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Praying for Your Pastor: How Your Prayer Support Is Their Life Support
It's tough to be a pastor.Pastors face demands and pressures on every side, from the challenges of church ministry to the realities of spiritual warfare. But you can make a difference. Your prayers provide a lifeline for your pastor's spiritual health and ministry effectiveness.Eddie Byun offers a handy, practical guide to praying for pastors. He shares stories of how congregational intercession changes things, with specific guidelines for prayers for protection, rest, anointing, integrity and more.God calls us to pray for our leaders. When we do, their ministry is strengthened, the kingdom is advanced and lives and communities are transformed.
160 pages, Paperback
Published July 29, 2016
About the author
Eddie Byun
15 books10 followersEddie Byun is the missions and teaching pastor of Venture Christian Church in Los Gatos, California. He has previously taught practical theology at Torch Trinity Graduate University and has been lead pastor for Crossway Mission Church and Onnuri English Ministry in Seoul, South Korea. He has also pastored in Sydney, Australia, and Vancouver, Canada. Eddie is the author of Justice Awakening and Praying for Your Pastor. He was also the executive producer of Save My Seoul, an award-winning documentary on sex trafficking in South Korea. He resides in San Jose, California, with his wife, Hyun, and their son.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 30, 2017
Summary: A practical guide both advocating for the importance of prayer for our pastors and offering a practical rubric in the form of the acronym PRAYERS.
"I often tell my congregation, “Your prayer support is my life support.” Someone who has been rescued from drowning or is recovering from a serious injury like a gunshot wound may need to be put on life support for a period of time. The injured person doesn’t have the strength to keep going by himself, so he needs the help of something outside of himself in order to allow his body to rest and to be strengthened to health again. In many ways, the pastor is under a wide range of attacks from the enemy. The attacks may come in various forms, such as gossip, criticism, slander, sickness, or even threats. There are days when your pastor feels emotionally burned out, physically exhausted, and spiritually weak. She feels she just can’t go on. These experiences are far too common and come far too frequently. These are the times when pastors need the life support of our prayers to keep them going. You may not know the struggles your pastors face today, but you can know that your prayers will make a difference in their lives" (pp. 22-23).
So writes pastor Eddie Byun in what is both an impassioned plea and practical guide to pray for our pastors. Throughout this book Byun uses both statistics and personal stories to describe the challenges pastors face that leads to so many dropping out of the ministry. He believes that one of the most important things churches can do is to mobilize teams of people to pray for their pastors.
Byun goes on to provide a simple rubric around the acronym PRAYERS to guide those praying for pastors. Each chapter in the book is organized around one letter in the acronym:
Protection: Against temptation, evil, and the enemy and praying through the armor of God (Ephesians 6:14-17).
Rest: For physical, emotional, and spiritual rest, for unhurried times with the Lord, against burnout and for times of refreshing.
Anointing: For growing intimacy with the Lord, greater consecration, and for power to be released in your pastor's life and ministry.
Yielded heart: Daily transformation by the gospel, obedience out of love and gratitude for the cross, trust and obedience, growth in treasuring Christ.
Effectiveness: Wisdom, increased fruitfulness in life and ministry, in people being saved and discipled, and faithfulness to the end.
Righteousness and integrity: A strong foundation in one's life, that all that one does is motivated out of love and honor for Christ.
Strong marriages and families: protection of marriage and family, support in the church to encourage pastor in marriage and family life, and strong discipleship of children with parents who live their faith.
Each chapter fleshes out these themes, provides discussion questions, prayer points, and action plans one may take to form and guide a prayer team. Reading this book challenged me with regard to how much (or little) I pray for my pastor and reminded me of the challenging character of his work as well as how thankful I am for him, and other pastors I've known who faithfully shepherd God's flock.
It also reminded me again how important it is for all of us in ministry to have prayer teams. I am blessed with ten people who have committed to pray for me daily and I truly believe they have been instrumental in God's work through the ministry in which I engage. Byun, in his concluding chapter quotes Deuteronomy 4:7 which says, "What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him?" He observes that while God is always present, there is a special way he is present to people when we pray for them. I know I need this, and I know those who pastor our churches need this. Byun's book makes this case and shows us how we may get started.
"I often tell my congregation, “Your prayer support is my life support.” Someone who has been rescued from drowning or is recovering from a serious injury like a gunshot wound may need to be put on life support for a period of time. The injured person doesn’t have the strength to keep going by himself, so he needs the help of something outside of himself in order to allow his body to rest and to be strengthened to health again. In many ways, the pastor is under a wide range of attacks from the enemy. The attacks may come in various forms, such as gossip, criticism, slander, sickness, or even threats. There are days when your pastor feels emotionally burned out, physically exhausted, and spiritually weak. She feels she just can’t go on. These experiences are far too common and come far too frequently. These are the times when pastors need the life support of our prayers to keep them going. You may not know the struggles your pastors face today, but you can know that your prayers will make a difference in their lives" (pp. 22-23).
