What is a prayer partner and why are they valuable for our spiritual growth?
I hadn’t given the question much thought until recently.
My prayer partner is moving.
I’m sad.
My life suddenly looks very different and lonely without her.
I hadn’t realized we’d been walking around the lake and praying together for 18 years.
That’s a long time to share my heart, my confessions, and my hopes with someone outside of my family.
But the relationship has been of great value to me–and others–because we’ve prayed.
Here are five ways my prayer partner has been significant in my life.
Praying
Obviously.
We began because I was helping with the children’s choir and one of our singers couldn’t control her behavior.
I invited my new friend, the choir director, to join me on my weekly walk around a local lake. We could brainstorm how to handle the children and then finish with prayers.
We just continued, weekly, ever since.
Our relationship grew, of course, and we trusted each other from the start.
Through four seasons a year, in beautiful weather and frigid weather (well, it had to be above 30 degrees or I wouldn’t walk), we circled the lake and then prayed.
Over the last few years, we’d share a concern and then pray as we continued walking. We always ended sitting in the car to pray–usually for as long as half an hour or more.
We’ve also learned to pray hard prayers.
I don’t think I could have voiced some of those prayers without the agreement of my prayer partner.
Confession
Confessions is good for the soul and we made good use of it.
The Scriptures advise us to “Confess your sins one to another,” and it’s been helpful for me.
Telling someone else your failings “airs” them out. They’re not secrets anymore and therefore have no power.
It’s also been helpful to be told what I thought might be sin wasn’t really sin. Guilt stalks me. She often clarified if what I felt came from genuine repentance or from an over-sensitive people-pleasing nature.
I needed that counsel–especially if I found myself falling into complaining or gossiping.
I had to confess those sins way too often.
On the other hand, knowing I would have to confess the sin to her often helped me avoid it in the first place.
Advice
We have eleven children and nine grandchildren between us.
Not to mention two husbands.
While we were careful about how and what we discussed–see above– we also provided insight into relationship issues that stymied us.
I’m a better family member because of the wisdom my prayer partner shared with me.
Encouragement
Like it or not, the poor woman has had to listen to all my writing life stories
She heard every novella, novel or essay before I wrote it!
When I bewailed not knowing what I was going to say at the next talk, she’d laugh. “God probably hasn’t given you the example yet.”
She’s always right.
Love
My prayer partner never showed me anything but love.
She has my best interests and that of my family at heart.
Sure, we sometimes despaired of the situations we found ourselves in personally, but I knew she would assume the best.
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;
it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
1 Corinthians 4-8
Love never ends. hopes all things, endures all things
A common faith
My faith in the God I’ve known for a long time grew over the years.
My prayer partner is better trained as a Lutheran than I am, and occasionally “translated” teachings for me to be a better Bible study leader.
She knows theology forward and back. She can explain musical concepts in ways I can understand.
Her love of God makes her an excellent confidant and I’ve been blessed by her commitment to Jesus.
I’m going to really miss her.
Now what?
I’ll continue walking around the lake without her.
Maybe we’ll Facetime or call when she’s established in her new home–10 hours away.
I’ve been blessed over the years with good friends with whom I’m still in grateful contact.
And, of course, we’ll always be able to catch up in eternity.
God just has us in different places for the next season of our lives.
But I’m going to miss her.
Hold your spiritual kinfolk close–and make sure you always pray!
Tweetables
What’s a prayer partner? Click to Tweet
5 important roles of a prayer partner. Click to Tweet
My prayer’s always been solitary;
I am lone wolf born and bred,
but it’s also from necessity;
those who’d understand are dead.
Life cannot be duly set apart
into ordered rows and spaces,
and the days that broke the heart
figure in tomorrow’s graces.
Those gone would quickly comprehend
that I don’t need confession’s cup,
and they’d say, “Dude, don’t pretend,
’cause that was life got all (deleted) up.”
But today I walk and pray alone,
letting solitude my sins atone.
Well, I’ll bet you’ve had a lot of people praying for you over the years, Andrew, just not actually with you. (M raises hand). Blessings, as always.
Michelle, what a beautiful gift! Those who pray with and for us receive part of the credit for what God does through us. I’m glad you’ve had this dear friendship. She sounds awesome. Thank you for sharing.
She is and I have been blessed–and improved as a result.
The time we go through with a petition accomplice is sacrosanct in nature, where we can be open and straightforward with ourselves and them. … As such, a supplication accomplice is somebody who can know the profound truth about us in those occasions we may will in general go somewhat oblivious, overlooking reality with regards to ourselves.
I love that “petition accoomplice,” because it did feel like that sometimes.
You are correct, it enabled me to go to places I may not have wanted to say aloud but could–because there were three of us there.