"I'll pray for you..."

So here's what I'm thinking about this week...in just about every Christian church, at Bible studies, and at similar gatherings, folks usually have prayer requests that they pass along to their fellow Christians. The idea seems to be to get as many people praying for their need or concern as possible. Why? Does God value the prayer of many over the prayer of one? Certainly not.  Here's one place where this idea comes from:

Matthew 18:19-20 (ESV) says: "Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

When read in the context of the rest of Matthew 18, however, we see that this is actually about decisions made with regard to church discipline (I would encourage you to read it over). The true value of "corporate" prayer is that when we do it, we share each others' burdens. We support each other, and look after each other. We draw closer together, and closer to God. Note Acts 2:42, which talks about the first gatherings of the early church:

"And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers."

There is nothing "magical" about praying as a group for the same thing which helps to ensure a positive response. The point is that we serve Him best by serving others. By all means, pray corporately, but remember that your individual prayer has just as much value.