Studying the Gospel, you can see that Jesus Christ on earth was constantly surrounded by people who needed His support and help. The Lord saw an endless series of sufferings: the blind, the lame, the demon-possessed, the lepers, suffering from other secret and obvious ailments, asked Him for salvation. Jesus never refused to help anyone. Thanks to numerous miracles, everyone could be convinced that He is the Messiah sent by God, called to save mankind. Christ healed human souls, and only the love of God can do this.
Prayer by agreement
In the Gospel of Matthew, you can read the following lines: “… I tell you that if two of you on earth agree to ask for any deed, then whatever they ask, it will be from My Heavenly Father, for where two or three gathered in my name, there I am in the midst of them.” These words were spoken by the Savior, addressing all people. Konstantin Rovinsky, a priest of the 20th century, interprets these lines as a direct instruction to believers who have suffered misfortune to earnestly pray to God together with others. The archpriest believes that prayer by agreement is especially relevant today, when the faith of many people needs to be strengthened, and the opportunity to pray for someone from the heart allows everyone to show selfless love andcompassion for one's neighbor.
Miracle in St. Abraham's Church
In the late 90s, the parish of St. Martyr Abraham of Bulgaria was in a deplorable state. The temple was on the verge of ruin, there was nothing to pay even utility bills. Then Vladimir Golovin, the rector, had an idea to make the general church prayer more effective. On Fridays, they began to celebrate the Liturgy in the temple (there was no Divine service on this day of the week earlier). Parishioners could take communion, confess, and pray specifically for the needs of the church. After the Liturgy, the believers jointly read the Akathist to the patron saint of the parish, Abraham of Bulgaria, hoping for his help and support. After a while, miracles began to happen in the temple. The miraculous self-washing of icons began, myrrh-streaming and a pleasant fragrance from them appeared, after which pilgrims began to actively visit St. Abraham's parish. Prayer according to the agreement of Vladimir Golovin has gained great popularity, and the cathedral service has become a special affair of the temple.
Reading akathists
Since 2004, akathists have been read in St. Abraham's Church, which are one of the forms of prayer by agreement. Each service is performed on a certain day and hour, its purpose is specified in advance. A person who has decided to regularly read a prayer by agreement signs up for it and knows that wherever he says it, other believers will simultaneously ask for the same with him. And most importantly, at the same time, all of them will be worshiped in the church. Around the worldalready about 300,000 people pray together with St. Abraham's Church. Vladimir Golovin claims that prayer by agreement is an evangelical, age-old, special form of church worship, commanded by the Lord, so that each person can share their problems with Him.
Requests for little things
A short prayer by agreement includes the specific urgent problem of each. The request for daily bread seems to be insignificant in itself, but without food a person cannot live, do good. Therefore, we ask for a specific case for the sake of more essential things. Seraphim of Sarov argued that the main goal of the life of every believer is the acquisition of the Holy Spirit, and how he will achieve virtue depends on the person himself, his preferences and abilities.
Many have the question of whether it is possible to disturb God over trifles. Let's say a person wants a TV set with a DVD or a new bicycle, can he really ask Him for such an insignificant issue? Prayer by agreement may include such moments. Moreover, it is necessary to pray for every little thing, since God is so great that for him there are no trifles in the life of a believer. John Chrysostom even welcomed frequent prayers that protect the life of any person from sins and temptations, ennoble simple worldly affairs with pious thoughts.
Some little things matter
Reverend Ambrose of Optina told an interesting incident from his life. One day he was talking toparishioners about spiritual life. In the midst of the conversation, he suddenly turned his attention to the old peasant woman. The woman had completely different pressing problems, she talked about how to properly feed the turkeys. Ambrose had a long and enthusiastic conversation with her on this topic, and then he was accused of digressing from the conversation about God for the sake of the petty difficulties of an illiterate peasant woman. The reverend replied that for many, spiritual conversation is a luxury that they can afford at any time, but for an elderly woman, her turkeys are a matter of life and death.
So, praying for something simple but crucial in a person's life is much more important than speaking big words about what can wait. And not because the Lord is secondary, but because He is love. If the whole life of a person consists in a specific problem, then you need to support him, pray with him for this trifle. After all, what is prayer by agreement? This is when several hearts suffer the same pain.
Prayer is joy for the Almighty
Often a person crosses the threshold of a temple with a specific purpose. Prayer for him is the last resort when all other methods have already been tried. But even in this case, God feels joy from the fact that a person turned to him with a request, which means that he felt the need to communicate with Him.
The Gospel of Matthew tells that when the Lord was traveling through Jericho, two blind men turned to him with a request to heal them. Jesus touched people's eyes. They are herebut they received their sight and went after him. Thus, Christ not only restored people's eyesight, but also instilled in them a view of things. They received new values, a different life. So, he healed these people not only bodies, but also souls.
