‘Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.’ Hebrews 10:24

This week we hear from Mickey Mantle, about why he thinks it’s a good idea for little groups to meet together to pray.

It is striking how insistent the writer to the Hebrews is about the need to meet others with the intention of stirring each other up to love and live like Jesus. One form of this intentional ‘meeting up to stir up’ is to meet regularly as three friends to pray: a ‘prayer triplet’ (or ‘prayer pair’, or ‘prayer square’).

The prayer triplet I have been in, for 12 years now, has been a huge source of encouragement and help to me! It’s something I’d really recommend doing. Here are some tips from my experience that might give you some ideas about how to get a prayer triplet going and how to make the most of it…

Who to ask?

Ask some Christian friends of the same sex, at a similar stage of life and Christian maturity. These factors help honest sharing, challenge and encouragement. Think carefully about people who you feel you will (or over time will) be able to be honest with. It’s a good idea to ask people who you are able to meet relatively easily - others in your RML group might be a good start!

What’s the format?

There are no strict rules. Two essential ingredients are time to share news and time to pray for each other about that news. Confidentiality within the group is crucial, without that it’s impossible for people to be really honest.

In my prayer triplet, we’ve found having someone note prayer points down and send them around is useful. It means we can pray for each other between catch-ups; it means we see (wonderfully!) answers to prayer; and it helps us ask each other about issues we’ve previously prayed about. As you get to know each other better over time, you’ll better know how to encourage and challenge each other when needed. We’ve also tried to sometimes include some ‘fun time’ (e.g. walk, sport, lunch) before we get down to ‘business’. We don’t do it every time, but spending time getting to know each other well, has helped build meaningful relationships.

How often should you meet?

Again there are no set rules. Perhaps meeting more frequently as you start out (e.g. fortnightly?) means that you’ll be able to build the level of relationship that will help with honest sharing of prayer needs and help you to pray well for each other. But some triplets choose to meet monthly, or twice termly instead.

So…why not pray for wisdom about who to ask and then go for it?

Image by Flickr user m.e.metcalf used under CC BY-NC-SA 2