Churches have been impacted in a variety of ways as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pastors are navigating uncharted territory, facing unique challenges, and encountering issues they would have never dreamed of dealing with. Pastors are juggling how to meet the needs of their congregation while the coronavirus still restricts the heart of community and fellowship.
Pastors have risen to the occasion by adapting, leading with wisdom, and serving in creative ways during the pandemic to reach their congregations and communities. As they press on during these difficult circumstances, pastors need our prayers. Here are five prayers you can say for pastors during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Why Pray for Your Pastor?
“Brothers and sisters, pray for us” (1 Thessalonians 5:25).
In the Bible there is a precedence established to pray for one another, especially those who are teaching, preaching, and leading the church. Pastors and their families experience spiritual warfare, fatigue, trials, temptations, and a plethora of difficulties. They need to be covered in prayer regularly.
Pastors are doing incredible work for the kingdom of God and the enemy attempts to work against their efforts to help people grow closer to God and live righteously. Pastors and their families need our prayers. During the pandemic, pastors are ministering and serving in conditions that none of us could have ever imagined.
When the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Thessalonica, he included the appeal that they pray for him and those who were spreading the Gospel. Today, that same request echoes in the hearts and minds of pastors around the globe. We as their brothers and sisters in Christ can support pastors in a powerful way by praying for them consistently.
5 Prayers for Your Pastor during the Pandemic
1. A Prayer for Strength
Dear God,
We pray for our pastors to have motivation and vision, that ministries would continue to launch and thrive, and that pastors would not lose one opportunity to serve and minister. We ask that you would help our pastors have a greater reach and that our churches would be a beacon of light and hope throughout the world. We pray that pastors would have perseverance and to come through this season with new insights and more inspiration. We pray that their faith would increase and that they would be drawn closer to you, Lord. We pray for our pastors to be on guard, to stand firm in the faith, to be courageous and to be strong (1 Corinthians 16:13). May you, oh God, satisfy their thirst for you and fill them up so that they are ready at all times to do the good work you have called them to.
In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
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2. A Prayer for Wisdom for Your Pastor
Dear God,
We lift up our pastors to you who are in need of great wisdom. We trust that each pastor is worthy of the calling and that you have prepared them for this time. Lord, we pray that the Holy Spirit would nudge them in the right direction, lead them to make righteous choices, and help them to have clarity as they navigate ministry in a pandemic. We ask Lord that you would open their eyes to see your hand working, that you would open their ears to hear what you have to say, and we ask that you would grow their ability to discern your good and perfect will. We thank you, Lord, that you are with our pastors, that you will uphold them, and lead them just as you led Joshua across the river, or David into battle, or Daniel out of the lion’s den unharmed. Help them, Lord, to lean not on their own understanding, but to put their trust in you, so that you can lead them on the right path (Proverbs 3:5). We thank you God for your help and that you will walk with our pastors, empowering them to make good and wise decisions.
In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
3. A Prayer for Strong Leadership
Dear God,
We thank you for calling our pastors to their ministries. We thank you for equipping them with the spiritual gifts, the talents, and the skills for such a time as this. We pray over our pastors, Lord, that you would help them to lead with courage and strength. Send the right deacons, elders, and volunteers to lead alongside them, that they would not carry the weight alone. Help them to be leaders marked by humility, compassion, and wisdom. Let their congregations support them, submit to their leadership, and grow in respect and love toward their pastors. You did not give our pastors a spirit of timidity, so we pray that you would inspire our pastors to walk in power, love and self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7) as they demonstrate courageous leadership in these unprecedented times.
In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
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4. A Prayer for Patience for Your Pastor
Dear God,
We thank you for our pastors and their good and fruitful ministries. We ask, oh God, that you would bless them with patience. Patience as they wait to hear from you, patience as they have many voices and thoughts and decisions coming at them, and patience as they take steps to lead and guide the church. Help them to be still and have utmost confidence that you are in control (Psalm 46:10). Remind them that you are bigger than whatever is going on in the world and help them to feel you alongside them every step of the way. May our pastors have a deep sense of peace as they put their trust in you each morning when they rise and throughout the day in whatever they encounter. We’re grateful, God, that you are patient and kind to us, and we ask that you would bless our pastors with a lasting sense of peace in their hearts and minds.
In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
5. A Prayer for Encouragement
Dear God,
We pray for our pastors to be encouraged. We ask that you would minister to them and give them a deeper sense of hope. Send laborers into their lives to extend needed help, support, and friendship. We pray that they and their families would be protected and covered by the precious blood of Jesus. May our pastors be restored and refreshed during this time. We pray, Lord, that our pastors would not be discouraged, or afraid, or grow weary. But instead that you would uplift their spirits, encourage them in their trials, and recharge them when they are feeling overwhelmed. We ask that you would help them to put their hope in you and that you would in return renew their strength (Isaiah 40:31). We thank you for our pastors, Lord, and all the work they do for your kingdom.
In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
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Bible Verses to Help Encourage Your Pastor
The Bible has a lot to say to and about leaders. We can share these verses with our pastors to encourage and uplift them, and we can also include these verses in prayer. In the midst of such much trouble and uncertainty during the COVID-19 pandemic, consider sharing one of the verses below with your pastor.
“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”
“I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.”
3. Isaiah 43:19
“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”
“Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”
5. Romans 8:31
“If God is for us, who can be against us?”
Pastors are inspiring people who have answered the call to follow God by giving their lives to preach, teach, shepherd, disciple, and share the Gospel. During the pandemic, many are feeling weary, discouraged, and have had their ideas about ministry turned upside down.
We see pastors around the globe, though, continuing to be the hands and feet of Christ. They are using this time to create new ministries, to reach more people, and to do their best to share the Gospel message of hope in Jesus. They truly need our prayers as they lead us in these unprecedented times.
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