Praying for those who do not yet personally know Him

• Remember that God has already paid the purchase for this person’s redemption, claim it in the name of Jesus and on the basis of His shed blood. “In Him we have redemption through His blood” (Eph. 1:7, NASB).
• Remember that this person has been taken captive by the enemy through things like false doctrine, unbelief, or other teaching that the enemy may have built up in a person’s life. Pray for his thoughts to be taken “captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:5, NASB)
• Pray that the Holy Spirit will convict him of his sin and his need for a Savior. “The kindness of God leads you to repentance” (Rom. 2:4, NASB)
• Pray that the person’s heart will be opened and he or she will hear, receive, or read God’s Word and that God’s will and purposes may be accomplished through Scripture. “So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire” (Isa. 55:11, NASB).
• Pray that the person’s heart will be softened, eyes will be opened and ears unstopped so that the truth is heard. “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” (2Cor. 4:3-4, NASB).
• Pray with consistency and perseverance, not to persuade God but because of the resistance of the enemy. Read Daniel 10:12-13. “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58, NASB)
• Thank God for making us more than conquerors. “But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.” (Rom. 8:37, NASB). “Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor. 15:57).
• The key is for the lost person’s heart to be changed by the saving power of Christ. Someone has said that the acrostic HEART will help one remember what to pray.Pray for them to have God’s attitude toward sin. “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment” (John 16:8, NASB).
  • Pray for receptive HEARTS (see Luke 8:5, 12)
  • Pray for their spiritual EYES to be open (see Matt. 13:15; 2 Cor. 4:3-4).
  • Pray for God’s ATTITUDE toward sin (see John 16:8).
  • Pray the person to be RELEASED to believe (see 2 Cor. 10:3-4; 2 Tim. 2:25-26).
  • Pray for a TRANSFORMING life (see Rom. 12:1-2).
• Ask God for an opportunity to invite them to an opportunity to encounter Him as a part of a group. “. . . ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled.’” (Luke 14:23, NASB)