Author: Sandra Sigvardsen

Pastor’s
PIT Crew
CHURCH FAMILY
PRAYING FOR
OUR PASTORS

Dr. Wilbur Chapman often told of the following experience when he went to Philadelphia to become a pastor of Wanamaker’s Church. After his first sermon, an old gentleman met him in front of the pulpit and said, “You are pretty young to be a pastor of this great church. We have always had older pastors. I am afraid you won’t succeed. But you preach the gospel, and I’m going to help you all I can.” “I looked at him,” said Dr. Chapman, “and said to myself, Here’s a crank.” But the old gentleman continued, “I am going to pray for you that you may have the Holy Spirit’s power upon you, and two others have covenanted to join me.” Then Dr. Chapman related the outcome. “I did not feel so bad when I learned that he was going to pray for me. The three became ten, the ten became twenty, and the twenty became fifty, and the fifty became two hundred, who met before every service to pray that the Holy Spirit might come upon me. In another room, the eighteen elders knelt so close around me to pray for me that I could put out my hand and touch them on all sides. I always went into my pulpit feeling that I would have the anointing in answer to the prayers of over 200 men. “It was easy to preach, a real joy. Anybody could preach with such conditions. And what was the result? We received 1,100 into our church by conversion in three years, 600 of which were men. It was the fruit of the Holy Spirit in answer to the prayers of those men. I do not see how the average pastor, under average circumstances, preaches at all. “Church members have much more to do than go to church as curious, idle spectators to be amused and entertained. It is their business to pray mightily that the Holy Ghost will clothe the preacher with power and make his words like dynamite.
Sacks, Cheryl (2011-04-21). The Prayer-Saturated Church: A Comprehensive Handbook for Prayer Leaders (Design for Discipleship) (p. 122). Navpress.n.

WHY DOES THE PASTOR NEED A PIT CREW?
I’ve discovered that most laypeople don’t have any idea that their pastors face incredible difficulties daily. In his book Partners in Prayer, Dr. John Maxwell discusses this myth:
Many think pastors have few problems, and they mistakenly believe that people in full-time Christian service have special favor with God that protects them from the ordinary difficulties of life. But nothing could be further from the truth. Pastors experience all the same difficulties as... [their church members] do, plus they have the incredibly demanding job of leading a church? In addition to being on call twenty-four hours a day, a pastor is often plagued with unrealistic expectations and criticism from his flock. Pastoring a church is often a lonely and thankless task. Focus on the Family estimates that fifteen hundred pastors leave their assignments each month due to moral failure, spiritual burnout, or contention within their local congregations.4 Satan knows that if he can strike a shepherd, the sheep will scatter, and the impact of the ministry will be diminished.
Dr. C. Peter Wagner says in his book Prayer Shield that pastors and Christian leaders need more personal intercession than others for at least five reasons:
1.God gives pastors more responsibility and accountability than others.
2. Pastors are more susceptible to temptation. The higher one goes in Christian leadership, the higher one goes on Satan’s hit list. The heat is turned up, particularly in the areas of money, power, and sex.
3. Pastors are more direct targets of spiritual warfare. It has been widely reported that Satanists, occult practitioners, witches, New Agers, and others have covenanted with each other to conjure up satanic forces specifically to break up the marriages of Christian leaders.
4. Pastors have more influence on others, so when they fall, they take more people with them.
5. Pastors receive more scrutiny, gossip, and criticism. People like to pull them down to their size, and the Enemy uses these openings to move in and destroy.
Without the supernatural power of God released through a praying congregation, pastors and churches often never reach their potential in God.
However, when Pastors are Prayer for, They are equipped to carry out God’s plan.
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Prayer And Care For Pastors And Their Families
By Kim Butts
Pastors are burning out at an alarming rate! As Christians, we should feel deep agony over this fact, especially since the main reason for it appears to be…us! The very Christians who comprise the congregations of pastors who are rapidly dropping out of ministry are most often the cause for it. God has not called us to criticize or damage our pastors. He has called us to love them (1 Cor. 13: 1-13), to be submissive to their leadership (Heb. 13: 17), and to pray for them (1Tim. 2:1-2). The Father has called our pastors, and has ordained them to be our shepherds (Acts 20:28).
How can you pray effectively for your pastor and his family? The first thing that is needed is to make a commitment to pray for them daily. If your pastor knew that your family and others were praying for him each day…can you imagine what an encouragement that would be? Would his heart be lifted if he knew that he could share a need or a concern with your family and you would take it to the Lord on his behalf? You know it would!
Here are some specific ways that your family can pray
for your pastor and his family.
1. Pray that your pastor will always have a passion to know
Christ more intimately.
Prayer: Father, help our pastor to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings (Phil. 3:10). Since we know of his faith in the Lord Jesus and his love for all the saints, may we never stop giving thanks for him, always remembering him in our prayers. We will keep asking that You, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, will give him the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that he may know You better (Eph. 1: 15-17).
2. Pray that your pastor will minister out of a humble spirit.
Prayer: Lord God Almighty, would You help our pastor to humble himself before You and under Your mighty hand, so that You will lift him up (Jas. 4: 10; 1 Pet. 5:6)? Guide him in what is right and teach him Your way (Psa. 25:9). May our congregation see that he is wise and understanding as shown by his good life, and by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom (Jas. 3:13). Father, You have said that the one You esteem is he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and who trembles at Your Word (Isa. 66:2). May our pastor be such a person!

