How do you pray for other people?

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How do you pray for other people?

Post by IceMobster »

So, let's say somebody asked you to pray for them irl or here on the forum. How do you do it exactly?
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by Kurieuo »

What do you mean? Like someone just walks up to you and says pray for me? Why? About what? Give a situation.
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by Hortator »

When somebody says "pray for me", they are typically going through great trials. If something is the matter with one of your friends Ice, we have a Prayer Request forum, just saying y>:D<
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by IceMobster »

Kurieuo wrote:What do you mean? Like someone just walks up to you and says pray for me? Why? About what? Give a situation.
No, imagine (s)he is a long life friend or a close relative or even someone on this forum. (S)he asks for prayers concerning anything.
So, how do you do such a prayer? Do you think of that person when you recite Our Father? Do you talk to God like, hey God (s)he is going through a lot could you, like, assist? How do you do it?

I ask because I'm usually like: "Sup God, it would be good if you could save/help/take care of this guy, and that guy, and that woman, and my mother, and x, and x, and x" :mrgreen: and then like: "If you don't want to, don't do it. Or do it. Idk. I don't even know why you should help/save/whatever them. None of us deserve it in the first place..."
So yeah idk.... Sometimes I do remember (meaning remember it and say it in my mind, you know... that's how thoughts work,uh?) the 2nd part and sometimes I don't... I really rarely pray for other people as I see it, idk, utterly dumb. Nonsense.
Why should He accept/listen to my prayers? What of the people who don't get prayers?.......
Either way, my prayer usually consists of just talking to God. No set prayers or recitation or that kind of thing. Not even a sign of the cross. Nothing. I can do it in the middle of the bus or in the middle of the night in the bed...
Donno, I set a lot of questions since I am kinda interested in your opinion on the matter and how you do it...

Oh, and, God bless! No, wait. Could you not do it (or live on) without God's blessing? What allows you to say God bless? Why should God bless you? (Yes, I am that meticulous(hmmm, hope that's the word). :mrgreen: )
Hortator wrote:When somebody says "pray for me", they are typically going through great trials. If something is the matter with one of your friends Ice, we have a Prayer Request forum, just saying y>:D<
But, ummmmmm... prayers don't work... :?
No, not because of the "your-average-atheist-leaving-faith-because-god-didn't-answer-my-prayer" scenario, but because I don't see sense in it (but I already made a topic about that... :mrgreen: ).
What friends? What?
Oh, Hortator, you get a hug anyway. y>:D<
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me.

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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by Kurieuo »

There are so many ways to answer, but I work best to just let my mind talk right?

I pray for others in my own personal prayers alone, dislike praying in front of others unless they're my children. In part, because I don't feel I can be me in front of others and prayers I feel are quite personal. Prayers are kind of like approaching God via a revolving door. When you go through, it's only you, just between you and God. How you talk to God and/or He responds in that moment, whatever you're feeling, it's firstly a private exchange.

Secondly, God wants us to come as we are and be real with Him. How do I know this? Well it should be obvious God would want the real you, straight up, rather than some pretension. And as Christian, Jesus doesn't ask us to change before coming to Him, but to come to Him with our warts and all so He can wash us clean and heal us. Any prayer to God, only reaches God through Christ, because it is in and through that we gain access to God. Our true thoughts and feelings should never be restrained. There's nothing wrong with talking in your own personal way to God, frustrations and all.

Thirdly, and it's one I might not always feel that I have, especially if I'm annoyed at God. It is reverence for God as Lord God. Picture yourself before the one who has awesome power, more so than any earthly king. Have you watched The Hobbit? Recall the dragon and Bilbo running and hiding? That's representative of Satan, but consider that God if you're on His "bad side" (not that God has good and bad sides) would be infinitely more awesomely terrifying.

Now, there might be a conflict between #2 and #3. For example, if I'm pissed off, then I'll be angry at God. So much for revering God right? But no, I do nonetheless revere Him because I submit myself to God as God. I know my true place and that God is sovereign, God knows my heart. It's all good, and thankfully I'm covered by Christ so can just be myself without all the pomp and religiosity. And I find, the times God actually might answer prayers is when I am truly moved, get angry or annoyed... but also really think through what I'm asking which requires thinking through what God's will might be (read my final paragraph below).

