Three ways to pray for your friends

By Robert Hurtgen

Friendship is one of those things of life that you do not appreciate until you no longer have it. In the Bible, the third letter of John is an expression of deep fondness from one friend to another. John the Apostle, one who was with Jesus during his ministry, to another named Gaius. There is much to celebrate in this short letter of only fifteen verses. Let us identify three principles to pray for your friends from 3 John 1:2.

First, John prays that all will go well with his friend Gaius. John is taking a moment to let his friend know that he is not only cheering him on but is asking for the Lord's favor to rest upon him. John is in Gaius' corner.

We need someone in our corner. Someone who wholeheartedly says, "I am cheering you on. I want things to go well for you." We need to be that friend we wish we had.

Secondly, John prays that his friend has good health. What is striking about praying for a friend's good health is that is typically the opposite of what we do. Usually, when someone asks for prayer, it is because something tragic has happened in their life. John is not advocating prayer for the sick. What John is modeling though is praying for a friend's well-being before calamity strikes.

Does praying for a friend's well-being mean that they will never get sick?

Absolutely not. We live in a fallen and broken world. Nothing works as God has designed including health and well-being. We can though proactively and intentionally pray for our friend's good health.

Lastly, John prays for his friend's soul. "Soul" in these verses represent Gaius' spiritual well-being. John wants his friend's soul, his spiritual life, to be well. John longs for his friends' walk with the Lord to be sweet and good. He prays as others do in the scriptures, that his friends will know the Lord and what He wants to do in their life.

Friendship is not valued until it is missing. C.S. Lewis says, "Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art ...It has no survival value; rather than it is one of those things that give value to survival." Your friends make life richer. Be the friend you wish you had.