Praying for the Lost by D Wadsworth

Praying For the Lost

The following are Scripture prayers that you can use to plead for the salvation of lost people. Each prayer is based on Scripture and can help you offer powerful intercession for those who need the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. (feel free to print this form and use it in your prayer time)

Father, in the name of Jesus, I plead that You will draw _______________ to Jesus Christ in true faith and repentance (John 6:44).
In the name of Jesus, I ask You, Father, to quicken ___________________ who is dead in sins and trespasses
(Ephesians 2:1).
Father, I ask You to bind and remove Satan’s work in _________________’s life and to open _______________’s eyes to the truth of the gospel (2 Corinthians 4:4).
Holy Spirit, I pray that You would convince _____________ that he/she is lost, separated from God, and headed to hell (Romans 3:23).
Holy Spirit, in the name of Jesus, I pray that You would destroy any false ideas that _________________ has about Jesus Christ and salvation through Him (Proverbs 14:12).
Lord Jesus, I plead that You will seek out __________________ and save him/her from his/her sins and eternal
condemnation (Luke 19:10).
Father, I pray that You will open ________________’s heart so that he/she will receive and believe the gospel (Acts 16:14).
Holy Spirit, I ask You through Your power and _____________’s circumstances to prepare him/her to hear and receive the Word of God (Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23).
Holy Spirit, I plead that ______________ will understand the gospel when it is presented to him/her so that the devil cannot snatch it away (Matthew 13: 5, 9).
Holy Spirit, in the name of Jesus, I plead that the Word of God will take root in ____________’s life and bring about true salvation in ____________’s life (Matthew 13:6, 20-21).
Father, I ask that the pleasures of this world and the pressures of life will not choke the Word of God that has been sown into _______________’s life (Matthew 13:7, 22).
Father, I plead that You will deliver ________________ from the kingdom of darkness and place ________________ into the kingdom of Your dear Son (Colossians 1:13).
Father, I pray that _______________ will receive the free gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ the Lord (Romans 6:23).
Lord Jesus, I ask that _________________ will not trust in himself/herself, but that ________________ will completely trust in You as his/her Savior and Lord (Galatians 2:16).
Holy God, I pray that You would grant genuine repentance to _________________, a repentance that will cause him/her to hate sin and to turn from it (Acts 11:8; Luke 13:1-3).
Lord God, I plead that You would grant ________________ genuine faith, a faith that trusts in Jesus alone and surrenders
to Him as Lord and Savior (Ephesians 2:8-10).
Holy Spirit, I pray that You would stir _______________ out of his/her indifference and complacency concerning his/her
condition and his/her need of the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 6:2).
I ask in the name of Jesus Christ that ________________ would surrender himself/herself to the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 14:9).
Father, I pray that You will send people continually into ________________’s life who will share the gospel with him/her (Romans 10:14).
Father, I plead in the name of Jesus that You will put a new heart in ________________ and that You will place Your Holy Spirit in him/her (Jeremiah 42:30; Ezekiel 11:19-20).
Holy Spirit, I pray that You will cause _________________ to hate sin and that You will break the power of those sins that are hindering him/her from coming to Christ (Mark 9:43-47).
Lord Jesus, I ask that _______________ would surrender to You, denying himself/herself, take up the Cross, and followYou (Luke 9:23).
Father, I plead that _____________ will understand that his/her only hope for forgiveness and acceptance with You is through Jesus’ work on the Cross (1 Corinthians 1:18)
Father, I pray that _______________ would not neglect the glorious salvation which is available through Your Son (Hebrews 2:1-3).
Lord Jesus, I pray that ________________ will feel and know the burden of his/her sin and will come to You for forgiveness and salvation (Matthew 11:28-30).
Father, I plead that _________________ will make a genuine commitment to Jesus Christ as the Lord and Savior of his/her life (Luke 14:24-33).
Lord Jesus, I plead that ____________________ will not be content with the appearance of righteousness but will seek You for the transformation of his/her whole life (Matthew 23:27-29).
Father, I pray that ___________________ will see that his/her good works are as filthy rags in Your sight and that they will not save him/her (Isaiah 64:6).
Father, I ask that _______________ would believe and trust Your Son that You sent to be the Savior of sinners (John 5:24).
Lord Jesus, I ask that _______________ would not die in his/her sins but would trust You and receive eternal life (John 8:24).
Because You came into the world to save sinners, I plead with You to save _____________ who is a sinner and in need of Your grace and mercy (1 Timothy 1:13-16).
Holy Spirit, I pray that You would humble ______________ so that he/she sees his/her need of Jesus Christ (Psalm 18:27; Proverbs 8:13, 29:23).

