How To Pray For Change

We always desire that which is good, and we desire certain things to change. For example, if a road is very bad, we desire it to be fixed and smooth. The same applies to people, institutions, our nation, and almost everything. We pray for change because we want things to be better. However, most of the time, if we want change to happen, we must address and pray for the people because change starts in the people themselves.

Heavenly Father, I thank You because You are sovereign. You work over people’s hearts, and no one is too far from Your grace. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

What Do I Pray for Change?

When you pray for change, you pray for the Holy Spirit to work on a person’s heart or the people’s hearts. We are praying for the people who do not know Christ—we want them to know Him. That means we pray for the Gospel to spread, and we pray that as the people hear the Gospel, they will believe the Gospel, commit to following Christ, and repent from their life of sin.

But why do we pray for the Gospel to spread and for the people to believe it, repent, and follow Christ? The answer to that is simple: We may try to provide solutions to any problem, like laws, initiatives, government programs, charity works, etc., but those are all temporary solutions. It only addresses the symptoms and not the very root of all problems: sin. Is the government executing ungodly laws? Trying to abolish them and putting better officials in office will do some good but not as much good as when the people in the government are all followers of Christ who aim to glorify Him.

The same goes for whoever it is that you wish to change. A person may go to therapy, counseling, and whatever self-improvement endeavors, but their issue will resurface if they never address the problem of sin. Hence, it is only the Gospel that could change a person and even make them into a new creation whose goal is to glorify God (2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.). That does not mean that when people come to Christ, they become perfect overnight. However, there is a radical change since they are dead to sin and now alive in Christ, living their lives for Him and in godliness.

Because of that, we pray for the Holy Spirit to empower believers to be bold in preaching the Gospel and soften the hearts of the unbelievers. The reason why people resist the Gospel is because their hearts are hardened. One good example of this regards the Pharisees. Despite their intellect and vast knowledge of the Law, they still missed the Messiah. Even though Jesus had been right before them, preaching about the kingdom of God and that He is the Savior, they couldn’t believe because their hearts were hardened. That is why we pray for the Holy Spirit to work in the people’s hearts. In (Ezekiel 36:26  A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.), it is written that God turns hearts of stone to hearts of flesh.

A good example of that is the apostle Paul. Once known as Saul, he was a Pharisee who zealously persecuted the church. He approved the stoning of Stephen and brought many Christians to prison. Yet he encountered Christ, and now we know him as Paul, one of the greatest Christians who ever lived. It was all because of God’s grace at work in his heart. The hardened heart of the persecutor was made into flesh. He repented and gave his life to Christ.

How Can I Pray for Change?

We pray for change by praying for two things: We pray for the Gospel to proliferate in whatever sector of society or whomever you want to pray for regarding change. We also pray that the Holy Spirit will soften their hearts and that they will believe the Gospel, repent, and follow Christ.

You can add some prayer requests as you pray for those important prayer points (Philippians 4:6-7 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.). For example, if you are praying for a change in the government, aside from praying for the Gospel to spread there and for the government officials to receive Christ, pray for whatever change you desire. If they have been lax regarding a certain important issue, pray they will see it as essential and address it as soon as possible. If you know a person with attitude problems, pray that apart from encountering Christ, he or she will learn to be more patient and understanding. However, nothing stands above the importance of praying for them to become followers of Christ.

Father in heaven, I pray for the government leaders to have better leadership where they will think more of the general public’s well-being and always consider that in their decision-making. May they not allow laws that condone sin. I pray that the Gospel shall reach even the highest offices. As they hear it, I pray, Holy Spirit, that You would soften their hearts and open their eyes so they may believe the Gospel and commit to following Christ. May their commitment to follow Christ show in how they lead and remain firm against ungodliness. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

The truth that God works in people’s hearts relieves us of the burden of trying to change people. In the end, what we can do is only preach to them the truth. The heart’s inner workings are not up to us anymore but the Holy Spirit. That is our hope, which is similar to what happened to the apostle Paul. When God starts to work in someone’s life, He will bring it to completion (Philippians 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:).