Short version: yes. When you pay for prayer, you're paying for a person's time—not buying God's gift, and not buying God's answer. Here's my story.
I couldn't find anyone who'd let me pay
Years ago, a marketing mentor told me to go find a paid intercessor for my business. It sounded strange—but I asked four people over several months.
The first said, "The Bible says, 'Freely you have received, freely give.' I'll pray for you, but not for pay."
The second, in horror: "Oh! I could never traffic in the Holy Spirit!"
The third and fourth weren't opposed—just too busy.
I was confused. My parents had paid their staff to pray for nearly thirty years, and I'd always seen it as an expression of their values, not a sin. So I asked the obvious question: how is this different from paying a worship leader, or a pastor?
You pay for the time, not the gift
No one can buy the Holy Spirit. No one can buy God's answer. Those are gifts, and a gift is a gift.
But you can pay for a person's hours, training, and dedicated skill, exactly as you pay a teaching pastor to prepare a sermon, or a worship leader for their craft. You pay for the time, not for the gift.
But doesn't scripture forbid this?
The verse people reach for is "freely you have received, freely give" (Matthew 10:8). But notice: congregations don't say that to their pastors, who pray and prepare all week. We don't expect the janitorial service to clean as sacrificial worship, or a Bible to be free. We pay for time and skill everywhere else. Why would prayer be the one exception?
We might also think of Simon the Sorcerer (Acts 8), who offered money for the power of the Spirit. But look closely: Simon's error was trying to buy the gift of God for himself. That's impossible, and it's not what's happening when you compensate a person for the hours they spend interceding on your behalf.
You already believe this
The discomfort usually comes from an old, unexamined "sacred/secular" divide—the idea that it's fine to be paid to lead worship or clean a church, but somehow not to pray. That's not biblical, but it is familiar.
Consider: researcher C. Peter Wagner once found that the average pastor prays about twenty-two minutes a day. Which means a portion of every pastor's salary already pays for prayer. You've been comfortable with paid prayer your whole life.
It's all over the Bible
Far from forbidding it, scripture shows many examples of supported intercession:
King David placed eight thousand Levites on the payroll to worship and intercede—morning and evening. And the more David established their role, the more Israel's borders extended.
Melchizedek blessed Abram, and Abram gave a tithe in joyful response. Kings kept seers and prophets near—when Saul went to inquire of Samuel, his first thought was, "What can we give the man?" The pattern of honoring and supporting those dedicated to prayer runs from Genesis to the epistles.
The part that surprises people
Here's what our clients discover: paying for prayer doesn't cheapen it. It frees them. As one put it over dinner:
"The fact that I pay for it releases me from any feeling of guilt—'Oh gosh, am I bothering them?' So it makes it easy not just to ask, but to ask often."
There's an old principle in it: "I will not offer to the Lord that which costs me nothing" (2 Samuel 24:24). When we invest in something, we value it. Where your treasure is, your heart follows.
So—should you?
If you'd never dream of asking your accountant or your attorney to work for free, it's worth asking why your intercessors should. Prayer over your business is a real function, done by real people giving real hours. Paying for prayer isn't strange. It might be one of the wisest investments you make.
Still wondering whether praying for increase tips into the “prosperity gospel”? Here’s our answer.