Praying for your unsaved Loved Ones-Pray without Ceasing

October 7, 2025

Praying for your unsaved Loved Ones-Pray without Ceasing

There is no doubt about it, one of the greatest free gifts that a person can receive is the free gift of salvation. What exactly is salvation? Salvation first takes place when a person understands that they are a sinner and in need of a Savior. It is not something that you can obtain by something that you do (works).

Due to that fact that every human being born after Adam and Eve was born with the sin nature (Psalm 51:5) there is no way for us to pay for our sin debt on our own. That is why the Lord Himself allowed His only Son to come down from His throne in heaven and wrap Himself in flesh (John 1:14) so that He could be the Sacrifice for all of humanity.

What His sacrifice did on the cross at Calvary was pay the sin debt for every single person that ever lived. This allowed us to be back in right standing with God the Father allowing us the opportunity to receive the free gift of salvation. This is not a small thing in fact it has to do with where a person’s eternal soul will ultimately be.

The unfortunate thing is that a lot of our family members, friends, and just people in general want to have nothing to do with the Lord let alone receive salvation. That is why it is so important that we consistently pray for our loved ones to have the scales lifted from their eyes so that they can see Jesus clearly. The devil has intentional blinded the minds of unbelievers (2 Corinthians 4:4).

The more sin that they are in, the more of a foothold the devil has over their lives. The good news is there is so much power in prayer and especially diligent and targeted prayers. Your loved ones are not too far gone for the Lord to touch them never believe that lie, it is coming straight from the pit of hell! One key to keep in mind when praying for your family members is the fact that you want to pray without ceasing.

Let’s take a look at some passages of Scripture that disclose what that means.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Here we can see that the Apostle Paul is letting us know the importance of praying without ceasing. The words “without ceasing” being used here is the Greek word “adialeiptōs” which means: without intermission, incessantly, without ceasing. So, in other words we pray until something happens!

A lot of times we become impatient when our prayers don’t get answered right away and so we stop praying altogether. That is the very last thing that we need to do! The Lord is doing things behind the scenes that we often have no idea about. We can never forget that the Lord does not look at the appearance of a person on the outside, but He looks at the condition of their heart.

He will know when the right time is when that person will be receptive to hearing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. John 6:44 gives us some insight when Jesus states, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.” Then Jesus breaks down the result of being drawn to Him in John 6:47 when He states, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.”

There is no better feeling than that, being secure of your salvation knowing that you are going to be with the Lord in Heaven no matter what happens to you here on Earth. This is the good news that we need to share with our family members, friends, and even to strangers. However, a lot of them will require that we intercede for them in prayer!

Let’s take another look some more passages of Scripture regarding praying without ceasing.

James 5:16-17

“…The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.”

Here we can see that James (Jesus’ half-brother) is giving us some vital information regarding our prayers. He is letting us know that our fervent prayers or prayers that put forth power, avails much. The key part that we want to keep in mind is the fact that James is disclosing to us that the prayers of those that are living upright in the eyes of the Lord are that ones that gain much! So, what we can decipher from what James is letting us know is that those that are being a doer of God’s Word can put forth very powerful prayers.

Let’s take a look at the second part of the passage of Scripture James 5:17. It mentions Elijah who was a prophet of God after His heart with unwavering faith, obedience, and trust in God. He took on four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18:22) and prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and the Lord heard him and stopped the rain for three years and six months.

Elijah is demonstrating to us the power of praying diligent and sincere prayers. He was able to stop the rain from coming down through the power of his petitions. He was revealing to Ahab and the prophets of Baal that the God that he served was the One and only True God. The people were able to see first-hand that the gods they were serving were weaker than the Lord!

The final passage of Scripture that I want to highlight is found in the book of Galatians.

Galatians 6:9

“And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”

Here we can see that the Apostle Paul is giving us some critical information regarding praying until you see results. He is letting us know that we will reap a reward if we do not lose heart. The words “do not lose heart” being used here is the Greek word “eklyō” which means: to have one’s strength relaxed, to be enfeebled with exhaustion, to grow weak, grow weary, and be tired.

Paul is showing us in this text that if you press through the doubt, if you keep on praying regardless of what things look like, and if you do not grow tired, you will reap every bit of what you sow. That includes your diligent prayers for your loved one’s salvation. A lot of times we want the Lord to move on our timeline: we want what we want when we want it, how we want it, and we want it right now!

God does not work that way because He is moving based on the condition of a person’s heart. Only He can see your family member’s future in its entirety and will know the perfect time to soften their hearts so that they can receive the gospel of Jesus Christ will be. Our job is to pray without giving up irrespective of that person’s situation.

A lot of us are saved because of the prayers of others. I know my grandmother diligently prayed for me and my entire family every single day. She loved the Lord even up until the very end of her life. She reaped the salvation of some of the loved ones that she was praying for, and you will too if you keep pressing forward. A person’s eternal soul is on the line, and you might just be the only one interceding on their behalf!

Conclusion

Make no mistake about it, one of the greatest gifts that you can give your loved ones, friends, and strangers is the free gift of salvation. From the moment that you receive the “good news” or the gospel of Jesus Christ you are supposed to share it with as many people as you possibly can. Every one of us has souls attached to our names that only we can personally reach.

The Commandment that the Lord Jesus Christ gave us before He went to heaven is called the Great Commission. Matthew 28:19 details, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” This is still the mission today; time is so short we need to pray diligent and fervent prayers for all of our loved ones!

Also, don’t forget to check out my other current blogs:

Praying for your unsaved loved ones-pray the Word of God

Praying for your unsaved loved ones-believing God’s promises

Praying for your unsaved loved ones-be a doer of God’s Word

Breaking Spiritual Strongholds-Fight Back

Breaking Spiritual Strongholds-Feed Your Spirit

Breaking Spiritual Strongholds-Renouncing

Breaking Spiritual Strongholds-Confess and Repent

Recognizing Spiritual Strongholds

What are Spiritual Strongholds?

The Spiritual Laws of God-Poverty Part 1

The Spiritual Laws of God-Poverty Part 2

The Spiritual Laws of God-Restoration

The Spiritual Laws of God-The General Principles

The Spiritual Laws of God-The Power of Your Tongue!

The Spiritual Laws of God-Having an Understanding

Below are some books that I have personally read that I recommend to help you get set free from the enemy and his devices. Each one provides you with warfare practices that you can apply to your daily life. Just click on the Link below the book and it will lead you straight to it. You will not be disappointed!