture speak to whole communities, not just individuals. When we read “you” in these prayer passages, they are plural, not singular, including the below “armour of God” passage.

“Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm… praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel…”
- Ephesians 6:13, 18-19

When we (like Daniel) see God’s mercy regarding a situation, we should do what Daniel did. Bring our closest friends in on it with us. That is the great thing about church and connect groups, we need friends who understand the problem as Daniel’s friends did (which means being honest) and those who will stand in prayer with us for God’s mercy to be revealed, whatever that may look like.

Prayer for today

Lord, I thank you for the community of believers you have placed me in, and the friends that I can depend on to help me pray. I thank you that you would help me to lean on my friends, in time of need and to also be a friend that stands with others in prayer when they need it. That’s the body of Christ working together!