So writes pastor Eddie Byun in what is both an impassioned plea and practical guide to pray for our pastors. Throughout this book Byun uses both statistics and personal stories to describe the challenges pastors face that leads to so many dropping out of the ministry. He believes that one of the most important things churches can do is to mobilize teams of people to pray for their pastors.
Byun goes on to provide a simple rubric around the acronym PRAYERS to guide those praying for pastors. Each chapter in the book is organized around one letter in the acronym:
Protection: Against temptation, evil, and the enemy and praying through the armor of God (Ephesians 6:14-17).
Rest: For physical, emotional, and spiritual rest, for unhurried times with the Lord, against burnout and for times of refreshing.
Anointing: For growing intimacy with the Lord, greater consecration, and for power to be released in your pastor's life and ministry.
Yielded heart: Daily transformation by the gospel, obedience out of love and gratitude for the cross, trust and obedience, growth in treasuring Christ.
Effectiveness: Wisdom, increased fruitfulness in life and ministry, in people being saved and discipled, and faithfulness to the end.
Righteousness and integrity: A strong foundation in one's life, that all that one does is motivated out of love and honor for Christ.
Strong marriages and families: protection of marriage and family, support in the church to encourage pastor in marriage and family life, and strong discipleship of children with parents who live their faith.
Each chapter fleshes out these themes, provides discussion questions, prayer points, and action plans one may take to form and guide a prayer team. Reading this book challenged me with regard to how much (or little) I pray for my pastor and reminded me of the challenging character of his work as well as how thankful I am for him, and other pastors I've known who faithfully shepherd God's flock.
It also reminded me again how important it is for all of us in ministry to have prayer teams. I am blessed with ten people who have committed to pray for me daily and I truly believe they have been instrumental in God's work through the ministry in which I engage. Byun, in his concluding chapter quotes Deuteronomy 4:7 which says, "What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him?" He observes that while God is always present, there is a special way he is present to people when we pray for them. I know I need this, and I know those who pastor our churches need this. Byun's book makes this case and shows us how we may get started.
October 13, 2026
This is a wonderful book! As a pastor, I wholeheartedly agree with the areas of prayer agreement people can have for their pastors. If ever a pastor needed her support, it is in these present days. Ministry is not easy, but these last days make it even harder. I am so glad the author has written this book.
Inside you will find a guide in each chapter of my pastors need prayer in that area, how to pray for them, and at the end of the book there is guidance on how to make this a study for a small group or make it a proactive part of the church. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in how to pray specifically for their pastor.
Inside you will find a guide in each chapter of my pastors need prayer in that area, how to pray for them, and at the end of the book there is guidance on how to make this a study for a small group or make it a proactive part of the church. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in how to pray specifically for their pastor.
May 29, 2017
This book was easy to read. It gave a lot of scripture to back up the different prayer topic strategies provided. It gave realistic and helpful suggestions for individuals and groups to do/pray for their pastors. I think it was a very inspiring read and I would recommend it to others looking to further the reach of their intercessory.
November 15, 2016
Praying for Pastors was on my heart and God showed me this book
This book is a simple biblical book. Take the time to read it and buy a friend a copy. I started passing one around the church . Read it .
This book is a simple biblical book. Take the time to read it and buy a friend a copy. I started passing one around the church . Read it .
August 25, 2020
We all know we should pray for our pastors. But do we, actually? And do we know what to pray for, exactly? This wonderful little book helps us by giving us concrete things to pray for, and concrete reasons why. From praying for protection, rest, effectiveness in ministry, a close relationship with God, a strong marriage, and more, author Eddie Byun helps us to strengthen our pastors through our prayers. Recommended to anyone who has a pastor, knows a pastor, or just wants to support local community servants.
June 11, 2016
This is a powerful book! Pastors lead the charge against evil in the spiritual warfare we are in today. They need the love, support, and prayers of their congregation to aid them in fighting the battle. We hold pastors in high regard, which often leads some to believe that pastors are supremely spiritual and have no need for our prayers. This could not be further from the truth! Pastors are human, vulnerable to weakness and temptation just like anyone else. The top reasons pastors drop out of ministry are burnout, moral failure, and church conflict. Other factors can include ego, abuse of power, and abandoned doctrine. This book is written for pastors as much as anyone else so that they may watch for warning signs in their own personal lives and in their ministry. I applaud Eddie Byun for writing this much needed book. He states "I am writing this during my sabbatical as a pastor recovering from burnout, but also recovering from some of the spiritual attacks that come with being a shepherd over souls. There is clearly warfare for every pastor who seeks to do the will of God, and each of those pastors is in need of prayer."
