No matter your station in life, no matter how hectic your schedule or all of the other obligations you have, one way you can serve the Lord is to become a prayer warrior. If your answer is “I wish I could do more than that,” never underestimate the power of prayer. It changes lives and can change events and situations, and has in many circumstances.
To develop your prayer life beyond your own four walls, you must learn how to be a compassionate person. You may struggle with prayer in general, and especially when you begin to pray for others. You may find your mind wandering to other things you “should” be doing. If prayer is a challenge, praying for others, especially those you don’t know well, can be even more difficult.
Developing Compassion
What is compassion? It is the ability to empathize with others, the ability to be sympathetic with another person even if you don’t understand what he or she is going through. It is not agreeing with another person or their behavior but an ability to care in spite of disagreement. Jesus often had compassion for others even though He did not agree with their lifestyle or behaviors.
Not everyone is a naturally compassionate person. That doesn’t mean you can’t work on developing that attitude. In fact, it is essential for an effective intercessory prayer life if you want to accomplish great things.
Jesus was the perfect example of compassion. In the Bible it talks about how He was moved with compassion and healed those who were sick. He never wanted to see others suffer physically, mentally or emotionally. Compassion should motivate us to do something to help others.
Compassion as a Result of Suffering
We all have suffered in one way or another and have stories to tell as a result. When you survive a period of suffering, it is important to not let that turn you into a self-centered, miserable person. Instead, you must use that painful situation to develop empathy for others in similar situations and help them get through their suffering.
Women who have had miscarriages can best minister to those who are going through one. Those who have lost a child, a parent or sibling in death can better understand the emotions that others may be feeling. Someone who has been abused can know what to say to a person that is being abused now. Developing compassion means looking beyond our experiences to others and finding ways that we can be used by God to minister to them.
When you feel others’ hurt, your prayer life will change. Instead of just saying words to God because you should, you will be moved to plead with Him for others. You will look for ways to help beyond prayer. When you ache with the pain that others are feeling, it will change you in ways you never thought possible. But it all begins with being willing to step outside of our own lives, our own situations and look for others who need us – even if all we can do is say a prayer.
