Wholeness prayer is a biblically-based transformational ministry – a powerful and easily multipliable tool for personal restoration and discipleship. Its focus is on bringing emotional and spiritual healing, freedom and perspective for those struggling with a particular area of concern or challenge. Since during wholeness prayer the work of spoken prayer is largely done by the facilitator, the recipient is able to focus on listening and responding. Through such an arrangement God often breaks through and brings life-giving perspective. This prayer approach can be learned by believers in Christ and does not require a particular giftedness. Related types of prayer are inner healing and listening prayer.
Five main steps involved in basic wholeness prayer are:
- Recognize: Identify (take captive) your negative feelings, thoughts, and actions.
- Recent: Bring these to God and ask Him to reveal a related recent memory.
- Root: Ask God to reveal any root(s) – the first time (or pattern) when you thought, felt, and/or acted this way.
- Receive: Receive His perspective – first at the root, if there is one.
- Renew: Apply this perspective in everyday life.
If we don’t have joy, or if we have unhealthy thoughts or are acting in unhealthy ways, these are signs that there is something for us to take captive and pray through.
Wholeness prayer has helped many people experience spiritual and emotional victory in areas such as:
- finding the way back to joy from negative emotions (such as fear and shame)
- forgiving those they’ve long struggled to forgive
- experiencing victory over long-held patterns of sin
- feeling empowered instead of disempowered
- replacing unhealthy patterns (of thought and action) with healthy patterns
- overcoming depression
- finding lasting release from hurt and pain.
Wholeness prayer helps people grow:
- in loving God, hearing His voice, and partnering with Him
- in joyful obedience and holiness
- in loving others
- in healthy relationship with others.