A Prayer for People Like You

This episode dives into the depth and purpose of the Book of Romans—a powerful, systematic revelation of the gospel. Paul shifts from preaching to teaching, unpacking sin, grace, salvation, and what it truly means to live transformed.

At the center of this episode is a simple but weighty prayer:
 “My heart’s desire and prayer to God… is that they might be saved.”

Paul’s burden wasn’t theoretical—it was personal. He prayed for people just like him. People who had zeal, but lacked truth. People who were close… but not surrendered.

This episode challenges us to rethink prayer—not as routine, but as responsibility. What if your past wasn’t random? What if everything you’ve been through positioned you to intercede for someone else?

Instead of judging people stuck where you used to be, this episode calls you to pray for them.

Because someone prayed for you.
 And now… it’s your turn.

🔥 Prayer isn’t just personal—it’s generational.
 🔥 Your testimony is someone else’s breakthrough.
 🔥 God saves through people who care enough to pray.

#PRESSMovement #PrayerChangesThings #PrayForTheLost #FaithInAction #KingdomMindset #Romans1 #SpiritualGrowth #Intercession #ChristianPodcast #PrayerLife

Follow us on Facebook or Instagram or enjoy our blogs and even more episodes at www.presstopray.com!

Transcript

Press means to apply force when God said press prayer reaches every single situation He gave us permission to apply force to every situation that we will go through And in this podcast we are going to learn to apply force to what's applying pressure to us Is everybody welcome to the press movement podcast and to the book of romans? We are in a new book today. This is the only prayer we're going to cover from the book of romans And I know I cannot do it justice in these next few moments. So i'm going to tell you dive into this book There is a reason it was written One of the bible dictionaries I like to use is called easton's bible dictionary And it records this epistle is peculiar in this that it is a systematic exposition of the gospel of universal application In other words, this book is different. 

Paul is not just preaching He is now teaching and instructing The saints as he calls them in romans one that are at rome He is laying out for them the gospel and really expounding upon it going into great depth about sin grace salvation And really covenant with god He also hits another great number of topics as to how they should treat one another and love one another later in the book But as we look at the book of romans people suppose that it was written from corinth to the church that is at rome What you do see about the book of romans is how much paul loved the people he wrote it to for you find the story Behind paul getting to rome actually in the book of acts For those of you who do not know or may not remember us mentioning in previous podcasts The book of acts is estimated to cover about 30 years So you really get to see the beginnings of many of the churches that paul will later write to rome being one of them History says that paul wrote the book of romans from corinth Had the pleasure of being in corinth a couple times now but learning of its ambience and how people Were really acting then and the kind of city it was it wouldn't have been a city of great integrity It was a place where we would look and say oh, wow, they're off the hook. They had prostitutes in the temple People were traders and fishermen and so they would just come in for a short time hook up leave It was kind of an anything goes environment But that is where paul gets the word to send to rome As I said paul always had a heart for the romans And he writes that he greatly desired to be with them. He says that repeatedly through the book of romans He mentions it in romans 9 and 2 as well as romans 1 and 9. But like I said, you see it in acts for in acts 19 You see the word of the lord greatly prevailing greatly growing But the bible says in verse 21 that paul practiced in the spirit When he had passed through macedonia and acacia to go to jerusalem saying after i've been there I must also see rome. 

He made it a point a number of times to say I have to get to rome I have to it would be in acts 21 though when paul and his company departed and they came to cicero that they enter into the house of philip the evangelist and While they're there there came from judea a prophet named agabus This is actually the second time you see the prophet agabus in the book of acts But this time he takes paul's girdle and he binds his hands and feet and he says in verse 11 of acts 21 Thus saith the holy ghost so shall the jews at jerusalem find the man that owned this girdle I shall deliver him into the hands of the gentiles This was speaking of the way paul would end up in rome But paul didn't care he knew he had to go the people were begging him do not go to jerusalem do not go But paul's answer to them was what mean ye to weep and break my heart I'm ready not to be bound only but also to die at jerusalem for the name of the lord Jesus and when he would not be persuaded we see saying the will of the lord be done He ended up not dying at jerusalem For the lord would then still send him via jerusalem to rome the bible says That even though He had to stand before the council and found himself arrested in jerusalem In the middle of the night in verse 11 of acts 23 The lord came to him and said be of good cheer paul for as thou has testified of me in jerusalem So must thou bear witness also at rome So in other words, he had a burden for rome and then he knew he was going to be sent to rome But he did not fear rome rome is a place he had prayed for he had waited for he was seeking god for He loved the saints that were there and as he writes to them It is out of this place that he writes and paul writes a number of great things that are to be remembered Out of the book of romans. He teaches us about grace. You see that word grace so many times in the book of romans I did not even try to count them all but i'd estimate about 20 times Teaches them that grace is a free gift in romans 5 15 But not as the offense so also is the free gift He says for if through the offense of one many be dead Much more the grace of god and the gift by grace, which is by one man Jesus christ hath abounded unto many what cost you was sin He lets them know what gives you freedom is grace and grace Doesn't have the cost attached to it that sin and the offense had he goes on to say In romans 6 what shall we say then if we have access to this thing? What do we say shall we continue in sin that grace may abound he said god forbid He goes on to let them know you don't take advantage of god's grace you join into it He talks to them then about baptism not saying because we have grace. 

