prayer
Athletics - Prayer Team

Why should we pray for athletes and teams? Here are some thoughts from the Bible:

  • “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective”. -James 5:16

  • “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” -James 4:3

  • “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.” - James 1:5  

And some thoughts from other helpful resources:

  • “Reformed theology has consistently insisted on the importance and effectiveness of prayer. God made us and redeemed us in order that we might have fellowship with him, and that is what prayer is—fellowship with God. . . . There is no tension or inconsistency between the reality that God is sovereign over all things and the fact that prayer is effective. Just as God has ordained eating as a means by which hunger may be satisfied, so he has ordained prayer as a means by which events may come to pass.”
    —Spirit of the Reformation Bible (page 1554)

  • There are six possible reasons athletes utilize religious prayer: prayer as a coping mechanism for uncertain stressful situations; to help live a morally sound life; to sanctify athletes' commitment to sport; to put sport into perspective; to establish a strong bond of attachment between teammates; and to maintain social control.
    —Coakley, J.J. (2003). Sport in society (8th Ed.). Boston: Irwin McGraw-Hill.

  • “I challenge you to shift the focus of your prayer. Don’t spend a lot of time describing your mountain to the Lord. He knows what it is. Instead, focus your attention on the mountain mover—his glory, power and faithfulness. Then start walking in faith, following his leading, and watch that mountain step aside.”
    —Hybels, Bill. (1998). Too busy not to pray. Downers Grove, Illinois.

With those thoughts, here are some prayer ideas for our teams and athletes:

1) Focus on God’s glory, power, and faithfulness.

2) Give thanks for the gift of athletics, the competition, and the relationships.

3) Ask for forgiveness when we do not act as Christ would—both in relationships and in competition.

4) Provide courage to tackle challenges and do it in a God-honoring way.

5) Help us be focused on the task to perform to our best.

6) Assist us in keeping sport in perspective and handle winning/losing with grace.

7) Help us live a morally sound life, winning others over to Christ through our actions and words.