3. Pray that your pastor will minister from the Spirit’s power.
Prayer: Gracious Father, may our pastor’s messages and preaching come to us, not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that our faith might not rest on the wisdom of man, but upon Your power (1 Cor. 2:4-5). Help him never to depend upon his own might or power, but always upon Your Spirit, Lord Almighty (Zech. 4:6). May You, the God of hope, fill our pastor with all joy and peace as he trusts in you, so that he may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 15:13).
4. Pray that your pastor will be a man of prayer and of the Word
so that he can live a holy and pure life.
Prayer: Glorious God, we pray that our pastor will seek You with all of his heart. Help him never to stray from Your commands. May he hide Your Word in his heart so that he will not sin against You (Psa. 119:10-11) Give him deep desire to meditate on Your precepts and to consider Your ways. May he delight in Your decrees and never neglect Your Word (Psa. 119: 15-16). Give him understanding so that he will keep your law and obey it with all of his heart. Direct him in the path of Your commands where he will find delight. Turn his heart toward Your statutes and not toward selfish gain, and turn his eyes away from worthless things. Preserve his life according to Your Word (Psa. 119: 24-27).
5. Pray for your pastor`s family.
Prayer: Gracious Lord, may our pastor fear You so that he will have a secure fortress that will always be a refuge for his children (Prov. 14: 26). May he consistently teach his children to revere Your commands by following his example (Psa. 34:11), so that they might be blessed (Psa. 112: 1-2) Help him to manage his family well so that his children will obey him with proper respect (1 Tim. 3:4-5). May he love his wife just as Christ loved the Church (Eph. 5:25). Help him to be considerate and respectful to her so that nothing will hinder his prayers (1Pet. 3:7). Faithful Lord, strengthen and protect our pastor and his family against the attacks of the enemy (2 Thess. 3:3), and may their household always choose to serve You (Josh 24: 15).

Notes

6. Pray for protection against the schemes of the devil.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help our pastor to be strong in Your mighty power. May he continually remember to clothe himself with Your armor so that he can take his stand against the devil`s schemes. Help him to remember that his struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, authorities, and powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Help him to stand his ground and to stand firm with the belt of truth buckled around his waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with his feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of peace. In addition, help him to daily take up the shield of faith so that he can extinguish all of the flaming arrows of the evil one. May he put on the helmet of salvation and use the sword of the Spirit, Your Word. Give him the desire to pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
Help him to be continually alert, and to keep on praying for all the saints (Eph. 6:10-18). Don`t let the devil establish a foothold in any area of his life (Eph. 4:27). Help him to have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil`s trap (1 Tim. 3:7). May he continually submit himself to You, Father, and may he be self-controlled and alert in order to resist the devil, standing firm in the faith, so that the devil will flee (Jas. 4:7; 1 Pet. 5: 8-9). Keep him from temptation and deliver him from the evil one, Lord (Matt. 6:13).
Pray blessing into the life of your pastor and his family.
a) O Lord, our Rock and Redeemer, may the words of our pastor`s mouth and the meditation of his heart be pleasing in Your sight (Psa. 19:14).
b) May You, O Lord, give our pastor the desire of his heart and make all of his plans succeed (Psa. 20:4)
c) Lord, our God, may Your favor rest upon our pastor and establish the work of his hands (Psa. 90:17).
d) God of hope, may You fill our pastor with all joy and peace as he trusts in You, so that he may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 15:13).
e) Lord of peace, may You give our pastor and his family peace at all times and in every way (2 Thess. 3:16).
f ) May You, the God of peace, equip our pastor with everything good for doing your will, and may You work in him what is pleasing to You, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. (Heb. 13: 20-21).

