Basic Training for Altar Prayer
Ministry
1. Prepare your mind and spirit. Relax and enjoy praying for someone. Ask the Holy Spirit for a fresh
anointing to minister through you. Give it to God and enjoy the experience. (Get out of the way and
get God) Take the pressure off of yourself and put it on God—He can handle it. The Bible says,
“Restore to me the joy of your salvation.” No matter how serious a person’s problems are, the joy of
the Lord is their strength. Learn to minister in the Spirit. Let the Spirit make it fresh to you every
time, don’t get mechanical in your methods. Pray for a fresh anointing each time.
2. Wear appropriate attire. Do not to wear shorts when scheduled to pray for people at a service at
Church of the Highlands. Men and women both should wear modest clothing.
3. Smile and greet the person warmly. Smiles are contagious and put people at ease. Don’t be too
much into the music, be available and look people in the eyes as they come forward. Ask for their
name and use it as you talk to them and pray for them. Shake his hand if he is a man. Taking their
hands, whether a man or woman, is a good way to put them at ease and encourage them to come
into agreement with you as you pray. If you are a man, you can touch a woman’s shoulder or arm
only if it is covered. Be aware of praying too close to someone of the opposite sex. In services where
the music is loud, it may be difficult for the person to hear your prayer, but God can hear.
4. Be sensitive to the people you are praying for. Treat them with love and tenderness. They may be
vulnerable and able to be wounded easily. Desire and seek after a baptism of love for your brothers
and sisters. They will open up and receive so much more easily if they sense the presence of love
surrounding them. Ask God to allow you to see them as He sees them. We are conduits for the love
of Jesus. Be sensitive to the working and voice of the Holy Spirit.
5. Ask them how they would like for you to pray for them. Let them talk for a minute, but don’t let
them go on too long. The more they talk about their problem the bigger it gets, and there may be
others waiting to be prayed for. Ask them “what are we praying for today”.
6. Move to prayer for them as soon as it is appropriate. Remember that you are not their solution.
It’s o.k. to say, “I don’t have the answer, but God does.” Don’t counsel; point them to God. As you
pray, use scripture – it will build their faith. God will bring scriptures to your mind that will be the
living word for that person. Bring hope and faith to them through your prayers.
7. Position yourself for ministry: Be sure and keep your eyes open during your prayer time. You want
to be aware of facial expressions, clinched fists, or other body language that indicate what the
person you are praying for is experiencing. Don’t have the person look at you while you are praying
as this can be quite confusing. Stand a bit to the side so you do not have to make eye contact, this
also keeps you from praying directly in the face of the participants. Be alert so that if the person
begins to get weak in their ability to stand, you can steady them.
8. Praying too loud or in the Spirit: Be sensitive to the person you are praying for by not praying so
loud that others can hear. Be careful not to distract the person you are praying for with the volume
of your prayer. Please do not use your prayer language during this time, you do not know where the
person is on his spiritual journey and we do not want to make them or those around you
uncomfortable.
9. Always be aware of the pastor and the worship team. When the worship team begins to wind
down this is your cue to end your prayer ministry. If you feel strongly that the person you are
praying for needs further ministry, locate a pastor or another leader to assist you, if one is available,
move to another location to continue.
10. Send them off with a scripture. Again, the Lord will bring up scriptures as you’re praying. After you
end the prayer, encourage them that you are standing with them and give them the rhema - “now” -
word that God has revealed to you. When you end a time of personal prayer ministry, a hug can be a
very comforting and affirming gesture. Hugs from the side and front hugs (with only contact at the
shoulders) are appropriate. It’s good to hug because we are passing on the love of God. Use hugs,
but don’t force them.