The “Six Questions” Method Of Prayer Evangelism Another way that you can intercede for lost people is by prayingthrough the following questions. These questions deal with the most basic issues of life. By praying for these things, the lost person can be prepared to hear and receive the gospel of Jesus Christ
(1) Why: Ask God to cause this person to wonder why they reject Jesus Christ and His salvation. Call on Him to show this person the foolishness of rejecting Christ and of living life without Him.
(2) What: Ask God to cause the person to start asking the question, “What is the purpose of my life?” Plead with God to plant in his or her heart an urgency concerning this question
(3) When: Pray that God will grant this person an emptiness of heart. Ask God to show them that sin and selfishness will not satisfy. Call on God to cause this person to start asking the questions, “When will I really be free? When can I find true peace and hope?”
(4) Whom: Pray that God will cause this person to doubt all the lies that he or she has concerning Christianity. Call on God to cause the person to ask, “Whom can I trust? In whom can I find hope?”
(5) How: Plead that God will plant this question in the heart of the person, “How can I cope with my problems?” Pray thatGod will grant hopelessness in the heart of this person. Ask God to show this person that he or she cannot cope in his or her own power or strength. Pray that he or she will be forced to look to God.
(6) Where: Call on God to cause this person to contemplate the question, “Where will I go when I die?”

Ever Wonder Why? Derek Wadsworth

As I sit and recover from my recent surgery I have had a lot of time to study, read and think on the Word of God. I have been blessed with helping in some ministry times that I wouldn’t have been able- as well as be a part of different times of worship and study.

I am very grateful, however one thing that has been soaking in my core is the question WHY?

I am examining my own leading of my family and others and have always taught the How and the What….

Do I as a follower of Christ or others along my side ever take time to explain and teach the why?

Why do I want to live in faith and obedience?
Why do I want to honor God with my life?
Why do I want to turn to God for help?
Why do I believe?
Why am I in this situation?

Why is God number one in my life? Why shouldn’t I steal, murder, sleep around, get drunk, respect others, serve the poor, care for the elderly and widows…..

Mark 8:17-21

17 And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? 18 Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” 20 “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” 21 And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

He is able and worthy of our honor and praise and love! Jesus Christ is WHY!

Do Christians Persevere? -D Wadsworth

Do Christians persevere? What relationship does this have to counseling?

―Perseverance is that gracious work of the triune God in a believer whereby He enables him to fight the good fight of faith from the point of his conversion until he is brought into His presence at death.( http://www.nanc.org/Theological_Considerations/Perseverance.aspx)

Spurgeon once said ―You will not be lost, for He who owns you is able to keep you. If you were to perish, who would be the loser? Why, He to whom you belong and ―you are not your own, you belong to Christ! My hope of being preserved to the end lies in this fact, that Jesus Christ paid far too much for me ever to let me go. Each Believer cost Him His heart‘s blood! Stand in Gethsemane and hear His groans! Then draw near and mark His bloody sweat and tell me—will He lose a soul for whom He suffered like this? Look at Him hanging on the tree, tortured, mocked, burdened with an awful load and then beclouded with the eclipse of His Father‘s face! Do you think He suffered all that and yet will permit those for whom He endured it to be cast into Hell? He will be a greater loser than I shall if I perish, for He will lose what cost Him His life! Surely He will never do that. Here is your security—you are the Lord‘s portion and He will not be robbed of His heritage! We are in a hand that bears the scar of the nail! We are hidden in the cleft of a rock—the Rock that was riven for us nearly 1,900 years ago! None can pluck us from the hand which redeemed us—its pressure is too warm with love and strong with might for that.