Now that you have prayed for and blessed your pastor and his family, here are some practical ways to care for, encourage, and show your appreciation to them:
* Submit to the spiritual authority of your pastor and encourage others to do the same.
* Extend hospitality to your pastor and his family by inviting them into your home for a meal or including them in family activities. Think of other creative ideas.
* Recognize that your pastor`s family goes through the same struggles as everyone else`s families and be empathetic rather than critical.
* Give your pastor and his wife time together while you care for their children or hire someone to do so.
* Fix a meal and take it to them with an encouraging note.
* Take a basket of items such as fruit and nuts, freshly baked bread, etc.
* Send notes of encouragement and appreciation from your whole family; have your children draw pictures or write their own notes.
* Find out if there are any needs in their home that need attention: leaky shower, care repairs, yard, work, etc. and see that they are taken care of.
* Gather a group of ladies, or provide financially for someone to help clean your pastor`s home.
* Recruit as many people as you can to pray regularly for your pastor and his family. Try to cover them in prayer seven days a week.
* Encourage your church leaders to send your pastor on a spiritual retreat so that he can be renewed and refreshed by the Holy Spirit.
* Use your imagination – there are so many things you can do to show your love and appreciation.
Be determined to pray for and care for your pastor and his family, and allow the Lord to work in and through you by encouraging other families to do the same. Your simple efforts will do much to advance the cause of Christ in your church and community, as God does a mighty work in and through your pastor`s life. May your prayers and those of many others in your church, along with expressions of kindness, care and appreciation, keep pastors and their families safe, joyful and productive for many years to the glory and honor of Christ Jesus, our Lord!

How to Pray for a Spiritual Leader
The outline that follows is for your use as a reference tool as you pray for a particular leader. We cannot lay our hands on our manuals and say, “God, do it!” The Holy Spirit must quicken each prayer time. First Corinthians 14:15 tells us to pray with the Spirit and with understanding. We must trust God to give us specifics regarding the needs of the one we are praying for, in addition to the areas mentioned in this manual. It is vital that the insights we receive from the Lord as we pray only be used for intercession and not as an item for discussion with others (Ps. 25:14).
PERSONAL LIFE
Relationship with God
Sensitivity to the Lord
Openhearted and tender for obedience
Private times with the Lord to be vital, fresh and productive
Fellowship and communion with God remains number one priority
Receive personal direction, vision and teaching
Priorities
Discernment to know what they are
Wisdom on how to apportion time
Discernment and strength to maintain
Awareness that they are unique to each person
Open to God’s adjustments and changes
Fellowship
Available on their level of maturity
Determination to maintain
Not to be crowded out by responsibilities
Wisdom not to invest all in one person
Wisdom and discernment concerning opposite sex
How to deal with loneliness and aloneness

Wisdom
Not settling for past wisdom to get by but desiring new wisdom for every situation
The need for discernment between your wisdom and God’s
Godly wisdom for spiritual, emotional and physical decisions (Col.1:9‑12; Prov. 28:5)
The Spirit of wisdom (Eph. 1:17)
The Holy Spirit would continually remind the leader to seek the Lord’s wisdom
Health
Divine health—emotionally, mentally, and physically
Freedom from the effects of weariness
Supernatural strength—spiritually, emotionally, physically (Ps. 68:35)
Desire to care for physical body
Ability to rest completely (Ps. 127:2)
Wisdom and self-control in work, sleep & eating habits (Phil. 3:19; 1 Cor. 9:27)
Time for enjoyable exercise
Temptations
Bind outside influences, controls, pressures, including ungodly desires of heart
Not to be trapped by the personal desire to “be somebody”
That there would be a desire to build God’s kingdom and not one’s own (Lk. 11:2)
That their hearts’ desires would be to serve, not to control, manipulate or rule (Mk. 10:43‑45; Phil. 2: 3 ‑ 8)
Ability to harness ambition
Revelation of where he and others fit into God’s plans
Sexual
Bind outside influences, controls and pressures
Discernment to detect traps of the enemy
Strength to resist the spirit of seduction
Wisdom in knowing the difference between love and lust
Strength to overcome and wisdom to direct all desires of the flesh (1 Thess. 4:3‑8)

