Why you should be praying for your co-workers

Philippians 4:6 says: “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.”

We love the bit about not worrying, don’t we? But what of the ‘pray about everything’ part? Are we really doing that? Are we telling God what we need in our work roles and thanking him for all the good bits?

Reasons to pray

The Bible says we should pray about all things, and if we believe prayer works, why aren’t we doing it more? Here are some of the scenarios you could be praying about:

• Your co-workers need prayer and don’t know any other Christians
• You’re constantly having problems with a particular boss or colleague
• There’s a big event coming up
• Revenues are up (giving thanks) or down (praying for an intervention)
• Your company is making people redundant
• Your colleagues are under a lot of pressure to meet difficult targets
• You’re being persecuted for your faith
• Your colleague is facing disciplinary action
• Another job offer has come in and you’re not sure whether to take it
• A co-worker is facing health problems
• You are looking for opportunities to share your faith with your colleagues
• You’ve done something wrong and need to come clean, but don’t want to get fired
• Someone has commended you for a job well done and you want to thank God for his help
• You’re feeling demotivated
• The economy is failing
• A colleague has been promoted and you feel it should have been you
• An important machine has broken down or a vital document is missing
• Your colleagues spend most of your time complaining and gossiping

These are just some of the scenarios where praying for yourself and your co-workers can make a big difference. It’s good to ask God for his wisdom when decisions need to be made. We can lift up our colleagues to him in prayer; even (or especially) the ones we don’t like so much. You can thank him for the triumphs and ask for help when times are tough.

How to pray

There are lots of ways to pray for your workplace. Some people regularly send up silent prayers during the day as new challenges arise. If you’re anything like me, you’ll need some little helpful reminders to keep your mind in a state of prayerfulness during a busy day. If you can, carve out some time before work to pray for your bosses and co-workers. Alternatively, you could pray during your commute to work (just don’t close your eyes if you’re driving!).

You could set reminders on your phone to pray during your breaks, or use your breaks to meet with other Christians to pray together. If there are no other Christians at your place of work, you could take prayer walks around your local area, praying not only for your colleagues, but for the community in which your job is based. If you’re an evening person, why not pray on the way home or before you go to bed?

The fact is, we often pray for our loved ones, but we probably end up spending more time with our colleagues than our nearest and dearest. If you want to see God move in your workplace and even change the culture of your organisation and the surrounding area, it’s time to get serious about prayer. And don’t forget to thank God as you see these changes take place.