10 Reasons Prayerwalking is a Good Strategy for Prayer

“Prayerwalking” is exactly what the word says: intentionally praying while we walk,

particularly in neighborhoods. This approach to prayer caught fire a few decades ago, but my sense is the fire has more recently died out – perhaps because prayerwalking was often connected with spiritual warfare proponents whose theology and activities were sometimes debatable. Recognizing these concerns, however, I still think prayerwalking matters. Here’s why:  

1. Prayerwalking requires church members to get outside the walls of the church.  Far too many churches are so inwardly focused they think about only the people inside their building. It’s tough to reach non-believers if they’re never on our mind—but intentional prayerwalking with a focus on people outside the church can strengthen our spiritual burden for them.  

2. Prayerwalking helps believers see non-believers in a different way. Most of us pass many non-believers as we go to church every weekend without ever considering their spiritual condition. We follow the same pattern all week long, seldom thinking spiritually about our hair stylist, the convenience store clerk, our kids’ teachers, etc. Prayerwalking, though, pushes us to look at people with God’s eyes, seeing them as sheep without a shepherd (Matt 9:36). 

3. Prayerwalking leads people to pray in a focused way. Many believers struggle with prayer because they haven’t been taught how to pray. They don’t know how to start, how to stay focused, or how to end. Good prayerwalking training, though, helps address these issues. We can teach believers what to watch for as they walk and pray, ways to pray in response to what they see, and strategies to keep praying even after the walk has ended.  

4. We can do prayerwalking almost anywhere. Believers can walk through their neighborhoods. Students can walk through their schools. Employees can walk through their place of employment. Shoppers can walk through malls or markets. Church members can walk through communities, focusing on places like other churches, government buildings, schools, hospitals, or places of sin. The problem for us is not a lack of opportunity to walk and pray; it’s a lack of burden and training.  

5. Prayerwalking helps us see things we’ve missed before. Maybe we didn’t see that sign about the mosque to be built on the next street. Perhaps we didn’t read that church flyer about a divorce recovery conference or that “for sale” sign about a home foreclosure. Maybe we saw, but ignored, that homeless shelter, that local bar, or that gang hangout. We might have walked past all the kids’ toys in the yard without thinking about the spiritual upbringing of that next generation. Every one of these “sightings” should drive us to prayer.  

6. Entire families can do prayerwalking. With families so often separated in their church’s age-graded activities, we need ministries that families can do together. Preschoolers can ride in strollers, walk with their parents, or rest in their parent’s arms as their family walks and prays. Older children and teens not only can walk, but they can also pray for others they see who are their age (and, by the way, I’ve sometimes heard kids pray more honest, passionate prayers during a walk than their parents did). On the other end of life stages, senior adults who are mobile can also join their family on this walk.  

7. Families slow life down a bit and sometimes meet neighbors for the first time during prayerwalking. Life is so busy that we often don’t take time to know the people who live around us. We drive past them daily, but we don’t know them. Prayerwalking, on the other hand, requires us to slow down and look around—something we too seldom do in general. My wife and I have learned that simply walking in the neighborhood often leads to conversations, and prayerwalking allows us to intercede quietly and quickly for those with whom we’ve had a conversation. When we actually know our neighbors’ names, we’re more likely to pray for their salvation.  

8. We might pray for someone for whom nobody else is praying as we prayerwalk. It was a missionary who taught me to think this way years ago, but the setting then was quite different. At the time, I was in an atheistic culture where we had a good sense that folks weren’t praying for each other. Even in North America now, though, there are people for whom no one is praying—and in some cases, for whom no one has ever prayed. We may, in fact, be the first person ever to intercede for somebody as we walk past that person. That’s a powerful thought. 

9. Many of us could use the exercise associated with prayerwalking. I realize this reason sounds superficial, but this issue is an important one. God has given us one body, and our taking care of ourselves is a spiritual matter. Walking regularly is one way to steward the gift of our bodies well. For those believers who do take care of themselves and walk regularly, the significance of that walk only grows when we add prayer to the walk. Exercise + intercession make a good combination.  

10. Somebody might, in fact, follow Jesus as a result of prayerwalking. It could indeed happen. As we prayerwalk, our burden for others grows. We get to know others as we walk. Those “getting to know you” conversations might become an open door to relationships that offer opportunities to proclaim the gospel to folks now becoming friends. The gospel is still the power of God unto salvation (Rom 1:16)—and prayerwalking might be a first step toward sharing that message with our neighbors.  

I assume that all of us live within the vicinity of non-believers. If you are physically able, take an intentional walk within the next few days. Pray for people as you see them or pass by them. Stop to talk if an opportunity presents itself. Seek ways to share the gospel—and trust God with the results.