Get Inspired Into Healing

How to Offer Holy Spirit Prayer (with Examples)

The #God category and the #GodStory tag of my website has lots short testimonies about what happens when I offer prayer to people whom I encounter throughout the goings of my day. In this post, I’m sharing exactly how I offer prayer and the prayer-related instructions I provide to those people so that you can do it, too. In fact, I hope you try it and do even better than I have. (Then, make sure to comment about what you’ve discovered so I can learn from you!)

The context for the procedure in this post is that I am usually offering prayer to people who don’t know me well (like acquaintances from my work place) or at all (like strangers on the street). This means I have very little time to pray with them. Thus, it has become important for me to speak in a succinct way that gains trust quickly—because acquaintances and strangers don’t usually like being interrupted for too long.

Step 1. Seek Guidance

When I notice someone at the mall, at a work conference, or in my neighborhood who is hurting in some way, I start by asking God if I am meant to pray for them. (Honestly, sometimes it’s more like, “Do I have to pray for them right now?” Let’s be real: I’m not always up for the job.) If God asks me to pray, then I proceed to step 2. But sometimes, God says no because another is meant to pray for them or they won’t be open to prayer.

Step 2. Inquire with Genuine Curiosity

I approach the hurting person I noticed (whom I will call a “prayer target”) to ask a probing question about their welfare. For example, if the prayer target is using a cane, I ask if his or her body hurts. If the prayer target has a cast on his or her body, I ask what happened. If the prayer target has a troubled demeanor, I ask if something is bothering him or her.

The more genuine I am in my curiosity and desire for their welfare, the more open they are to sharing about their woes. In fact, I am often incredibly surprised at how much people are willing to share with a stranger about what is hurting them physically, emotionally, or spiritually.

Step 3. Resonate with Empathy & Offer Prayer

Once the prayer target shares a bit about his or her discomfort, I empathize and offer prayer, such as, “I’m sorry, that sounds so painful! Sometimes I pray for people and they get healed or feel better. Is it okay if I pray for you right now? Perhaps it’ll work for you, too.”

If the prayer target says, “Sure,” but starts walking away, I clarify that it is usually more effective if we pray for him or her together, in person, right now. (These people are usually acting out of an understanding that prayer is either “done” in some sort of “prayer closet” at night before people go to bed or in a church building with a pastor’s leading. Of course, these cultural norms are nowhere in the Bible.) At this point, some of those people adjust course and are willing to receive prayer right there, but others respond that they prefer I pray for them “on my own”. I translate this as a, “No, I don’t want prayer.” To the latter group, I tell them I will pray for them on my own and wish them a better day. Then, I pray for them right there, after they leave me, so that I am a woman who honors her word.

However, if the prayer target says, “Yes, please!” and waits for more information, I move into step 4.

Step 4. Offer a Faith-building Testimony (Sometimes)

At this point, I usually check in with God to see if I need to offer a faith-building testimony. This is a God story of a similar condition that I have seen or heard of being healed, designed to build the prayer target’s faith that this prayer could work, too. This is always a trade-off: more time talking about prayer means less time actually praying. That’s why God often tells me to skip it, but not always. Only God knows if it is important to do and will help this person be open to receiving supernatural healing.

If God says to build their faith, I keep it short: “You know, I have prayed for three people with a bad back and they all got a significant amount of healing! I’m expecting God will do great things for you, too, just as he did for them!” That takes 10 seconds and they are reminded about the good news that God’s Kingdom still binds up the broken hearted, sets the captive free, and heals the sick. Mission accomplished.

Step 5. Give Pre-prayer Instructions

Then, I go into pre-prayer instructions:

“Let’s find a place that is private enough for you, where you can be in a comfortable position [preferably seated, in case they get overwhelmed by the presence of God]. You don’t pray, I pray. You just receive, like you would a massage or a shower. I will start praying for what you requested. If you feel anything in your body like heat, chills, pain, moving pain, more pain, less pain, feel free to rudely interrupt me to tell me what’s happening. If you get thoughts or pictures popping up in your mind like phrases, scripture, song lyrics, movie scenes, or memories, also rudely interrupt me. If you feel any emotions in your body, don’t try to stop them; just let them pass through you like waves on top of an ocean and then rudely interrupt me. [If they are in my home, I bring a box of tissues and sometimes a small garbage can nearby, in case they want to cry, vomit, or whatever else makes them feel better.] Of course, you can share with me as much or as little as you are comfortable sharing. Whatever you do share will be kept in confidence, and it will help me see what the Holy Spirit wants to do. That way, I can adjust my prayers to line up with the will of God and not the other way around. Are you ready?”