To respond to your "if you don't want to do it, don't", I think the sentiments of such are correct. We've all heard the ending to prayers, "in Jesus name." We pray in and through Jesus, and it'll be all according to His will and as such God's will. Now here is an example of one significant prayer in my life. I prayed for God to reveal Himself to me, show me so that I had good reason and not just Christian experience that He exists. And what I got was JWs rocking up to my door a few months on. They lit a fire under me and challenged my beliefs, which sparked lots of reading, a strong passion for reading this book and that book and before long I had so many reasons I was previously unaware to. God does things His way, sees the bigger picture. I asked for a fish, and he gave me a fish and more. Did God answer my prayer? Yes, but it wasn't in the way I'd hoped which was an immediate revealing of Himself.

As for praying for God to help others, evidently such will always be conditioned by God's will. If we are wise, then we should be more in line with God's will, such that we might even be able to feel it and know. CS Lewis wrote:
  • "Pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world."
Be wise to this when praying for God to help others. God's concern isn't primarily about giving us the maximum happiness and comfort in this life, but rather about matters eternal. Whether that's drawing someone towards Himself, or allowing hardships and the like to refine and mature us, shape our character and produce stronger children of God. So then, if you truly understand God's will, then understand CS Lewis' important point that the pain and suffering is also a tool God uses. Not all pain and suffering is this way, but you know, if we're not open to God, not listening, doing our own thing, then if we keep getting frustrated in life it'd to good to pause and consider whether God is trying to tell us something.

If you want your prayer to be legitimate, rather than wishy-washy because you don't know what God's will might be on the matter, well spend some time thinking about what might be God's intention if He didn't answer your prayer of helping someone else, and what the reasons might be for God to help them. Then, you don't just ask God to help that person, because you can have a discussion with God about all the reasons you've gone over, however then passionately declare what you would desire God to do within each situation. That shows more thoughtfulness, and often we understand the answers without needing an answer. And it shows a lot more earnest with your prayer than simply throwing up a "I pray for John and Mary" (whatever one means by that).
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by Nicki »

Fantastic post, K. My tendency is to think of pain as something God never really wants for us - there will be no more pain in eternity, after all, but that means it's always temporary in one way or another whereas its benefits can be eternal.
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by IceMobster »

Kurieuo wrote:Any prayer to God, only reaches God through Christ, because it is in and through that we gain access to God. Our true thoughts and feelings should never be restrained.

To respond to your "if you don't want to do it, don't", I think the sentiments of such are correct. We've all heard the ending to prayers, "in Jesus name." We pray in and through Jesus, and it'll be all according to His will and as such God's will.
Yeah, I see no problem with pain and suffering even though certain cases of physiological evil (if you would split evil into moral evil and physiological evil) really make me wonder. Not of the existence of God, but why that person and why in that way...

Anyway, concerning what you said in the quote above, do you think my prayers are not prayers because I do not believe in JC?
Also, based on what do you claim: "Any prayer to God, only reaches God through Christ, because it is in and through that we gain access to God."?
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me.

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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by Kurieuo »

IceMobster wrote:
Kurieuo wrote:Any prayer to God, only reaches God through Christ, because it is in and through that we gain access to God. Our true thoughts and feelings should never be restrained.

To respond to your "if you don't want to do it, don't", I think the sentiments of such are correct. We've all heard the ending to prayers, "in Jesus name." We pray in and through Jesus, and it'll be all according to His will and as such God's will.
Yeah, I see no problem with pain and suffering even though certain cases of physiological evil (if you would split evil into moral evil and physiological evil) really make me wonder. Not of the existence of God, but why that person and why in that way...

Anyway, concerning what you said in the quote above, do you think my prayers are not prayers because I do not believe in JC?
Also, based on what do you claim: "Any prayer to God, only reaches God through Christ, because it is in and through that we gain access to God."?
Good question, it is something I've come to assume without thinking through because it sounded theologically correct. The answers are complicated, so let me try to unpack my thoughts little here.

Firstly, God is God and that means he knows all. God hears everything each of us say, even knows it before we speak it. It follows then that God knows about all prayers and their content, but what then? Does God actually "hear" them, like do they actually register with God or are they perhaps ignored?

To help answer these questions, visualise this almighty God on a heavenly white throne as big as the universe itself who is just emanating rays of brightness. Now picture everyone in the world, the billions and billions of people who exist before him, some are further away from God, some are closer, and some even appear immediately in God's presence before His throne.