Financial
Bind outside influences, controls, pressures
Revelation that God alone is provider
Ability to be content—to abound or be abased (Phil. 4:1 1‑13)
Attitude
Thoughts and emotions develop attitudes, which become actions
Discerning wrong attitudes with the courage and ability to change them into godly attitudes (Phil. 3: 15)
Competition to be changed to unity (Phil. 2:2‑3)
Independence to be changed to interdependence (Eph. 2:21)
Superiority to be changed to humility (Mk. 9:35)
Defensiveness to be changed to openness for cooperation
Divisiveness to be changed to embracing of the whole body of Christ (Eph. 2:14)
Evidence of Holy Spirit
Graciousness with firmness (2 Tim. 24‑25)
Mercy, compassion and forbearance (Eph. 4:2)
Desire to bring restoration to all (2 Cor. 5:18; Gal. 6:1)
Motives
Pure (Mt. 5:8)
Whole and complete in Christ
Open to God to reveal if not right
Awareness that God alone knows true motives (Heb. 4:12; Ps. 139:1)
Appearance
The glow of Christ (Ps. 34:4,5)
Reveal the Lord in action, dress and speech (1 Tim. 3:7; Eph. 4:1; 1 Jn. 2:6; 2 Cor. 3:2)
RENEWED VISION (Prov. 29:18)
To be clear and unmixed
Patience for the fulfillment (Hab. 2:3)
That the adversary would be unable to cloud, divert, or accelerate
To stop the mouths of the lions that speak against the vision (Ps. 22:13,21)
Outreach to others’ visions with honest support and encouragement (I Tim. 2:8; Phil. 2:4)
A wall of fire to protect (Zech. 2:5)

THE MINISTRY
Leadership
Purpose to equip the saints (Eph. 4:12; 2 Tim. 3:17)
Revelation and sensitivity in the Word (2 Tim. 2:15)
Messages that are Spirit and life (Jn. 6:63)
Anointing to flow
Communicate with simplicity and clarity (Col. 4:4)
Anointing to pray and minister to people with discernment and wisdom (1 Thess. 5:14; 2 Tim. 4:2)
Free flow of the gifts of the Spirit
Relationship with staff: wisdom to deal with them as individuals (Col. 4:6)
Sensitivity in imparting the vision of the ministry
Ability to delegate—and leave it with the person
Communicate clearly and completely
Staff
Desire to understand and share the vision of the ministry
Faithfulness to their commitment (Col. 3:23)
Fulfilled in their own relationship with the Lord
To enhance and strengthen rather than detract or drain
Supportive but honest
That there would be a team attitude (1 Cor. 3:1‑9)
Anointing to do their job
Desire to grow spiritually and in job skills
Those Receiving Ministry & Donors
Open hearts—teachable (1 Thess. 2:13; Lk. 8:4‑15)
Supportive and responsive (1 Thess. 5:12,13)
Generous and faithful (Phil. 4:15‑17)
Hungry and thirsty for God
Seekers of God and His will and ways
Free from dead tradition
FAMILY
Leader
Responsibility for provision emotionally, physically, and spiritually as well as materially (1 Tim. 5:8)
Ministry concerns won’t crowd out any area of family need
Sensitivity to recognize needs quickly
Ability to communicate
Time to listen to each without divided interest

Family Unit
Understanding and flow of unity
No resentment when valid sacrifices have to be made
Sharing the vision of ministry; comprehending how to be an active part
Embracing the vision with wisdom and enthusiasm
Spouse
Desire to complement and complete leader
True spiritual unity and love flow
Discernment for what spouse really needs
Fruit of Spirit to flow
Fulfillment of own spiritual relationship with God
Strength to cope with stress and pressures
Ability to resist trying to live up to others’ expectations
Revelation of their importance in the fulfillment of the
call to ministry
Children
To develop a true and intimate relationship, of their own, with the Lord
Love, patience, and understanding
That their needs would be met with regard to school, studies, friends
Flexibility
Good relationship with brothers and sisters
No resentment or competition with ministry staff
Security in parents’ love
Strength to cope with stress and pressures
Ability to resist trying to live up to others’ expectations
Financial Provision
Provision of all needs and some wants (I Tim. 5:18)
Family provision not have to be used for the ministry (Phil. 4:19)
Faith to believe for their own special needs
Revelation of the joy of giving (1 Chron. 29:9)
Compiled by Iverna Tompkins Ministries, Scottsdale, Arizona. Used with permission.

James 3:17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.
New International Version (NIV)