Step 6. Pray Once, Then Check In

I pray for a couple of minutes with my eyes open, watching them, so that I can discern how they are being impacted by the Holy Spirit. I am asking God what he/she is doing the whole time and how I should pray. Then, I check in: “I’m gonna pause to check in before I pray again. Did you feel anything? Hear or see anything? Is there any change in your pain level? Or mobility?” At this point, the change is usually minimal.

Step 7. Pray & Check In Again

I rinse and repeat the prayer and check-in either up to three times without any more change, or until the healing is complete, or the prayer target is no longer willing to receive prayer.

I usually follow the five-step prayer model taught by Randy Clark and Global Awakening. I adjust as I feel the Holy Spirit leading me, sometimes more so into Bethel Sozo inner healing territory. Sometimes, God leads me into somatic therapy techniques, too. Whatever works, I do, because anything that leads people into real healing is from God.

Step 8. Post-Prayer Instructions

If the prayer target doesn’t get healed, I make sure to mention to them that it does not mean they are not loved by God, or God is not willing or able to heal them. “It’s probably because I’m still learning how to pray more effectively,” I state. I encourage them to receive healing prayer again from myself or others: “Sometimes, it takes a few prayers to work, just like it sometimes takes a few trips to the doctor to heal.” Other times, if I hear God say the healing will be progressive, I explain that it may take some time for the healing to show itself, but they should expect it.

I specifically do not say anything like “you must not have enough faith” or “you aren’t able to receive from God” or “God must have given you this torment to draw you closer to him”. That’s all garbage and it’s all demonic accusation. “What if it’s true,” you ask? If I happen to hear from God that, for example, the prayer target is afraid of supernatural things and will need to get more comfortable with the idea of miracles before he or she can experience a miracle, I keep that word of knowledge to myself. The person needs to walk away from this Holy Spirit experience feeling loved and hopeful so that he or she can be more open to receiving the next time. Emotional intelligence is key here.

If someone does get healed, I take time to praise God right there and invite them to do so with me: “The pain is gone? That’s amazing! You just got a miracle!!! Thank you, Father, for loving your son/daughter into wholeness in this area! Isn’t God so good?!” Clapping or hand raising is authorized—lol. 🤣

Then, I often tell them about how to stay healed after prayer. “It’s important that you remember you were healed just now. If any symptoms from before try to creep back in, just yell at them, ‘No! You can’t come back! I am healed!’ Also, know that your being supernaturally healed doesn’t prevent you from getting injured/sick in the same way in the future. It’s just like if you had gotten a natural healing by going to the doctor, you have to guard that healing.”

One of my prayer cards to point people to more resources after receiving healing.

If I have a prayer business card with me (like this one, above), I give it to the person and say, “If you want more specifics, you can go to tenaybenes.com and click on the FAQ ‘How can I stay healed?’ Then, do whatever you feel God leading you to do from that post.”

Phew! That’s it! What are your favorite tips and tricks to minister to others?

3 responses to “How to Offer Holy Spirit Prayer (with Examples)”

  1. […] Receive Miracles from Unexpected Places How to Interpret Visions From God: A Practical Example How to Offer Holy Spirit Prayer (with Examples) How to Do Spiritual Warfare (A Practical Example) How to Meditate with God (with Practical […]

  2. […] a baseball cap and sunglasses indoors. He mentioned that the light was hurting his concussed head. I asked if I could pray for healing over him and he immediately […]

  3. […] gave her my pre-prayer instructions and began to pray for physical wholeness of her lungs. She noted that she felt a “good warmth” […]

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