Has someone ever personally shared a hard or important moment of their life with you? How did you respond? In this third in a series about experiences in prayer I'd like to talk about effectively delivering powerful prayers on behalf of others.

Have you ever read online or heard the phrases: "Prayers would be appreciated," or an outright "I need help, please pray for me"? We can quickly react with "I'll pray for you" or "I'll be praying for you."

When this happens to me, I have to sometimes ask myself: "Am I sincere in this? Will I follow through?" Demonstrating real interest and sincere empathy – and then following through with a powerful private prayer – is a major spiritual gift we can give to others. Let's explore how we can do this more effectively.

The Bible clearly teaches that we should be selflessly and regularly entreating our Father in Heaven on behalf of others. James, the brother of Jesus, directly instructs us to "pray for one another" (James 5:16). The apostle Paul ramps it up even further, telling us to "stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere" (Ephesians 6:18, New Living Translation).

But will we really? We're human beings often with great intentions. Is it possible we don't deliver?

Perhaps like you, I'm often asked to pray for people. In church services we often are asked to pray for people in need. We can read about notices of people needing prayer. Like you, I see many prayer requests. And believe me, I sincerely intend to "remember" them all in prayer. I earnestly try to keep my word.

Despite all of this, I still have to make a strong effort not to let any requested prayers fall through the cracks of human limitations. I know that intercessory prayer works. I have personally received its benefits, so I want to pass it on to others.

Can you relate to this?

Here's something I do that has personally helped me get around occasional lapses in intent. I learned this from the practice of Christians in Ukraine. These Christians are some of the most praying people that I've ever been around. They pray sincerely before a meal, after a meal, before embarking for the day's business, in the morning and as night approaches. As I have spent a week or two at a time with them, I found that some of their approaches are excellent.

The main key? When a situation is spoken of in conversation about someone's need, the conversation quickly turns to a prayer right then and there about that person's need. No waiting, no trying to remember later. Done! Now, I try to do that privately, wherever I am. When people say, "Pray for me," I will do so right away, stopping my racing thoughts to make prayerful private intercession right then and there. Obviously I also still keep lists and make separate prayerful intercession for others a part of my daily formal prayers to God.

All of this—including instant private prayers—fulfils Romans 12:12: "Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer" (Authorized Version).

Here's somber example of why to be "instant" in prayer. Once I was part of a delegation of elders viewing some property.  The realtor, knowing that we were elders, confided that his wife was just diagnosed with cancer. Obviously in distress, he noted that our prayers would be valuable. As he talked, our group nodded in sympathetic agreement. But we didn't follow through. There was no sincere collective prayer right then and there, even though the realtor obviously would have welcomed it. This memory grieves me, but it also convicts and reminds me to do better now. I have thought about this moment many times, and I use it to help me prevent it from happening again.

My personal lesson? Never forget the words of James: "The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much" (James 5:16).

Sometimes offered instantaneously, sometimes offered up more formally, all prayers are critically important. They are our spiritual contact with God Himself.

Want more direction about how to pray effectively and reap the benefits of talking with God? I invite you to go to our ucg.org website site and simply type in "prayer" in the search box. You will be rewarded with solid biblical direction in how to pray that God will hear and answer.

Until the next time, let us all stay in a prayerful attitude, as Paul said: "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

P.S. Have a personal experience with prayer that you'd like to share? Please write to me at victor_kubik@ucg.org.

Sign up for the Good News email to get this in your inbox!