I am having difficulty praying for the lost when I read Psalms 23:20. This says don’t associate with people who are addicted, whether alcohol, drugs, technology , and mostly ones who commit jihad against innocents by murder, rape, etc. How can I pray to save and love these people when they are commiting atrocities. In other lost souls, how do you deciple them when you shouldn’t associate with them? I know Scripture says to love your enemies and turn the other cheek, but how? I know this is in God’s realm of justice and judgement not mine,b but seeing the blatant lack of anything resembling values and morals in today’s world it is hard to pray for the people commiting them. So help and have a very blessed day.Also read 1 Corinthians 5: 8-13
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You can talk to God any time you want. As a matter of fact, the apostle Paul told us to pray constantly (1 Thessalonians 5:17). (You don’t have to pray out loud.)
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I know that. It’s what I"m praying for when the Scripture is confusing.
Just talk to God about what’s on your mind and listen to what he is saying to you. It takes time to learn to understand God, maybe a lifetime, but praying is listening as well as speaking.
I have also wrestled with this, however, a friend reminded me that God plays no favorites and although our earthly consequences vary depending on the crime, He views all sin as equal. He is still in the business of changing hearts (look at Saul’s conversion to Paul on the road to Damascus). Nothing is impossible for Him, so I would continue to pray for His intervention. I hope this response is appropriate.
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May I make two suggestions.
- Please quote the psalm that is confusing you. Psalm 23 has 6 verses, so verse 20 belongs to another psalm.
2.get involved in missionary organisations and pray intelligently for the issues raised by those organisations.
The world is a big place and praying intelligently for every issue in the world is impossible, so support a local drug reabilitation charity, support a regional mission, support an international mission and pray intelligently for them as well as for the issues and needs in your local church.
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Hey @jjgulfwarvet. Living as a believer in a world filled with violence, terrorism, addiction, and blatant immorality is heavy, and feeling morally repulsed by horrific acts is a natural reaction. God hates those atrocities even more than we do. It is completely understandable to struggle with how to pray for people committing such harm. A few biblical insights might help clear up the confusion and ease the weight on your heart.
It helps to look at the exact contexts of the verses you mentioned:
The “Psalms 23:20” Reference? Psalm 23 only has 6 verses, but you are likely thinking of Proverbs 23:20 (“Do not join those who drink too much wine…”) or passages in Psalm 1 about avoiding the path of the ungodly. These passages warn us not to adopt the lifestyle, habits, or counsel of destructive people so we aren’t led astray. They are about guarding your own heart, not forbidding you from helping or praying for someone.
1 Corinthians 5:8–13 (Inside vs. Outside the Church)? Paul actually clarifies this exact issue! In 1 Corinthians 5:9–10, he explicitly says: “I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people—not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral… In that case you would have to leave this world.” Paul’s instruction to withhold fellowship applies strictly to professing Christians who claim to follow Christ while living in unrepentant sin. He expected believers to interact with lost unbelievers in the culture.
You don’t have to invite dangerous criminals or active, unrepentant abusers into your inner circle to minister to the lost. Jesus spent time with tax collectors and sinners as a “physician to the sick,” but He never adopted their actions, nor did He place Himself in unnecessary danger. You can disciple or share the Gospel with people struggling with addictions or deep sin through structured environments (like church ministries, outreach programs, or recovery groups) where safety and boundaries exist.
Praying? Praying for terrorists, murderers, or malicious people does not mean asking God to excuse their evil or spare them from earthly justice. When you pray for people committing atrocities, you are praying for: Conviction and Conversion: Pray that God breaks their heart, stops their evil acts, and brings them to true repentance. Just as He transformed Saul of Tarsus (who actively approved of murdering Christians) into the Apostle Paul.
Justice and Protection: You can pray that God thwarts their plans, protects their victims, and upholds justice. Praying for an enemy’s salvation is fundamentally a prayer for their evil behavior to stop. Also, praying for them guards your heart from being consumed by bitterness or hatred. Romans 12:19 reminds us that vengeance belongs to the Lord; we can hand our anger over to Him, knowing He sees every evil act and will judge righteously.
Blessings to you!
