Become a faithful prayer warrior lifting up the needs of prisoners and speaking blessings into their lives.
For any prison ministry to be truly effective, it must have a solid foundation of prayer. In prayer we call upon God for resources that He alone can provide in our battle against the spiritual forces of darkness.
If you are part of an in-prison ministry, you know that prisoners have many prayer needs. They desperately want prayer for themselves, their families, and their future reentry back into society. All you have to do is say, “May I pray for you?” Prayer touches the deepest hurts of those who feel so lost, lonely, and unwanted by the world.
Every in-prison ministry team needs prayer warriors lifting up the needs of the prisoners as well as ministry volunteers. But prayer ministry for prisoners does not require going to the prison. Even if you’ve never been inside a prison or jail, you can be a prayer warrior interceding before the throne of God for those who are incarcerated.
You can simply gather at a friend’s house with a few other intercessors and pray for prisoners. If your church has a prison ministry, ask them to start sending you the prayer requests so you can lift them before the Lord.
Even when you don’t know specific needs to pray for, you can seek God’s power and provision for a variety of general needs.
Want to encourage people to pray for prisoners? Download and share this prayer list with others in your church or with anyone you know who feels called to intercessory prayer. Here is a list of common prayer needs of prisoners.
PRAYER NEEDS OF PRISONERS
PRAYER NEEDS OF PRISONERSTHEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD
Pray for prisoners and their relationship with God, that they would:
- Experience His love
- Accept Christ as Savior
- Allow God to work in them and accomplish His purpose in their lives
- Earnestly seek God and get involved with chapel services and other Christian programming offered within the prison
GODLY ATTRIBUTES
Pray for prisoners to grow in godly attributes, that they would:
- Respect the authority of the prison staff
- Be able to control their temper
- Exhibit the fruit of the Spirit
- Experience genuine remorse for the harm they have caused their victims, and that they would seek to make amends as appropriate and possible
THEIR RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEIR FAMILIES
Pray for prisoners’ relationships with their families, that they will:
- Be committed to keeping in touch with their spouse and children
- Be able to maintain a strong connection with their family, despite being separated
- Experience reconciliation in strained or broken relationships
THEIR RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER PRISONERS
Pray for prisoners and their relationships with other prisoners, that they will:
- Make godly friends to support and encourage them
- Stay away from harmful associations that will lead them astray
- Be a friend to the lonely, the discouraged, the lost
THEIR PROTECTION
Pray for prisoners’ protection, that they would:
- Resist the snares of the evil one, Satan
- Shun drugs and other types of contraband that get into prison
- Be safe from sexual assault and other forms of victimization
- Be healthy and free from serious illness
THEIR FUTURE
Pray for prisoners and their future, that they would:
- Take advantage of prison programs to enhance their educational and vocational skills
- Be wise in the use of their God-given talents
- Seek the wisdom and resources they need to adjust to reentering society: job, housing, supportive friends, etc.
THEIR SPIRITUAL MATURITY
Pray that Christian prisoners will:
- Remain strong in their faith
- Find a volunteer mentor to encourage and disciple them
- Have strength and courage to witness to other prisoners
- Resist temptations and remain good role models
DOWNLOAD THIS RESOURCE
Download this resource. Once downloaded, you can print, save, or share the pages with others.
DOWNLOAD
www.prisonfellowship.org
O Divine Prisoner of the sanctuary, Who for love of us and for our
salvation
not only enclosed Yourself within the narrow confines of human
nature
and then hid Yourself under the veils of the Sacramental Species, but also continually live in the tabernacle! Hear our
prayer
which rises to You from within these walls and which longs to express to You our affection, our sorrow, and the great need we have of You in our tribulations, above all, in the loss of freedom which so distresses us.
For some of us, there is probably a voice in the depths of
conscience
which says we are not guilty; that only a tragic judicial
error
has led us to this prison. In this case, we
will
draw comfort from remembering that You, the most August of all victims, were also condemned despite Your innocence.
Or perhaps, instead, we must lower our eyes to conceal our blush of shame, and beat our breast. But, even so, we also have the remedy of throwing ourselves into Your arms, certain that You understand all errors, forgive all sins, and generously restore Your
grace
to him who turns to You in repentance.
And finally, there are those among us who have succumbed to
sin
so often through the course of our earthly lives that even the best among men mistrust us, and we ourselves hardly know how to set out on the new road of regeneration. But despite all this, in the most hidden corner of our
soul
a voice of trust and comfort whispers Your words, promising us the help of Your light and Your
grace
if we want to return to what is good.
May we, 0 Lord, never forget that the day of trial is an opportune
time
for purifying the spirit, practicing the highest virtues, and acquiring the greatest merits. Let not our afflicted hearts be affected by that disgust which dries up everything, or by that distrust which leaves no room for brotherly sentiments and which prepared the road for bad counsel. May we always remember that, in depriving us of the freedom of our bodies, no one has been able to deprive us of freedom of the soul, which during the long hours of our solitude can rise to You to know You better and love You more each day.