Now let's answer a question. Where do we think we are in relation to God when we are praying? Like, are we before God's presence, or are we someone far away from God? Perhaps we're amongst a crowd of other people just adding noise to some routine prayer. Where are those who don't approach through Christ located? Where are you? Sometimes if I'm honest, I feel despite having Christ that I'm in a far away crowd in my prayer, other times I feel in God's presence. If I reflect upon why I feel far away, it's either because I have other things on my mind, I'm busy and rushing a prayer, or not really placing much focus or importance upon the words of what I'm saying. I'm dispassionate. That's fine I think, we can't all the time be 100% focussed and passionate, we're emotional beings with ups and downs, and there are just so many factors that prevent us from just being still. But then, there are those prayers where I really do feel like I'm before God.

In any case, those without Christ I see as being further away in some crowd of people making noise. God knows of them and the like, but then they're also a part of the noise and not really before Him, right?

Let me change tunes now. What was the purpose of the priests presenting offerings and the like on behalf of the people of Israel? Could the people not do it themselves directly to God? Why or why not, what was the logic or theology behind it all? Wouldn't God have known about offerings that weren't offered through the priestly order of the Levites? Well, God might have known about them, but the offering would have been kind of empty, non-acceptable.

Similarly, when we approach God alone in prayer, I'd say we're unacceptable. None of us are of an acceptable standard to God. Therefore our prayers while offered up and heard, are like empty and hollow in the same way. Since we're unclean, then to truly approach God and make our prayers have impact and substance, well we need the help of someone else who can either present us as clean, or who is clean and can mediate on our behalf. That's where the priestly order came in with Israel past, that's where Christ comes in.

Now we have people in the Bible like Samson, Esther, King David and Daniel and many others who just prayed directly to God. So this shows God does hear the prayers of us, but then the Levitical law foreshadowed Christ, and they were able to approach God via Christ on account of the Law of their covenant which pointed forward to the new covenant Christ brought in. This is adding another level of complexity, to do with how pre-Christ people could approach God; but the important point here is even before Christ's birth, death and resurrection the people of Israel were actually approaching God in and through Christ. There's a book by Andrew Bonar on Leviticus and it provides what I believe to be fascinating details about this foreshadowing, which is so prophetic in many ways that go unnoticed.

Moving further along, my thinking is that there appears to be two acceptable modes of prayer: one where we must draw closer to God, the other which is more one-way and our talking at God. To the later, whether or not God is moved is up to God. He loves us all after all. An interesting thought came into my mind just now though which might help to understand the difficulty of prayer from those who do not approach via Christ.

Let's take the classic Hitler for an example. Say after ordering the gassing of many millions of parents and their children, listening to their cries and weeping, Hitler nonetheless had them beat and destroyed. Now Hitler's own children just happen to fall fatally ill, and crying and weeping he asks God to please save his own children. Do you not feel some contempt for Hitler's request? Kind of like, the gall of such a request after all that has happened! Yet, you know, God's righteousness is so pure, that by comparison we're all essentially much like Hitler. Even if we aren't responsible for millions of deaths, we have the gall to expect God to listen, answer and respond to us like a genie in a bottle? Scripture says our best works are like filthy rags (bloodstained period pads) to God. So then, we're all making requests to God, and God while He might love us, really hates having to look upon and deal with evil especially when we're all so hypocritical. We might think we're not hypocrites, like Hitler evidently was in the example I just gave, but really we are all to some degree. We'll ask God to provide us with food and some sort of wealth, while turning a blind eye to those who are staving and child orphans in war-torn countries? I do it too... while we haven't gassed millions, we've all got some gall to be asking anything of God really, if you think about it. If we dedicate ourselves to God and others though like say the other classic Mother Teresa, then I'd surely expect our prayers to not only have more substance but greater response.

So then, getting more directly back on track, it seems the content of some our prayers, even our requests, well, there can be difficulty in having them reach God as something other than noise or with contempt. These are only two roads I travelled down in my thoughts, but I'm sure there's many other factors as well.

