Prayer Lists
Prayer Lists let your congregation share, track, and follow prayer requests. Members can submit requests, add updates, indicate they are praying, and stay informed as situations develop.
Enabling Prayer Lists
Step 1: Assign Permissions
By default, members can see and access Prayer Lists. No special permissions are needed for regular members.
Admin users need appropriate permissions to manage prayer requests:
Go to Settings > Roles & Permissions
Select the role you want to modify
Enable these permissions as needed:
View Prayer List — Browse prayer requests in admin
Manage Prayer List — Create, edit, approve/decline requests, manage folders and settings
Delete Prayer List — Delete prayer requests
Prayer List Settings
Access settings from Admin > Prayer List > Settings. These are account-wide toggles that affect all members.
Member Submissions
Allow members to submit prayer requests
When enabled, members can submit prayer requests from the member web app and mobile app.
Automatically approve member submitted prayer requests
When enabled, submitted requests are published immediately without admin review. When disabled, requests go into a pending queue for admin approval.
Likes ("Praying")
The likes feature lets members indicate they are praying for a request. It appears as a "Praying" button on each prayer request.
Allow members to indicate they are praying for a request
Enables the "Praying" button on prayer requests. Members can toggle it on and off.
Show the number of members praying for a request
Displays a count of how many members are praying (e.g., "5 people praying"). When disabled, members can still indicate they are praying but cannot see how many others are. Requires the above setting to also be enabled.
Privacy: The identity of who is praying is never shared. Members can only see their own praying status and (if enabled) an aggregate count. No names or user information is ever displayed alongside likes.
Creating Prayer Requests
From the Admin Panel
Admins with the Manage Prayer List permission can create prayer requests from Admin > Prayer List > Create.
Title
A short summary of the prayer request
Details
Full description of the situation
Folder
Optional folder to organize the request
User Tags
Tag members related to the request — their contact information will be shown to other members for easy reach-out
Prayer Editors
Designate members who can add and edit updates on this request (see below)
Expires At
Automatically hide the request after this date
Hidden
Hide the request from members (admin-only visibility)
From the Member App (Web & Mobile)
When Allow members to submit prayer requests is enabled in settings, members can submit requests from:
The Prayer List page in the member web app (via the "Submit a Request" button)
The Prayer List screen in the mobile app
Members provide a title and details. If auto-approval is enabled, the request is published immediately. Otherwise, it enters a pending queue for admin review.
From the Mobile App (Admin)
Admins can also create prayer requests from the mobile app with the same fields available in the admin panel, including folder assignment, expiration dates, visibility settings, user tags, and prayer editors.
Prayer Editors
Prayer editors are specific members designated on a prayer request who are allowed to:
Add updates to the prayer request
Edit existing updates on the prayer request
This is useful when the subject of a prayer request (or someone close to them) should be able to provide progress updates without having full admin access.
Prayer editors are set by admins when creating or editing a prayer request. They appear in the "Prayer Editors" field on the admin create/edit forms.
Note: Prayer editors cannot edit the prayer request itself (title, details, etc.) — only add and edit updates. The original prayer request can be edited by admins or the member who originally submitted it.
Approving & Declining Requests
When auto-approval is disabled, submitted prayer requests enter a pending state.
From the Admin Panel
Go to Admin > Prayer List
Pending requests appear in a Pending Member Requests section
Click on a pending request to view it
Click Approve Request to publish it or Decline Request to archive it
From the Mobile App
Admins can also manage pending requests from the mobile app:
Navigate to the pending requests section in Prayer List
View the request details
Approve or decline the request
Notes:
Approving a request makes it visible to all members and sends notifications to those who have opted in
Declining a request archives it — the submitting member is not notified
Hidden requests do not trigger notifications, even when approved
Prayer Updates
Updates provide a timeline of progress on a prayer request. They appear in chronological order beneath the original request details.
Who Can Add Updates
Admins with the Manage Prayer List permission
Prayer editors designated on the specific prayer request
Adding Updates (Admin Panel)
From the prayer request edit page in admin, use the Add an Update form at the top of the left column.
Adding Updates (Member Web App)
When viewing a prayer request, members who are designated as prayer editors will see an Add an Update button. Clicking it opens a modal where they can enter the update details.
A notice in the modal informs them that the update will be published immediately, is visible to the entire congregation, and will send notifications to members who have opted in.
Adding Updates (Mobile App)
Both admins and prayer editors can add updates from the mobile app when viewing a prayer request.
Editing Updates
Updates can be edited by:
Admins with the Manage Prayer List permission
Prayer editors on the parent prayer request
In the member web app, an Edit button appears next to each update the current user has permission to modify. Clicking it opens a modal to edit the update text.
Viewing Prayer Requests
Member Web App
The Prayer List page shows:
Folders at the top for organized browsing
Prayer requests listed below with title, last updated time, update count, and like indicators
Click any prayer to view its full details, updates timeline, tagged members, and the praying button
Mobile App
The mobile app provides a full prayer list experience:
Browse all visible prayer requests
View individual prayer details with full update history
Submit new prayer requests (when enabled)
Indicate you're praying for a request
Add updates (if you're an admin or prayer editor)
Approve or decline pending requests (admin)
Folders
Folders help organize prayer requests into categories (e.g., "Health", "Family", "Missions").
Managing Folders
Go to Admin > Prayer List
Use the sidebar to create, edit, reorder, or delete folders
Assign prayers to folders when creating or editing them
Folder Visibility
Folders can be marked as hidden, which hides the folder and all prayers inside it from members. This is useful for preparing a set of prayers before making them public.
Notifications
Prayer list notifications are sent to members who have opted in to receive them. Two types of notifications can be sent:
New Prayer Request — When a new prayer is published (created by admin, or approved from pending)
Prayer Update — When an update is added to an existing prayer
Notifications are not sent when:
A prayer request is hidden
A prayer request is pending approval (not yet approved)
The parent prayer of an update is hidden
Notification delivery methods (email, mobile push) are configured in the Prayer List notification settings by the admin.
Mobile App Features
The mobile app provides full prayer list functionality:
View prayer list
All members
View prayer details & updates
All members
Submit a prayer request
All members (when enabled in settings)
Indicate "Praying"
All members (when likes enabled)
Edit own submitted prayer
The member who submitted it
Add/edit updates
Admins and designated prayer editors
Create prayer requests (full)
Admins
Edit prayer requests (full)
Admins
View pending requests
Admins
Approve/decline requests
Admins
Delete prayer requests
Admins with delete permission
Frequently Asked Questions
Can members see who is praying for a request? No. The identity of who is praying is never shared. Members can only see their own status and an aggregate count (if the count setting is enabled).
Can members edit their own submitted prayer requests? Yes. The member who originally submitted a prayer request can edit its title and details.
What happens when a prayer request expires? It is automatically hidden from members. Admins can still see and manage expired requests.
Can prayer editors edit the original prayer request? No. Prayer editors can only add and edit updates. The original request can be edited by admins or the member who submitted it.
How do I designate someone as a prayer editor? When creating or editing a prayer request in the admin panel, use the "Prayer Editors" field to search for and select members.
Are hidden prayer requests visible to anyone? Only admins with the appropriate permissions can see hidden prayer requests. They are not visible in the member web app or mobile app.
Do hidden prayers send notifications? No. Hidden prayers and their updates never trigger notifications, even if notifications are otherwise enabled.
Last updated