5 Keys to Move Beyond Your LonelinessSample

Find Your Prayer People

My friend Judy and I met years ago. Each of us had kids, and we began having coffee together as our little girls played together. As we began to share our hearts authentically, we started praying together. We prayed for our husbands, our kids, and over our own fears. Through the years, even during the seasons when we lived in different geographic locations, we continued praying together. In addition to the protection our prayers placed around our kids, praying together cemented our friendship in ways I can’t even describe. Judy has been a stretcher-bearer for me through the years.

The gospel of Mark records for us the story of friends who brought their paralyzed friend to Jesus on a stretcher. The house where Jesus was teaching was so packed that there was no room to bring in their friend. These friends were determined – I love that! They dug a hole in the roof and lowered their friend on his stretcher right in front of Jesus. After Jesus healed the man who was paralyzed, I’m guessing these friends had a huge party celebrating. (Mark 2:1-12). The four friends give us a tangible picture of how carrying our friends before the Lord in prayer not only brings powerful results but also strengthens our friendships.

If you long to deepen some of your friendships, I suggest you begin by finding people you can pray with and for. It is one of the best ways I know to become deeply bonded to another.

Pause and reflect: Who in your friend circle would make a great prayer partner? How might you open the conversation to become prayer partners?

Pray: Lord Jesus, I thank You that You invited us to carry each other’s burdens. I praise You that You always bend down to listen to our hearts. I pray that You would show me who to approach to be a prayer partner. Go before me, I pray. Give wisdom and discernment, a compassionate and understanding heart as I pursue someone with whom I can pray regularly. Thank You for the gift of prayer.

Thank you for reading 5 Keys to Move Beyond Your Loneliness by Becky Harling. If you enjoyed this plan, here's a free sample of the first chapter of Cultivating Deeper Connections in a Lonely World please visit this page.