Prayer time in the LIFE Group gathering is a very important time. It’s a benefit of “life together” in community and comforting to know that other Christ followers are praying with you and for you. So prayer time must be considered important every time the LIFE Group gathers at their regular meeting time.
But In my years of leading a LIFE Group and interacting with other LIFE Groups, I’ve observed how leaders handle prayer time in many different ways. Some ways are effective, but sometimes prayer time in LIFE Groups can get out of hand….dozens of requests voiced and the real pressure to pray for each individual request. If you’re not careful or organized, this process can take over half the time your group meets.
Is your group prayer time lasting too long and cutting into the teaching/facilitating time? Do you need to bring order to your prayer time?
Consider these 5 ideas:
- Move prayer time to the last 5 minutes of class.
- Ask members to write their requests on a sheet that is passed around. Have someone copy the sheet to share with the class; one person reads the list (always takes less time than persons telling their story) and prays.
- Pass out index cards; ask them to put requests and their names on cards; redistribute the cards asking the class to pray.
- Keep an ongoing sheet with the regular requests on it so they don’t have to be shared again every week.
- Divide into prayer groups (leader with 3-5 people) and ask them to take 5 minutes to share requests and pray.