Grant, 0 Divine Saviour, help and resignation to the dear ones who mourn our absence. Grant peace and quiet to this world which has rejected us but which we love and to which we promise our co-operation as
good
citizens for the future.
Grant that our sorrows may be a salutary example to many souls and that they may thus be protected against the dangers of following our path. But above all, grant us the
grace
of believing firmly in You, of filially hoping in You, and of loving You: Who, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, live and reign forever and ever.
Amen.
O Sacred Heart of Jesus, make us love Thee more and more! Our Lady of Hope, pray for us! Saint Dismas, the
Good
Thief, pray for us!
More Pope Pius XII Prayers
www.catholic.org
*Representative photo used to protect identity. These are the known names of the prisoners imprisoned for their Christian faith in Iran. We expect that there are many more imprisoned for their faith. Because of the pressure that is put on these believers and their families, and the fact that the government doesn’t always give information about the whereabouts of these prisoners even to the family, it is difficult to share about each situation in great detail. Below you’ll find names of prisoners currently in prison, as well as the names of those who have been released. These are just some of the many believers around the world being persecuted for their faith. Would you please join us in praying for these brothers and sisters in Christ? March 5th, 2014, arrested in Khuzestan: Amin Khaki (m) Hossein Barunzadeh (m) Rahman Bahman (m) Beyond these Christians, five others were released after questioning. These three men are members of Pastor Behnam Irani’s congregation. These men lived in Karaj, and were forbidden by the regime to travel. Travel bans and arrests appear to be part of a new campaign to pressure active pastors of house churches that are known by the regime. August 2013, arrested in Isfahan: Sedigheh Amirkhani (f) Mahnaz Rafieee (f) Mohammad Reza Peymani (m) Family members have tried to get information about these arrested Christians from the police and court numerous times, all to no effect. Only Sedigeh has been able to call her family once and tell them about her imprisonment and interrogations of the secret service. July 2012, Karaj, Rajai Shahr prison: Pastor Saeed Abdini (m) Pastor Abedini is 33 years old, married to Nagmeh and father of two; Rebekka (7 years old) and Jacob (6 years old). He came to faith in 2000, and has been involved in house churches ever since. In 2005, he left Iran to live in the United States, where his wife has lived for most of her life. He obtained dual citizenship: he is now an Iranian and an American. Saeed became a pastor in the USA, but kept returning to Iran. On a trip visiting an orphanage in 2012, he was arrested by Iranian authorities. It was not the first time he had been arrested, but this time, they wouldn’t let him go. He was sentenced to eight years in prison. After a house arrest at his parent’s house in Tehran, their house was raided in September. Saeed was taken to Evin prison, where he was kept in solitary confinement for the first four weeks. During his time in Evin, he was tortured, causing his medical condition to deteriorate. In November of 2013, Saeed was transferred to Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj; a prison notorious for housing violent murderers and rapist. In prison, Saeed was robbed. His health kept deteriorating because of the numerous beatings, but he was denied access to medical care. February 2012, Shiraz, Adel-Abad prison: Vahid Hakkani (m) Mojtaba Hossein (m) Mohammed Reza Partoei (m) Homayoun Shokouhi (m) They have told trusted sources that they have had many opportunities to share the gospel inside the prison. Homayoun’s wife, Fariba, and son, Nima, (17) have also been imprisoned, but are now (temporarily) released. December 2010, Tehran, Evin prison: Pastor Farshid Fathi (m) Pastor Farshid was arrested during Christmas in 2010. He is 35 years old, and married to a woman named Leila. They have two children: Rosana and Bardia. He was sentenced to six years in prison. In August of 2013, he wrote in a letter describing how he was manipulated by his interrogators: “I was told falsely that my wife had been arrested, as well, and that I needed to give my children’s custody to someone temporarily. I was also informed, falsely, that my dad had a heart attack, and was hospitalized. Then they wouldn’t give me any follow-up news on whether he was dead or alive. It was all intended to put me under mental pressure.” His wife and children have fled to Canada now. Despite all of this, there’s also positive news about Pastor Farshid. According to Elam ministries, pastor Farshid is ‘a beacon for Christ’, beloved by the inmates for his sweet nature.
Released
Pray also for those that have been imprisoned for their faith, but are released. Their struggle isn’t over yet. They need rest and recovery. It’s often too dangerous for them to have contact with other Christians because of spies. This isolated position can impede the restoration process. Often they are pressured to not tell anything to anybody about what they’ve been through. From Ahwaz: Pastor Farhad Sabokrouh (m) (December 2013) Shahnaz (f) (wife of pastor Farhad)(released January 2014) The Assemblies of God church has been closed, Pastor Farhad is not allowed to be a pastor anymore, and Shahnaz is forced to report to the secret services every four months. From Shiraz: Fariba Shokouhi (f) (few months in 2012) (husband still imprisoned) Nima Shokouhi (m) (17 years old) (few months in 2012) (father still imprisoned)
www.opendoorsusa.org