Happiness is in the process of prayer
Orthodox prayers must be said with sincere love and faith in the Almighty. Whatever the request - for the bride or groom, for the sick, for receiving additional income, for the upcoming journey, you need to pray in such a way as to receive joy from every word. “Seek first the Kingdom of God, and the rest will be added to you,” says the Lord. This means that you need to learn how to be happy in Christ, and then there will certainly be a person who is ready to share this joy with you.
For example, one believer has been looking for a bride for many years. In his opinion, one of the ways to achieve the cherished goal is prayer by agreement. How to read such a service, where to find the right words? For this person, the bride is a topic for the innermost prayer of the heart, which he can share only with the closest people. He enjoys the very process of achieving the goal. It turns out that the tactical goal of his request-prayer is a life partner, and the strategic goal is to be happy in his union with God.
When a request is not fulfilled
God's providence is not always consistent with our aspirations and hopes. Prayer by agreement, the text of which contains the words “But both, not as we want, but as You. Thy will be done forever,” implies that notall the wishes of the asker can be fulfilled. If a person received what he asked, it is from God, if he did not receive it, then, again, according to the understanding of the Almighty. We must humble ourselves and continue on our way, trusting in the mercy of the Higher powers.
F. M. Dostoevsky brilliantly wrote about his bitter experience of four years of hard labor: “Just think - grief; take a closer look - the will of the Lord. Orthodox prayers are read with hope and humility. Every believer understands that God's will is not always comprehensible. But God always gives a person what he really needs.
The path to harmony
If you carefully read the prayer by agreement, you will notice that these are words about harmony between man and God, about the combination of God's will with our desires: “Your words are immutable, Lord, Your mercy is unapplied and Your love for mankind has no end. For this sake, we pray to You: grant us, Your servants (names), who agreed to ask You (request), the fulfillment of our petition. But both not as we want, but as You. May Your will be done forever. Amen.”
The Lord wants us to live in peace and love each other, because His life in us is first and foremost love. Wherever people gather together in the Name of God, people look at the same things differently, but in the same direction, and pray to the Almighty for help in living in peace, and for consent on this path.
Everyone has their own experience of grace and sin. Each was fallen while his neighbor was standing, the next day the situation could be just the opposite. However, only in harmony and love, even with those who trustanswers with betrayal, the sacrament of comprehension of this experience takes place.
A parable of forgiveness
After the parable of the lost sheep and instructions on how to look for a person who has turned away from you, Christ says the words “Where two or three are gathered in My Name, there I am in the midst of them”, which became the rationale for prayer by agreement. In this context, the Lord teaches us, people close to a lost person, to pray for his salvation. He argues that the measure of forgiveness is limitless. “I do not tell you up to seven, but up to seventy times seven,” Christ answers the question of the Apostle Peter about how much you can forgive a person. The words of the Almighty can be understood as follows: if you put Me as the first foundation of love for your neighbor, then I will always be by your side.
Absolute love does not tolerate any conditions, it just is and does not depend on external circumstances. It is difficult to find someone who sincerely loves his neighbor for the sake of Christ. However, we must strive for this ideal, and each step along this path is another step that brings us closer to God. Prayer by agreement for a sick person includes sincere grief and concern for a person close to us, for his well-being and he alth: “Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God, You said with Your pure lips: Amen, I say to you that if two more from you are conferring on earth about every thing, even if she asks, it will be ima from my Father. Who is in heaven: where there are two or three gather in my name, that I am in their midst. Thy words are inapplicable, Lord, Thy mercy is unapplied and Thy philanthropy has no end. For this we prayTy: grant us to Your servants (names of those who pray) who agreed to ask You for the grant of healing and he alth to sick servants of yours (names of those who are sick) of the fulfillment of our petition. But both not as we want, but as You. May Your will be done forever. Amen.”
About Ukraine
Joint worship can also be performed on special global occasions. More recently, social networks have spread the message that in connection with the tragic events in the neighboring state, every day at 22.00 Moscow time, a prayer is made for an agreement on Ukraine. The severe trials that have befallen our brothers in faith cannot leave indifferent any Christian, no matter where he is. And now everyone has the opportunity to say the words of a short prayer three times at the same time with other believers, to ask the Lord for peace and harmony for all the inhabitants of Ukraine.
Conclusion
Through our little desires, which we trust in God, we pave our way to the great happiness of harmony with ourselves and the world around us. The Church takes her prayers not only from the Gospel. The book is a source in which everyone finds something suitable for him. Every believer has his own prayer of the heart, through which he feels the love of the Lord. Today there are prayers in Russian. They allow every person who has no experience in turning to God to take the first step towards faith.
Prayer by agreement is not just a request for the fulfillment of some vain desires. A person sympathizes with someone, prays with his neighbor forhis worries, and at the same time feels the same love and self-pity. So, on a global scale, joint prayer is a request for the consent of all people in Christ and each individual person with God, so that peace and harmony reign in our sinful Universe.