There's no action to now be taken No, because we have grace we can take this next action that paul describes He said no ye not that so many of us as were baptized into jesus christ were baptized into his death Realize this this is the same conversation about grace the free gift we Those that put the bible together added chapters and verses and I greatly appreciate that but this was a letter Paul's not changing subjects. Paul's not negating himself. Paul's not saying hey if you got grace you got enough He's saying no grace was enough to get us to the place where we had choice And we have a choice to now die out to sin because we have this free gift of grace But now we have to be freed from sin and the way to be free from sin is to die out We have to die out By taking part in his death the bible says therefore We are buried with him by baptism into death that like as christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the father Even so we also should walk in newness of life For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection Knowing this that our old man is crucified with him that the body of sin might be destroyed that henceforth We should not serve sin for he that is dead is freed from sin In other words the only way out of sin and paul preaches against sin. 

He starts it in romans 1 He talks to them about not being ashamed of the gospel of jesus christ He talks to them about those that god has given over to a reprobate mind the unrighteous They're in fornication. They're in weakness. They're in covetousness. 

They're maliciousness full of envy murder debate deceit malignity whispers backbiters haters of god despiteful proud boasters inventors of evil things disobedient to parents without understanding covenant breakers without natural affection implacable Unmerciful paul goes in paul is not for sin at all But he doesn't leave it at just grace grace was the way to escape But you taking that way out and going through the open door is the baptism and he lets them know That you can die out to sin That he understands the war that was in the flesh He says in romans 7 18 for I know that in me that is in my flesh Well, it's no good thing for to will is present with me but how to perform that which is good I find not He's talking as the one who had not died out yet. He's saying in my humanity. I'm no good I can't do it by myself I wanted to do well and couldn't do it. 

I didn't have the power to overcome but as he expounds upon that thought from romans 7 18 he keeps talking to us through romans 8 and he says hold on but there is therefore now No condemnation to them which are in christ jesus who walk not after the flesh But after the spirit so in my flesh is no good thing, but that's not how i'm walking That's not what i'm following I may have to war with myself to be saved but myself is not going to make the decisions as to how I act That is what paul is saying He's teaching them how to live holy that they don't have to fall to sin Romans 8 15 they've not received the spirit of bondage again to fear But they have the spirit of adoption whereby we cry abba father You have a father who will fight for you now As paul's writing to them. He says in romans 9 too I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my hearts For I could wish that myself were cursed from christ for my brethren my kinsmen according to the flesh now He's talking about the jews. He's talking about his bloodline who are israelites to him pertain with the adoption This belongs to them and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the law and the service of god and the promises Whose are the fathers and of whom as concerning the flesh christ came who is over all god blessed forever. 

Amen He's saying I Have a burden in my soul for the people just like me. I know god came for them I know god wants to save them. I know they have an essence of who he is I can imagine having that burden because I know that some of you can identify when you see somebody who's trapped in What you were brought out of there should be a natural compassion that comes about Understanding. 

I know how you got stuck here But those are the people you are often assigned to pray for not to judge not to look down on but to say god I remember Those are my kinsmen in the spirit And it's here and from here that paul will pray in romans 10 and 1 We don't see the words. He says we see the burden he carries He writes to them brother my heart's desire and prayer to god for israel is that they might be saved For I bear them record that they have a zeal of god, but not according to knowledge For they being ignorant of god's righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of god In other words, I am proof That they want god to an extent but they don't know him They think they know but they don't know and he let it be placed upon his heart to pray god save them By any means necessary just save them We were at a church and when I say we i'm talking about the press movement I'm blessed to travel with the young people who take part in the press and we do press conferences And the last one we were at the lord allowed me to start it differently Because on the bus as we were traveling there to do this conference with other young people I gave my young people the assignment to pray for the ones They would encounter that are just like them or pray for the ones who would be there that are just like them They're just like you I told them before you found him before you knew him before he healed you And when we got to the church, I actually asked some of them to share then who they were praying for What did that make you say? I must say to you that that was probably the greatest move of compassion We had seen at a press conference we started it in tears because as they began to share I'm praying for the one who feels abandoned. I'm praying for the one who feels confused because I was confused I'm praying for the one who does not have The parents they need because I did not have the parents. 

I thought I needed i'm praying for the ones who feel invisible Because I felt invisible the lord just began to move in the place even before we started the conference officially Could it be that everything we are and have been is to drive us to the place where god can keep going Through our testimony to deliver somebody and save somebody just like us Could it be that everything we've been through even who we are to our very nature is not an accident But a catalyst for how we're to pursue god how we're to serve and how we're to pray That's what paul was saying here He's praying for everybody who's just like him that they might get what he got He wanted them to be saved. He didn't even get into the details of their lives to save them I challenge you pray for somebody today who's just like you were Before you were saved and if you're listening to this and you say I still need prayer Guess what? That means somebody's praying for you because god has enough proof among his people that he can save us from anything Sometimes we feel so unique and we think it's just us And you look around and you don't see where anybody's been going through what you've been going through But I guarantee you god has done this before and that somebody's praying for you today Even if they don't know you and we know that when we pray god hears us because prayer reaches every single situation Join the movement join the community like share and subscribe to this podcast Visit us at press to pray.com or find us on instagram or facebook Did you know that when you are quiet your voice is missing to god's ears I know some of us have prayed and we're wondering how long should I pray about this? Why should I pray if god already knows how will I know god is answering? And what do I do when I feel like god's not listening, but god is listening for your voice It's too quiet in this world for the troubles we have You have to raise your voice and god wants to hear from you It's too quiet a book about prayer is designed to answer your prayer questions and build your faith visit press to pray.com