God hears our prayers and responds with his goodness every time we pray to him. So let’s pray with faith that God will hear the specific requests. Let’s pray expecting God to respond for our good and his glory.
The Lord Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Who among you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him” (Matt 7.7-11).
Here are 30 ways you can pray for your local church family (from How to Build a Healthy Church by Mark Dever and Paul Alexander, pp. 230-231):
That we would preserve our unity even in diversity as a witness to the gospel's uniting power (Eph 4:2)
For a local revival of godly sorrow, conviction, and spiritual interest in the Bible.
That God would create a new local appetite for expository preaching of the Bible
for good fruit from the regular preaching of God's Word in the local church.
That all members would look out for each other's interests (Phil 2:5-7)
That elders would equip the saints for the work of ministry (Eph 4:11-12)
That members would be faithful to disciple, build a culture of discipleship, and see discipling as part of what it means to be a Christian (Matt 28:18-20; 2 Tim 2:2)
For growth in the church's ability to encourage and counsel one another from Scripture toward Jesus
That established members would be hospitable to newer members, church guests, and those different from themselves
that the church would welcome political, economic, social, and ethnic diversity as God gives it
for growth in personal holiness, love, and faithfulness
for Christ to be honored in work and that we would commend the gospel to others in our words and conduct during the week
That the congregation would in prioritizing attendance at the public meetings of the church
for growing maturity in giving and recieving godly criticism and encouragement
for the children of members to become obedient to their parents in the Lord
that the church's reach for the gospel would broaden to more people, peoples, and places
for growth in a gracious and patient attitude toward those who disagree with us
that God would give the congregation more good purposes to spread the gospel and do good (2 Thess 1.11)
for growing faithfulness and fruitfulness in private Bible meditation and reading
for growing faithfulness in private prayer for each other
for God to deepen the congregation's relationships with each other to center on encouragement, confession, and gospel ministry
for maturity in being slow to take offense and quick to receive correction
that the elders would watch their life and doctrine closely (1 Tim 4:16)
that the congregation would bear fruit in every way and increase in the knowledge of God with gratitude and endurance (Col 1:9-12)
for growth in a shared heart for personal, local evangelism (Acts 8:4)
for growth in a shared heart for international missions and that the Lord would raise up more workers for his harvest (Matt 9.38, Acts 1.8)
for fruitful Bible-reading friendships between us and our non-Christian friends
that God would raise up additional qualified elders, preachers, evangelists, and deacons among us (Acts 13:1-3)
for good fruit from the ministries of the elders and deacons
Pray for good fruit from the men’s and women’s discipling relationships in the church.