What Would Happen If We Prayed For Our Ancestors?

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Sometimes I feel the Holy Spirit urging me, commanding me to pray for people who have already passed on. I’ve begun to wonder why...

Romans 8:26 (ESV)

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness.

For we do not know what to pray for as we ought,

but the Spirit, Himself intervenes for us with groanings too deep for words.

We always hear stories of our ancestors praying for their unborn descendants, and most believe their prayers are effective. So, why can’t it work in vice versa—our prayers gently shaping their lives for the better?

What would happen if we prayed for our ancestors?

Ephesians 6:18 (NIV)

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.

With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

What “ancestor "means to me:

Many definitions I’ve come across explain that an ancestor is a person in your lineage, more so starting with a great-grandparent.

In my opinion, an ancestor is anyone you’ve descended from or any wise soul that has poured their love and life teachings into you. This could be direct or indirect.

For example, an ancestor could be a mother, father, step-parent, non-related person who selflessly stepped in for your biological family member/s, or even a dynamic community leader whose racial and cultural identity closely matches yours.

Similar beliefs with different purposes:

While researching information to support this idea, I came across a couple of beliefs that agree that we should pray for our ancestors. However, their reasonings differed from mine. Here's a couple of them:

• Pray for our ancestors to give them the strength they need to reach their descendants.

• Pray for our ancestors so that they can transition smoothly to Heaven or to the afterlife/next life.

Opposing Views:

On the other hand, many Christians stand in confidence that our prayers do nothing for the dead. After discovering Bible scriptures that may challenge this notion, I started to think about this topic from a more abstract, out-of-the-box lens.

Clarity on my angle:

Should we pray for our ancestors, as if they are currently flesh and blood on this earth? Maybe God moving and speaking through us could shift the outcomes of their lives. This could potentially increase their overall well-being in the timelines they were appointed to on earth.

2 Corinthians 1:8-11 (NLT)

We think you ought to know, dear brothers and sisters,

about the trouble we went through in the province of Asia.

We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure,

and we thought we would never live through it.

In fact, we expected to die.

Bus as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely only on God,

who raises the dead.

And He did rescue us from mortal danger, and He will rescue us again.

We have placed our confidence in Him,

and you are helping us by praying for us.

Then many people will give thanks because God has graciously answered so many prayers for our safety.

I’m not saying these prayers could change fate, as it has already played out, but what if God has already taken into account each and every prayer made on our ancestors' behalf? And, what if He deposited them before they fully existed? And, what if whatever has occurred in their individual timelines occurred as a result of our prayers?

If this is true, this would mean that spirituality and faith transcend time and space.

2 Peter 3:8 (ESV)

But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

How could our prayers help our ancestors?

Think about these scenarios in your ancestors' appropriate periods and lands. These are basic plots, but hopefully, they'll assist you in grasping this concept I feel is worth exploring...

• Ancestor #1 is enduring challenging times and is ready to give up, but they miraculously get a boost of hope, courage, and faith to keep fighting.

• Ancestor #2 is tempted to make a decision that will negatively impact their present and future livelihood, but they supernaturally summon their spirit man to suppress their flesh.

• Ancestor #3 has doubts about Christ, but suddenly, the Lord reveals Himself to him/her in an undeniable way. At last, they believe.

2 Corinthians 3:17 (NIV)

Now the Lord is the Spirit,

and where the Spirit of the Lord is,

there is freedom.

Pray With me:

His word instructs us to pray fervently and reveals that our stories were written before our existence in human form.

Psalm 139:16 (NLT)

You saw me before I was born.

Every day of my life was recorded in Your book.

Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.

Acts 17:26 (NIV)

From one man He made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth;

and He marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.

Wouldn’t that mean that He hears our prayers before they are ever spoken? And, just when we need these treasures the most, they cascade from the Heavens to power us through the burdens of this world.

Revelation 8:3-4 (NLT)

Then another angel with a gold incense burner came and stood at the altar.

And a great amount of incense was given to him to mix with the prayers of God’s people as an offering on the gold altar before the throne.

The smoke of the incense, mixed with the prayers of God’s holy people, ascended to God from the altar where the angel had poured them out.

Why not consider asking the Holy spirit to come upon you—to speak and act through you? Over time, He will begin to rise within you with ease... in the oddest but most crucial moments.

Please study the scriptures found throughout this article. If you’d like to pledge to Write To The Root with us, share your thoughts on this subject.

Tell us, are prayers unbounded by clocks and calendars?

Hebrews 4:12 (ESV)

For the word of God is living and active,

sharper than any two-edged sword,

piercing the division of soul and of spirit,

of joints and of marrow,

and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.