The Reformation Study Bible says ―In declaring the eternal security of God‘s people it is perhaps clearer to speak of their preservation than, as is usually done, of their perseverance. Perseverance means continued adherence to a belief despite discouragement and opposition. The reason that believers persevere in faith and obedience, however, is not the strength of their own commitment, but that Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit preserves them. Certainty of the doctrine: ―1st. The direct assertions of Scripture. 2nd. This certainty is a necessary inference, from the Scriptural doctrine (1) of election; (2) of the covenant of grace, wherein the Father gave his people to his Son as the reward of his obedience and suffering; (3) of the union of Christians with Christ; (4) of the atonement, where in Christ discharged all the obligations of his people to the law as a covenant of life; (5) of justification, which declares all the conditions of the covenant of life satisfied, and sets its subject into a new relation to God for all future time, so that he can not fall under condemnation, since he is not under the law, but under grace; (6) of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, (a) as a seal by which we are marked as belonging to God, (b) as an earnest, or first installment of the promised redemption, in pledge of complete fulfillment; (7) of the prevalency of Christ‘s intercession.

The Golden Chain of Rom 8:29-30 is so strong ―Paul sees the future event of glorification as such a certainty in God‘s settled purpose that he can speak of it as if it were already accomplished.(Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, pg 790 ) The doctrine is both a warning and a source of great comfort. It is a warning against false views of security. If a counselee is not a true believer he will eventually fall and stay down; He will, at some point, be unwilling to face his sin and seek the Lord‘s help in working out his salvation; He will not, in his own strength, be able to resist the tug of his fallen nature. It, thus, aids the counselor in determining an appropriate course of action. But it, also, is a great source of comfort. To produce insecurity in a counselee by constantly questioning his salvation is just as destructive as false security. God‘s glory shines brightly in His preserving grace as He is the great Shepherd who leads His sheep beside still waters.1 ―To grasp perseverance of the saints anchors counseling in the reality that the process of growth is sometimes (usually?!) bumpy, and that the genuineness of a person‘s conversion ―comes out in the wash in learning to face today‘s fresh challenges. As a counselor, you can simply take a counselee‘s profession at face value, roll up your sleeves, and get down to work. As your counselees face the current challenges in their fight with sin by finding mercy and grace to change, and as they face their current troubles of life by finding refuge and hope in the Lord‘s promises, they manifest that they are in fact the Lord‘s true children. (www.nanc.org/Theological_Considerations/Perseverance.aspx).

________________________________________________

The implications for counseling are huge!

It is vital to determine, to the best of our human understanding, the counselee’s position before God, for if he does not know Christ, that is the first step to be taken.

There are a few evidences of true conversion that can be looked for, understanding that God is the only one who knows the heart. We are told to “continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel which you heard.” (Col 1:23).

Does she still believe the gospel? Does she confess today, and not just twenty years ago when she walked the aisle, that belief in Jesus is all she needs for salvation? Or is she relying on her own works?

Is the Holy Spirit at work in his life? The Holy Spirit is said to bear witness in our hearts that we are God’s children, and He leads us in paths of obedience to God’s will. (Rom 8:14-16). The evidence of the fruit of the spirit should be growing, and his life should be producing other fruit that builds up the body and doesn’t tear it down. (Gal 5:22-23, Matt 7:16-20).

Does she accept and obey the sound teaching of their church and pastors? Constantly rejecting major doctrines of the faith is a warning sign. John said, “Whoever knows God listens to us, and he who is not of God does not listen to us.” (John 4:6).

Does he have an on-going relationship with Jesus, abiding in Him? This can show itself in worship, prayer, and praise. Jesus also said that His sheep follow Him and walk as He walked. Is her life showing a pattern, though not perfect, of obedience to God’s commands and of a growing love for others? “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death.” (I John 3:14).

So what does this mean?

A counselee who can gain assurance from these things can boldly approach God for help and healing, knowing that when God looks at Him, He sees the perfect righteousness of Christ. A counselee who is broken by the list can be brought to the cross for forgiveness, and God will meet Him there with open arms