For our prayers to be effectual and delivered with the sweet aroma of burning incense they require Christ who is our higher everlasting priest who'll forever be able mediate on our behalf. (Hebrews 7:23-25) Jesus, for example, must mediate between us and God on account of our sin, must provide us with the righteousness we lack due to our sin so that we're acceptable to God. Scripture often talks as Christ as our mediator. That means He acts between us and God. (see 1 Tim 2:5) Christ is mediator of the new covenant, new promise, between us and God whereby it is by God's act we can be seen as righteous and saved from punishment. (Hebrews 9:15)

So then prayer or no prayer, it is only through Christ that we can really truly draw near to God. And as for our prayers, God hears them all, but given our own sins and nature should God listen? Whether God chooses to act according to some request amongst all the noise in the background from someone who hasn't drawn near in Christ, I suppose that'd be up to God. But, Scripture seems to be clear that to approach God, come close to Him, be really there in His presence, such requires Christ who imparts righteousness to us, who clothes us in white robes (Galatians 3:7; Isaiah 61:10), and we we can then enter freely into God's presence as His adopted sons (Ephesians 1:5).

Now if there is no one like to Christ, and we stand alone, then we're all up the creek without a paddle.
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by IceMobster »

Kurieuo wrote:If I reflect upon why I feel far away, it's either because I have other things on my mind, I'm busy and rushing a prayer, or not really placing much focus or importance upon the words of what I'm saying. I'm dispassionate. ...
Exactly. Which is why I never pray that way. I do not want it to be "empty talk".
Kurieuo wrote: In any case, those without Christ I see as being further away in some crowd of people making noise. God knows of them and the like, but then they're also a part of the noise and not really before Him, right?
I'd dare to say that from any point of view (but a Christian one ? ), I disagree with this. This is kinda implying God is not perfect since He can not hear a certain prayer. It is a different thing if he chooses not to (based on what you said below with the Hitler case).
Kurieuo wrote: Similarly, when we approach God alone in prayer, I'd say we're unacceptable. None of us are of an acceptable standard to God. Therefore our prayers while offered up and heard, are like empty and hollow in the same way. Since we're unclean, then to truly approach God and make our prayers have impact and substance, well we need the help of someone else who can either present us as clean, or who is clean and can mediate on our behalf. That's where the priestly order came in with Israel past, that's where Christ comes in.
Except no man is clean (except Christ). But you are implying we exclusively need a priest to get to God. I understand that you compared it to Christ, but he is no ordinary man so your example kinda falters, no?
Kurieuo wrote: So then, getting more directly back on track, it seems the content of some our prayers, even our requests, well, there can be difficulty in having them reach God as something other than noise or with contempt. These are only two roads I travelled down in my thoughts, but I'm sure there's many other factors as well.
Which is why I am avoiding the requests. Even when I just think of it (of God helping me), I am like: "or maybe don't do it since I realize it is hypocritical."
Kurieuo wrote: So then prayer or no prayer, it is only through Christ that we can really truly draw near to God. And as for our prayers, God hears them all, but given our own sins and nature should God listen? Whether God chooses to act according to some request amongst all the noise in the background from someone who hasn't drawn near in Christ, I suppose that'd be up to God. But, Scripture seems to be clear that to approach God, come close to Him, be really there in His presence, such requires Christ who imparts righteousness to us, who clothes us in white robes (Galatians 3:7; Isaiah 61:10), and we we can then enter freely into God's presence as His adopted sons (Ephesians 1:5).
Yeah, I know that. Well, in that case, I am kinda doomed. y:-? :titanic:
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me.

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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by Kurieuo »

Question: Have you ever felt in God's presence Ice?

I said a lot, but don't overlook this part of my post:
K wrote:my thinking is that there appears to be two acceptable modes of prayer: one where we must draw closer to God, the other which is more one-way and our talking at God. To the later, whether or not God is moved is up to God. He loves us all after all.
To draw closer to God such can only be via Christ. Non-Christians can still pray, at the end it's all up to God and Christ as such when talking to God at a distance that we be "heard". In my own life I've experienced two modes of prayer, one where I feel intimately close to God, the other which feels general or mere routine. I'm not sure given what I believe, how a non-Christian could truly have the former except in placebo fashion.
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by Kurieuo »

