In my personal Bible reading time I have come across two passages of Scripture in which Paul asks for prayer support in two specific areas of his gospel-preaching efforts. I think these could serve as a great point of need for all those who preach the gospel.
1. Clarity
In his letter to the Colossians Paul writes, “…pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.” (Colossians 4:3-4)
The cultural and chronological distance between the writers and hearers of the Bible is huge. A modern day preacher can easily fall into the trap of either treating the Scripture very superficially or, on the other hand, getting bogged down in excessive details and rabbit trails which further obscure scriptural meaning and application rather than bringing clarity.
2. Boldness
In the book of Ephesians he says, “Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” (Ephesians 6:19)
It’s easy to think of Paul as a sanctified action hero, fearlessly going into impossible situations. He would go into cities where idolatry was the norm and preach the way of Jesus telling people that their idol worship was a big waste of time. This made people furious with him, even to the point of attempting to murder him on several occasions! Though Paul was courageous he was also very human. He knew that any bold witness that he was able to give was by the grace of God so he urged others to pray for Him.
To preach with both clarity and boldness can be a real challenge for today’s gospel communicator, just as it was for Paul, so I ask to all who read this, pray for me, that I may proclaim the gospel clearly and boldly, as I should.
Secondly, pray for your pastor (whoever that may be). We need it desperately.