Peter
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PeterC, that’s exactly the answer I was looking for. You told me what the difference is between the two concepts I was having difficulty with in specific words of prayer. I can’t thank you enough. I knew you would come through.
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Romans 12:19 is what I keep reminding myself as I have no major anxieties except when the country’s spiritual base of the citizens are under attack from everwhere. Unfortunately, if it’s on social media you know it’s true…lol. Seriously, I get my truth from God’s truth in the Bible. The degradation of our morals and values in education, political ineffectiveness, etc. effects so many innocents. My compassion seems to lie with them rather than unrighteous ones commiting the atrocities, but I know I can’t solve the world’s problems, but now know what to actually say to the Lord in my prayers for them also. God Bless you all in helping me with this conundrum.
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Sorry. I meant Proverbs. Thanks for your input.
Thank you for the kind words, I’m glad it helped.
Be blessed, be as blessing.
Peter
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My dad was an abusive alcoholic and all of our family fallowed after him even with his prideful behaver of screwing each other over money constant lying cheating and stealing from anyone to get ahead in this world but I drank to prove you didn’t have to be a liar cheat or abusive when you drank. I wanted to prove drinking didn’t cause people to serve Satan that Satan was already in their hearts and it wasn’t alcohol that made them do anything like people were always telling me I had to forgive them they didn’t know what tey were doing because they were drunk, I was often drunk beyond the limit but I never harmed anyone lied cheated or stole anything from anyone ever because I had Jesus in my heart always and that made all the difference in this world and will make all the difference in the next world when I see Jesus face to face and I look forward to that day as my best day ever.
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Mike, your story exposes a very real truth: drunkenness is never a valid excuse for abuse, dishonesty, or mistreating family. As Jesus taught, what comes out of a person reflects what is inside them (Mark 7:20–23).
At the same time, while it’s incredible that God guarded your heart against becoming bitter, abusive, or dishonest, please be careful with alcohol itself. Even if it didn’t turn you into a liar or abuser, heavy drinking can still harm your body, mind, and spirit over time. God loves you deeply and wants you to experience full peace and freedom from the shadows of your family’s past.
Be blessed, be a blessing, and Jesus is LORD!
Peter
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It taught me to forgive the unforgiveable all the way to my father’s death bed and lead him to Christ and my brothers as well but my younger brother is so fixed on drugs and hateful I can’t get through to him and other members of my family are standing with him now with his drug addiction against my words but all will be up to God in the end in pray to his glory not mine as for myself all will be as God directs and I except his will.
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Just keep in mind God loves us all sinners to try praying with one of them in person and focus on what Jesus would do and that’s simply to help guide them to the father use it shouldn’t matter what you think they did or how you should look at what they did we are to love unconditionally tha same way Christ loved us use your heart and your empathy for them knowing they need help opening there heart to the father we can help these people pour your heart out sincerely to them try desperately to help them open there heart
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Try fasting fasting allows us to become humble and it also softens our heart to the point where we can use our softness to reach someone’s heart fasting is helpful for your health it has helped me fight off sickness it has also help me fight off cancer the longer you fast the more your body is purged from all of the impurities that we’ve eaten for so long that stored up in our fat fasting purifies this and also purifies your heart fasting makes you more effective at reaching someone’s heart try it to soften your heart so you can be more effective at reaching him
Jesus said, “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do.” As he hung on the cross and died. He was referring to all humanity, including us. I often wondered how he could say this, knowing well that they did know what they were doing. Stephen, in the book of Acts, as his last and dying words, said the same thing as he was being stoned. The Bible says that we have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Daily we ask God to forgive us for our sins, knowing that we “didn’t know what we were doing” when we sinned and did things we sometimes can’t control. If we approach others with this same mindset in Christ Jesus, we will be able to pray for others. Even Paul, who wrote a majority of the New Testament, committed sins against the followers of Jesus and even had some murdered until he saw Jesus on the road to Damascus and was ultimately transformed into his image. Treasures still lie in darkness, and God desires to save and transform them. It is up to us who are recipients of his grace to reach those hidden treasures. If we can’t preach to lost souls, we can certainly pray for them to repent and return to God.
I am reminded of this scripture: “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of God.” 1 Cor 6:11
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Rom 3:23
I hope this helps. Our goal as believers is to become more like Jesus. 