IceMobster wrote:
Kurieuo wrote:Similarly, when we approach God alone in prayer, I'd say we're unacceptable. None of us are of an acceptable standard to God. Therefore our prayers while offered up and heard, are like empty and hollow in the same way. Since we're unclean, then to truly approach God and make our prayers have impact and substance, well we need the help of someone else who can either present us as clean, or who is clean and can mediate on our behalf. That's where the priestly order came in with Israel past, that's where Christ comes in.
Except no man is clean (except Christ). But you are implying we exclusively need a priest to get to God. I understand that you compared it to Christ, but he is no ordinary man so your example kinda falters, no?
Hebrews 7:23-28
  • 23 Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; 24 but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. 25 Therefore he is able to save completely[c] those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

    26 Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. 27 Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. 28 For the law appoints as high priests men in all their weakness; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever.
Further read over Hebrews chapters 8 to 10, you'll find some answers to such.
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by crochet1949 »

This is a Wonderful thread.

As far as 'does God hear the prayer of a non-Christian'? When we start out praying -- Do we say 'Dear Heavenly Father'? I was taught that God Wants to be our Heavenly Father so that we can come to Him as His son or daughter In Christ. But He doesn't Force that on anyone. So does He hear the prayers of those who Aren't His Children? So -- How do we get to Be one of His children? By accepting Jesus Christ as our Personal Savior. And That is the relationship that is Started through praying / talking to God through Jesus Christ. We acknowledge our Need For Him / His gift of salvation From hell and being Able To be in heaven With Him and all other born-again believers in the future.
So - no one is doomed as had been feared. A person Can accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior Anytime / Anywhere. A person can be reading a post on Here and bow their head and talk to God and accept Him. Thanking Him for what He's done for them.
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by Katabole »

I pray for people all the time, have done so for years. Why? Because I believe Jesus Christ is the final judge of every soul.

I pray for friends, family members, famous people, coworkers, people I see at the grocery store or on the train and I pray for the members of this forum, whether they be Christian, some other faith, agnostic or atheist. I am a firm believer that God hears prayer. Whether or not He will answer my specific prayer is entirely His will. When I pray, I always ask the prayers directly to God the Father, not Christ or the Holy Spirit but I do ask the Father to fulfill those prayers through Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.

When I was younger, I questioned my faith a lot and read a lot of books on philosophy. I was intrigued by the 19th century philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. I consider Nietzsche to be the most honest atheist, who took atheism to its logical conclusion and even today, every atheist I converse with in any kind of serious debate, I always measure them against the writings of Nietzsche. If you claimed to not believe in God and at the same time, claimed to be a moral person and considered some things inherently right or wrong, good or evil, Nietzsche would consider that person a double-minded hypocrite. Nietzsche understood more than anyone else I have read, that if you remove God from the equation of life, all you are left with is a world of blind forces.

In the writings of Richard Dawkins, Dawkins claims to be an atheist. But I do not consider him to be an honest atheist. Dawkins would claim that religion is evil. Nietzsche would tell you that good and evil (in an objective sense) can only exist if there is a moral law giver, therefore if asked if religion was evil, his response would be something like what he said in his book, 'Beyond Good and Evil', where he writes, "How can a person rationally justify any commitment to timeless values whatsoever without implicitly invoking God? They cannot."

Mind you, many agnostics and atheists attempt to justify moral behavior. We hear it from testimonies in courts all the time. Very few however, can rationally justify moral behavior.

Nietzsche claimed that because society had no more need for God, that God was dead in the 19th century, that the 20th century therefore, would be the bloodiest in all of history because human beings would do whatever they wanted, knowing they would not have to judged for their moral behavior. And he was right. He wrote about it in his book, 'The Gay Science':



Parable of the Madman by Friedrich Nietzsche

THE MADMAN. Have you not heard of that madman who lit a lantern in the bright morning hours, ran to the market place, and cried incessantly: "I seek God! I seek God!" As many of those who did not believe in God were standing around just then, he provoked much laughter. "Has he got lost?" asked one. "Did he lose his way like a child?" asked another. "Or is he hiding? Is he afraid of us? Has he gone on a voyage? emigrated?" Thus they yelled and laughed

The madman jumped into their midst and pierced them with his eyes. "Whither is God?" he cried; "I will tell you. We have killed him---you and I. All of us are his murderers. But how did we do this? How could we drink up the sea? Who gave us the sponge to wipe away the entire horizon? What were we doing when we unchained this earth from its sun? Whither is it moving now? Whither are we moving? Away from all suns? Are we not plunging continually? Backward, sideward, forward, in all directions? Is there still any up or down? Are we not straying, as through an infinite nothing? Do we not feel the breath of empty space? Has it not become colder? Is not night continually closing in on us? Do we not need to light lanterns in the morning? Do we hear nothing as yet of the noise of the gravediggers who are burying God? Do we smell nothing as yet of the divine decomposition? Gods, too, decompose. God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him.