This book is divided into sections, using the acronym PRAYERS, designed to help you remember the topics to pray for concerning your pastor - Protection, Rest, Anointing, Yielded Heart, Effectiveness in Ministry, Righteousness and Integrity, Strong Marriages and Families. There are many scriptural examples in the book dealing with intercessory prayer. The author also includes many different studies/surveys that deal with topics such as burnout, moral failure, job satisfaction, and quality of marriage/relationships. The results from most of these studies are astonishing.
The end of each chapter contains discussion questions, prayer points, and an action plan. The discussion points are excellent for individual or group study. The action plans are practical and relevant, and they will help you or your prayer group in your home, church, and community. One thing my church does is to assign two deacons each Sunday to spend time in our prayer room during the worship service to intercede on behalf of our pastor and congregation. This is in addition to our weekly Sunday morning prayer meetings. The action plans in this book contain practical ideas like this that can easily be implemented.
I would recommend this book to all Christians, young and old. It serves as a guide and an important reminder to bathe our pastors in prayer. This book is perfect for small group or entire congregation studies. The appendix contains a section that lays out a plan for a church wide campaign to work through the book. I received this as a free ARC from InterVarsity Press on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This book is divided into sections, using the acronym PRAYERS, designed to help you remember the topics to pray for concerning your pastor - Protection, Rest, Anointing, Yielded Heart, Effectiveness in Ministry, Righteousness and Integrity, Strong Marriages and Families. There are many scriptural examples in the book dealing with intercessory prayer. The author also includes many different studies/surveys that deal with topics such as burnout, moral failure, job satisfaction, and quality of marriage/relationships. The results from most of these studies are astonishing.
The end of each chapter contains discussion questions, prayer points, and an action plan. The discussion points are excellent for individual or group study. The action plans are practical and relevant, and they will help you or your prayer group in your home, church, and community. One thing my church does is to assign two deacons each Sunday to spend time in our prayer room during the worship service to intercede on behalf of our pastor and congregation. This is in addition to our weekly Sunday morning prayer meetings. The action plans in this book contain practical ideas like this that can easily be implemented.
I would recommend this book to all Christians, young and old. It serves as a guide and an important reminder to bathe our pastors in prayer. This book is perfect for small group or entire congregation studies. The appendix contains a section that lays out a plan for a church wide campaign to work through the book. I received this as a free ARC from InterVarsity Press on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 29, 2016
As a pastor, I would love people to read this book and take its recommendations to heart. Mr. Byun is not exaggerating what is going on among pastors in our generation, though it likely will seem that way to readers. To a pastor this will seem like a condensed book of things we need to take seriously, but the target audience is to those we pastor. The subtitle (“How your prayer support is their life support”) suggests exactly what he stayed on subject about throughout.
As a pastor himself he understands the pitfalls, the glass house our families endure, and the physical and spiritual challenges we face. He strengthens his case with timely statistics in a variety of places in his book and they are in many cases shocking. Though some of his suggestions confess we pastor’s own frailties and failures, I feel he has perfectly found the things we most need prayers for.
He suffered some indignities at the hands of some in his last pastorate, but only occasionally fell into self-justification mode. He situation did actually illustrate his point. He accepts the idea of female pastors, which the more conservative of us cannot agree with, but it did not affect the overall tenor of this fine book.
Concise enough to encourage wide readership, this volume strikes at a real need. My prayer is that it will accomplish its goals.
I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
As a pastor himself he understands the pitfalls, the glass house our families endure, and the physical and spiritual challenges we face. He strengthens his case with timely statistics in a variety of places in his book and they are in many cases shocking. Though some of his suggestions confess we pastor’s own frailties and failures, I feel he has perfectly found the things we most need prayers for.
He suffered some indignities at the hands of some in his last pastorate, but only occasionally fell into self-justification mode. He situation did actually illustrate his point. He accepts the idea of female pastors, which the more conservative of us cannot agree with, but it did not affect the overall tenor of this fine book.
Concise enough to encourage wide readership, this volume strikes at a real need. My prayer is that it will accomplish its goals.
I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
October 26, 2016
A solid book on a very important topic. Pastors certainly do need more prayer and support from their members. I appreciated the statistics and surveys about pastors and their spouses. There are certainly far too many discouraged preachers. This book is helpful in bringing up specific ways to pray for your pastor rather than just a generic, "Lord, bless my pastor." I do take issue with a few parts of this book. Eddie Byun accepts women pastors. He also sometimes seems to have a slightly mystical view of how prayer works. For example, he recommends that, during each sermon, a prayer team should be praying for the pastor. Why not pray for the preaching beforehand and then listen to the message with prepared hearts? Overall, though, this is a helpful and challenging book. I know that it encouraged me personally to pray for my pastor more.
I received a digital copy of this book for free from the publisher and was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I express in this review are entirely my own.
I received a digital copy of this book for free from the publisher and was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I express in this review are entirely my own.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews