A DEVOTIONAL BY GUEST WRITER STEPHEN NIELSEN
The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one. John 17:22
United prayer should be the goal of prayer for all Christians. According to Wesley Duewel, “United prayer is probably the most powerful expression of Christian unity.”
What is united prayer? It is when believers are drawn together, in mind and purpose, by the Holy Spirit, to pray according to the will of God. Thus it is the mighty moving on believers to pray what is on God’s heart. United prayer reaches its climax when believers come together—when they are pulled together by the Holy Spirit—and pray in agreement.
There are at least four ways that we can achieve united prayer: 1) by praying for it, 2) by our love toward all believers, 3) by our service in the prayer ministry, and 4) by the encouragement of a spiritual leader.
Jesus prayed for all believers that they might be one, just as He was one with His Father. This oneness which He had with His Father was not a physical or visible oneness, but was a spiritual oneness or unity. Theodore H. Epp, in an article I read, has described this unity as having many features. Here are four of which he mentions: A unity of thought, of purpose, of will, and of service.
How incredible to think that it is possible to have that same unity (or oneness) that Jesus had with His Father. But Jesus believed it was possible, and that is why He prayed for it—and He is still praying for it. And since He desires it, and is praying for it, shouldn’t we too? Yes, let us be diligent to pray with Jesus for this oneness; and let us be confident that He will unite us in prayer as He shares with us, in the spirit of prayer, His own unity with His Father.
This is an excerpt from my book Joy of Prayer.
You can read more from Stephen on the topic of prayer at: Prayer A to Z | Prayer A to Z excerpts, Bible studies on prayer
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