"How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it? There has never been a greater deed; and whoever is born after us---for the sake of this deed he will belong to a higher history than all history hitherto."

Here the madman fell silent and looked again at his listeners; and they, too, were silent and stared at him in astonishment. At last he threw his lantern on the ground, and it broke into pieces and went out. "I have come too early," he said then; "my time is not yet. This tremendous event is still on its way, still wandering; it has not yet reached the ears of men. Lightning and thunder require time; the light of the stars requires time; deeds, though done, still require time to be seen and heard. This deed is still more distant from them than most distant stars---and yet they have done it themselves.

It has been related further that on the same day the madman forced his way into several churches and there struck up his requiem aeternam deo. Led out and called to account, he is said always to have replied nothing but: "What after all are these churches now if they are not the tombs and sepulchers of God?"



For the agnostics, atheists and those not of the Christian faith reading this thread, I suggest you read Nietzsche. Because after you are done reading his works, you will either be a combination, true nihilist, extreme pessimist and radical skeptic and you would understand that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated and even existence would be condemned because a true nihilist would believe in nothing, have no loyalties, and no purpose other than, perhaps, an impulse to destroy.
Or, you would think back on all those things that you read and realize that you have a true hunger for spiritual truth (because there are many agnostics and atheists who are starving for truth these days) and the only one who can satiate their hunger is Jesus Christ.

John 6:35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that comes to me shall never hunger; and he that believes on me shall never thirst.

Matthew 11:28 Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

When you accept Christ as your Savior, then you will understand why Christians pray for others.
There are two types of people in our world: those who believe in Christ and those who will.

If Christianity is a man-made religion, then why is its doctrine vehemently against all of man's desires?

Every one that is of the truth hears my voice. Jesus from John 18:37
IceMobster
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by IceMobster »

Kurieuo wrote:Question: Have you ever felt in God's presence Ice?
I suppose not. How does it feel?
Kurieuo wrote: I said a lot, but don't overlook this part of my post:
K wrote:my thinking is that there appears to be two acceptable modes of prayer: one where we must draw closer to God, the other which is more one-way and our talking at God. To the later, whether or not God is moved is up to God. He loves us all after all.
To draw closer to God such can only be via Christ. Non-Christians can still pray, at the end it's all up to God and Christ as such when talking to God at a distance that we be "heard". In my own life I've experienced two modes of prayer, one where I feel intimately close to God, the other which feels general or mere routine. I'm not sure given what I believe, how a non-Christian could truly have the former except in placebo fashion.
I didn't overlook it. I never do it simply for the mere routine.
crochet1949 wrote:.
What makes you accept Jesus Christ as God just like that?
Katabole wrote:.
A great post, really. A great man you talk of, as well (at least, if you ask me). I believe I do have some nihilistic tendencies.
Anyway, what caught my eye is this: "Or, you would think back on all those things that you read and realize that you have a true hunger for spiritual truth (because there are many agnostics and atheists who are starving for truth these days) and the only one who can satiate their hunger is Jesus Christ."

Ironically, the Christian God makes the most sense to me. However, I do not have enough faith to accept Jesus Christ as the incarnation of God. Hence, I don't agree with the satiation of the hunger through Christ.
All my life, I've been taught of Jesus as God. Not long ago I realized I do not actually believe that and such knowledge was imposed on me ever since primary school.
Moreover, what of all the people who "satiate their hunger" true another faith? They seem perfectly fine, you know.

"When you accept Christ as your Savior, then you will understand why Christians pray for others."
Implying I do not, lol. As you can see from the title, I asked HOW do you pray and not DO you pray...
Also, wouldn't it be wiser to replace the first word with "if"?
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGOXMf6yDCU

Fecisti nos ad te, Domine, et inquietum est cor nostrum donec requiescat in te!
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Re: How do you pray for other people?

Post by Storyteller »

I pray that you see Christ shows us how to worship God, as humans.


That's how I pray.
Faith is a knowledge within the heart, beyond the reach of proof - Kahlil Gibran
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